ENORANikolai left the room and returned with a pile of neatly folded clothes, all black and white. “Wear these.”Are those his clothes? They smelt just like him. Was I going to wear Nikolai-freaking-Lantsov’s clothes? I was getting more excited than I needed to be—which was probably zero excitement because who gets excited just wearing their captor’s clothes?“Will these do?”“I will manage with them for now,” I replied as I unfolded them, seeing that they were all designer clothes, just the way I liked my clothes to be. Turned out Nikolai and I had something in common other than the New York dark underworld we were both involved in.Nikolai leaned on the wall, watching me as I put on a pair of black baggy shorts and an oversized sleeveless shirt from the pile he brought in. “You didn’t thank me, malysh.”Truth, I hadn’t even had time to address the way he called me “malysh.” I was not a child, especially not his, and I hated how he somehow had fun calling me that. “I suppose you kn
NIKOLAII should have anticipated how wild Enora Patrizio would drive me before I considered holding her captive. The image of her full breasts bouncing up and down as she moved made it hard for me to think straight, and it took me thinking about bloody dead men and chopped body parts to keep myself from spanking her well-rounded ass when she turned around.Fuck, thinking about it again was enough to make my cock hard and needy. With an ass like that, it was not a surprise how Enora was able to seduce some of my men to their deaths. I had a feeling I’d have ended up killing them if Carlos did not beat me to it, the same way I wanted to erase the memory of everyone who was standing in the hallway when she came out of her room.Seeing her on that staircase with a black thong and arms wrapping around her breasts made me want a personal painting of her, a painting only I could see because I’d be damned if anyone else saw my little Enora naked again. God help me, I might have to kill th
NIKOLAIShe brushed past me and all I could think of was how well my shorts and sleeveless tee fitted her. She’d curled her hair into a bob, and I could bet all my ill-gotten money that she naturally smelt like strawberries. I swiveled to steal more glances at her as she walked to Camilla.“Nice to meet you, I’m Enora Patrizio.” She stretched her hand out to shake Camilla’s, but Camilla scoffed and slapped her hand away. Enora smiled psychotically and then withdrew her hands to herself.“I know who you are,” Camilla spat spitefully. “Some call you morte, but I think you are just a whore.”“Am I?” Enora’s psychotic smile widened, making her look crazy as fuck. I really considered calling the psychiatric ward just in case, and maybe I was just as psychotic because I liked that crazy, killer-witch expression on her. “I think I prefer being called morte.”“Well, whore.” Camilla closed the space between her and Enora so that the fabrics of their clothes were rubbing against each other. T
ENORANikolai Lantsov really did live up to his name as a lunatic who toyed with women, and I hated how I’d manage to add myself to the list of women who became weaklings in his presence.I exhaled, trying to blow out the frustration that had built inside of me. I closed my eyes, ashamed of myself for how easily I surrendered to his touch. Fuck. Even now, the feeling of his light touch on my face and his warm breath on my skin still lingered. Weird things were happening between my legs, tugging at my self-control and needing more of his dangerous touch.I’d tried to deceive myself into believing my body was only reacting how it would biologically after the way he tried to seduce me but why was my heart pounding nervously? Why did a tiny part of me feel bad that he did not have any interest in me and was just teasing me?This was not good. Not good at all.Liquid dripped between my legs, alerting me of how hornily helpless I was, and my brain strayed and made me think of his lips on
ENORAI tilted my head to Nikolai who was still busy on his phone. What if it was Camilla he was talking to? I shot up from my seat and dragged his phone from him. He glowered at me with complete shock, and I could see Mikhail and Dimitri stand up cautiously to defend Nikolai from me as if they’d be able to save him if I intended to really kill him.“Don’t you have any manners?” I yelled at Nikolai. “You don’t use your fucking phone at the table! You can’t just keep everyone waiting till you decide you’re ready to eat.”Nikolai did not say anything in response to my correction, which made me even more upset. “Won’t you say something?” I queried.“Something, like what?”I scoffed, he had to be the most annoying person in existence. “You’re really a heartless bastard.”The calm in his eyes turned into a raging storm. For a minute, the dining room was noiseless while Nikolai and I had a cold war on who would look at the other in the cruelest way possible. “Sit down…or I’ll press you t
ENORAMornings were my least favorite part of the day. Sometimes, I wished I died in my sleep, and a few times, I’d even wondered what it would feel like swinging down from my ceiling.Maybe Papa will care. Maybe he will hurt for me and finally look at me with love. Those were my thoughts every morning.But with each morning I woke up and saw the dread on his face. Every single time he treated me as nothing more than a war dog and a killing machine, I learned something. Papa would not cry for me if I died, he would simply toss my body into a river and if I was lucky enough, he would toss me in with me a nice black casket to keep the sharks away from my lifeless body.I woke up one morning and I no longer craved his love or for him to treat me like a father would a daughter.I woke up one morning and I became morte.The sky was still pitch black that morning, but it had been void of stars. I closed my eyes; I could still hear the rough wind whooshing in my window and the footsteps do
ENORAExactly an hour later, I was dressed in a white dress that looked like it had decayed in a trash can. It was ripped all over and I was so pale, I looked like the corpse bride.The damn dress wasn’t even decent enough to cover my shame.Truthfully, I’d thought I’d seen Maria smile mockingly at me when I climbed down the stairs, but I’d been imagining it. I honestly wouldn’t blame her if she laughed though, I looked horrible and this fucking thing on my body was laughable. I would’ve laughed if I wasn’t the one getting married in rags.I hadn’t worn this dress because I was afraid of Nikolai, I’d worn it because, for some reason, I preferred being Nikolai’s hostage rather than Mario’s animal.Nikolai smiled at me when I reached the patio, and I rolled my eyes at him. I wondered if he knew how much I wanted to play Russian roulette with my pistol pointed at his head. The fucker probably knew, but he definitely underestimated me.Ego was a common disease with men in our world. They
NIKOLAI“Didn’t I tell you, malysh?” I moved closer to her, expecting her to pace back, but she didn’t. “You’re mine. Mine to torment, mine to punish, and mine to touch.”Enora sneered at me, her beautiful gray eyes sparking with mischief. “You’re really a nutjob, aren’t you?” She folded her hands over her chest. “I’m not an item, Nikolai. I do not belong to you.”She walked to her bed and sank down on it, looking away from me.Did she know how much her stubbornness turned me on? If she did, she wouldn’t try to argue with me. She would’ve tried to do as I said.It’d been almost two hours since we got married. Two hours since I forced her to say I do.After I leaned closer to her ear and marked her as mine, goosebumps spread across her skin and I heard her little yelp.Enora was scared of me. I could see it despite how hard she tried to hide it, and I was glad she tried really hard to.The last thing I wanted was a little white-haired Italian woman cowering with fear whenever she saw
Prologue LyraThe smell of grilled steak and fresh lobster filled my senses as our dishes were placed in front of us, accompanied by beautifully lit candles and glasses of red wine. My mouth watered at the perfect presentation, feeling nearly starving.Jazz music floated through the restaurant. Everything about the establishment was luscious, but while I’d told Valentin that takeout and a couch were enough, he always insisted on the nicest restaurants money could buy.Money was never an issue for Valentin Lantsov or his brothers. He belonged to New York’s most powerful family, with the world at his fingertips. While his brothers were serious, he enjoyed letting loose and indulging in the lavish things their success granted.The waiter bowed and left. Valentin’s dark blue gaze, crystal clear as water, looked me up and down before a fleeting smile flashed across his lips. It vanished faster than it appeared. He reached for his wine.We’d been seeing each other for some time. What start
ENORA Eight months later…“It’s a girl!” Nikolai announced to the room at large, filled with glee and a kind of excitement I’d never seen him wear. “It’s a baby girl.”The doctor and nurse gave me a knowing smile before giving us our privacy.Nikolai came to me and placed the baby in my arms. “She looks just like me,” he boasted. It wasn’t a lie; she had his dark hair and the same blue eyes the Lantsovs were known for. “Looks like you lost the bet, Mrs. Lantsov.”I gave a weak smile; twenty hours of labor was no joke for this cute tiny human to come out looking just like her papa. “What do you want, husband?”He seemed lost in thought for a second, before whispering his answer into my ear. “Kiss me.”“A kiss?”He nodded.“That is all you want with a wish like that?” I rolled my eyes at how naughty he was, suddenly feeling strong enough to give a wide grin. “Choose wisely, Mr. Lantsov, you may never get an opportunity like this one again.”“That is what I want,” he insisted.“Alright
NIKOLAII hit the wall in frustration before looking over to the source of the annoying voice. Dimitri and Valentin were standing in front of the mahogany door leading into my office. Their expressions were grim, which only pissed me off more. “What the fuck do you want?” “There’s a problem,” Mikhail’s voice chimed in as he joined us, his tone clipped. “Carlos Patrizio knows where his daughter is.” My gaze snapped to Enora instinctively. I could sense Mikhail’s dislike for her radiating off him, but it didn’t matter. She was mine. No one would lay a hand on her, not even him. “You didn’t think to tell me earlier?” My voice was sharp, each word carrying the weight of my rising fury. “I’d have told you if only you picked up your damn cell.” I shoved my hand into my pocket, pulling out my phone. Ten missed calls from Mikhail. Six more from Dimitri. Damn it. “My papa won’t sit back if he knows I’m here. He’d put—” Enora’s words were cut short by a deafening gunshot from the
NIKOLAI I didn’t take Enora to the other clubs she’d been to; I chose to take her to the biggest Lantsov club in New York. The one where the richest guys with the biggest influence in the city came to have fun at night. I’d wanted to show her off to the whole fucking world and mark her as mine. I also wanted to make it clear that no one was allowed to touch her or hurt her.Flickering that bore my eyes to death welcomed us into the club as we entered, where strippers on heels and spoiled rich kids danced the night away, the smell of alcohol and cigarettes clouding the atmosphere. I watched Enora to make sure she wasn’t irritated by the smell or sound, but she seemed okay with it.“This is the biggest club you own?” Her loud voice pierced the air.I nodded.“It’s really nice,” she said with a gleam touching her face. Her eyes sparkled in the lights, and the smell of her perfume seeped into my senses. “Can we dance?”I wasn’t pleased with that question. I looked at her from head to toe
ENORA I sniffled the smell of omelets and fried beef. I hadn’t eaten those in so long and I don’t know if it was because of the baby, but now that I perceived them, I had a feeling I’d crave them all day.I’d fallen asleep on Nikolai’s chest while discussing possible unisex baby names for the little Lantsov growing inside of me. Nikolai had chosen Liliya because he was positive it would be a little girl that we’d cherish like the lily flower. I’d had a different opinion though; I’d chosen Aleksis because I had a strong feeling it would be a boy.We’d gone ahead and made a bet on one of us granting the winner a wish. I giggled because I knew I’d be right. I had to start thinking of what wish I’d ask Nikolai to fulfill. I moved my hands behind me in search of Nikolai. I supposed he’d rolled away from me in his sleep but quickly opened my eyes when I realized the bed was empty.Sunlight poured into the room, lighting dust particles in the air. I glanced around, noticing the portrait of
I forgot how to breathe.We stared at each other.“God, baby.” He gripped my waist, making my clitoris brush on his hard dick. Only a psycho like him could have an erection during a conversation like this, and I was just as much of a psycho as he was because I needed to be satisfied—pulled onto him and ride him till I came. “You think I don’t love you?”“I know you don’t.”“That’s bullshit, baby.” I loved the way he called me baby; I think I loved it as much as I loved when he called me malysh. “I would burn the whole fucking world to the ground if you ask it of me, I would lay my life at your feet if need be for it, I want to worship the very ground you walk on. If that isn’t love, then I don’t know what the hell it is.”“Wait…did you just—”“I’ll kill every single person who touches you, malysh.” He held his hand over my belly. “Fuck, you don’t know how much I want to give the world to you and our baby.”A tear rolled down my eyes without warning. I glanced away in shame, these fu
ENORA I knew Nikolai was lying when he said he hadn’t hurt Camilla, yet a part of me wished earnestly that he had at least spared Maria. It was true that she was the one who informed Camilla that Nikolai was away, but that was all the part she played in what happened yesterday and I honestly didn’t think it was something she deserved to die for.It was also hard to blame Nikolai if he had killed either of them. Aside from the fact that he was a ruthless Russian crime leader, I’d recognized the look in his eyes yesterday as fear. The way his dilated blue eyes bore into mine, the trembling of his hands as he held me, he must have realized he was about to lose the greatest asset he had to bring my papa down.An asset. I guessed that was all I could ever be to him. I rubbed my hands on my belly, it was hard to shake off the feeling that right now, he only wanted me because I was carrying his child. He would probably dump me the moment I gave birth to this baby, and the idea of that made
Truth is, I really hadn’t come up with another solution for the fucker. Killing him had always been my intention, and I may still consider it despite knowing the effect it would have on Enora. He’d spilled the blood on my bed, and I needed to spill his in return. Plus, he’d been a pain in my neck since I became the leader of the Bratva, so it would be good to get him out of my way once and for all. “I’ll think of something.”“And Enora?” Valentin’s extreme concern for her was getting on my nerves. I’d have kicked him in the crotch by now if he weren’t my brother.“I’ll handle Enora,” I responded simply. “No one must speak of this again.”Clearing of throats filled the air around me, but none of them dared to ask or comment further on Enora being pregnant. “What is it you wanted to tell me?” My question was directed at Dimitri.He stared at Valentin, then at me. “Valentin’s fucking Barnes Chester’s daughter.”Fuck. As if I hadn’t dealt with enough problems for a lifetime. Barnes Che
NIKOLAI “We can’t just give her back to Carlos. I know she is his daughter, but he may kill her,” Mikhail complained. He didn’t seem to like her the first time I brought her here, but he’d warmed up to her now.“Do you think I’d hand my wife to that animal?” I put a cigarette between my lips and lit it. “I won’t.” I wouldn’t give up either my wife or my baby.I stared at the pool in front of us. The mere fact that I was sitting in front of the pool where that bitch Camilla almost killed Enora and our baby made my muscles quiver. I gritted my teeth and threw my head back on the upholstered chair to look at the sky.The ornaments in it shone very bright, beautifully, I would reach out and pluck some stars and even the moon for Enora if I could. It pained me that I couldn’t, being human sure came with a lot of limitations.Mikhail furrowed his brows as if he hadn’t expected me to say that. “You’re sensitive when it comes to her.”“And you need to get laid, maybe you’ll cool off a bit.”