LOGINShare
15.
Last Updated:
2025-01-06 06:59:00ALEKSEI
CHAOS UNFURLED AROUND ME as breakfast preparations were made, but all I could fixate on was the simple text Igor had sent me last night. Home. Now! That was all the text said, but I could feel the fury behind it all the way from Russia. I sighed, pushing my hair out of my face. I must have really pissed my old man off because he didn't do texts. He claimed it was too 'basic' and 'beneath him', whatever the fuck that meant. He preferred his email chains. I clicked the exit button on my phone, closing the text he sent me. I clicked on Ariana's text next, against my better judgment. This was my fifteenth time checking the text since she sent it last night. Yes, I was counting. It was an unhealthy fixation. One I was powerless to. I promised myself I'd delete the text chain and forget all about it, but I eventually found myself scrolling through our chain of texts. Oddly enough, I always wished people around me would stRelated chapters
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 16.
ARIANA SHOWING UP TO WORK WITH A wedding band around my finger raised a lot of questions among my staff, especially because the last time they saw me, I bade them goodbye before heading for Papà's funeral. The girls and I were like friends instead of coworkers. We all clicked, and it wasn't like a normal boss-employee relationship. That wasn't to say they didn't respect my boundaries or weren't efficient with their work. It was quite the opposite, and I couldn't be more grateful for that. "Someone tell me I'm hallucinating," Drea, my closest friend of the bunch, said as she flung my door open, barging into my workspace. Only she would get a pass for intruding. My workspace was sacred, but she was also my best friend since my college days. In the end, bestie privileges, as she liked to call it, won. "There's been some buzz floating around. You're freaking married?" Her eyes zeroed in on my engagement ring and weddi
Last Updated : 2025-01-07The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 17.
ARIANA I skidded to a halt when I saw a group of my workers gathered just around the corner, watching Aleksei, who stood in the reception area with his hands behind his back, staring down at Cheryl, who looked up at him with lovesick eyes as she spoke. What the hell was going on? Apparently, I was the only one who didn't know my new husband was popular amongst my staff. I cleared my throat to get their attention, and they all turned to face me with wide eyes, embarrassed that they'd been caught. "Sorry, ma'am," they chorused before quickly dispersing from the scene. Aleksei looked at me over Cheryl's shoulder the moment I stepped into the reception area. His lips curved up in a charming smile. As I watched him, I wondered how many people had fallen for that carefully laid mask he put on. "There you are," he said, walking around Cheryl to stand in front of me. "Did I interrupt any important work?" He asked, placing a large h
Last Updated : 2025-01-07The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 18.
ALEKSEI DINNER WITH MY FATHER WAS a form of pure torture I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. It started with cutlery clinking against fine China before Igor Tarasov decided he'd unnerved his guest enough with just silence. While some might think it's impossible, it worked wonders. Growing up, I had gotten a front-row seat to watch grown men piss themselves or drive themselves insane during those long stretches of silence. He always said human nature made those men desperately want to fill the silence with small talk to make things less uncomfortable. Of course, their efforts went unanswered by Igor, and it only unnerved them all the more. He'd once told me the best way to win a battle was by unnerving your opposition first. Once you break their minds, you'll have already won half of the war. Like him or not, my father was a smart man. I'd grown up beside him, so I knew all his tips and tricks in the book. They never worked on me, and I could tell he hated that I knew him so we
Last Updated : 2025-01-08The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 19.
ARIANA AFTER EVERYONE LEFT FOR their respective homes, I stayed behind, bent over my designs, tweaking some things here and there until I finally gave up. Drea tried to get me to open the presents Aleksei got me, but I refused. His plan to make us seem like a loving couple worked. Even Drea swooned with the rest of the women at his 'romantic gesture', and she knew why we got married. When I finally caved in and opened the presents, Drea's mouth dropped open. Just as predicted, there were a bunch of expensive things inside the bag. Her jaw hit the floor. "Is his brother taken?" I burst into laughter. "Not that I know of." "Well, hook me up!" We both doubled over this time around, laughing until our ribs hurt. Drea wiped a stray tear from the corner of her eyes. "I'm just kidding. The men in your world scare me." That was one of the smartest things she'd ever said. Even I was scared of what the m
Last Updated : 2025-01-08The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 20.
ARIANA The ride back to the house lasted less than an hour, and I constantly caught the driver sending judging stares my way through the rearview window. I made a mental note to ask Mikhail about it. When the car rolled to a stop in front of the steps that led to the gigantic front door, I was more than happy to get out of the confined space. I didn't think I could have lasted another minute inside the suffocating car. I stepped into the foyer, and the first sight I was greeted with was Mikhail going at it with one of the maids. I recognized her easily because she was the one who'd served me breakfast and returned my smile on my first day here. She was on her knees in front of him while he thrust into her mouth, his head thrown back in pleasure, both of them oblivious to their surroundings or the fact that I'd walked in on them. Just as quickly as I walked in, I bolted out the front door, sinking down on the steps to wait them out. Apparently, privacy was foreign knowled
Last Updated : 2025-01-08The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 21.
ALEKSEI SOMETHING WAS WRONG. I could feel it in the air the moment I stepped foot in the foyer. The house was oddly quiet, and while this was a big house, it was an unusual occurrence. There was always noise coming from somewhere. Mikhail wreaking havoc somewhere in the house. The staff shuffling around. Morgaine's soap operas playing in the kitchen while she cooked because she couldn't afford to miss an episode. I heard none of those things. I knew the house hadn't been evaded because the guards at the main gate were still intact. That was the only comforting thought in my head as I closed the door, trapping the warm air inside the house. That was when I heard it. Laughter. I'd heard it only a handful of times, but I'd recognize it anywhere. Ariana. Who was she laughing with? My question was answered less than a second later when my brother spoke. "This shit is ass." More laughter came from Ariana, the sound wrapping around my chest and squeezing painfully tight for r
Last Updated : 2025-01-08The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 22.
ARIANA I STRETCHED MY LIMBS OUT as the first peek of sunlight streamed into my room, lighting up the space. I felt significantly better than I did last night. After another creative block at work, my mood had taken a downward spiral. There was nothing I hated more than failing my clients. Nothing felt right anymore. Tears of frustration clung to my lids as I walked into the house, and that was where I'd bumped into Mikhail, who was on his way out of the house. "Whose jaw am I breaking?" He'd asked in the most casual tone like we were talking about tea and brunch while he slipped his brass knuckles on. The psycho carried that around with him along with the knives and guns strapped to his body. What could I say? My brother-in-law bordered on psychopathic. Five days had passed since the call with Aleksei, and it was safe to say Mikhail and I were slowly developing a bond against my better judgment. It was surprising,
Last Updated : 2025-01-09The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 23.
ARIANAA WEEK HAD GONE by since the incident in my bedroom, and things between Aleksei and I had been cordial since then.We weren't exactly friends, but we ate breakfast and dinner together every time with Mikhail present, of course. I wasn't confident enough to be alone in a room with Aleksei yet. My nerves wouldn't let me, and the last thing he needed to see was me puking my guts out because my nerves had gotten the better part of me. They could be that bad.Oh, and back to eating together, he always pulled my chair back for me if he arrived before me which was every time.Things were almost too peaceful that I was waiting for the other shoe to drop.Cynical? Yes, but I was never one to believe in fairytales in the first place.A knock on the door pulled me out of my thoughts. I turned in my vanity stool just as the knob turned before the door opened and Aleksei walked in clad in a tailored tux that stretched over his broad shoulders and molded against eve
Last Updated : 2025-01-09
Latest chapter
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 30.
ARIANA I'D TEMPORARILY forgotten how to breathe. The few seconds it took me to get into the car felt like an eternity with Aleksei's eyes burning holes into my back. "At some point, you two are gonna have to fuck, because the sexual tension is suffocating." I shook my head at Mikhail as if to say I don't know what you're talking about, ignoring eye contact with him. There was no tension. Confusion? Yes, but that was on Aleksei's part. Mikhail said nothing, but the dark amusement that lit his eyes briefly was telling enough. "I must warn you about Reina. She's our aunt slash stepmother." His lips pressed into a flat line like he was fighting back a laugh. "It's complicated," he added. "Long story short, Reina stole my father from my mother, trapped him with a failed pregnancy, and then she eventually married him. Our father divorced our mother, and he married Reina. They've been together ever since. She's a bitch of epic proportions." My mouth fell open and closed. Twic
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 29.
ALEKSEI Viktor smirked at me the moment my feet touched the ground, patting my shoulder affectionately in his form of a hug. "Welcome home, Alyosha. I see married life is treating you well," he said with a knowing grin. I merely rolled my eyes at him, shrugging his hand off my shoulder. Treating me well, my ass. And since when were we all buddy-buddy? He spotted Mikhail behind me, and his scarred face transformed into a ginormous grin. "The prodigal son is finally back! Your father will be proud of you for accomplishing this impossible feat, Alyosha." "Are you by any chance talking to me?" Mikhail asked, shuffling his bag behind him as he climbed down the stairs. Viktor crossed his arms in front of him, amused by the glare Mikhail shot him. "Who else hasn't been home for years?" Mikhail scowled at him. "For a good reason. Always remember that." Viktor nodded absentmindedly, his attention already on the man behind Mikhail. "Look who we have here. Novikov. You were nothing
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 28.
ALEKSEI "LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT. You're pissed at Ariana because you think she's cheating on you?" Irritation flickered in my chest as I moved a pawn on the chessboard. "That's what I said, yes. And no, I don't think. I know." The evidence stared right back at me in the form of that fucking bracelet on her wrist. She cherished the fucking thing more than her own life, for fuck's sake. I'd never seen her look as desperate as she did when I tried to take the bracelet away from her, or when she woke up thinking it was gone. This was the same woman, who hadn't batted an eye when I said I wanted to get married to her. She didn't know what she was walking into when she stepped into that office to accept my proposal, but she'd done it anyway without fear shining in her eyes once. Yet, I'd seen genuine fear in her tear-filled eyes yesterday. All because of that fucking bracelet. Amedeo chucked, leaning back in his seat. "Okay, lover boy. Jeez, you're pissy today. By the way, I
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 27.
ARIANA I JERKED BACK IN fear as the bathroom door slammed shut behind Aleksei, and he locked the door. He turned to face me, the warmth in his eyes from earlier long gone. Now, he was a raging storm looking to wreak havoc on everything in his past. Unluckily for me, I happened to be the one in his path. I stumbled backward in my heels as he took a step toward me, eating up the distance between us. My back collided with the sink, forcefully bringing me to a halt, and giving him the time to close the remaining short distance between us. "What—and I cannot stress this enough—the fuck is that on your wrist?" He hissed, glaring down at me. "I got you a bracelet with the necklace, didn't I? Why didn't you wear that instead? You couldn't go a fucking day without throwing him in my face?" I jumped at his harsh tone, instinctively shrinking into myself. A muscle jumped in his jaw, his head cocked to the side like he was trying to figure me out. "What does he give you that I can't?
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 26.
ARIANA AN HOUR LATER, and I was already regretting attending this party. It was filled with endless fake conversations and smiles. My face threatened to fall off I fake-smiled at one more person in this event. Just like Laura had predicted, I'd gotten a few judging stares, but none of them had dared to be outrightly rude, and I knew it was because of the six-foot-five giant plastered to my side. He hadn't been joking when he said he'd punch anyone who ogled my body. A man's gaze had briefly strayed in my direction and lingered a second too long, and Aleksei had promptly walked away from him like they weren't mid-conversation. "I don't want to ruin the night for you, or I'd have punched him," he'd said when I gave him the stink eye before we ran into another couple that held us for the next ten minutes. "One more hour, and we can get out of here. I've engaged with at least half of the intended people tonight. It's just Pierce and a few other senators left," Aleksei said fro
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 25.
ARIANA Ariana: I think I'm broken. Something's wrong with me. I sent the text to Drea. She probably wasn't going to reply now, but I needed someone to vent these confusing emotions to. Drea: Did Aleksei finally break you with his monster thingy? He's friggin' huge! It's kinda expected. Ariana: DREA!! That was another new development. Drea urging me to have sex with Aleksei after I told her about the recent development in the house. In her opinion, there was chemistry there, and not exploring it would Drea: Okay, okay. I'm sorry. Jeez, woman, you're even scary through texts. Now, tell me. What broke my bestie? Ariana: I'm blushing right now. Over a man. Wtf is going on?! Drea: Lmao. Please tell me you're joking right now. Ariana: I'm having an existential crisis right now, and you're laughing? I'm revoking bestie privileges. Drea: Sorry. It's just so funny that you think something is wrong with you because you blushed because of a man. Ariana: Exactly. Over a man.
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 24.
ARIANAMira was the first to notice my presence. Her entire face brightened, and she pushed past Mikhail. Her black curls bounced around her face as she bounded over to me."Oh. My. God. You look amazing. Your skin is literally glowing. You nailed the vibe I was going for in my head when I first saw the dress. And the necklace?" She smacked her nude-painted lips together. "Chef's kiss. The Tarasov men have taste. Scratch that. Your husband has taste. Igor is a piece of shit, and Mikhail doesn't know his right from his left.""Not true!" Mikhail interjected. "And back off before you overwhelm Ariana."Did I mention that Mira talked a lot? Like she was physically unable to keep her mouth shut for one minute. That had stopped her from getting jobs in the past, but according to her, she didn't care."I just can't change who I am, you know," she'd said with a sigh. "I'll just be with you for the rest of my life."I had no complaints because she was fun to be around, and she reminded me of
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 23.
ARIANAA WEEK HAD GONE by since the incident in my bedroom, and things between Aleksei and I had been cordial since then.We weren't exactly friends, but we ate breakfast and dinner together every time with Mikhail present, of course. I wasn't confident enough to be alone in a room with Aleksei yet. My nerves wouldn't let me, and the last thing he needed to see was me puking my guts out because my nerves had gotten the better part of me. They could be that bad.Oh, and back to eating together, he always pulled my chair back for me if he arrived before me which was every time.Things were almost too peaceful that I was waiting for the other shoe to drop.Cynical? Yes, but I was never one to believe in fairytales in the first place.A knock on the door pulled me out of my thoughts. I turned in my vanity stool just as the knob turned before the door opened and Aleksei walked in clad in a tailored tux that stretched over his broad shoulders and molded against eve
The Mafia Boss’s Mute Bride 22.
ARIANA I STRETCHED MY LIMBS OUT as the first peek of sunlight streamed into my room, lighting up the space. I felt significantly better than I did last night. After another creative block at work, my mood had taken a downward spiral. There was nothing I hated more than failing my clients. Nothing felt right anymore. Tears of frustration clung to my lids as I walked into the house, and that was where I'd bumped into Mikhail, who was on his way out of the house. "Whose jaw am I breaking?" He'd asked in the most casual tone like we were talking about tea and brunch while he slipped his brass knuckles on. The psycho carried that around with him along with the knives and guns strapped to his body. What could I say? My brother-in-law bordered on psychopathic. Five days had passed since the call with Aleksei, and it was safe to say Mikhail and I were slowly developing a bond against my better judgment. It was surprising,
