I grab my phone, scrolling through real estate emails and other notifications. Nothing from Igor yet. It’s been two days since Itook his apartment. One day since I married his girl—who he was hoping to use as a vessel to steal money from me.
He must still be trying to do that if he hasn’t been in contact yet… He’s not even been back to his apartment.
I’ll wait for him to realize it no longer belongs to him.
Sometimes it’s more fun when they find out the truth on their own.
I stuff my phone in my pants pocket, heading downstairs.
I won’t be taken advantage of again. Not by politicians who think they can get away with everything. Not even by my own son.
The Bratva is how I remain on top.
10
JOY
I tossand turn that afternoon, trying to get some sleep. I didn’t get any last night.
Nikolai escorted me to my room. I was wide awake the rest of the night trying to slow down my heartrate. Being that close to Valerian honestly sent me up in flames.
I take a look around the room since I haven’t had the chance to do that yet. I get my own. Thank God. The last thing I need on top of this is to be stuck in the same bed as Valerian. Even though my body wouldn’t be opposed.
I must be staying in one of the spare bedrooms. Afternoon light streams in through the windows, turning everything golden. A chandelier hangs from the ceiling, twinkling when it hits the light.
Everything in here is ridiculous, a showcase of how much money Valerian has.
Of course, none of it’s legitimate. He earns millions from the real estate business. But he built it all from blood money.
I sit up in bed, something catching my attention. Afireplace.That isn’t necessary. Nothing in here is. I suppose that’s the point Valerian’s trying to make. Nothing will ever be too much for him. That goes for furniture in his houseandfor ruining other peoples’ lives.
Unable to sleep, I tear away the covers and walk barefoot over to the balcony. Palm trees sway in the breeze. It’s a pleasant afternoon. Shame I can’t go out and experience it for myself at the beach. The ocean is always the perfect temperature at this time.
I cross my arms over the balcony edge, the wind lifting the ends of my hair. I can still smell the shampoo—coconut and apple.
While showering in the bathroom earlier, I came across something not so nice. Coco Chanel. The perfume Father often came home smelling like.
I can still smell the notes lingering in my nose. Horrible scent. Even more horrible man.
I really have to let Mom know where I am. She’ll be getting worried. We’re each other's ride or dies. The only family we have left is each other.
Mom has turned a new corner after Dad. I dragged her to a yoga class, and it changed her life. She’s much better.
And that makes me worried, because I don’t want her going backwards, curling back up into that little ball on the couch, letting her emotions take over her life again.
I slide shut the door, blocking out the outside world, the sounds of trees rusting in the wind, the birds. All of it. It’s nice to hearnature, more soothing than hearing traffic when you’re trying to sleep.
But I can’t deal with the outside world right now. Facing reality feels too overwhelming. I’m exhausted from going down the rabbit hole of what all this means. Missed article deadlines. Mom being worried. It’s all making my head hurt.
I shut my eyes, tuning out all of the noise.
And when I do, I feel myself getting aroused.
God, I want to be punished for not turning up here yesterday when Valerian asked me to. I want him to take off my clothes. The thought of him seeing me naked, scanning my body head to toe, makes me shiver.
He’s so fucking powerful. And for some, twisted reason, I like the idea of me being weak around him.
Which makes no sense. My whole life, I grew up weak, answering to a man who didn’t even care. It sucked.