by Zoey Parker
My men were loyal, but without a doubt, so would Vasilev’s. If this came to war, the victor might turn out to be the one whose men were the most loyal. My men had, at one time, been my father’s, but now they were mine. When I first set out to reclaim my birthright as the leader of the Petrov mob, a number of men came forward without question. The rest I slowly earned their respect despite my age. Respect was where true power came from, not money, not fear. If the war did require loyalty, I had no doubt I would emerge the victor.
***
It was another week before Aleksey came back, which didn’t surprise me. At least I had Kelly to occupy my mind so I didn’t obsess with my revenge every day. This time, the info Aleksey had was more than promising. I met with him in the study and sank into my chair with a groan and a half smile. I had just come deep inside of Kelly, and I was still riding the high from it. Every time we slept together, I discovered new things about her body, and she loved to explore mine, as well. We made a fine match beneath the sheets, and it would only be a matter of time before she became pregnant. This arrangement was working out better than I ever anticipated. While I was confident I would not fail, that I would not be the one to die, I desired an heir.
I desired an heir with Kelly.
I desired Kelly.
My cock was coming back to life, but I forced thoughts of the curvy woman away so I could better focus on the task at hand. I readjusted myself and leaned forward, my elbows on the table. “Good news, please.”
“Very good news.” Aleksey looked like he had just been given that assault rifle he had been pinning for. “I met a girl there, at his shop.”
“A girl?” I rubbed my forehead wearily. He was thinking with his cock instead of his brain. Aleksey was a lady magnet. Maybe I should’ve sent Dima after all. “I thought you already had a girlfriend.”
“I dumped her. Thought I told you. Doesn’t matter. This girl isn’t just any girl.” He grinned as much as his scar would allow. The women found him dark and mysterious. The scar wasn’t a turn-off at all.
“I hope you have a reason for bringing her up,” I said dryly.
“I do.” He somewhat reclined in his seat. “Because of her father.”
“Ah.” It clicked into place, and my grin matched his. “She’s Vasilev’s daughter.”
“Yep.” Aleksey rubbed his hands together.
“Good. You’ve done well so far.” I appraised him. He was the perfect one for this job — if he didn’t get distracted. “Are you ready for the next step?” I asked.
“Of course. What do you need?” His expression told me he already knew what I was going to ask of him, and that he accepted already.
“I want you to seduce her for intel. Can you handle that?” I stared him down. This wasn’t for fun. He couldn’t just think with his cock. He had to be smart about things because if he got caught, he would be tortured and killed. But I didn’t have to explain that. Aleksey knew what exactly I was asking of him.
“Of course. I’ll fuck her and learn everything she knows.” He rubbed the side of his face. “Wonder if she prefers beards.”
Aleksey stood and left the room. I remained in my seat. Good. Very good. Everything was starting to fall into place. Kelly would get pregnant soon. Mikhail Vasilev would be brought down. Death would be too simple for him. He had killed my family, and so now I was going to go after his.
Chapter 15 Kelly
Life was slowly falling into a routine. I still couldn’t get used to waking up here, in Andrei’s house. Mansion, I should say. This place was huge, massive, and it took me some getting used to. I wasn’t used to a life of opulence, and the servants who were always working and the bodyguards. It was like I had stepped into a fairytale — a messed up fairytale. I still got lost walking around the place at times.
But one place I never felt lost was in the bedroom. When Andrei wanted me, he had me, and I had no complaints in that department. I hadn’t known what to expect when I signed the contract to have a baby for him, but so far, things weren’t bad at all. Yes, I missed my mom, but I did call her all the time, and she seemed to be doing better. It probably helped her to be away from me, honestly. I had been under so much stress before that it had to have rubbed off onto her, no matter how much I tried my best to hide it. I was doing this for her, although when I was actually getting it on with Andrei, I forgot about her and the contract. The whole world would just fall away. Or maybe my whole world was becoming centered on the amazing sex we had together.
But when Andrei left my side, my brain would start to work again. I still would like to know why a mob boss wanted a child so badly, but I wasn’t making any progress on that front. His staff wouldn’t answer my questions, not that I asked many. I couldn’t risk being too nosy and having Andrei find out. I couldn’t risk anything that would get the contract voided. His business was his business, and I had a vested interested in having his child.
One morning, when my cell rang, I grabbed it, figuring it was Stacy. We talked daily, even more than I talked to my mom. Stacy was kind of freaking out about my new job, even though she had been the one to mention it in the first place.
I looked at the screen and saw it was an unfamiliar number. Oh God.
My finger trembled as I pushed the button to accept the call. “Hello?” I whispered, fear churning in my stomach. Was it the hospital? One of Mom’s doctors? Had something happened to her? Had she taken a turn for the worse?
“Hi, Kelly?” a somewhat familiar voice said. “This is Claire Adamson. I’m your mother’s nurse.”
The one Andrei had sent. The one who made it easier on my conscience to be here, away from her. The one who was going to give me a heart attack if she didn’t hurry up and say what was wrong. Because something had to be wrong. Claire hadn’t called me until now, and it had been weeks since I moved in here. All kinds of different scenarios raced through my mind, each worse than the previous one.
“I’m afraid to say your mom is in the ER,” she continued.
I could barely get my questions out, and I could barely register her answers. I might have even hung up on her mid-sentence. Mom was in trouble, and I hadn’t been there for her. That was all I could think about.
All I could do was hate myself.
In a rush, I darted out of the house as I called for a cab. I had left my car behind with Mom in case she or the nurse needed it. I kind of wished I had it now since I was trying to spend as little money as possible. I wanted to stretch the first million dollars as long as I could. If Mom having cancer with no health insurance had taught me anything, it was that money was precious, and having a healthy amount stored up in case life threw another curveball was a solid plan. Maybe it was better I didn’t have my car, though. My hands were shaking so much and my nerves were a mess. I probably would get into an accident if I tried to drive myself. And while I could ask Lucas, my bodyguard, to take me, I didn’t know if he would or if he would waste time arguing with me or if Lucas would have to call Andrei first. Better to just take the cab and go and not deal with any of that.
Trying not to throw up, I paced the sidewalk until the cab arrived, and when I told him to take me to the hospital, he gunned it without my even having to ask him to. I was a wreck, fretting over Mom, wondering what could be wrong. I should’ve listened better to what Claire had told me, but we were pulling up to the hospital now so there wasn’t a point in calling her back now.
I tossed some money at the cab driver — I was in that much of a rush that I didn’t care if I overpaid him — and ran up to the information desk. Thankfully, there wasn’t a line, and somehow despite my rambling, the woman behind the desk located my mom and her room number. I rushed down the hall to the stairs — I knew from previous trips that the elevator took way too long. Up four flights and down the hall to a room on the right.
I burst into the room. Claire was sitting in a chair by the window, and my mom was sleeping in the bed. Before I could say anything, a throat cleared behind me.
“Yes. Kelly. My name is.” I was babbling. Damn nerves! “How is she? What’s wrong?”
“Your mother fell when she was trying to go downstairs.” The doctor glanced over at Claire, who nodded to confirm his retelling. “But don’t worry. She’ll be all right.”
“Thank you,” I said to the doctor, who nodded and left the room. “Thank you,” I repeated, this time to Claire.
She smiled. “Of course.”
I sank into the chair closest to the bed and held Mom’s hand as she slept. I wanted to cry. The weight of my guilt was enough to crush me. I couldn’t help blaming myself. I never should have left the house. I should have at least asked Andrei for different accommodations. Maybe that I could go over to his place when he wanted me but still live at home. Yeah, that wouldn’t have been easy. And he was paying me enough money that I shouldn’t be complaining that room and board were included. Since he was willing to pay for a nurse for her, would he be willing to have my mom move in, too? Of course not, and I couldn’t dare ask that. Seriously. I know you’re paying me for my uterus, but do you think my mom could move in, too? So wouldn’t go over well.
If only Mom didn’t live so far away from Andrei! But we lived in the poor part of town, and Andrei definitely didn’t. And at the house, Mom was closer to the doctor and to the hospital than she would be at Andrei’s. It was best for her to remain there with Claire.
And where was it best for me to be? Was Andrei’s really the best place for me?
Don’t have a choice. Not once I signed that dotted line.
Dimly, I realized Claire got up and left, probably to give me privacy. I rubbed my palms on my pants. They were wet. From tears. I was crying. Sobbing. Shakily, I pulled myself together, but another round of tears burst out of me.
Mom stirred, moving her head from side to side, eyes still closed. As quickly as I could, I rushed to wipe away the last of my tears.
She opened her eyes and smiled at me. “Kelly.”
“Mom, how are you feeling?” I squeezed her hand, and it felt like a vise was squeezing my heart. If I had been home, she never would’ve had a reason to go downstairs by herself. I always walked her down when it was time for her appointments. If the cancer wasn’t bad enough, her sight was getting worse the older she got. I didn’t think to blame Claire at all. My mom never asked me to help her up or down the stairs. She hated having to ask for help. She’d almost fallen once before when she had tried to go downstairs once by herself shortly after one of her first chemo treatments. I had been at work. When she told me about it, I had a fit and made her swear she wouldn’t do something like that again. I had gotten into the habit of asking her the night before if there was anything she might need from downstairs that I could bring up for her since she was often asleep when I had left for work in the morning. Anything I could do to make her life easier.
Should’ve remembered to tell Claire that, but that wasn’t on her. It was on me. I had left in such a rush. I hadn’t thought things through enough. Yes, Mom needed the money, but here she was, in the hospital and not even because of her cancer.
“I’ve been better,” she said, her voice soft. She chuckled softly and then winced.
“Mom, I’m so sorry. I’ll come home,” I promised.
Somehow, I’d make Andrei understand. He wouldn’t be that unreasonable, would he? Family came first. Surely he could accept that. He was desperate to have a family of his own.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Mom scolded. Her face was pale, but her eyes were sharp, and she could still glower. “You need to stay with your new job because you need the money,” she urged, patting my hand.
I hung my head. She had no idea what the new job entailed, and I couldn’t bring myself to tell her about it now. I didn’t even want to think about what would happen when I did become pregnant. There would be no way to hide that from her, and then when I wouldn’t have a baby afterward, she’d be sure to have questions, and what then? I couldn’t avoid seeing her for months on end, and I didn’t want to. I had taken this job to be able to provide for her healthcare, but what if that same job prevented me from being able to spend time with her and she ended up dying anyhow?
I inhaled sharply, willing myself not to start crying again, and smiled sadly as I saw her eyes fluttering closed. I didn’t want to worry her, so I didn’t bother to explain anything and just let her sleep.
A few hours passed with me sitting beside her, but I knew I couldn’t stay here the entire length of her hospital stay. After talking to the doctor and learning they would keep her overnight, I knew I had to leave, as much as I didn’t want to. Andrei would not be happy if I stayed away for too long, especially since I had just upped and left and hadn’t told anyone where I was going. I hadn’t been thinking the clearest. He might already be waiting for me, and he wasn’t the kind of guy to take kindly to that kind of thing.
Would he understand my having to rush out of there? If this happened again, I wouldn’t hesitate to leave again. He needed to respect that, to accept it. I’d have to talk to him about it. But he did send my mom a nurse, and he hadn’t had to do that. It wasn’t anywhere in the contract, and he had just gone ahead and made arrangements without even asking me first. Claire, it had turned out, was a highly respected nurse, one who had worked with many high-end patients before. Andrei hadn’t hired just any old nurse. Maybe he would be reasonable, after all, but I couldn’t help wondering. Neither being in the mob nor needing an heir spoke of being reasonable. There were times when he came to me that I thought he was maybe afraid. It wouldn’t last long, just a look in his eyes, but then it would go away.
I would take it away.
What would cause a mob boss to be afraid?
It wasn’t something I wanted to think about, though. I had so much on my plate already. Maybe it was better to remain in the dark. Or maybe I was just hoping ignorance was bliss.
When I had stayed for as long as I could, I called a cab and vowed to focus my worries on my mother rather than my boss. I was just ending the call and tucking my cell into my pocket when I walked out of the hospital. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a tall man leaning against the hospital wall. He stayed there for a moment, but something about him seemed shady, and I kept glancing in his direction. I didn’t like the looks of him. No one else was out front right now. The guy who handled valet parking must be parking a car. Great.
The shady guy straightened and approached me, and I thought about going back inside the hospital, but he was already beside me. He grabbed my arm, holding me too tightly. I gasped and wiggled, ready to scream and kick, but before I could, he said, “You need to tell your boyfriend to watch his back, or we’ll come for you.”
I gaped at him. Boyfriend? Come for me? What the hell!
The guy squeezed my arm enough to make tears prickle in my eyes. His scowl was nasty and vicious, but then he just released me and walked away, melting into the shadows, out of sight.
For a long moment, I just stood there, shaking. What just happened? That man threatened me! He had been tall, wore dark clothes, but I couldn’t remember any kind of distinguishing marks, nothing to help pick him out of a crowd. He looked too ordinary. But the hatred on his face, that was all I could see when I closed my eyes to try to remember more clearly.
I removed my cell and darted in the direction the guy had gone in, but I couldn’t see him anywhere. Why hadn’t I taken a picture of him? Why had I put my phone away? I could’ve recorded the conversation. Well, it hadn’t been a conversation. It had been a threat. Still, to have his voice recorded would’ve been nice.
Someone was going after Andrei. He was fearing for his life. That was why he wanted a legacy. Why he needed me.
Fury roiled through me. How dare he want to bring a child into this mess! If these guys were willing to threaten me to get to him, they would have no problem going after a baby. And how c
ould he have kept this from me? He should’ve disclosed the possible danger when he offered me the position. No wonder he had offered up two million dollars!
I was still shaking when the cab rolled up, and I debated sending it away and going back up to my mom, to throw Andrei’s money back in his face and force him to find himself another uterus.
But I had just finished paying off all of our hospital bills only yesterday, and now, with another hospital stay, more would be piling in. I couldn’t give Andrei back all of his money. I was trapped. And even if I did end our contract — which I might not legally be able to break — the people watching us might not realize I was out of the picture. What if they still came for me at my house? What if they harmed my mom?
Yes, I was trapped. So back to Andrei’s I went. Terrified. Frightened. Worried. Anxious.
Accepting this position might be the worst decision I ever made.
Chapter 16 Andrei
That evening, I just wanted a chance to unwind, and what better way to unwind than a few hours’ romp in the sheets? I bounded up the stairs to Kelly’s room, only to discover it was empty. Strange.
