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“What the fuck …watch your mouth,” I say, my tone sharp. Lev holds up his hands and leans back into the couch. I roll my eyes, trying to gather the strength to deal with all this shit today. I know I’m going to get the same comment from Nik and Roman when I talk to them. Kirill is probably the only one who will keep his mouth shut.
“All I’m saying is that you shouldn’t be working the morning after your wedding. It’s a sin. You should be spending the day in bed with your wife. Hell, the whole week. I bet she was a virgin, there’s a lot you have to teach her.” He smiles smugly.
I take another sip of coffee, trying to pre-emptively chase away the headache he’s going to give me. “Enough already, stop talking about my wife. Business comes first, Lev. You know that.”
“Well, if it’s business that you want to focus on this morning, we have a problem.”
My coffee is forgotten while I rub my temples. Of course, as soon as I've settled everything with Charlie, something else pops up to take its place.
“And what is the problem?” My voice is firm as I lean back in my chair and cross my arms. “And why is it so important that it has to be solved now and not later or by Roman?”
“We stole several clients from the Italian mafia.” Lev rubs the back of his neck before sitting up taller. “Needless to say, they don’t like that very much. They are pissed off. There is reason to believe that they are planning their retaliation.”
“I have no doubt that they’re going to strike back.” My hands ball into fists as I stare at him, wondering who came up with the idea to take clients from the Italians. I don’t like doing business near them, but if they stick to their territory and I stick to mine, we have no trouble.
“We have no indication yet of what will happen. There are whispers that they are trying to get to you.”
“Let them try.”
A wrinkle appears between Lev’s eyebrows. “Nephew, I must advise you to be careful. You are the Pakhan. The Bratva needs you.”
“If we were being careful, we would not have stolen clients from the Italians to begin with. Not without my knowledge and approval.” I stand and pace to the window, looking out at the pool glistening beneath the early morning sun. “Who came up with the idea to go behind my back in the first place?”
“Roman thought that it would be good to secure some more connections. You’ve been busy with the wedding—understandably so—and we all thought that we would be able to oversee this without getting too far into the deep end.”
I take a moment to collect myself. It was easy to catch a small-time mobster—like Charlie Fletcher—, but this is a clusterfuck.
The Italian mafia is a massive fucking problem.
I push myself away from my desk and get up to pace back and forth across the room. I don’t know what I’m going to do yet, but I must handle it as soon as possible.
“We’re going to get this sorted out before it turns into a bigger mess.” I stop near the window, watching as the gardener starts to prune the rose bushes on the far side of the yard. “I don’t need trouble with the Italians right now. Find out what I need to do to put things right before it gets out of hand.”
“I will get you all the information you need.” Lev gets up and walks to the door, turning to me in the doorway. “Be careful, nephew, I don't want to lose you the way we lost your father.”
As soon as he’s gone, I sink back down in my chair and sip my coffee. I’m going to need a lot more caffeine to get through the day.
Once Lev gets me the information I need, damage control begins.
Chapter 11 - Sophia
As I look down at the half-eaten eggs and bacon, my stomach turns. The sore muscles finally disappear from my body after hours into the morning. I place the tray of food on the ottoman at the foot of the bed.
I take a deep breath before swinging my legs over the side of the plush mattress. For a moment, I consider climbing back into bed and spending the rest of the day there. If I close my eyes and fall back asleep, I might wake up in my bed and realize it was all just a terrible dream.
But I know that’s not going to happen.
Yesterday I married the head of the Bratva. I belong to a dangerous man who kills people without hesitation. A man who has hurt my family. My sister. But the way he possessed me last night floods my body with a heatwave. I know my heart has no chance of denying the feelings inside me if he keeps doing these things to me.
It takes a few minutes to move from the bed to the shower and get cleaned up. Once I’ve shimmied into a pair of flowing black trousers and a white crop top, I head downstairs to explore my new home.
The rooms are dark and moody, but the furniture within them ranges from cream to stark white, with gold accents with flashes of red spread throughout. It’s very much a bachelor pad.
As I turn another corner in what seems like a never-ending hallway, I nearly run into an old woman. She takes a step back,her hand flying to her heart as tendrils of her gray hair fall out of her slicked-back ponytail.
“Miss! I didn’t know you were up yet.” The woman offers me a warm smile that melts away some of the nervous energy coursing through my body. “I’m Anna, the housekeeper for Mr. Orlov.”
“Sophia.” I tuck my hands in my pockets, rocking on my heels. “Sorry for almost running into you. This house is so big. I think I’m going to get lost in it eventually. You don’t know where I could get another cup of coffee, do you?”
