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Chapter 1
Russell
“IsweartoGod,if you ever let anyone get that close to her again when I’m not present, you’re going to be looking for a new job. And you better believe I’ll make it impossible for you to find anything other than washing dishes somewhere.”
Russell Adler stood behind his desk in the home office he’d set up in the London flat he shared with Gemma when they were in the UK—which was all the time recently. A young bodyguard with just a few years of experience stood stock still, but Russell could see the slightest tremble in his hands as he dressed the man down for letting paparazzi get too close to his wife at a charity function.
Gemma and her very pregnant sister, Kendall, were nearly trampled by the idiots. The constant barrage of press coverage had been going on for weeks ever since their mother, a popular woman among British nobility, passed away.
“Yes, sir, Mr. Adler. We apologize. They were coming from all sides, so we’re going to double her detail, and Mr. Bruce wants his wife’s detail doubled as well.”
Russell glanced at his watch. Where the hell was Matthew, anyway? He was supposed to be here half an hour ago.
“That will be all,” he said, dismissing the guard. He gave a curt nod and turned on his heel to exit the room.
Russell sat behind his desk again and closed the screen with the tabloid pictures of his wife. He hated it when the press got too close. After everything they went through in the beginning of their relationship, he did his best to protect her from the cameras. But she was still a well-known figure among Great Britain’s elite, and despite his desire to keep her naked in his bed twenty-four/seven, she still had responsibilities to see to.
Thankfully, they were getting ready to head back to the States for a few months after the holidays. They weren’t as famous in the U.S. as they were in London, so he could relax there. Especially when they were at his compound in California.
He heard the door to the flat open, and he thought it was Gemma. Instead, his brother-in-law and Gemma’s ex-husband, Matthew Bruce stepped into his office looking breathless.
“Everything alright?” There was always a tightness in his chest when Gemma was away from him. Even after five years that hadn’t gone away.
Matthew grinned. “Everything is perfect. The third trimester agrees with Kendall. But I’ll spare you the details.”
Russell made a face and motioned for him to sit down.
“The press got entirely too close to them last night,” he said when Matthew was settled.
“I saw that. Kendall is fine, though. Even pregnant, she was ready to kick someone’s ass. It pisses her off that I sent as much security as I did.”
Russell chuckled. Matthew’s wife—Gemma’s sister—was a former spy for the British government and had only recently fully retired to have a baby. He didn’t like being envious of his family, but he and Gemma had been trying for two years to get pregnant, and so far, it hadn’t happened. They did their best to not let it strain their relationship, and the connection they shared was strong, but he hated seeing the sadness in her eyes every month when she realized she wasn’t pregnant. Not to mention the fact that he wasn’t getting any younger. At fifty-four, it felt like he might be running out of time to be a father.
“Earth to Russell.” Matthew waved a hand in front of his face and Russell blinked.
“Sorry. Just daydreaming. What did you want to see me about?”
Matthew grinned and tapped his phone screen. “What do you think about this place for a vacation? Kendall has been asking for time with her sister that doesn’t have to do with settling their mother’s estate.”
Russell took the phone Matthew passed him and read about the exclusive winter resort in Switzerland. It boasted high end shops, every winter sport imaginable. The main lodge had dozens of cozy suites, and there were separate private cabins on the property as well. In some ways, it reminded him of Club Solitaire. He missed that place. Serendipity was a great BDSM club, but it catered to a very specific brand of kink, and they had to be in just the right mood to enjoy it.
He was ready to get back to his home away from home regularly after the new year. And now, the club was expanding and opening a new version of the club in New Orleans. Russell was excited to take Gemma on a vacation there sometime soon.
“I’ll talk to Gem about it. She asked if she could take Kendall away on a vacation just the two of them, but I told her no.”
Matthew chuckled. “Yeah, Kendall wanted the same thing. But she didn’t argue when I said no. It’s just too dangerous right now. They’ve been in the press more than ever since their mother died.”
The door slammed open in the main room and Russell jumped up, his hand automatically reaching for the weapon that wasn’t there. Gemma didn’t like it when he wore a gun in the house.
Then he heard the voice that could simultaneously soothe him and make his palm itch to hold her down and make her scream.
“Russell, what the bloody hell do you think you’re doing, doubling my security?”
Matthew cleared his throat as she stepped into the room, and Gemma stopped in her tracks. “Oh. I didn’t know you were here.”
“Nice to see you too, Gem. Kendall wants you to call her later.”
He stood and kissed his ex on the cheek. Their relationship was odd for sure, and in the beginning, it nearly kept Russell from pursuing her, but he’d come to his senses, thank God, and had spent the last five years in the best relationship he’d ever had.
