AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You think there’ll be a riot?” I nodded.
He shrugged. “It is possible. They would want to cause trouble. We should be prepared for anything.”
“We will,” I said and turned my gaze back to the windshield.
“And what about the girl, boss?” Alexei glanced at me. “Connor’s daughter?”
I knew what he was getting at. It was unusual for me to keep a hostage who wasn't willing to cooperate for a long time, and he wanted to know why I was treating her differently. I could trust Alexei, so I decided to be honest.
I grinned from ear to ear when I said, “There’s only one solution. I’ll marry her.”
“Marry her?” He did not hide the surprise in his voice. “Why would you do that? She's the daughter of an Irish mobster, a dead one mind you, but still, the Irish won’t like such an arrangement. You're pouring fuel on an already smoldering fire. And will she ever trust you, will she ever tell you where the envelope is? I don’t think you can trust her.”
I laughed out loud, and Alexei furrowed his brow as he pressed the horn and maneuvered through other vehicles as we passed the traffic. He was right: I couldn’t trust her yet. But trust was the last thing on my mind when I thought about marrying her. It was a selfish, lustful desire to have her all to myself. The thought of anyone else, any other man, laying a hand on her made my blood boil. I wanted Grace so badly that I couldn't understand it myself, but besides, I had to protect her and the information she had.
Alexei was still expecting an answer, so I cleared my throat and began. “It’s about power and control. Her life would be in danger if I let her go. Connor may have been a fucking asshole, but he ran a solid business. No one can deny he was an intelligent man and that's why the Irish mob is doing alright.”
A knowing smile appeared on Alexei’s face, and I realized that he was catching up very quickly. “That makes them very valuable commodities.”
I grinned, leaned back in my seat, and relaxed. “Exactly. As their boss is dead, Connor’s idiot son will take over. God, forbid he gets his hands on the envelope, but if I get rid of him too, that leaves only Grace as heir. Now that we're this close to getting the information in our possession, you understand why I must marry her.”
“Yes, boss. If you marry her, you get control of the Irish.”
I nodded, proud that he understood the goal. “It’s always about power, business, and money, Alexei. Marriage is nothing more than a simple means of acquisition and expansion,” I said casually, and the ride remained silent for a while before he cleared his throat again.
“But we have to remember that we're responsible for Connor’s death, and if all goes according to plan, we'll get his son out of the way too. We know the consequences of that, boss.
Will the Irish people still serve you if they know you killed both of their leaders?”
I snorted. “We have nothing to fear from the Irish. All they care about is money. They have no morals—heartless bastards. If I help them double their profits, they'll serve me.”
“Great!”, he exclaimed and let out a short laugh. “We’ve got them right where we want them. Good plan, boss.”
I nodded and a smile played around my lips. “You too will do great things, Alexei.”
Because of the nature of our work, we don’t have many friends. Friendships and trust had to be hard-earned. Apart from my cousins Vlad and Damien Varkov and Andrei Fedorov, Alexei Petrov was the only other friend I had. Years ago, when he was still a teenager, he fell into the wrong circles, but fortunately, he was picked up and trained by the Bratva.
He was a quick learner, and no doubt had a bit of a temper, but he was reliable and loyal.
That was one of the reasons why I knew I could trust him with anything, including information on a personal level.
“One last question?” he asked.
“You may, Alexei.” I chuckled.
He rubbed the back of his neck and grinned. “Are you saying you're in no other way interested in Connor's daughter, boss?”
Maybe not that personal.
I fell silent for a moment, lost in thought. Alexei straightened up in his seat and he noticed my reluctance to continue the conversation.
There was an undeniable attraction between Grace and me, I could feel it. She was determined to push all my buttons, as wild and smart-mouthed as she was beautiful. Her temperament drove me crazy, and I couldn't explain why she triggered something in me that I hadn't felt in years.
Fortunately, we approached the office quickly. I unbuckled my seatbelt, and he hurried out of the car to open the door for me. I got out without saying a word, clutching my phone tightly in one hand and buttoning my jacket with the other as I marched through the lobby and into the elevator. I couldn’t talk to Alexei any further, but just gave him a see-you-later nod.
Are you saying you're in no other way interested in Connor's daughter?
His question was looping in my mind, I collapsed on the swivel leather chair in my office and turned around to face the view through the tall glass windows.
