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I wrinkle my nose. “You have a problem.”
Taking my hand, he leads me into the hallway. “I do, she’s about five foot two, blonde, and gorgeous.” He spins and slams me up against the wall. My breath leaves my lungs in a rush, and my heart skips in anticipation. There was a time when he would have terrified me like this. Now he thrills me. I used to hate the want I saw in his eyes, now I crave it because I know he wants me, he loves me, and he’ll protect me against everything and anything. It’s a heady feeling, that depth of loyalty, of love. And I know all of this from just a look.
His hands grip my thighs, thumbs running along the edge of my workout shorts where they meet my bare skin. He leaves tingles in his wake as he skims his thumbs back and forth, and then he lifts me, imprisoning me with his hips and caging me with his arms either side of my head.
“Hey,” I whisper with a smile.
“Hey.” His lips slam over mine, stealing not just my breath, but everything. It doesn’t matter how many times he kisses me, it always feels earth-shattering, as though he’s realigning the stars just for me. Sparks ignite between us like static electricity powering up before a storm. That’s what he always feels like to me, being thrown into a storm. He’s wild and fierce and utterly chaotic. His lips leave mine, skimming down my throat until he swipes his tongue up the length of my throat. “You always taste so good, avecita.” He always gets like this if I’m sweaty. I should probably find it gross, but there’s something fundamentally primal about it, which makes it so very Rafael.
His teeth pinch my jaw, and I tilt my head to the side, still struggling to catch a full breath. He sends my body into a tailspin where the most basic functions are a chore. He chuckles, the deep rumbling sound reverberating through me.
“So responsive, avecita.”
I turn to face him again. “Only because you’re such a brute.”
His lips twitch. “A brute? I’m offended.”
“Of course you are.” I place my lips against his and kiss him slowly, teasing my tongue over his bottom lip. He groans and rolls his hips against me. “I thought you had a meeting,” I say, smiling.
He lets out a growl. “I do. But you and I will finish this later.” He kisses me once more before allowing me to slide down his body to the ground.
Threading his fingers through mine, he pulls me toward the office, his pace just a little faster than usual. As soon as we’re in the office, he rushes behind his desk and sits down. I drop my chin to hide a smile. Samuel glances from me to Rafael and back again. Carlos is leaning against a bookcase, one leg crossed over the other and his hands in his pockets.
“I spoke to Nero earlier,” Rafael starts. Samuel shifts uneasily. “He and Una have a plan to take down Nicholai Ivanov.”
I narrow my eyes. “Why would Una take down her beloved Nicholai?”
His gaze swings to me, cold and hard, every inch the cartel boss. Gone is my playful man. “It would seem Una is playing both sides. She’s trying to take him down from the inside.”
“Don’t trust her.”
“I’m with Anna,” Carlos pipes up from beneath the shadow of his hood.
Rafael leans back in his chair and takes a cigar from his inside jacket pocket. There’s a tense silence as he places it between his lips and flips the lighter open. It snaps shut, cutting through the silence. Smoke billows around him, making him look almost demonic.
“The Russians are a problem. And they are virtually untouchable. It’s possible that the only way to take them down is from the inside.”
“What’s their plan?” Samuel asks.
“Nicholai wants their child. It seems he sent Una to retrieve him as a test of her loyalty. She’s in New York now. She wants to go back to Nicholai and tell him that Nero sent the child here, to Anna, for protection.”
Samuel swipes a hand over his face. “That would bring half of his fucking Elite army down here.”
Rafael nods and inhales on his cigar. “Yes, but Una believes that Nicholai doesn’t fully trust her. She thinks he will insist on coming.” His eyes lock with mine. “She is his weakness, and so she blinds him to the risk. With him away from Russia, he’ll be at his weakest. It’s our best shot.”
“That doesn’t help us with the army of Elite he will no doubt bring with him,” Carlos says, pushing away from the bookcase. “Do we have the men to handle this? We’ll need three of ours to every one of theirs. They’re like damn terminators.”
“I can sort men, but I’m asking you,” he looks at each of us, “as my family, if you want to get into this? I won’t drag you into a war, but I also have to remind you of the fact that this is the rock, and Nicholai having our port and causing a cartel war is the hard place.”
Samuel drags in a heavy breath, and he looks suddenly worn, tired, his usually put together self, fraying. The war with the Sinaloa, the Russians, the issues with Ricardo…it’s taken its toll on everyone, but Samuel is Rafael’s right hand. He’s the guy that has to shoulder the consequences of the decisions Rafael makes, and in Rafael’s absence, that’s surely been a heavy burden to bear. I’m all too aware of the fact that Rafe has probably made some unfavorable decisions for me. I’m scared that just as Nicholai may walk into a trap because he is blinded by Una, Rafael has led his cartel to destruction for me.
“Okay. I’m in,” Carlos says.
“We don’t have much choice, do we?” Samuel adds.
Rafael snaps his gaze to me. “Anna?”
I glance around the room. “Why are you asking me?”
“It means working with Una.”
There’s that little pang of hurt in my chest again. I take it and force it down, reaching for the cool indifference that I’m so used to wearing. “Like I said, its just business, Rafe.”
His gaze holds mine for a beat longer. “Fine. Dismissed.” Samuel and Carlos leave the room, but just as I reach the door, Rafael’s hand wraps around my wrist, stopping me. “Not you.”
I sigh and glance over my shoulder at him. “If you want to talk about Una, I don’t want to talk about it.”
His eyes search my face before he releases me. “Fine.”
I walk out of the room without a backward glance. It seems we’re about to dive into a fight with the Russians, and I honestly don’t know whether my own sister will be instrumental in our victory or our absolute destruction.
