GavrilI stayed buried deep inside her until my legs started to cramp and I rolled off, falling into the bed with her, our breathing harsh and the only sound in her bedroom. I couldn’t do that again if I tried, not right now anyway. I felt, well, I felt at peace for a few moments.Then reality started to set in, and I realized what I had done, what I had said in the heat of the moment. I had called her by her real name.Why didn’t I feel immediate anger?Why the fuck did it feel right?I didn’t know how long I lay there next to her, but when she whimpered, I sat up, my entire body feeling as if it had been hit by a train.Naomi didn’t say anything as I walked to the bathroom, as I did every time after our sexual interludes and cleaned myself up, splashing water on my face to calm the fuck down. My blood was still roaring through my veins and I needed a drink, but my body was sated.Far more sated than I had expected it to be, and it was because of what that woman did to me without eve
NaomiA Week LaterI dove under the water, holding my breath and pushing myself in the direction of the wall. Under the water, everything was muted, and it was easy to forget where I was or what I was doing. For someone who had been forced to be extremely busy all her life, I was struggling to find things that made me happy. I had no phone, no computer, nothing to entertain me during the long days except working out and swimming.If nothing else, I was going to be in the best shape of my life.Cresting the surface, I pulled in a deep breath, the air fragrant with the numerous flowers that were blooming in the midafternoon sun. The garden was easily my favorite place in the mansion, that and the study. At my request, books and writing materials had been brought in to keep me entertained, and I had selected a comfortable leather lounger as my own.Other than that, my nights were filled with my husband.A shiver shot through me despite the warmth of the day, and I knew it wasn’t because
NaomiThe next day, I was reading in the study when Gavril walked in. “You’re early,” I said, putting my book aside and giving him a soft smile.He didn’t return it, though it was rare that he did outside of sex. “Would you care to go for a ride?”My heart lodged in my throat. I was so ready to be out of the mansion for a little while. “Yes, let me grab my shoes and I will be ready.”He inclined his head, and I raced up the stairs to my room, gathering a pair of slip-on shoes and my sunglasses. I was already dressed in a loose-fitting floral tunic that reminded me of summer and a pair of white shorts, and though I didn’t have any makeup on, I doubted that Gavril would wait for me to put a full face on.So, I opted for a tube of lip gloss and a quick swipe of mascara before heading back downstairs. Gavril opened the door and we walked out into the sweltering summer heat, escaping into a waiting car a moment later.I clasped my hands in my lap as the car wound down from the hill and to
Gavril“And the other shipments are on time. I think that by the end of the week, we should be fully stocked and ready for delivery.”I drummed my fingers on my desk as Anatoly droned on in his report, filling me in on every shipment that had come in over the last week.Right now it felt like the last fucking year for as long as he had been talking.“Tell me,” I answered once he stopped to take a breath. “Don’t you ever think about just typing that shit in an email and sending it to me?”Anatoly glowered at me over the paper pad in his hands. “You know that emails can be traced and used against you if they are found in a court of law.”Fair enough. Still, I arched a brow. “Have you been watching CSI again?”“Respectfully, Pakhan.” He sighed, placing the pad in his lap. “Fuck you.”I chuckled, glad to have a moment of just fucking around. The last few days had been extremely tense, so much so I felt like I had spent more time on the phone than sleeping. We’d had a couple of ships stopp
GavrilThat was the original plan.By the time I pulled the car up to the mansion, I had the entire conversation planned out in my head. I was sure that Naomi would have a great deal of questions, questions that I wasn’t ready to answer, but I didn’t have any concerns about her not going.After all, she knew I held her life in my hands, and at any moment I could squash it. That hadn’t changed.Had it?I would treat her no differently than the plans I had with Sveta. If she couldn’t give me a kid by the end of the year, I would have to come up with something else, and the plan had always been to tuck her somewhere out of sight, claiming she was sick or some shit so I could move on.I was married to my position first.The woman was supposed to come second and be nothing but a part of a plan.Vera was hovering near the door when I walked in. “Good evening, master,” she stated. “I hear that you will be leaving soon.”“I am going home for a few weeks,” I told her. “I trust you will look af
NaomiI fidgeted as I watched the scenery pass by, wondering exactly where we were at this moment and what we could be flying over. I knew I could pull it up on the small screen embedded in the plane’s wall next to me, but honestly, I was too scared to touch anything.When Gavril had told me that we were going to Russia, I thought we would fly commercial.Why I didn’t know. I mean, I was flying with a Pakhan, a very powerful and wealthy man who could fly his own damn helicopter at that.Flying commercial was beneath him.The private jet was honestly amazing. I hadn’t flown like this before, the sleek white and black interior matching Gavril’s hot and cold nature. We weren’t alone for this flight, though. The guard who had taken me the first time was also with us, though he was sitting near the cockpit, minding his own business. Anatoly was his name, and Gavril had told me that I could trust him.I really couldn’t even trust myself right now, especially not the feelings I had swirling
GavrilI was home.I sat next to Naomi in the car as it wound through the streets of St. Petersburg, taking in the familiar sights and sounds of the place of my birth. I could practically hear the gentle sloshing of the Neva as it wound its way through the city. It had been at least a year since I had come home, too busy with the Bratva to come and visit.It was like nothing had changed. A swirl of memories assaulted me with each turn of the car, remembering things about my childhood and then ultimately my teenage years that my mother thought I would never get out of without dying first.She had always said that I was hardheaded and on a path to the devil, and her description of my life wasn’t far off even now.I was on a path, a destructive path that would lead me right to hell. My soul was too far gone to be saved, and no amount of prayers was going to change that.Still, I knew she prayed for my soul each night, and that was enough.Naomi was silent next to me, but I could tell tha
Naomi“Come on! There is so much to show you!”I looked at Gavril’s departing form until I couldn’t see him any longer, having the strange desire to call him back and not have him leave me here alone. It wasn’t because of his sisters. They were definitely different from their brother, but I could still see the family resemblance.Aleksandra was tall and thin, with long dark hair that brushed her lower back in perfect long curls. She was dressed casually in a pair of joggers and a T-shirt but walked around effortlessly in stiletto heels as if she were wearing sneakers.Katarina had dramatic blue eyes to match her dark hair, though hers was fashioned into a chin-length bob that swayed as she walked. She was the livelier of the two, as the younger one usually was. Her hot pink pants and bright yellow pullover clearly showed off her personality.They were both a surprise, and it had been clear to me that Gavril doted on them, his demeanor completely different when they had greeted us.I a