Nikolai waited for Alvin for almost two hours in the local bar he usually frequented with his lady friends. Alvin, the man known for having all kinds of sensitive information about the underworld, the man who might give Nik something to work with so he could do something to protect Ana before time ran out. Nik needed to know whom Madam Volkova had hired to take down Anastasia. It was the only way.But there was no sign of Alvin or any of his girlfriends for the past two hours. When it came to women, the man had a peculiar taste. He liked the bad girls, the ones who were trouble and nothing but trouble. But he guessed it was also a part of the reason Alvin was so good at gathering information. Everyone loved to talk when they were drunk. Add a stunning woman in the mix who could promise to make you forget everything, and you might let out some information you weren’t supposed to.Nik had to admit that Alvin was very smart with what he chose to do, and it was working. It had always work
[ANASTASIA] “Shit! I forgot my purse,” I gasped while reaching for the backdoor of the car. My hand drops to my side, but when I turn to look up at Ivan, who’s just about to get into the car, he sighs and gives me a hard, knowing look. I know exactly what he’s thinking. Our first day in Kazan when I used the same excuse to kick him out of the room. The only difference is I’m not making an excuse right now. I genuinely left it on the nightstand beside the bed. A silly grin curls across my lips. “I’m not kidding. Don’t look at me like that.” The hard expression on his face doesn’t relent and I can’t help but roll my eyes. “Just get in. I’ll go get it and be back in two minutes.” “No. Wait!” He tries to stop me but I’m already halfway through the hotel’s double doors, not bothering to listen to him. “Will be right back,” I shout over my shoulder and rush towards the elevators. I tap my feet restlessly while watching the numbers on the elevator climb down towards the ground floor.
[ANASTASIA] My chest heaves, my stomach sinks, and my legs threaten to buckle under me as I watch Igor drive away with Ivan’s unconscious body inside the car. The door slams shut in front of me, and suddenly, I can’t breathe anymore. The walls seem to be closing in around me, squeezing the life out of me, and stealing all the air right from my chest. Blood. It’s everywhere. On my hands. On my clothes. On my skin. On the seats inside the car. On the floor. Everywhere I look, all I see is blood. I reach for the handle of the car but it snaps in my hand, preventing me from getting out. But then the door swings open, and a large figure appears in front of me, blocking the sunshine. His face is hidden from view but my mind is so jumbled up I can’t seem to recognize him. I try to scoot back inside the car away from him, but he reaches in and grabs my arm, yanking me out before slamming me against the side of the car. His eyes are black, his voice is low, his face is covered with a ma
[TWO MONTHS AGO]Dimitri Alexeev took the second bite of his sandwich and kept his eyes on the certain window of a certain building. Not caring that it should be the last place he should be keeping an eye on. Especially when dozens of their men were already stationed there, keeping tabs on that very building.The sandwiches were good. A bit burnt at the edges but still edible enough. And the coffee tasted bitter even with sugar and milk mixed in it, but he still managed to consume the contents of the disposable cup with ease.Why? Because, unfortunately (or maybe fortunately enough), the taste of the takeout food was the last thing in his mind. The man was more concerned about the shadow behind the curtain, that he had been hoping to catch the glimpse of, if only to satisfy his curiosity.Curiosity about a certain woman he didn’t even like. Or at least, that’s what he always said when asked by his boss. But deep down, he knew that the said woman was a constant thought in his head and
By the time, Dimitri and Nikolai made it to Volkov’s mansion, Dimitri had grown impatient, irritable and stressed out to the point he didn’t trust himself to not shoot someone for no apparent reason.He got out of the car, slamming the door loudly shut, and only realized Nikolai’s presence behind him when he cursed for God knows what reason. But he didn’t have time to see the other man’s inconvenience. He strode straight to the first maid he spotted and practically growled at her.“Where is Tatiana? Where’s Lena?”The maid, a girl in her early twenties, with huge eyes and full lips, looked up at him in shock and stuttered. “Umm… Miss Lena went to the clinic to get baby Tati her shots. She’ll be back in an hour or so.”Dimitri had never seen anyone in his entire life look this stupid but then again, he had no patience for morons right now.“Which clinic?”“Umm… I’m not sure—?”“What do you mean you’re not sure? What clinic did Lena say she was going to?”The girl paled, looking like sh
After dropping Nikolai off at the stop he wanted to be dropped at, Dimitri went to the warehouse and assembled all their men. A word from Lex had finally come, and it was not good news. He had to leave for Kazan the second the weather cleared, but not before he had a piece of good news for his probably dying boss. He had to find Tatiana and bring her home. No matter what. Nikolai had assured that once he got the word from Marina and confirmed that Tatiana was with Madam Volkova, he would join Ivan’s force and help them take down Madam Volkova for good. Dimitri could see a war on the horizon, and even though he would have liked nothing more than to kill that woman for good, something continued to bother him for some reason he couldn’t even explain. To clear his head while they waited for Nikolai to give them the go, he commanded his men to prepare and be on alert and drove back to his apartment to take a shower and change clothes. He hated being dirty, and he hated it even more when
Everything escalated between them too quickly. Not even in his dreams he could have thought something like they would ever happen with him. That he would get to kiss this woman he barely knew, or feel her hands all over him, her nails scraping at his skin or her legs wrapped around his hips. Fuck! Nothing could have prepared him for the way he was feeling right now. He kissed her harder than he should have, almost to the point it was rough and impatient and desperate. He knew she could taste the desperation in him, and somehow, she had welcomed it with open arms and a hungry mouth of her own. She didn’t just let him kiss her. She kissed him back like a starved woman. It was all teeth and tongues and her soft moans and her fingers in his hair and the way she couldn’t keep her hands to herself. He wasn’t much better either. He couldn’t k
When Nadia woke up the next morning, her body ached like hell. It was after a very long time she had had sex, and fuck, he was so rough and brutal and good. Just the thought of him and his hands and his thick, veiny cock forced her to squeeze her thighs, trying to suppress the urge to have him back inside her. But whom was she kidding? What happened last night between her and Dimitri Alexeev would never happen again. Not because she didn’t want it to happen, but because the sex between them was more like a comforting one, one that he probably thought the sad sister of his soldier needed. Nadia didn’t even know why she took the first step and kissed him. She had never done something so reckless before. Well, except for showing up at his door una
[NIKOLAI]Once we finally get to his office, Konstantin takes his seat behind the desk and raises an eyebrow. He looks kind of pissed, but not enough to end me right here and now.He might have the power to do that and carry on with his day as if nothing happened, but I know in my gut he won’t. He made a promise to our parents that no harm would come to me. And if there’s anyone I know who keeps their word, no matter the circumstances, it’s him. My very own, very infuriating brother.“So,” he drawls, leaning back in his chair and propping his legs up on the desk, crossing them at the ankles. “What do you want to talk about?”I don’t sit in the chair in front of me; instead, I start pacing the room. I glance around and find it exactly how our father designed it. Not a single thing has been changed or moved. It’s like walking into a museum of old memories.“I want to challenge Madam Volkova,” I say, almost expecting him to scoff.But he doesn’t. Instead, he tips his head to the side. “Wh
[NIKOLAI]I hang up the phone and stare hard at the ground.“Fuck you, Dimitri!” I growl, clenching the phone tighter and huffing out a heavy breath.The bastard has the audacity to make me responsible for everything that happened to Ana and Ivan. But is it? Am I really the one to blame?I look away, peeling my back off the car and slipping inside.I put my hand on the steering wheel, unable to shake his words from my mind.Shit. If only I had known the consequences of my actions, maybe this day would have never come. Maybe Ana would still be safe, and Ivan would still be breathing on his own, not with the help of some fucking machine.“Fuck!” I punch the steering wheel, growling louder.I turn the key in the ignition and drive away from the motel. I’m not sure if what I’m about to do next is the right choice, but it seems like the only option I have left. I can’t go back to Madam Volkova after my fallout with her, and Dimitri doesn’t seem interested in having me by his side either.I
[DIMITRI]I storm out of the building and light a cigarette, unable to think of anything else.I breathe in the smoke and then blow it out, hoping it will take away the stress pressing on my chest, making my lungs incapable of doing their job.I don’t know what to do anymore. Ana is finally awake, which is good news, of course.But what the hell do I tell her when she wakes up next time and asks the same questions all over again? How do I give her the answers that are sure to crush her?Maybe I’ve developed a new weakness these days—maybe falling in love makes you a fucking weak asshole—but I can’t seem to bear seeing that woman cry. I just can’t.It fucking stabs me right in the throat to see those tears streaming down her face, to see that fear in her eyes that seems to linger around her whenever she asks about Ivan.I take another big breath of smoke and then drop it, crushing it under the tip of my boot.“Fuck!”My phone rings just then. I thank God for the fucking distraction and
[ANASTASIA]“Mommy!”One word, and my heart shatters into a million pieces.Before I even turn my gaze to the door, warmth floods through me, and tears well up in my eyes.My little girl comes running into the room, her dark hair pulled back in a ponytail bouncing with every step. Her eyes are sharp, excited, and filled with so much love. Her face is a canvas of every emotion I’ve ever seen her wear in my entire life.I don’t even realize it, but my arms open on their own, my chest aching to feel her little heart against mine.But just when I think she’s about to jump onto the bed and throw herself into my arms, she stops and stands there with her hands behind her back, her little legs fidgeting as she looks up at the doctor, her small eyes seeking some kind of permission.I suppose the last two months have changed a lot. My daughter, who used to storm in and out of any place she wanted, now suddenly looks afraid of hurting me.Tears race down my face. I wipe them as quickly as I can,
[ANASTASIA]“How long was I out?” I whisper, lips trembling. “How long was I unconscious?”Lena, now standing in front of me, looks like the words are stuck in her throat. She swallows thickly and squeezes my hand, a sad smile playing on her lips.“Two months,” she says, but it feels like she’s talking about someone else. “You’ve been in a coma for two months.”This can’t be true. It can’t be.Tears burn my eyes. My heart feels like it’s on fire. “What the hell do you mean by that? How can I be… how is that even… I can’t… I mean… this can’t be…”I don’t even know what I’m trying to say, but I know I don’t believe her.Frustration grates beneath my skin. “Just call Ivan. If he says the same as what you’re all saying, then I’ll believe you. Just call him, Lena. Where is he anyway? Shouldn’t he be here? Sitting next to me, taking care of me? He promised he’d never leave my side again. He promised, Lena. He fucking promised.”“I know,” she sobs, wiping her face with the back of her hand.
[DIMITRI]A week later, we both sit in the car and stare at the huge gates ahead.“This is it, I guess,” she says softly, for the first time not so eager to talk about leaving.It’s strange how the last few days changed everything. They changed me. Who would have thought an asshole like me could ever fall for an angel like her? Nadia is an angel. She’s the most beautiful, pure-hearted, a little fiery, but the best of the angels out there. In fact, if you ask me, she’s the only angel out there.My angel.I let out a sigh. “Yep. This is it.” I turn to look at her and can’t help grabbing the back of her head, pulling her in for a kiss. A long, deep, and passionate kiss. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of her—her lips, her body, everything about her. “I’m going to miss you like hell.”She grins, her pale blue eyes twinkling, her stubborn blonde curls escaping the trap of her knitted cap. “I’ll miss you like hell too. In fact,” she brushes her nose against mine, “I think I’m going to mi
[NADIA]I’m not sure what to say.And if I look like someone who has been slapped across the face with a hand as cold as ice, then maybe I do look like that person, because apparently, I feel like that person.Every word coming out of Dimitri’s mouth is like slap after slap.But not in a bad way, of course. More like a slap of surprise. Or shock. Or whatever I’m feeling right now that has no name.“What did you say?” I can’t help but ask. There’s still a chance I heard that wrong. Never before has Dimitri talked about my Uni of his own free will. So, to think he not only brought it into the conversation but also seems happy about it is a little hard for me to believe.He gives me a look—of course, he does—but doesn’t try to argue. “I said you’re going back next week. They’re expecting you to continue your semester and sit for the final exams.”“But what about my attendance? I’m way behind—”“It’s been taken care of,” he says, but the smug look on his face is scary as hell.I tilt my h
[DIMITRI]I should’ve known my words would get twisted like that. And of course, it would end up hurting my woman in the worst way possible.But God knows that wasn’t my intention. I just have a crude way of speaking and often forget not everyone can take it. It’s an old habit, one I need to work on changing.I cup Nadia’s face, wiping her tears with my thumb. I should be comforting her after everything she just blurted out, but instead, I can’t help it—I start laughing. I can’t stop until she looks up at me like I’ve completely lost it.Her eyebrows snap and her lips upturn in a deep frown. “You think it’s funny?”“No!” I shake my head, meaning it, but laughter simply bubbles out of me. I turn around to take a breather, and when I think I’m in better control of myself, I turn back around to face her.Only to find her gone.Whatever lingering smile on my face dies right away. “Nadia?”I glance toward the door and see her rushing out of the room.“Shit!” I bolt after her down the hallw
[NADIA]After getting another round of hot sex out of our system, with both stayed sprawled out on the carpeted floor of his office, with me using his arm as a pillow.I sigh. “I can’t believe the kind of stamina I suddenly have.”Dimitri chuckles, the deep sound vibrating through my entire body. “And I can’t believe I get to make love to a woman without her screaming within five minutes how she can’t handle someone like me.”I turn over my stomach, resting my chin on his chest. “Really?”“Yep!” He says, casually, entwining my fingers with his and kissing the tips of each one. “You’re the only one to never have complained about anything. Not even my ugly face.”“Hey,” I shush him, placing my finger on his lips. “Never say that again.”He quirks up a brow. “Why? You want me to say I’m fucking beautiful instead.” He rolls his eyes.“You ARE beautiful,” I say, more stubbornly because he seems to be in the mood to not take me seriously. I can tell. I sure as hell can. “Sure, you have scar