Raymond's P.O.V. I'm getting more and more frustrated trying to figure out who hired the man to kidnap Anushka. It usually doesn't take long, but this guy knew how to cover his tracks. I finally discovered his name was Cain, but there was little else. When I'm about ready to declare him a ghost, I find a small trail of electronic breadcrumbs. I carefully follow them, making sure they don't lead me down another rabbit hole. When I decipher the code for the last piece, it opens a hidden file. I read what's in it three times to ensure I'm seeing it correctly. First, there's a list of people that Cain tortured and what methods he used. He was extremely brutal to the women. I'm not even going to get into what that signifies. When I scroll to the next page, it has a list of the people who hired him to kill the men and women on the other list. I look at the name at the bottom and feel sick. It's Stewart Wilkins, Anushka's father. I can't believe he
Anushka's P.O.V. I'm the daughter of a Russian crime boss, and when Dakota turns five, I will inherit a portion of his empire. I want nothing to do with the crime family, but if Stewart knows the truth, I'm sure he's not the only one. "We don't have to tell anyone I'm his daughter, do we?" I ask, looking from Raymond to Jordan. "No, you don't have to, but I'm sure others already know. Honestly, I think it would be best to go to Christov yourself. If you go to anyone else, it could make things worse for you. He has five sons who thought they would split the family business between them, giving them each a 20% share. If you get 25%, that cuts them out of millions, if not billions. If one of them finds out about you, they could try to kill you themselves to keep your identity secret. I don't know much about his sons, but I do know that you are his youngest child, and he never married after your mom left him. I truly believe he was
Anushka's P.O.V. I look from Christov and his men with guns to our men with guns. Please don't let there be a shoot-out. Jordan is standing next to me with his hand on my shoulder. When I hear someone running, I want to scream, I know it's Dakota. I don't want her in here right now. "Mommy, Daddy." She stops when she sees all the men with guns. "Why are there bad guys here?" "Who is this?" Christov asks, looking from Dakota to me. Jordan picks her up and comes back to my side. "Our daughter," I reply. "Are you going to hurt us like the other bad guy hurt my Mommy? I don't like bad guys. I will call the police." She warns them. I glance down the hallway and see Courtney looking at us. She looks sick. I smile and tilt my head so she'll go back in the room. I know Dakota probably ran out before she could stop her. "I'm not going to hurt you or your Mommy. I'm taking you guys
Stewart's P.O.V. I know Anushka has to have that flash drive in her house. I already had someone who works for her look in the office, and it wasn't there. It has to be in her home, but the person I sent there couldn't find it. When she took over, I had left it hidden inside the desk in my office. It contains all the evidence needed to prove that she's Christov's daughter. No one can find out that she exists, or I'll be dead. I know Christov loved Gloria, and if Anushka tells him how I treated them, he will make me suffer. My only regret is not getting rid of the proof that Anushka is Christov's. Gloria made the mistake of keeping a diary on her laptop that outlined her time with Christov and how she was pregnant when we met. I took a swab from Anushka's mouth when she was a baby and had her DNA tested to see if she was mine. When the results came back, they showed that I wasn't her father. That's when I decided I would make her mother's life hell for tricking me. Gloria's diary a
Anushka's P.O.V. I watch Christov with Dakota, and I can forget that he's a mob boss for a minute. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this man being my father. How did Stewart find out, and why did he never say anything? I also have a hitman coming after me. "Anushka, you have five half brothers. I'm going to meet with them tonight to tell them about you. You will inherit 25% of my business when Dakota has her fifth birthday." I stop him before he can go on. "I don't want any part of your business. I'm doing fine, so leave things as they were before you knew about me." I'm positive I want no ties to the Russian mob. That's an extra headache we don't need to deal with. "I insist. You don't have to be involved in the business. You can just sit back and let your inheritance grow." I shake my head. "I don't want any affiliation with it or the attention it will bring to my family and me. I don't mind you spending time with us, but as a father and grandfather, no business involv
Kozar's P.O.V. When the text comes over that Dad wants an urgent meeting with me and my brothers, I want to refuse. I don't like some of the businesses he's involved in. I only associate myself with the clean businesses. I went to college and graduated at the top of my class with a business degree. My brothers thought it was a waste of time, but I'm not like them. I don't even look like them. I take after my mother. Instead of blonde hair and blue eyes, I have black hair and dark brown eyes. They are all tall and somewhat muscular, but I'm built like a football player. At least that's what dad says. I'm six foot six and huge compared to the rest of them. Everyone thinks I'm an enforcer when really I'm a giant nerd. I'm quieter than the rest of them and prefer to keep to myself. I'm also the only one who doesn't live on the family compound. I live in Manhattan. Everyone else is already gathered in Dad's office when I get to the family home. I stand next to the door, ready to leave
Anushka's P.O.V. I can't believe that Kozar is my half-brother. Everyone is looking at us in confusion. "How exactly do you two know each other?" Jordan asks. "We went to the same college. He was a year ahead of me and my mentor for two years. We lost contact when he graduated, and I started seeing Harrison." I don't even want to say that bastard's name. "You guys didn't date, did you?" Christov asks, joining us in the living room. Kozar and I laugh. "No, we were just really good friends," Kozar replies. I always wondered what happened to him. After his graduation it was like he fell off the face of the Earth. "Can Tyler and Sarah come out now?" Dakota asks. "Yes. You can get them." I tell her. She runs to her room and returns with Courtney and the two kids. Dakota is holding their hands. "This is Mommy's nurse, Courtney, and my friends Tyler and Sarah. This is Grandpa Chrissy and Uncle Kozy." She introduces. "It's nice to meet you both. I'm going to start cooking
Zakhar's P.O.V. Looking out my bedroom window, I watch my dad and Kozar leave. I know they're going to see this woman who claims to be Dad's daughter. I don't believe it. Why would she show up now out of the blue? I pull out my phone to call Dimitri. If there's anything to find on her, he'll be the one to find it. "Hello?" he answers. "Dimitri, it's Zakhar. I need you to find everything you can on a woman named Anushka Wilkins." I tell him. "Are you looking for anything specific?" he asks. "No. Just give me everything as soon as possible." I disconnect the call and sigh. For my dad's sake, I hope this woman is being honest. I don't care about the money from the business despite what everyone thinks. I'm worried about someone getting close to the family only to bring us down. We have some clean businesses, but we also have some that aren't. I run my hands through my pale blonde hair and sigh. Most people assume that our family deals in human trafficking, drugs, and prostitut
One Year LaterAnushka's P.O.V. I look at myself in the full-length mirror and smile. I met Jordan eighteen months ago, and he adopted Dakota a year ago. Now we are finally getting married. The past year has been a whirlwind. Both of our businesses are thriving, and our families are growing. Yurkov and Corrine are expecting a daughter in a couple of months. They got married right after they reconciled. My other four brothers have calmed down and are all dating women I approve of. Yes, they asked for mine and Dakota's approval. I turn to look at the other two women. Courtney and Dina are also getting married today. We decided to do it together, just like we did with the adoptions. Another thing we all did unplanned was get pregnant. The three of us have small, matching baby bumps. We're due in six months, within weeks of each other. As I said, this past year has been a whirlwind. "You two look so beautiful," I say as we stand together. Our dresses are all white, but they're slig
Friday Before Father's DayAnushka's P.O.V. I'm so excited. Not only am I basically back to normal now, but today is going to be life-changing for three families. Jordan, Bobby, and Gavin are going to officially become fathers today. We are going to the courthouse to finalize the adoptions. I don't know who's more excited: the kids, the dads, or us moms. We thought doing it right before Father's Day would be perfect. "Mommy, are you ready for me to adopt Daddy?" Dakota asks, running into the bedroom with her blonde curls bouncing. She's wearing her favorite blue dress that her grandpa bought her. She insisted that we all wear blue to match. So I'm in a blue dress, and Jordan is in black pants with a blue button-up shirt. I lean down to kiss her cheek. It still hurts when I lift her. "I can't wait. Is everyone else ready?" I ask, taking her hand. "Yep." Dakota leads me out to the living room, where everyone is gathered. Courtney is with Bobby and her two kids, Sarah and Tyler. Di
Anushka's P.O.V. As we pull up to the enormous mansion, Dakota and the other kids squeal with excitement. Noah even laughs when they see the giant fire-breathing dragon. It's a large blow-up. I don't even know where they found something that size. As we get out of the SUV, my dad and brothers are waiting for us. They all hold open their jackets to show they don't have guns. Dakota runs over to them and jumps into my dad's arms. "You got me a real dragon," she says excitedly. He kisses her cheek and laughs. "Of course we did." We all turn when another car pulls up. Yurkov takes a deep breath and walks toward it. I see a beautiful woman with dark brown hair get out before helping a little boy who looks like my brother out of the back. Dakota has my dad put her down, and she walks over to them. "I'm Dakota. Are you Corrine and Luka?" she asks them. Luka looks at her shyly while Corrine smiles. "Yes, we are. Thank you for letting us come to your birthday party." Corrine says. Dako
Anushka's P.O.V. I wake up and stretch. I can finally sleep with Jordan in our regular bed instead of the hospital bed. My chest still hurts, and it will for a while, but I can move on my own now. I roll over and look at Jordan. He's so handsome and looks so peaceful in his sleep. I can't imagine life without him now. I met with my mom's attorney, who contacted me regarding her inheritance. It had grown so much that it was in the billions. I have no need for the money so I told him to let it sit there. Eventually, I'll have it put into a trust for Dakota and any future children we have. Today is Dakota's birthday. I can't believe she's five, although sometimes it feels like she's a lot older than five. Dad and my brothers said they had everything ready for her special day. All we have to do is show up. I'm a little nervous. This will be our first time going to the compound, but Dad guarantees we'll be safe. I guess I've seen too many movies because all I can picture is there being
Anushka's P.O.V.As we all sit in the living room, no one says anything for the first few minutes. I can tell Santino isn't quite sure how to take me. He was in love with my mom, and I look like her, but I'm not her. We make some small talk while we wait for dinner. Bobby, Gavin, Courtney, Sarah, and Tyler are eating with us. I insisted that they all stay. Dakota keeps her eyes on Santino, and as everyone begins to eat, she turns to him."Why don't you like my Grandpa Chrissy?" she asks narrowing her eyes at him."Grandpa Chrissy? Who's that?" I believe he knows exactly who she's talking about, but he doesn't want to answer. "Grandpa Chistov." We all look at her in surprise. She said his name perfectly fine."I thought you couldn't say his name," Jordan says. Dakota giggles and shrugs her little shoulders."I just like to give people nicknames." She turns back to Santino and stares him down, waiting for an answer."Why do you think I don't like him?" He asks while takin
Anushka's P.O.V.I was nervous about letting Dakota leave, but I knew Gavin would keep her safe. I'm hoping that the giant teddy bear of a man has found a woman that interests him. He has too big of a heart to be alone. While they were downstairs, the police called and said they had arrested Phillip. He was so scared that he admitted to everything. Now they're looking for Stewart. I wish them luck with that. I can now walk independently, but Jordan still stays by my side. He has been incredible. My dad and brothers have been great, too. I'm starting to wonder if they even have a business because they're always here. Kozar said they have other people who can handle the day-to-day."Dakota's birthday is going to be incredible. I can't wait. Even if it's small, we're going to make sure she has everything she wants, including a fire-breathing dragon and fairies." My dad says. I shake my head and chuckle. When they're planning a child's birthday, it's hard to remember what they
Dina's P.O.V. "We're just having lunch right now," Gavin says. I risk glancing at him, and he winks at me. My heart flutters uncontrollably. How can a man that size be so sweet and gentle? Even Noah isn't scared of him. Of course, I think part of that is because the cute little blonde beside him has all his attention. He copies each bite she takes of her pizza. When Dakota notices what he's doing, she slows down to give him time to chew."Can I come down here to play with Noah sometimes?" Dakota asks. Most kids don't understand Noah and ignore him. He doesn't speak much and can get agitated quickly. "You can come and play with him whenever you want. We're here all the time." I answer her. She smiles and begins eating again. I look at Gavin, and he's watching me. I haven't been with a man since Ben left. Being with a man was the furthest thing from my mind because I had Noah to think about. However, sometimes the unexpected happens. Like a man looking fo
Gavin's P.O.V.When we reach the building, I drop Dina off on the second floor, where her apartment is, and I continue up to the penthouse. Everyone is preparing to eat lunch, including the Kondrati men, who seem to be hanging out a lot. I was concerned about them at first, but they're not as bad as I had imagined. Sometimes, you can even forget that they're Russian mob. "I hope I got everything you wanted. I had some help at the store. She invited me down to her place for lunch. I just want to check her out to make sure she's legit. She said she has a three-year-old son with autism, and she works from home." I pull out my phone and begin running her information. She didn't give me her last name, but I have her first name and apartment number. That's all I need. Within a few minutes, I read her divorce documents and employment records. I even have her birth certificate. "What's her name?" Dakota asks. "Dina. Her son's name is Noah. I checked her out, and everything sh
Gavin's P.O.V.I didn't think I would want to accept a position like the one Jordan offered, but it sounded too good to pass up. Dakota and Anuska are incredible. Courtney and her two little ones are amazing, too. The only thing that I would like is to have a woman of my own. Everyone always says it will happen when it's meant to. I'm tired of waiting. Jordan doesn't trust anyone other than Bobby and me to get food and things for the house. He was going to order groceries and have them delivered. However, Courtney asked if one of us could do the shopping because she didn't trust the store employees to pick out the best meat and produce. So that's why I'm walking through a grocery store, pushing a cart, and looking for items I have never heard of. I'm looking at the salmon, and they all look the same to me."Excuse me." I slide over so a woman can get her salmon. I watch her look at different pieces and return them until she finds the one she wants."Can you help me?" I ask