So far, Alek had kept to his words. He had received zero calls since they both sank into their lounge chairs. The silence stretched between them, comfortable and palpable. Her eyes were on the book, but she had barely read a line since he sat.
A shirtless Alek was even more of a rarity than Alek with his hair down. Today, she had both versions of him. He bent to open the cooler, and she licked her bottom lip slowly as the muscles in his arms and back stretched. Her nipples beaded in her bikini top, and she forced her eyes back to the pages of the romance story. It was a new to her author. Her mind drifted again as he straightened up and stretched his arms.“Do you take beer?” he asked.There was a bottle in his hand. He opened it with his teeth, tilting his head back as he guzzled the drink. The liquid trickled down the corner of his lips, and her body tingled. She crossed her legs, fighting off the urge to slide over his lap and lick him.Letting outMorning met Camilla tangled in the sheet. Her top bare, and the bikini bottom barely covering her ass. She stretched her arms, yawning. Her body was sore from the sex, and wait, how did she get here? The bed?They had been outside, talking late into the night. Where was Alek? She rolled to the other side, but it was empty and warm.Sitting up, Camilla traced the teeth marks over her boobs. Her husband was a beast. Her gaze briefly met her twin image in the mirror, and she shuffled to the bathroom.There, she rinsed her face and brushed her teeth. Her nipples puckered from the cold air, begging for attention only Alek could provide. She didn’t cover up even with the chill beach air hitting her skin. Grabbing a robe draped over the chair before the tall mirror, she donned it without knotting it at her waist or covering her sensitive boobs.The bedsheet was rumpled, with pillows strewn over the bed. Camilla fixed both, smiling at her handwork as she hopped out
It was time to leave. Maksim wasn’t having it as easy as he thought. Only one week with Camilla in a place people barely knew them, and he didn’t want to return to the Kalashnikov’s empire anymore. His wife must share the same sentiments. She was quiet as she stuffed her clothes into her suitcase. Her face was hidden by the closet door, but her shoulders were stiff. His thoughts strayed to a stop, and he traipsed to her.Hugging her from behind, he kissed her cheeks. “Hey,” he murmured. She fisted the dress in her hands. “What’s wrong?”“I don’t want to go back,” she replied. Her shoulders sagged, and she resumed packing. “But I also know it’s a selfish request.”Maksim tried to get her to face him, but she didn’t allow it. Her mood would take a worse turn if she knew she was leaving him tomorrow. Friday was the burial, and he had decided she would leave then. Papa would be too b
Morning rolled by. Camilla rose from the bed with a deep sense of dread brewing in her belly. The time had finally come for her to leave. Who would have thought she would have a change of mind? But here she was, reluctant to leave the man who shoved a gun into her pussy, tore her from her comfortable life, and threatened her.She went through her morning routine with a forced smile. Alek wasn’t in the room. He must be preparing for her departure and his trip to Nightfall Hills. Today was the burial. Whatever agreement he had with Papa had convinced him to leave. She finished bathing and returned to the room, but her husband was nowhere in sight.Alek told her not to take anything with her. She came here without a thing, and she was leaving, even if only temporarily, without a thing, too. The door opened and Alek entered. He was in a black suit with a collared shirt of the same colour. Tears brimmed in her eyes, and she hurried to him.“Hey,” he whisp
The burial mass was short. Maksim stole a look at his wristwatch again as they left the church. Papa sat beside him for the mass. They hadn’t said a word to each other except for the one time he asked for his daughter-in-law. As far as everyone else involved was concerned, she went for rehearsals. How was the fucking film even going? He hadn’t thought about it or mentioned the movie. Neither did Camilla.Footsteps pounded into the floor as a group of men in suits continued down the path leading to the parking lot. Their aura would have intimidated outsiders, but no one in the church premises faltered. Maksim was sure each person here was concealing a weapon. Hopefully, they would all honour the dead for today and avoid bloodshed.St James Cathedral was the oldest church in Nightfall Hills, the same place his wedding with Mila almost happened. It made sense that the Patron of the Petrov household would be buried here. Some men talked among themselves. He was har
Ivan wasn’t at home, and neither was he picking up Maksim’s call. Maksim paced in his office, one hand gripping his phone and the other clenched tight.What did Papa mean by it was a phase?What exactly was the phase?Darkness surrounded him, but he was familiar enough with his office not to run into anything harmful. Right now, he would take physical pain over this ache from not knowing his wife’s location.Stopping so abruptly, he screamed into the air. What was happening? Ivan had one job to do. What about Christian? Oh wait. Why hadn’t he called his friend? He snatched his phone from his pocket to dial Christian’s number, and the man picked up immediately.“Hey, Mak,” Christian said. His voice sounded like he was far from his phone and maybe tired or sleepy. “Kind of getting tired waiting here. Is Camilla still coming?”The world around him went silent, and he staggered to his desk. Slumping into
It was too dark. Camilla couldn’t feel her hands, and her eyes were shielded. She tried to open them, but a groan left her.Was she blind? Why couldn’t she see a thing? She attempted to raise her hands to her face, but something stopped her. Her feet were the only things that didn’t seem to be tied. But she wasn’t flexible enough to use them for anything. If she had to take a guess, her hands must have been tied.Memories filtered into her mind like broken fragments. The journey had begun smoothly. She had fallen asleep after Yaro fixed the tires, only waking up to the force of something slamming into them. Yaro had told her to be calm, and she had tried to but people were shooting at them. There was only so much Yaro could do with being a driver and a shooter. She should have taken her gun. At least she would have been able to help him. He tried. He really tried only to be…A muffled sob left Camilla. Yaro. God, Yaro was dead. Why? She
No news.Maksim glared at the man in front of him. Two more weeks had passed with no news of his wife. He should have killed Papa. Lord knew he would have because the man didn’t deserve to be breathing, but if he wanted to find his wife, he had to play by the old man’s rules. Find Camilla first, then kill Papa later. His men had checked every corner of the city. Knox was helping him, and Christian was also doing his best.Papa had denied any involvement in her abduction, but he knew what his father was capable of. For now, he would let him live.“Leave,” he commanded.The man scrambled out of the office, and he stared at the sheet of paper on his desk. There were names on the list. Names of all the people Ivan told about the plans. The first two on the list had been crossed out. A late-night visit to them showed they weren’t the ones who revealed the plan to Camilla’s abductors. It was hard to tell who the enemies were. It coul
Maksim drove like a thief in a car chase to Christian’s apartment. Finally. Some good news. He hadn’t asked for more details. He had dropped the call and started the car.Ignoring Papa had been step one in his plan. Giving the men on the list different locations was step two, the most important aspect of the plan. It was risky. What if none of them fell for it or discussed among themselves and found out it was a setup?Excitement buzzed through Maksim as the car sped down the road. He couldn’t guess the culprit, but part of him prayed it wasn’t Ivan. He would hate to kill his driver and trusted man, especially with his lovely wife always sending cookies he gave to Doris each time. Ivan had been with him the longest. It couldn’t possibly be him.He reached Christian’s apartment complex and rushed to the elevator that would take him to the penthouse on the rooftop. His friend was already waiting inside, and as soon as he strode in, th