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With a clear shot to his face, I deliver my wicked right hook. He drops Sophia, who immediately scrambles to my side, and I wrap her in my arms where she’s protected, safe.
Kozlov, the coward, dives into the backseat as the tires screech in their haste to leave the scene. He knows he’s a dead man, whether I ended his life tonight or it waits for another time, makes no difference. He tried to steal my principessa and he’s going to pay the ultimate price for that attempt.
I cradle Sophia’s face between my palms. “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”
“I’m fine. Just a little shaken up.” She covers my hands with her own. “Where is my security? How did Nik get to me?”
Good fucking question.
I hold her against my chest, taking a moment to look around. Baron has the other goon on his knees, a knife held to his throat. Without any hesitation, Baron draws the blade across his neck, a clean, deep cut. Blood flows freely down the man’s chest and onto the grimy pavement.
I can always count on him to have my back. We’ve been there for each other since college.
The exit door bursts open. Ginevra, Arianna, and Ravenna come pouring into the night air. They take one look at Baron’s impassive expression and the dead man at his feet, and abruptly come to a halt. Their eyes are wide with horror.
Finally, the door opens again, and one of the bodyguards I assigned to Sophia emerges.
“Fuck, fuck,” he says, taking us all in. “They’re all dead, boss. These fuckers got the jump on us all at once.”
“I don’t care for your fucking excuses. Get this cleaned up. Now.” My harsh tone snaps him out of his shock and into action.
“Yes, sir.”
The girls step around the two dead goons and rush up to Sophia. She dislodges herself from my hold to embrace them.
While they’re checking in with each other, I approach Baron. “Cut off all of his resources. I want him to have to go all the way to Russia to find a single soul for hire. Fuck it, make sure no one from his home country will work with him either. He’s a dead man walking.”
If our wedding wasn’t in two days' time, I’d hunt down Kozlov myself. But I don’t know how long it will take to find him, and I need to be there for Sophia. A pathetic piece of shit like Kozlov is not going to get in the way of my plans with my new wife.
Baron gives a curt nod. “Consider it done. Whenever you want him found, just say the word.”
“Very good. When the time comes, I’ll hunt him down myself.” I uncurl my fists and sigh. Kozlov will be my first order of business once we return home from our honeymoon. I don’t give a shit about his suffering anymore, the next time I see him, I’m going to gut him. “I’m taking Sophia home. I’ll have my driver—”
The door slams open for a third time, banging against the brick building. A man so broad and tall that he has to duck into the opening, steps forward. I immediately recognize him by the scars across his surly face and his blond hair pulled into a ponytail at the nape of his neck.
Cian “The Beast” O’Rourke.
“Ravenna,” he snarls at his wife.
“Cian? What are you doing here?” She goes to him, not at all afraid of the enormous, pissed off man.
“You didn’t actually think I’d let you out of my sight, did you?” He palms the back of her neck and draws Ravenna in for a heated, possessive kiss.
Hm, he seems like a man who shares my sentiments. I only know him by his reputation, having never met in person until now.
Holding Ravenna to his side, he addresses me. “I’ll take the women home. We’ll go around the side of the building because it’s a madhouse in there.”
“Very well.” I send a text to my driver, then wait while Sophia says her goodbyes for the night. Standing slightly away from them, along with O’Rourke and Baron, I study the man.
The Beast’s massive stature makes Baron and myself look slight in comparison, which is no easy feat. The man is imposing, rough enough around the edges that even I wouldn’t want to meet him in a dark alley. Yet, here we are.
“Goodnight. See you soon.” Sophia joins me as our car pulls up, and my arm automatically snakes around her waist.
I nod a farewell to the two men. Both of whom I’ll be seeing again at the wedding.
As soon as we’re seated inside, she turns to me. “I know Nik doesn’t care about me at all. We were never in love, and he was hardly even affectionate toward me. So what’s going on? Why does he want me back enough to kidnap me? Is it his pride?”
“Is that what he told you? That he wants you back?” My teeth clench, my fingers form fists.
