"You're insane! Vivienne, you've completely lost your mind!" Mia grabbed my shoulders and shook me. "You're actually going to be Nikolai Volkov's fiancée? And you signed some goddamn cohabitation agreement?"
"Relax, Mia." I tried to brush off her hands and went back to packing my makeup. "It's just a transaction. He needs a shield, I need money for my mom's medical bills, and I can use him as perfect material for my next novel. Win-win-win. Perfect arrangement."
"Perfect my ass!" Mia screeched and slapped my suitcase. "You have no idea what kind of monster you've gotten mixed up with! I had my brother check that black card Sasha delivered. The fund trail is so hidden even Swiss banks' highest clearance can't track it! My dad dealt with some of the Volkov family's outer circle thugs before. They're actual throat-ripping monsters!"
Mia took a deep breath, her eyes filled with genuine panic. "Washington's underground is full of terrifying rumors about him. They say Nikolai Volkov is cold-blooded and ruthless. Anyone who betrays him gets chopped up and sunk in the river. You think you're writing some romance novel about a domineering CEO? He's a mob boss! You're a lamb walking into a tiger's den!"
"Mia, you're being way too dramatic." I stuffed my last few lipsticks into my makeup bag and zipped it up. "He's not some psycho serial killer. We've met twice. Yeah, he's sharp-tongued and has a temper, but at least... he's somewhat reasonable."
My mind flashed back to that fevered, suffocating kiss in the dressing room. My ears burned, and I quickly shook the dangerous image away.
"No, V, listen to me, he—"
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Three measured, steady knocks interrupted our argument.
I walked over and opened the door.
Sasha—the man who'd delivered the card—stood there in that same welded-on black suit, expressionless. His massive frame blocked out almost all the hallway light.
His cold eyes swept past me and scanned my bare-bones apartment.
"Ms. Cole, the Pakhan sent me to pick you up." Sasha's voice cut like metal. "The car's downstairs. If you're ready, we can leave now."
Mia immediately charged in front of me like a mother hen protecting her chick, blocking Sasha's view. She looked the Terminator-like man up and down, hostility plain in her eyes.
"You're that enforcer called Sasha?" Mia crossed her arms. I could hear the tremor in her voice, but she tried to sound brave, chin tilted high with rich-girl arrogance. "Go tell your mob boss if Vivienne loses a single hair or suffers any mistreatment in his territory, I don't care if you're Volkov or whatever the hell kind of mafia—I'll hire the best lawyers and sue you into bankruptcy!"
I pulled her behind me and said apologetically to Sasha, "Sorry, this is my best friend, Mia Torres. She's just... overly concerned."
Sasha lowered his eyelids expressionlessly and looked at Mia with the kind of contempt you'd show a trash can.
"It's fine, Ms. Cole. But I should say, Ms. Torres—" Sasha spoke coldly, voice completely flat. "Your threats carry about as much weight as the rats running around this building. Protecting Ms. Cole is my job. I don't need you to tell me how to do it."
"Did you just call me a rat?" Mia exploded and stepped forward in her heels, ready to tear into him.
God. This was a train wreck.
I mentally cursed Sasha as an "emotionless block of wood" and quickly wedged myself between them, grabbing Mia's arm tightly.
"Okay, okay, Mia, calm down!" I patted her backsoothingly and turned to Sasha with an apologetic fake smile. "Give me one minute outside. I'll be right there."
Sasha didn't waste words. He nodded, stepped back, and stood in the hallway like a sentinel.
I pulled Mia back into the room and hugged her hard.
"Don't worry, Mia. I swear I'll take care of myself." I looked into her worried eyes seriously. "My phone will be on 24/7. If anything feels wrong, I'll send you an SOS immediately. It's just one year. Think of it like I'm doing an immersive writing retreat, okay?"
Mia bit her lip, eyes misting. She hugged me back tight and warned fiercely, "Text me morning and night. Every day. If I don't hear from you for twenty-four hours, I'm calling the police. Got it?"
"Got it."
I dragged my suitcase out of the apartment. Mia followed me all the way downstairs. Before watching me get in the car, she shook her fist at Sasha standing by the door and yelled, "Watch her, you giant! If anything happens to her, I won't let you off!"
Sasha didn't even blink. He took my suitcase, shoved it roughly into the armored SUV's trunk, then opened the car door for me.
With a heavy thud of the door, I was completely cut off from my old ordinary life.
