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His jaw tightens at the mention of her name. “Not for a while.”
Could she have pissed him off enough that he did something to her? “I saw Kira talking to you earlier. I hope she wasn’t giving you a hard time. She’s protective of me.”
“Yes, I can see that. She’s…” His eyes darken. “Stubborn. But no, we weren’t discussing you.”
Strange. What else could they have been arguing about if not me? But before I can ask, the song ends and a group of men close in on Belov, clearly desperate for his attention. “I’m going to visit the ladies’ room,” I say before I step aside.
I take advantage of his distraction to make my escape. My eyes bounce all over the room, but Kira is nowhere in sight. Leo or one of the others must have gotten to her already… I hope. I keep my eyes lowered and my steps measured as I make my way to the basement. One wrong move could alert Belov’s guards that something is going on.
The wine cellar isn’t hard to find. Stepping inside, I’m enveloped by the cool, musty air. The room is dimly lit with flickering sconces casting shadows on the walls. Tall wooden shelves are lined with wine bottles that are, I’m sure, equivalent to the GDP of some countries.
Leo is leaning against one of the shelves. When his eyes meet mine, he straightens, his face a mix of relief and concern. "We don’t have much time,” he says, stalking towards me. “We’ve jammed the signal to the security cameras down here, but someone will notice soon enough. Kira and the others will be here any minute, there’s a back door that we need to—”
“No, Leo. You’re not listening. I’m staying here. It’s my choice.” The lie tastes bitter on my tongue, but I swallow it down, willing him to believe my words.
His hand curls around the back of my neck, his face so close to mine that his heated breath brushes against my lips. “I don’t know what game you’re playing. What shit Belov is coercing you into saying, but I’m telling you now,”—his grasp on me tightens—“I’m not leaving without you.”
A sob rises in my throat, and my hands curl around the collar of his starched shirt, pleading with him to listen. “Please, you have to.”
His warm palms cup my cheek, and his lips lower onto mine. The kiss is deep and all-consuming, sending an electric shiver down my spine. “Fuck, Aly, I’m a wreck without you. You are my light, the reason I breathe. I know I’ve fucked up so many times you’ve lost count. Let me make it right, let me love you the way you deserve to be loved.”
His words are charged with so much raw emotion it’s nearly my undoing. But I can’t lose focus, because what happens next determines whether he lives or dies. And since I’ve failed to make him believe my lies, it’s time to deliver the truth.
“If Belov thinks you are standing in the way of me leading his empire with him, he will kill you, he’s said as much. It doesn’t matter what I want… just… fuck, Leo, I love you. I love you so goddamn much it hurts. Even if I can’t be with you, I need to know you didn’t die for me.”
His hands wrap around my waist, holding me against him. "I won’t lose you again. Once nearly destroyed me. I'll do whatever it takes to make Belov see reason. I’ll stay here and fight for you, fight for us—”
His words are cut off as the door swings open and my brother barrels into the room, trailed by Daniil, Andrei, and Kira. Yulian doesn’t seem to notice or care about the fact that I’m in Leo’s arms. He just pulls me away and hugs me tight. “Thank fuck you’re okay.”
“I am,” I say, squeezing my brother back. I’ve missed him, but this is no time for a reunion.
“We need to get moving,” Yulian says. “Van’s out back.”
“I can’t,” I tell him, my voice shaky. “You go, I need to stay for now. It won’t be forever, but—”
“What are you talking about?” Yulian says, his eyebrows pressed together. But before I can explain myself, Leo steps between us.
“If you stay, I’m staying. I’m not leaving here without you.”
I feel like knocking my head against the wall, this man is making what I have to do near impossible. I take a deep breath, prepared to plead my case, when the lights flicker on and off, plunging the wine cellar into utter darkness.
“Shit,” Yulian hisses. Leo finds my hand in the dark as panic claws at my chest.
The cellar door creaks open, followed by the heavy thud of footsteps. The lights snap on, revealing Belov with a cold snarl painted on his lips. His guards flank him, their guns drawn and aimed in our direction. Belov also had a weapon pointed square at Leo’s chest. “A family reunion. And I wasn’t invited?”
Leo puffs out his chest. “You’re not her family, even if you do share blood with her.”
The atmosphere in the room thickens. My worst nightmare is unfolding before my very eyes. All the people I care about in one room, vulnerable, surrounded by Belov’s evil army. Body trembling, I throw myself in front of Leo. Belov needs to understand I’ll take a bullet for Leo without a second thought. If he hurts Leo or anyone in here, he hurts me.
“Let them go,” I plead with Belov. “We had a deal. I’ll stay, but you have to let them all go.”
The words are barely out of my mouth before Leo pushes me behind him. Looking up, I’m met with the sight of Leo, pistol in hand, pointed at Belov. Defiance burns in his gaze even though we’re clearly outnumbered, and from what I can tell, no one else on our side has a weapon.
What is Leo doing?
Belov’s henchmen all train their guns on Leo, but he doesn’t blink an eye. My heart hammers in my chest, a deafening drum that drowns out all other sounds, but I don’t dare move a muscle or say anything. One wrong move could tip this all in the wrong direction.
Belov lowers his gun and perches on a cask of wine, his posture relaxed, as if this isn’t a tense as fuck standoff. “What’s your endgame here, Kozlov?” he asks Leo. “Do you think you can rescue Alyona and gallop off into the sunset as a happy couple? You—the man who abandoned her for the brotherhood—you’re suddenly the knight in shining armor?”
