Bratva Dark Allegiance: The Complete Collection

by Raven Scott

  A grim smile twisted his lips.

  I sat up to rub my face with both my hands and heave a massive gust of a sigh. “You remember at the waffle place when you said living your best life isn’t nearly as satisfying as immediate, direct revenge? I know it sounds stupid, but... looking back, I wished I could’ve kicked them in the balls as hard as possible.”

  “That’s not stupid, Ness.” Sitting up next to me, David kissed my shoulder.

  I closed my eyes as he rubbed my back with deep sweeps of his palm.

  “Thank you for telling me. I can’t imagine how hard that was.”

  “Thanks for listening. I appreciate it.” I felt a lot lighter, now, than just a few minutes ago. I couldn’t tell David the whole truth, of course, but this was enough for now.

  He kissed my cheek, resting his forehead against my temple.

  I turned into his touch. “You wanna go get some waffles?”

  “Yeah, I’d love to. If I go to sleep now, I’ll be up all night.”

  Tilting my chin, David kissed my lips softly. I whimpered as I cupped his cheek. He was a good guy. He deserved the truth— or as much of the truth as I could safely tell him.

  18

  David

  Four months later...

  Flicking off the lights in my office, I swung my coat over my shoulder on my way to the elevator. The cube farm was empty, and I ran my hand through my hair as I glanced over the rows of partitions. These past months had been rough, but I finally got comfortable with everyone, and everyone with me.

  My phone buzzed in my pocket and I fished out the device with a smile stretching my face.

  Ness: I have a meeting with Carlyle and Reece, do you wanna come?

  Clenching my jaw, I shot back a quick ‘sure’ even as anxiety burrowed in my gut. Reece and I had seen each other often, had a beer together every now and then, complained about our sisters... but I didn’t really count him a friend. And Carlyle Santino wasn’t someone I wanted to meet at all if Vanessa’s portrayal of him was accurate. Not to mention, I’m sure that whatever this meeting is about, it’s got nothing to do with me.

  Rather than jab the down button on the elevator, I went up one floor.

  When the doors slid open, Vanessa was waiting for me, but her work façade only cracked very slightly.

  I liked that she was able to be the boss at work but be herself out of work. I smiled back as I stepped out of the floating, metal box. “What’s the meeting about?” Following her to one of the four conference rooms on her floor, I ground my molars and tried to unclench my gut. “It doesn’t involve me at all, does it?”

  “Carlyle insisted you be here, so... It probably does. I wouldn’t be surprised if he knew we were seeing each other, but I don’t think it’s about that.”

  Arching a brow quizzically, I frowned.

  Vanessa only shrugged a shoulder. “You’ll understand when you meet him. Trying to guess him or his aims is impossible.”

  “Um, okay. That’s ominous.”

  Pushing open the glass door, Vanessa gestured me inside.

  The sudden density of the atmosphere felt suffocating.

  Reece sat in a middle seat along the long table, but a man I didn’t know took the head.

  Carlyle’s a psychopath or close to it.

  Man, I had never met a psychopath, but Carlyle gave me the fucking jeebies.

  He stood up to scan me up and down like a slab of meat. His dark eyes were hard, unyielding, revealing nothing of what he was thinking.

  I felt like I should bow or something before him.

  “You’re David. I have a business proposition for you.” The way Carlyle spoke was almost robotic, and clipped.

  I had to physically stop myself from cringing.

  Gesturing with a sweep of his arm, he sat down again to clasp his hands on the glass.

  I just grabbed the nearest chair, even further from him than Reece.

  He. Didn’t. Drop. Eye contact. At all!

  “Vanessa says you’re doing very well here. You graduated with a Master’s in business management, correct?”

  “Yes, sir.” It wasn’t a secret of course, but that this man actually took a moment to look me up was as terrifying as it was flattering.

  Carlyle Santino leaned back in his chair, stroking his chin thoughtfully. His gaze never wavered even a little.

  Being under such scrutiny was nothing but uncomfortable.

  “I’m currently undertaking a venture and I want you to head it.”

  My head snapped back as Carlyle’s declaration filled the whole room, but he didn’t give me a second to catch up. Or pick my jaw up off the table.

  “You’ve shown a lot of promise and I don’t want to waste that by having you here at Brass Herring, punching time sheets. I’ve kept an eye on you since you were hired, and I believe you’d better serve me somewhere else. It’d also solve this issue you’re having about inter-office romance.”

  “Uh— uh... yeah... I mean— what? Where else?” Stammering like an idiot, my face flushed with embarrassment.

  It seemed painfully obvious that Carlyle elicited this reaction from everyone. He barely flickered an eyelash as he rolled his hand.

  I clamped my mouth shut as expectation seared through my veins.

  “I’ve got a project that needs fresh eyes. A systems company to centralize my business conglomerates.”

  My eyes widened at this.

  Carlyle finally tore his own eyes off me to point at Vanessa. “Vanessa will be the bridge between us. You’ll be responsible for deadlines, managing the offices. Essentially, exactly what you’re doing here, just on a much larger scale. Based on my current estimates, it’s expected to require at least two more years of work.”

  “I’m sorry... I don’t understand. How—how many companies are involved that centralizing them will take years?” I could barely wrap my mind around this.

  Carlyle smirked.

  The slight tilt of his lips made the hairs on the back of my neck rise. He seemed almost predatory, catching me off guard to make me panic and agree.

  But it really is a good opportunity for me... If I pulled it off, I’d be able to get a job anywhere.

  “Twelve multinationals and about one hundred subsidies give or take.”

  Covering my mouth to hide my frown, I stared at an invisible smudge on the table as my mind whirled.

  “We’ve hit something of a wall with productivity and I want to get back on track next year. This has already taken up far too much of my effort and resources. Of course, you’ll be properly incentivized for the poach.”

  “I haven’t finished my probationary period, here. I ca—”

  Holding up a hand to cut me off, Carlyle caught my eyes again.

  Every time he looked at me, I wanted to curl up and hide.

  “It’ll be treated as a contracting. You won’t have to pay your sign-on bonus back. Don’t forget that I own Brass Herring Solutions. Theoretically, I can do whatever I want with you, however I want to.”

  Something about that was horrifying to think about. I clenched my jaw hard as my mouth dried.

  Standing up, Carlyle smoothed his jacket and nodded curtly, holding my gaze like I was in a cage. “I’ll give you a month to think it over and sort out your terms. Vanessa will give you any information you want.” Then he walked out before I even had a chance to stand up and maybe shake his hand.

  Staring at the door through wide eyes, I rubbed my neck and face roughly, as a wrenching shiver jostled my spine. My mind whirled.

  Reece came over to clap a hand on my shoulder and help steady me. “It’s rough the first time. Carlyle’s scary. It’s okay to cry.”

  Chuffing a laugh, I gulped down the dense lump in my throat.

  Reece threw back his head and laughed heartily. “It happens to everyone. That’s just how he is, though.”

  “I’m—I don’t know. What just happened? Why me?” My voice shook and I frowned deeply under tightly knit brows as the encount
er raced circles behind my eyes. “Is he for real?”

  “Carlyle takes people in at their lowest and builds that loyalty. Like he did with me.” Vanessa leaned lightly on the table.

  Her voice helped soothe the buzzing in my ears.

  “He hates wasting talent if he thinks he can benefit from it,” she went on. “From what I know, this project has stalled because of burn out, which shouldn’t be happening, which means...”

  “Which means it’s not being managed properly. No, I got that part, it’s just... why offer it to me? I have no experience. I got this position on a fluke and I haven’t even been here long enough to shoulder the entire job.”

  “It’s probably because you have no experience and still applied for this job and even better, you excelled at it. Carlyle has this uncanny ability to just know stuff about people. It’s honestly kinda creepy.”

  That made no sense. I was reeling.

  Reece squeezed my shoulder reassuringly. “You’ll do great if you take it on.”

  “Uh-h... yeah. I don’t know. I need to think it over.” I didn’t know what else to say, really. “That was overwhelming.”

  “The first time I met him in person, I almost pissed myself,” Reece admitted.

  Panic slammed into me and I glanced down just to make sure I hadn’t pissed myself.

  Reece laughed again, harder now.

  I shot him a glare as flames licked up my neck. Inhaling deeply through flared nostrils, I closed my eyes briefly. “Okay.” Slowly, that sickening pit in my stomach started to fill with pride and exhilaration that this offer had been extended to me. Even though it was vague, I had to consider it seriously. Carlyle Santino was one of the most powerful businessmen in the world, so working for him in any capacity was huge, but... being specifically asked to head a project for him directly was life changing.

  “Do you want a ride home, David?”

  My gaze snapped to Vanessa and I nodded dumbly.

  Her smile was soft and warm. “I’ll fill you in on what I know on the way.”

  19

  Vanessa

  “Why do you want to wait to tell your mom? You don’t want her input?”

  Running his hand through his hair, David shrugged lightly at my question. “I mean... she’ll either push me into it and I don’t know that I necessarily want this ‘promotion.’” Lifting his hands to quote air, he frowned under brows knit in thoughtfulness. “Or, she’ll tell me she’ll support whatever choice I make. I definitely don’t want to tell her I might be working for someone I’m afraid of.”

  I couldn’t help but giggle a little, even though I sympathized.

  He sniffed a little. Embarrassment tinged his ears pink. “Was this how he brought up Brass Herring and you being CEO?”

  Nodding firmly, I puffed out my lips at his quizzical glance with a slight shrug of my own. “It pretty much happened the same way. Only... I guess the choice wasn’t so much a choice as an illusion. He basically told me I will do it. But I don’t think this is anything beyond what you’re capable of. Carlyle doesn’t give tasks he doesn’t think a person can handle, otherwise he wouldn’t benefit from it. It won’t be easy of course, but it’s not something out of your reach. The benefits of trying this management position outweigh the risks.” The car slowed to a stop on a curb, and I glanced out the window before grabbing David’s hand and squeezing reassuringly. Smiling broadly, my chest flooded with pride and conviction that glowed in my voice. “If you take this leap, I know you’ll surpass even your own expectations. It’s entirely up to you. Carlyle won’t go bankrupt if you decline and you’ll be fine in your current position. You’ve stepped out of your box a lot recently, and it’s not a bad thing to not want to keep pushing.”

  “Yeah... Does it get easier to listen to him talk?” Blurting out the question, David went red in the face.

  My brows rose as a laugh bubbled up from my throat.

  David sunk in his seat a little, as he covered his face. “It’s so grating and— meetings with him would be torture.”

  “You’re being overdramatic, David. It gets easier, yeah.” Popping open the door, I slid out of the car to step onto the sidewalk.

  David’s mom’s place was kinda rundown but not horribly decrepit; it was just obvious that someone lived here. Gazing up at the two-story building, I gnawed on my bottom lip absently. The cold of early winter nipped at my cheeks and earlobes, and everything just felt dreary and grey.

  “Impressed?” Hooking his arm around my waist, David smiled against my ear. He chuckled after my silence stretched on a little too long. “It’s a lot nicer in the spring. My mom cleans up and gets flowers, and it’s pretty nice.”

  “Um— yeah, it’s... nice... I don’t wanna say it’s a little decrepit, but...” I felt bad for saying so.

  David only nodded, his smile widening as he kissed my temple. “You’re not wrong. My mom hates the winter. You’d think she’d live somewhere else, but she just complains every year about saving up for a cruise... which she never does.”

  Giggling a little, I bopped my head in a nod.

  David inhaled the crisp, cold air through his nose. “I’ll see you on Saturday, then? Same time?”

  “Definitely.”

  The front door of the smallish house flung open, and who I could only assume was David’s mom came rushing out. She was cute, short, aged, and her brown hair flowed in the slight, biting breeze as she huddled on the stoop.

  An instant shot of anxiety curdled my gut, but I managed a wave as I gripped the car door. “Okay, I’ll—”

  “David, who’s your friend?” his mom called out.

  Damn. Tension zinged up between my shoulder blades.

  David pressed his palm against my back.

  “Aren’t you going to invite her in?” His mom tilted her head at him.

  “Oh— ma’am, I w—”

  She waved her hand at me, spouting out something about how she wasn’t old enough to be a ‘ma’am.’

  Fighting a frown, I pursed my lips thinly.

  David’s palm hung loose on my lower back.

  Grumbling to myself, I forced a smile on my face as I shut the car door a little harder than necessary. “I’m Vanessa. Thank you for inviting me into your home.”

  “You’re so welcome! I’ve been wanting to meet you. David really doesn’t talk about the women he’s dating.” My brows twitched at this.

  David’s mom held out her hand for me as I climbed the short steps. Her palm felt weathered, it was obvious she worked hard. Brown eyes glimmered with happiness as she gestured us inside. “Come in! Come in. I was just finishing dinner. Are you a vegetarian?”

  “Oh, no...” Trailing off before I could get any more out, my throat closed as the thick smell of a roast slammed into me. Stepping through the threshold, all I could smell was rosemary and meat, and my mouth watered heavily. “I suppose I could stay for a bit, if I’m not imposing.”

  “You know, Moms make it best.” Smiling apologetically, David leaned in as he shut the door. “Sorry. I didn’t think she’d come out.”

  “It’s okay. It beats a salad. I might as well be a vegetarian with how much of the stuff I eat.”

  He sniggered a little and we all shuffled into the kitchen where a glorious sight awaited me. This roast was huge, clearly meant to be used as leftovers for days. The stove was piled with pots, the scents of mashed potatoes, carrots, and roasted asparagus, all mixing in the air deliciously.

  “It smells amazing, Mom. I thought you were making sauce today, though?” The woman shrugged carelessly at David’s question, and he scoffed a little as he shot me a ridiculous look. “Mom, did you ditch the sauce because Sarah complained that we had it last week? It takes you days to make it. The least she could do is ask for this when you’re not already planning on making the sauce.”

  “She specifically asked for this, David, and I’m more than happy to put off my sauce for a day. Besides, this roast was on sale.”

  David pulled a f
ace like he didn’t believe her.

  I swatted his arm. Like hell, I was going to get caught in an argument over his sister. Shooting him a glare that said ‘suck it up’, I crossed my arms over my chest and managed to clear my expression before his mom looked at me expectantly.

  “So, Vanessa! How was your day? David hasn’t told me much about you other than you exist. Where do you work?”

  “Ah, I also work at Brass Herring, just not directly with David. My day was fine. It’s just another Thursday.”

  David pulled plates down from a top cabinet as I spoke.

  The awkwardness of meeting his mom gave way to hunger. “How was your day?”

  “It was the same, I suppose. I don’t really have much to do during the day in the winter. I’m much more a spring chicken, myself.”

  I only smiled at this, an awkwardness weighing heavily on my shoulders. Really, I didn’t know much about David’s mom and I certainly didn’t want to meet his sister. The floor above creaked, so I knew she was home.

  “How long have you two been seeing each other?” she asked. “I wouldn’t have thought David had time with his new job.”

  “Ah, it’s only been casual, ma’am, for a few months. I’m not trying to rush into anything.”

  She seemed satisfied with that answer, her face glowing with pride and happiness to meet me.

  Taking a plate he offered while his mom brandished a carving knife, I perked up at the idea of such delicious smelling food.

  David chuckled lowly. “Yeah. Mom, my probationary period evaluation is coming up soon. I was thinking of going back to that cake shop— the one I got before I started. I have dreams about that cake.”

  At least the conversation’s light. I wouldn’t be able to bear it if she was all about marriage and kids or something.

  David’s mom nodded, a knowing smile stretching her face.

  For a moment, the attention was off me, and I breathed deeply.

  The stairs creaked lightly with footsteps, and the kitchen settled with an almost ominous silence.