Chapter 6

•Nikolai•

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"I don't know anything about the shooting, Don Niko," she was on the verge of crying.

May Summers, the only maid that was luckily left alive. She had taken two days' leave when Elijah Bolton's entire family was murdered. She was the only one who could tell me if that girl was telling the truth or not. She could be an imposter for all I know, I couldn't just take her word for it.

The story she made up was complete utter bullshit. What the fuck does Ignacio Reyes take me for? A fucking fool?

He really thought that he'd dangle a sweet piece of ass in front of me and it would throw me off my game? I'm not that weak when it comes to women.

The way she just stood there, practically trembling as if I might pounce on her at any moment. Her eyes, so wide and drenched in fake innocence, flinched every time I moved closer. And her body—fucking ridiculous. It was almost laughable how out of place her flawless curves seemed against the backdrop of her terror. I barely gave a damn about her beauty; what mattered was who she was and what she wanted.

But the more I looked at her, the more I wondered if this whole act was just that—an act.

I shifted my focus back to the maid, who was trembling like a leaf in a storm.

Reclining in my seat, I spoke with a hint of frustration. "I didn’t call you here to shake in fear. Tell me, did Bolton have a daughter stashed away somewhere?"

The maid went white as a sheet. "Yes, he did."

A frown creased my face. "How the hell did this stay hidden?"

Her gaze dropped to the floor. "I wasn’t allowed to speak to her, Don Niko. She was kept locked away, and while I saw her occasionally, I never had any direct contact."

"So, Elijah Bolton managed to keep a daughter hidden for eighteen fucking years, and no one knew about it?"

It was a fucking hard pill to swallow.

"Don Niko, most of his servants have been loyal to him for years and none of us thought that him having a daughter was important enough to tell you. We thought you knew..."

She then went on to tell me everything she has heard or knew about Evangeline Bolton.

In the world that I grew up in, there weren't many things that surprised me but somehow this did.

All this time, I have been thinking about her being a pawn that Ignacio had sent my way but she was telling the fucking truth. Every word she had said was true.

We dug up Elijah Bolton's security camera footage, there was only one in the house, it was set in his living room. After going through hours of footage, my men only found Evangeline appear in it three times a day, just like she had said—breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I shut the laptop's screen and rolled my neck to loosen the kink. I lit up a cigar and lodged it in my mouth.

Bianca entered my office, it had been three days since Evangeline Bolton has been staying in my house. I hadn't seen her after the first day in my office. I thought that all her crying and pleading was fucking fake but now that I know the truth, it amused me.

That girl was as untouched as she claimed to be, and it irked me how her supposed innocence had become such a focal point for me. The fact that no other man had touched her before didn't particularly thrill me; it just seemed like another complication in a situation that was already getting out of hand.

Now that I thought about how she acted that day when she saw me made sense. Her body was tensed when she stood before me like all this was new to her.

It was mildly satisfying to see her comply with my orders without question but it did make me wonder about her level of obedience in other situations.

“What do you want me to do with her?” she asked.

She understood perfectly why I’d summoned her—she’d been watching Evangeline for the past three days, trying to extract information.

“You can leave now,” I said tersely.

Evangeline wasn’t a threat or an informant. There was no need for anyone to keep tabs on her anymore. I still hadn’t decided what to do with her. She could stay in the house as long as she wanted. She had no one left—her parents were dead, and she likely had no other known relatives.

“Niko, I’m convinced Evangeline is telling the truth. She’s not a mole. She doesn’t even know what Cosa Nostra is.”

“I know. That’s why you can head home now. I’ll let you know if she needs anything.”

She nodded. “Understood.”

“Oh, and Bianca—let Evangeline know she’s free to do as she pleases in the house. No need for anyone’s permission.”

“Got it. She’s starting to relax a bit. She’s genuinely curious about everything here. It’s actually quite entertaining to watch.”

My phone buzzed with my father’s name on the screen. I stood up and adjusted my suit jacket.

Giving Bianca one last nod, I left my office to get to my father's house. I was meeting Paul Russell and Grace today for the marriage of convenience. The only reason I was ready to get married to that whore was power. Paul Russell had no heirs, everything he had belonged to his daughter. So, marrying Grace will not only make me more powerful but it will also give me more territory to rule over. Her uncle was the chief of staff of the United States and we needed him for the clearance of our arms and drug deliveries.

I arrived at my father's mansion, the men bowed their heads with respect. I walked straight to my father's study where I knew Paul and Grace were waiting for us.

Scott, my underboss, stepped out of my father's study.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What are you doing here?"

His face contorted with annoyance. "Your father put me in charge of your father-in-law's and future wife's security."

I let out a dry breath as something unwanted coursed through my veins. I was fucking hating the idea of marriage.

Scott gave me a shit-eating grin. "How's that pretty little Bolton girl?"

"She's staying at my place," I replied curtly.

Most of my men have seen her by now. Scott has seen her multiple times lurking out in the gardens. She is a weird fucking girl, she was fucking enjoying her freedom for the first time and she was making the most out of it.

It’s inevitable she would draw attention. She has an annoyingly attractive face and a body that’s hard to ignore. Bianca has dressed her in these little dresses that barely reach her knees. Over the past few days, I’ve seen more men ogling her than actually working, including Scott. It’s infuriating how much she was disrupting everything.

"What are you gonna do with her?"

Why the hell was everyone so interested in what I planned to do with her?

"I haven't figured it out yet," I replied curtly.

"I could take good care of her for you, boss," Scott said, his suggestive grin making his intentions clear. "Bolton knew what he was doing when he locked her up."

Irritation surged through me. It bothered me how having her in my house made me feel a strange sense of ownership. It's only been three damn days, and I already started thinking of her as my property, and that realization annoyed me even more.

From behind the door, I could hear my father's muffled laughter. I placed a hand on Scott's shoulder. "Don't even think about it."

Without hearing what he had to say, I pushed open my father's study door and stepped inside. Paul Russell along with his daughter Grace stood up.

"There's my boy!"

I shook hands with Paul and settle opposite the father-daughter duo. My eyes met with Grace's familiar green ones, she smiled at me. She was an attractive woman but whenever she opened her mouth it made me want to shoot her fucking brains out. The thing about her that annoyed me the most was her habit of sleeping around. I was a fucking mob boss, the most feared man in New York City, and I had to marry a girl that had probably slept with few of my men just because of my father's word.

Father and Paul started to discuss the plans for the future and how this union will affect the relationship between our families.

Marrying Grace Russell was a smart move for our business, so, I had to fucking swallow this pill. I don't have to have a relationship with Grace. She will be my wife in the title and she will bear my children. I don't have to play fucking house with her.

Father seemed too pleased with his plans and that is when I decided to speak up. "I have one condition"

Paul raised an eyebrow. "A condition?" he looked between Pops and me.

My father cleared his throat. "What condition, Nikolai? You know everything is---"

"We will get married after a year"

"A year?" Paul repeated.

"Why?" Father asked, turning to me.

"I need some time. Grace and I will get engaged, but we will get married after a year. If you don't agree with this then I will---"

Grace fucking Russell cut me off. If she is going to be my wife, she better learns some fucking respect. "Nikolai is right, I need some time as well. I'll graduate from university in six months, so, I don't mind if we wait."

I turned to her as she beamed up at me. "Don't ever fucking cut me off again when I'm talking," I turned to Paul. "Teach your daughter what it's like to marry into La Famiglia" before my father or Paul could add anything, I stood up. "Now that it's done, I have to be somewhere"

I walked straight out of the office and strode to my mama's room. I opened the door and saw her lying on the bed with an oxygen mask over her mouth. A certain uneasiness settled in my chest, it always happened whenever I visited her. She was unconscious, her meds made her pass out like this. I bent over and kissed her forehead.

"You're going to be alright..." I whispered against her forehead.

Staring at her for a few more minutes, I stepped out of her bedroom only to see Grace.

"Grace?"

"Niko," she smiled and held my hand.

She pulled me into one of the guestrooms and locked the door. I know why she had brought me here. She faced me and slid the straps of her tight dress off her shoulders. She reached behind her, unzipping her dress making it fall to the ground and pool around her feet.

"I wanted to do this the moment you walked through that door," she said to me with a sweet smile.

"Grace, I'm not here for this."

"You don't have to do anything, let me do all the work" she kneeled before me and unbuckled my belt, she zipped my pants down and stroked my shaft from over my boxers.

I gathered her hair in a makeshift ponytail and tugged her head back. I liked to be the one in control of everything, whether it was my business or my bedroom.

I wonder what that little angel Evangeline is like in bed. Her submission the other day had me spellbound. She is a meek little thing, the things I could do to that sweet, virgin body—Fuck!

I looked down into Grace's eager eyes. She swiped her tongue across her lower lips while stroking my hardened dick.

"I don't have much time, Grace"

She knew what I meant, it was all she needed as she eagerly removed my dick from my boxers and put it in her mouth. I forced my dick deep into her mouth before pulling it back out and then back into her throat again. I roughly fucked her face, and she was enjoying it like a good little slut.

I closed my eyes and threw my head back as I thrust into her mouth. I wonder what Evangeline's little warm mouth would feel like, her plump lips wrapped around my cock as she sucked me off.

Fuck!

I looked back down at Grace, her eyes had watered and drool was dripping down her chin. Her mascara was running down her cheeks.

I need to stop thinking about that little distraction in my house.

With a few more strokes, I came deep down her throat.

I pulled my dick out of her mouth and tugged myself back into my pants. Grace wiped her chin and sucked her fingers clean while eyeing me seductively. She grinned up at me, still kneeling before me.

I raised an eyebrow. "What are you so happy about?"

"We are going to get married, I still can't believe it" she heaved a sigh dreamily. "I'm the one who won Nikolai Costello in the end."

"We still have a year..." I reminded her as I fixed myself.

"I know... it will pass by quickly..."

I pulled out my cell phone and saw a string of calls and messages from Scott. Furrowing my eyebrows, I called him back as I stepped out of the room.

"The fucking FBI raided our Vegas nightclub," Scott's voice came through, tense and urgent. "They knew, Niko, they knew about the drugs. Someone tipped them off. It's Mount Vernon all over again."