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I walk away because the heat in my blood is back. The restless energy that plagues me, day in and day out, and haunts my soul rises stronger than ever. Demanding an outlet.
Since it won’t be between Kira’s thighs—not after what I just said to her—I need to find a fight.
KIRA
Maxim storms out of the room and I watch his retreating form, shocked into silence. He’s shown his true colors, and I shouldn’t be surprised by his hurtful words. Except I am, and I don’t know why.
He’s a snake and has never claimed to be anything else, but something about the last few days made me lose focus. He kicked a flight attendant off the plane for me and admitted that he cared for his daughter. It’s not like he’s a good man, but at least I see his human side.
Did he save my life today? Maybe. As much as I hate to admit it, I was outnumbered and the attack came out of nowhere.If Maxim didn’t put his body between mine and the man brandishing a knife, ready to kill me, the outcome wouldn’t have been good. I know that much.
But I also know he didn’t even give me a chance to prove myself. He treated me like some damsel in distress, demanding his men drag me out of the auction house as if they didn’t have more important things to do. The room was crawling with his enemies—men from the Black Company, I gathered based on the guards’ conversation. I could have been useful.
I look out the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring at the starless night sky. New York is buzzing, and I’m feeling as restless as the city spread below.
Making my way through the hallways to our bedroom—the bedroom I will certainly not be sharing with him tonight—I hear low voices coming from behind the closed office door, and Maxim’s is one of them. Checking to ensure the coast is clear, I press my ear against the door, barely breathing.
“I have a call with Viktor, Pavel and Roman now. After that, I’m going out for the night,” my husband says. “But I need you to make sure…”
The rest of the conversation fades into the walls, and I can’t make out what he’s saying.
I don’t need to. If Maxim is going out tonight, so am I. And if anyone thinks they can stop me, let them try.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
KIRA
An hour later,I track down Konstantin, the head guard on duty, and tell him, "I’m locking myself in the bedroom for a movie marathon, and I’m not to be disturbed. Well, except when room service comes up with my food. Send the attendant straight in so they can lay out the meal for me." I tip my chin up. "I ordered everything on the menu."
“You got it, Mrs. Belov.” He grins, relief evident in his expression.
He probably thought he'd have to deal with my monster mood all night. Welp, I’m making it easy for him. I won’t even be here.
My eyes dart to the closed door of Maxim’s office, where I can hear a tense meeting with Viktor, Roman, and Pavel taking place. Maxim is speaking quickly and sounds agitated. Good.
“Do you know if my husband will be joining me tonight?” I ask, blinking up at Konstantin.
“Ah, no.” He pushes his hands through his hair like he’s worried about how I’ll react. “He’ll be leaving soon. He has business to take care of off-site.”
“Good. More cake for me,” I say, stomping off.
Soon, my hair is held back in braids and I'm dressed in a form-fitting, black ensemble, complete with a hooded jacket and sneakers.
Right on cue, a knock sounds at the bedroom door. “Room service.”
“Come on in.” I jump into bed and pull the covers up to my neck. “You can set up right there.” I point to the little breakfast table situated by the wall.
“Not a problem,” he responds, getting to work.
Looks like a nice enough kid. I’m almost sorry for what I have to do next. When he unloads the fourteen dishes I ordered with extra fries and a bottle of champagne on ice, he turns to me with a big smile on his face. Most likely expecting a bigass tip.
“What the?—”
“Don’t make a sound,” I say to him, holding the pistol in my hand. “I don’t want to use this, Russell,” I add, with a glance at his name tag. “But I will if I have to. Nod if you understand.” Eyes wide and horrified, he nods. “Here is what is going to happen. I am going to crawl into your cart over here, and you are going to cover me up with a tablecloth. Then you are going to roll me out of here, and on your way out, you’re going to say to the guards outside of the door that I’m asleep but you left the food anyway. See how easy that is?” Again, he nods vigorously. “All you have to do after is drop me off at the loading dock and make sure no one sees. That’s it. No one gets hurt, and you live a long life.”
Poor Russell hasn't stopped nodding, but I’m convinced we've reached an understanding.
“Great,” I say with a smile then quickly contort myself under his cart, after which he drapes a white tablecloth over me.
