I brushed off yesterday's pathetic attempt on crashing Roman's meeting. Next time I'll break into his house.I walk into my office inhaling the wonderful raspberry aroma filling the area. It always soothes me, I make my way past my staff, nodding and accepting greetings. Working will get my mind off things. My assistant Annie eventually catches me and we walk in sync. "Morning Miss Michaels." I almost burst out laughing. Micheals is the fake surname I adopted years ago, the one that gave me a fresh start. I'm beginning to think it has no value anymore I mean otherwise I wouldn't have been discovered right?Annie takes my coat and hands me coffee. "Should I bring the same flavoured donuts for your guests as well or maybe I should confirm with them?"I stop in my tracks and glance at my watch. It's six thirty I'm not supposed to have any clients until ten. "Why didn't you mention that before Annie?"She looks away flustered. "Well they told me you were expecting them so assumed you al
I can only hear gunshots and the heavy thumps of corpses hitting the ground around me. Both my brain and my stomach are throbbing with excruciating pain. I'm curled up like a foetus, anxiously trying to protect my body from the flurry of bullets flying by. The bullets seem to go forever before stopping. I pull my head free of my arms and sneak a peek. My nose is assaulted by a familiar intoxicating scent, I don't need to look up to know who's standing in front of me. I sit up ignoring the protest of my body oozing with pain. Roman eyes me intently, his gaze sweeping over my body. He extends a hand, I immediately grab on to it and he hoists me up gently. He struts over to his car. Roman's made men gather my pursuers' bodies and toss them in cars. They'll all dead. A honk startles me out of my thoughts. Roman catches my attention."Aren't you going to get in the car?"I make my way to the car and step in immediately feeling the warmth of the heater. I sink into his plush leather seats
We're at Roman's penthouse, my temporary home for the next few months. On our way up I was addressed as Mrs Valkov at least fifty times, it still tastes foreign on my tongue. I don't think I'll ever get used to it. I've spent the last ten years using a fake surname. Now I have another, crazy. Does that mean I have to change my documents now? I'm overthinking this. I snap out of thoughts and focus on my surroundings. It's a very gorgeous penthouse with the best view. We passed by so many floors on our way up, Roman says his men occupy some of the floors and the other floors are for recreational purposes. I make a mental note to explore the rest of the floors later. I'm introduced to his staff, Elena who handles housekeeping and Chef Ranov who does the cooking."So what do you people do for fun? Target practice on dead bodies maybe?""Would you like to be the subject of today's practice?"I purse my lips. "So how do we handle commuting? I'm sure your work has an awkward schedule anywa
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous about the engagement lunch. I've been rummaging through my closet for an appropriate outfit. I mean what do you wear to your engagement party with a Don? I suddenly feel homesick, if things had been different I'd be surrounded by my cousins and annoying aunts in Italy. They'd be helping me get dressed up whilst gossiping about their neighbours. Unfortunately things weren't different, I'd always been destined to be alienated, secluded, all alone. I wish Val was alive, at least we'd have been together, secluded together.The life I lived was a lonely one. It's not like I even had a choice. Ofcourse I had friends but they only knew Lana Michaels, the goofy,crazy Lana Micheals with a perfect life. They didn't know Lana Morelli, the one who had killed and stolen for survival, the black sheep of her family who was harbouring intense bitterness and anger toward them. Lana Morelli who hated that her life was pathetic, the daughter of a monster. Lana Mor
These people are vultures. I know their type, I've dealt with their type. The type of people that tear you down from flesh to bone. People with critical eyes and big noses from which they look down on people. Stuck up rich people. I have the strong urge to shoot everyone in the room. As his doting wife to be I have my arm snaked around his showing our engagement rings for the camera. I have the fakest smile on my face. Roman leans towards me. I feel his hot breath fanning against my neck. "Ne khodi v les yesli boish'sya volkov." He whispers into my ear. What does that mean? Why is he speaking Russian to me when I don't even understand it? It sounds good though, him speaking Russian sounds really good. Curiosity fills me, I want to hear more of Roman speaking Russian. I tilt my head slightly so I'm facing his neck. Aware of the cameras and the crowd watching, I place a kiss near his earlobe. I feel his throat rumble, more like a growl sound. Maybe I'm just imagining it. "What does
The dinner is being hosted by a family restaurant. The second I step out of the car my nose is welcomed by a pleasant mix of aromas dancing in the air. The place is decorated with gorgeous lights and flowers which uplift my mood. The sight of the place alone calms me. As the saying goes, looks can be deceiving. Who would guess that such a cosy family restaurant would host the most dangerous of criminals that roam the streets? Monsters of every kind are hiding behind those closed doors. You wouldn't want to eat with mafia men even if you were on your deathbed, they are the most hazardous kind of people. In the past I used to dine with plenty of them, my papa advertising me like a shiny new toy at the dinner table and those men undressing me with their filthy eyes. Some inappropriately tugged at my dresses under the table. Yep, dining like this definitely brought back bad memories. I doubt any of them would try anything with Roman around, then again you can never be too sure that's wh
The instant we walk out from the elevator part two of our argument commences. "You're such an asshole you know that, you set me up." I point at his chest "You let me be crucified out there whilst you sat and watched. You're pathetic.""It's nothing personal."My blood is boiling. "Nothing personal! I'm your wife, you're supposed to stand up for me! Now they won't respect me." I fold my arms. I'm seething with anger. I'm trying to restrain myself from stabbing this man. He's so fucking selfish. "Those men are probably snickering behind your back, bad mouthing your wife. Don't you care about your reputation !""My reputation is mine. Your reputation is yours. How much they respect you will not hinder my power or authority. If you want respect, demand it. Fight for that respect. Nothing in this world is ever handed to you on a silver platter."His words hit like blows to the stomach. I have an arrogant man as a husband that barely has my back. How will I ever survive? He steps away f
I think I fell asleep sometime in between the crying. I'm awake now and I feel a little less emotional than before. My rooms pitch black and according to the clock beside me it's three in the morning. All traces of sleep have evaporated into thin air as usual. It's not like I usually sleep for longer hours anyway. Everyday like clockwork I wake up at three on the dot no matter what time I go to bed it's always the same time.It's usually because of the nightmares I have. It's been a while since I've had proper sleep. I slip my feet into my slippers and step out of bed. Unfortunately, I'm still in the dress I wore yesterday. A quick shower will do. I strip out of the dress and head to the shower. My body relaxes as the hot water massages my skin. What am I going to do about Roman? I sigh. I'll just avoid him, try my best to keep our conversations at a minimum. I doubt that will work. My stomach rumbles, that's right I haven't had anything to eat since lunch yesterday. I wonder if Rom
It's pitch black everywhere. The sound of my feet moving across the vast darkness echoes around me. I desperately glance around hoping to catch a glimmer of light but my hope immediately sinks when I spot none. I wrap my hands tightly around myself, the thin material of my gown does little to shield me from the blistering cold. "Hello!" I call out. My voice echoes back. Just how big is this place, just how empty is it. My anxiety bubbles inside me as the seconds tick by. I keep walking, desperately hoping I'll find the end of this hell. Suddenly, sharp piercing screams erupts throughout the room. My eardrums feel as though they are about to erupt, this throws me off balance causing my knees to buckle and they hit the ground hard. Pain immediately sprouts through my body. Tremors wreck through my body. Despite it being useless, I try to shield my ears from the menacing scream, hoping for some silence. This does nothing, I feel vibrations wrecking through my body."Please, please stop.
Forty minutes later the food is ready and dished out in the dinner table. As I am about to take my seat on the opposite end of the table Roman stops me. He gentle drags me back to his seat then just when I think he's going to make me seat in it, he does the opposite. He wraps firm hands around my waist then hoists me on to the table. Stunned I simply watch as he retrieves the plates from the center of the table and places them besides me. Thank goodness this table is huge. He takes his seat and moves hisbseat closer. He places a hand besides my thigh and gets a fork full of spaghetti and brings it to my lips. I open my mouth and accept it happily. The burst of flavors melts in my mouth and I groan in satisfaction. He continues feeding me. I love that he's feeding me. After ten minutes I'm stuffed. "Okey now its my turn." I state. I hop off the table and take my position sideways on his laps. He holds me securely so I'm comfortable. I start to feed him taking time to also admire his
We walk hand in hand to the kitchen. I feel butterflies in my stomach. I sit by the kitchen island whilst he works his way around the kitchen."What are you cooking?" I ask. "Pasta."I sit quietly and watch as he manoeuvres around the kitchen. A man who cooks it top tier. "You're awfully quiet." He says as he adds the pasta into the hot water. I hug my body. "I thought you said you hate my endless chatter." I tease. He leans against the counter and my eyes collide with his. "Maybe I like it."Feeling flirtatious I say "Well you'll have to pay up to get me talking again.""Oh really? Cash? Credit? Me? Which one do you desire?"The playfulness in his voice sends adrenaline through my body. I twist around in my chair then come again to face him. "Hmm well, I'm not sure if you can afford it Mr Valkov. Give me a spin, let's see your assets."He takes a slow spin. Then comes to face me again. Suppressing my giggles I say "Hold on I didn't see that ass."Amused he turns around. I giggl
The room has his delicious scent all over it. He sits me down on the bed and disappears into the bathroom. I run my fingers over the comforters, they are really soft. I wouldn't mind losing myself in between these covers. He disappears into the bathroom then he pops back into the room a few minutes later. He places a gown beside me then crouches in front of me, takes my hand and stares at me intently. "Are you bruised anywhere?"I manage a nod. A frown forms on his face. I point to my stomach. His fingers hover over the first button waiting for permission to continue. I nod and he carefully unbuttons the bloody shirt. Once done he tosses it on the floor and inspects my upper body. There are bruises running from my stomach and arms to my chest. A dark look invades his face. I feel self conscious at the thought of him seeing my body covered in these ugly bruises. He's probably disgusted. I look at the ceiling hoping it would swallow me up. I feel his fingers graze one of the bruises on
I step out of the elevator and am immediately bathed in darkness. I look around and find no sight of Roman. Where did he disappear to? I turn on the lights in the living room and kitchen feeling relieved that I'm not in darkness. I stand awkwardly in the kitchen not sure what to do with myself. I don't want to go into my empty dark room alone. I don't want to be alone and I don't want to bother him more than I already have. One minute he's delighted to be in my presence the next he's not. I don't think I can deal with that at the moment. I'll take care of myself. Like I always have. I retrieve a glass from the cabinet and pour myself a cup of water. It tastes sour as it goes down my throat. I suppress the urge to spit it out. I hold the glass gingerly and stare at it intently. I'm here having a cold fucking glass of water when Hunter's remains are scattered in a warehouse. It's all because of me. It's my fault. If he had never met me he'd still be alive. What makes me more disgusted
I don't know how many distractions are coming to keep me from my breakdown but they're running out. As the car engine dies down I feel everything rushing back. The temporal rush I had has vanished into thin air as if it never existed. My chest hurts, it feels as though a dagger has been lodged into it and when I pull out that dagger it'll bleed out. Where did my life all go wrong? Was it even right to begin with? I sigh. Everytime I think I'm stable and at a happy point in my life something drags me back down to that dark pit. Would things have been different if my sister was still alive? If my father was loving ? If my mother wasn't driven to the brink of insanity by my father? My door is yanked open. Roman's standing beside me. "Ouuuu you're even opening doors for me now, are you sure you're not head over heels for me Roman."He looks at me intently. I think I see concern flashing in his eyes. He's not buying the joke. If he keeps looking at me, I'll lose it. I need to hurry and
You know that feeling after you've gotten off a Rollercoaster? When the thrill wears off and you're left with your head fucking spinning and have this void in your chest. You yearn for something else to give you that adrenaline and entertainment. Well that's sort of how I'm feeling now except scratch out the thrill and entertainment. I was on a Rollercoaster of rage and for the whole day I was only going up now I'm back to fucking earth and I hate it. I haven't yet processed the events of the day. I can't process the events of the day. Everything just happened so fast, way too fast. But I know that the minute I am alone and sitting in a dark corner it'll hit me. That's why I've been clinging to Roman like a thorn. He distracts me, actually when I'm in his presence all those loud dark thoughts are silenced. It's as if they're afraid of him. I feel safe and less alone. I feel alive. It's been a while since I've felt like this. Things have shifted between the two of us, I don't know how
Roman's PovI feel his bones crack under my fist. Blood shoots out of his mouth landing a few inches from my shoe. Irritated, I take a step back. My eyes dart to Lana who's standing in the far corner with her hands hugging her body. Her focus is on Dante's puddle of blood. I need to wrap things up quickly. Dante lifts up his head and grins at Lana. This earns him another punch from me. His head jerks back and more blood flies all over the place. Soft footsteps approach me and I don't need to turn to know it's her. Dante and her lock eyes, a shiver runs down her spine. Although she's putting on a brave face I can tell instantly that she's afraid of Dante. My anger starts to ignite once again. I gently place my arms on her shoulder, her body tenses at first then it eventually relaxes. Fuck, what did this asshole do to her that's made her this scared. I don't like that she's here to witness this nasty activity. Her eyes meet mine. "You don't have to be here, you can wait outside. I'll
Roman We're at one of our clubs hosting a meeting in my office. Lana's fatigue is getting worse which means I need to hurry things up. I think she's both mentally and physically tired. Stravos and Ace brought their women with them, Leona and Marcella. I'm hoping they can convince Lana to throw in the towel and call it a day. She's gotten enough blood on her hands. That's why I'm here to handle all the messy part of our bargain. She's sprawled out on my sofa with my jacket wrapped around her. Although she's laying down I have no doubt that she's listening to every inch of the conversation. "Ace, take care of these two." I hand him the file. He scans it and a grin forms on his face. Ace is a very twisted individual and he's also good at what he does. We've known each other for years now and I trust him with my life. He's also the best assassin there is. Despite his playful attitude and flirtatious personality he's as deadly as they come. In short don't fuck with him. He's the shoot f