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“Declan. Natalia.” He gives us a quick nod. “Natalia, go see your mother. She has been worried about you.” Ivan turns his attention from me to Natalia.
“Yes, sir,” Natalia says as she squeezes my arm once before heading into the house.
“Follow me,” Ivan says as he turns and walks inside.
Shutting the door behind me, I follow him through the halls I remember running in as a child. As we walk, my steps falter as I catch a glimpse of a photo of Natalia, Dmitri, and myself when we were kids. We come to a stop outside of his office as he unlocks the door and enters the room.
“If you don’t mind,” he gestures to the table beside the door, indicating the place for me to lay my gun. I nod and unholster my gun, laying it on the table as instructed. Although, I would love nothing more than to shoot him, just like he did to Natalia. He then motions to the chair across from his desk.
Ivan pours two glasses of whiskey. “You should know this makes things complicated.”
“I understand. My father definitely has a way of doing that. But I will be taking over within the month so my father is of no concern.” I say, taking the glass as he holds it out to me. “As I mentioned before, with our businesses, we are already powerful. But with the families combined, we would control both the weapon and drug imports together. Making us the most powerful family on the East Coast.” I stop to take a sip of my whiskey.
Ivan nods and downs his drink before sitting the empty glass beside him on the desk. Leaning back, he props himself against his mahogany desk. “You make a valid point,” he says as he rubs his chin. “Despite what Natalia may have told you, I’m not a heartless bastard. I’ve done what I had to do to make sure she doesn’t get eaten alive in this world. It’s hard being a man, and even worse for a woman. Natalia has a good head on her shoulders, and she is a force to be reckoned with.”
“I agree. She is something else. I can also guarantee that we will oversee the businesses as a team. I will not steamroll her into being anything less than my equal.” I drain the rest of my whiskey and put the glass on the table beside me. I hate that so many men hold the mindset that women are only good for two things. Babies and housework.
“You have made a compelling argument,” he says before standing upright. He walks around to his chair behind the desk and sits down. “What will happen if you get divorced?”
“Absolutely. If, for some reason, we get divorced, we split the businesses equally. The weapons go to Natalia and the drugs to me. Natalia will keep her profits from the gun trades and I’ll keep my profits from the drugs,” I explain, looking him in the eye.
“It seems you have thought of everything,” he says, leaning forward and resting his arms on the desk.
“I have,” I nod.
“Well, I guess the only thing left to say is, you better keep up your end of the deal. Treat her as your equal partner. I have many connections, as you know, and I am not afraid to use them on someone mistreating my daughter.” He stands and holds out his hand. “Welcome to the family.”
Chapter eighteen
Natalia
Pacing back and forth in the hall, I chew on my nail. “Natalia, you’re going to make your nails ugly,” my mother groans, and I roll my eyes.
“Mother, no one gives a shit what my nails look like. If they’re close enough to see them, it’s because they’ve got a gun to their head and they’re not really interested in my nails at that point,” I retort, and she sighs sadly. “They have been in there forever.”
Just as I’m about to lose my mind, the door opens. When they walk out, Declan gives me an almost unnoticeable nod as they slide their guns back into their designated places. Letting out a relieved exhale, I try to hide my smile.
“Natalia, would you like to join me for lunch?” Declan asks, holding his hand out to me.
“Of course,” I say, giving him a slight smile, taking his hand. He leads me out of the house and back to my car.
“Mind if I drive?” He asks.
I shrug and slide my sunglasses on. “Be my guest,” I say as I toss my keys to him and walk over to the passenger side before sliding in. “Where are we going for lunch?”
“I made reservations at your favorite restaurant,” he says sheepishly, and I find myself grinning.
“Pulling out all the stops, are we?” I ask,
“Anything for you,mo ghrá.” He reaches over and grabs my hand, intertwining our fingers.
My stomach instantly fills with butterflies at his touch, and I can’t stop the smile that grows on my face. I can’t explain it, but being around Declan calms the storms that I often find raging inside. I squeeze his hand gently and glance out the window at the scenery as it rushes past. “What did you and my father talk about?” I ask curiously.
“Just business things. He didn’t shoot me, so that’s a plus, right?” He says with a laugh as he brings my hand up to kiss the back of it.
When we arrive at the restaurant, Declan drives around to the valet and hands him the keys after getting out. Once he arrives at my side, he opens the door for me and I slide out. He leads us inside, his hand placed on the small of my back. After telling the host the name on the reservation, he turns to me and gives me a smile.
Once we are seated, he looks down at the menu. “I think I’m going to get spaghetti. What about you?”
