by Rose, Bella
“Now Liam Shaunessy is all over me.” Pershing actually looked a little panicked by this possibility. “That’s not a good thing, Kaylee. My grandfather is a mean son of a bitch. He’s a criminal just like that rat bastard of a husband of yours.”
“How is your grandfather my problem?” Kaylee tried to keep her tone neutral enough not to piss him off any further.
“You’re the reason he’s angry.” Pershing’s face was quickly turning bright red. Kaylee had never seen anything quite like it. He looked like a rabid animal. “He thinks I’m threatening to hurt your mother.”
“You are,” Kaylee pointed out in spite of her resolve to stay quiet.
“Because I need you to cooperate with me so I can get my next promotion!”
Kaylee didn’t respond. It was almost as if Pershing had started having a conversation with himself. He was muttering darkly in a voice too low for her to understand. She caught bits and pieces like the words arrested, criminal, and stupid cunt. Nothing else was decipherable.
“Please, just let me go,” Kaylee begged. “I can tell Ivan to back off.”
“That wouldn’t do any good,” Pershing said dully. “Not now that he’s involved my grandfather. Shaunessy wants proof that I’m not bullying you any longer.”
“So stop.” Kaylee pointed out the obvious, hoping he’d take the suggestion and just go.
“No. I need proof of Ivan’s false marriage. That’s the only way to make this work. Once immigration declares the marriage invalid, you can testify against him in court.” Pershing looked strangely triumphant. “I’ll subpoena you, put him away, and make my captain a very happy man.”
“I don’t know anything about Ivan’s business,” Kaylee argued. “I’ve got nothing to tell.”
“I’ll start with the bullshit marriage,” Pershing decided. “That’s got to be an easy thing to prove. You’re just a whore who sold herself for money to pay her mother’s bills.”
“Then it won’t do you any good to hurt her,” Kaylee said, hoping he would see reason. “Please, just leave my mother out of this.”
Pershing stared down at her, a cruel grin twisting his face. “Either you get me a copy of your prenuptial agreement, or she dies.”
“What?” Kaylee yelped.
Pershing’s hand slammed against Kaylee’s mouth to silence her. “Shut up. You heard me. You have twenty-four hours. Leave the documents in your mother’s room or she dies.”
He shoved her away and turned on his heel. The way he retreated down the hall made her sick. He was actually whistling as if he were paying one of the residents a cheerful visit.
Kaylee felt sick to her stomach. She didn’t want to betray Ivan. She was actually starting to care about him. Yet she had had no choice. Either she did what Pershing wanted, or her mother would die. She was running out of options.
***
Kaylee had the most disturbing urge to call out “honey, I’m home” when she walked through the front door of Ivan’s Beacon Hill home. Aloysha was sitting in the front room with a paper. Kaylee offered him a nod. Though she’d been offered a ride, she had declined. It felt odd to change everything about her life all at once. Taking the bus offered her a moment to digest everything.
Aloysha grunted. “The boss is in the kitchen.”
“Thank you,” Kaylee said with the warmest smile she could muster. “Can I get you anything while I’m in there?”
He looked momentarily confused before he shook his head. “No, thank you.”
Kaylee toed off her nursing shoes and headed into the kitchen. There were incredible smells drifting down the hallway. The closer she got to the cozy kitchen, the more she felt herself relaxing in spite of all the craziness going on.
“Ah, there you are,” Ivan said with a welcoming smile. He leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Are you hungry?”
“Starved,” she admitted. “What smells so good? I’m going to drown in saliva.”
“It’s my personal recipe for stroganoff.” He moved back to the stove to stir something in a large pot. “I always make a lot for the men to eat.”
“Where are they?” It occurred to Kaylee that she’d expected him to have guards at all times.
“They take turns manning what was probably once the carriage house. It’s a little unusual in Beacon Hill to have a guest house behind the main dwelling, but the neighbors believe it’s a rental property.” He scooped a large portion of food into a bowl along with egg noodles.
Kaylee gave a snort of amusement. “I’m sure the neighbors in this part of town are scandalized enough at the thought of having renters in their midst.”
“People are nicer here than you perhaps give them credit for,” Ivan admonished.
Kaylee shrugged and took her bowl of food to the counter. “I grew up in Southie. We’ve got pretty firm ideas about what the nobs are like here on the Hill.”
“And now that you’re a nob?” he asked pointedly.
She shoveled a large portion of the stroganoff into her mouth. “I’m not a nob,” she said around the mouthful of sauce covered beef.
“About earlier,” Ivan said hesitantly.
There had been so many “earliers” in Kaylee’s day that she didn’t even know which one he might be referring to. She cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, you’re going to have to refresh me. What are you talking about?”
“When I had your apartment cleared out.”
She’d actually forgotten about that. Kaylee realized with no small amount of surprise that this issue with Pershing was eating up every single spare brain cell she could muster. Then she realized Ivan was waiting for a response. She swallowed her food. “I’m still irritated that you went about that in sort of a high-handed way. All right? It was my apartment and my stuff. And I know that we’re married, blah blah, but it was still my decision to make.”
“That’s fair.”
Kaylee rolled her eyes. “But I do have to admit that it’s nice to not have to worry about it. I’d totally forgotten until you said something. I’m just so damn tired.”
“I’m sorry, but I expected you to be much angrier.” He actually looked confused.
Kaylee laughed. “Sorry. It was a bigger deal. Then other stuff just kind of took over.”
“Would you like to talk about it?” A smile turned up the corners of his sensual mouth. “That’s what couples do, you know.”
“Even couples who are only couples because they’re using each other?” Kaylee meant it as a joke, but she could see by his countenance that she’d upset him. “Did I say something wrong? That’s pretty much what’s going on here. Right?”
“I don’t know, Kaylee,” he said stiffly. “Is it?”
Ivan had returned to stirring the food in its pot. He appeared to be preparing it to travel to the guesthouse out back if the portable food containers were any indication. Kaylee wasn’t exactly up on food handling procedures. Her studio had afforded a sink and a hotplate. That hadn’t exactly given her a plethora of culinary choices.
“Ivan?”
He seemed to relax just a little. “Look, I know our relationship started out that way, but I’d like to make an effort to be a real couple. I think we would both be happier that way.”
The idea knocked Kaylee for a loop. How was she supposed to be a real wife to this man when she was already making plans to help his enemy because she was putting her own interests first?
“I talked to Liam Shaunessy today,” Ivan announced suddenly.
Kaylee had definitely already figured that out, but she didn’t want to talk about Pershing. It was better just to play dumb. “Did you?”
“Liam was going to have a chat with his grandson. I think it’s safe to say Pershing was acting on his own and won’t be bothering you anymore.” Ivan looked very satisfied.
Kaylee decided not to disabuse him of this notion. “I think I’m going to go upstairs to bed.”
“I thought we could sit by the fire and chat for a while.” Ivan frow
ned, gesturing to the couch in front of the crackling fireplace.
“Yeah, I’m pretty tired.” Kaylee swallowed. Why did it feel like she was rejecting him out of hand?
“All right then,” Ivan said quietly. “I’ll be up after I finish in the kitchen.”
“Take your time,” Kaylee told him. “I’ll probably fall right to sleep.”
He didn’t say anything else, but there really wasn’t anything left to be said.
Chapter Eleven
Ivan was still reeling nearly fifteen minutes after Kaylee had retired to the fourth floor on the premise of going to bed. Had she actually rejected him? The thought was unconscionable.
A tiny voice in his head reminded him this was often what married men complained about. Sex and intimacy was readily available prior to marriage. After the relationship was official, the physical aspect seemed to die a slow death. This, however, was not slow. They hadn’t even been married a week.
Ivan forced himself to slow down. There had to be another answer. And in reality, Kaylee had every right to be tired. Her job was a grueling one that included the added burden of caring for an ailing loved one. Had Ivan possessed any relatives that he knew of, he might have eventually found himself in a similar situation. The mere thought was horrifying.
He flipped off the kitchen lights and headed upstairs. He had only just made it to the second floor landing when he heard something in one of the rooms. Ivan froze, holding his breath to better be able to hear an intruder.
The rustle of paper was unmistakable. His office was located on the second floor near the back of the house. Ivan headed in that direction, trying to be silent. What the house lacked in width, it made up for in depth. He carefully avoided a set of antique end tables and a cabinet displaying a collection of fairly expensive nesting dolls.
It would have been impossible for someone not in his organization to steal up here for some nefarious purpose. That left one of his men, or perhaps his accountant or his lawyer as the possible culprits. Ivan’s heart began to hammer against his ribs as his temper rose to danger levels. How dare one of those bastards try to steal from him!
There was a light on in his office. The glow barely penetrated the hallway. It appeared as though someone had intentionally turned the shade at an angle to hide the light as thoroughly as possible. The intent was obvious.
Ivan stepped through the door of his office. He wished he’d thought to keep a gun handy, or at least a club or something. As it was he had nothing but his dick for protection. “Can I help you find something?”
There was a squeak of surprise and then Kaylee stood and looked guiltily up at Ivan. He could barely process his shock. She was up to her elbows in his desk drawer. Several items had already been plucked out and were sitting on the desktop.
“I would ask what you’re up to,” Ivan said icily. “But it’s rather obvious.” He pulled his phone from his pocket, having every intention of calling his men and having her escorted from the property. She could damn well stay in her own place while this farce of a marriage was necessary.
“Ivan, please!”
Her tone of voice gave him pause. Ivan had never heard Kaylee sound this desperate. In the dim light he could see fresh tear tracks on her cheeks.
“I know this looks bad, Ivan.”
He snorted. “You might say that. You’ve been distant all day and now I discover you snooping though my office as though you intend to turn state’s evidence against me.”
“I don’t have a choice!” Her voice broke over the words. “He’s going to kill her.”
“Who?” Ivan scoffed. “Pershing? I told you that was handled.”
“Yeah? Well someone forgot to tell Liam Shaunessy that his grandson doesn’t give a rat’s ass what he thinks. Pershing wants a promotion and this is the only way he can think of to get it.” She gestured to the papers. “He told me to get him a copy of our prenuptial agreement. I probably have one somewhere, but I don’t remember where.”
“So you dig through my desk instead of just asking?” Ivan said irritably. Then it hit him what he was saying. “Wait, when did Pershing demand this?”
“Tonight.” She swiped at her cheeks with the backs of her hands. “He found me inside Our Lady. He threatened a lot of things, Ivan. But he was very adamant that he wants to prove our marriage is a fake. It’s like the first step in some master plan he has.”
“And instead of coming to me, you do this?” Ivan was pissed and confused, but there was also a bizarre sense of hurt in there too. This was betrayal plain and simple.
“Do you not get it?” she moaned. “You already tried to help. Pershing was pissed that you went to Liam Shaunessy. He’s blaming me for making a mess for him with his grandfather.”
Ivan was slightly perplexed. In his world things were handled through the chain of command. When an underling misbehaved, it was dealt with. Usually before the day was done.
“Oh. My. God,” Kaylee said, obviously exasperated. “Can you not see that this is one of those situations like when a parent wants to stop another child from bullying their kid? The parent has a chat with the other parent or with a teacher, but that just makes the bully mad. Then the poor kid gets their ass kicked all over the playground as punishment.”
KAYLEE COULD TELL her analogy was a little lost on Ivan. She had no clue what his growing up years had been like or what schools were like in Russia. Maybe none of that made any sense there. It was apparent that he couldn’t fathom a world in which his influence couldn’t improve things.
“Ivan,” she tried again. “You can’t fix this for me. I have to deal with Pershing on my own. And that means protecting my mother the only way I can.”
“I’m not letting you give Pershing a bunch of documents that will cause damage to my business, my personal life, or my relationship with you,” Ivan told her flatly.
“Then what?” Kaylee was feeling panicky. She was skating on thin ice already.
Ivan shrugged. “At this point I’d rather just have him removed from the equation altogether. One call to Shaunessy would do it.”
“The man would kill his own grandson?” Kaylee asked incredulously. “That’s awful!”
“From what I gather, the kid isn’t exactly doing the family proud.” Ivan actually sounded amused. “Perhaps this is just the excuse his grandfather has been looking for.”
Kaylee’s stomach turned. “You’re turning this into a joke and it isn’t. My mother is there all by herself. Pershing can come and go as he pleases because he’s a cop. What am I supposed to do about him?”
Ivan took a seat on the long leather sofa. He looked so relaxed it made Kaylee want to grind her teeth down to nubs. Did he not care at all? He patted the leather beside him, indicating she should sit as well.
“I don’t know if I can sit still,” she admitted.
He leveled an almost patronizing look at her. “Come and sit. If we cannot reason this out, it cannot be solved.”
Kaylee sat down, though she felt almost twitchy. Then Ivan wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close. He was warm and solid. Her cheek nestled almost automatically against his chest and she felt the strangest sense of calm begin to steal through her muscles.
“There,” Ivan murmured. “If we think this through calmly, we will find a solution.”
“We need to get rid of Pershing,” she muttered.
Ivan stroked her cheek. It felt strangely good. She wanted to hate him, everything he stood for, and the added stress he’d brought into her life. Yet here he was being so gentle and almost loving toward her. It made no sense. Did it?
“Since you will not let me kill him,” Ivan said drolly. “Let us work backwards from there.”
“Where?”
“Getting rid of him.” Ivan carefully, almost tenderly, tapped the end of her nose. “What would get him out of your life?”
“If his bosses knew what he was doing, he would be sanctioned or something. It’s illegal to make threats like th
is.” Kaylee wondered if she’d forgotten that option or if she’d immediately shied away from involving any further law enforcement officials.
“So perhaps you could catch him in the act?” Ivan suggested.
Kaylee was getting almost drowsy beneath the gentle massage of his fingertips over her temples. It felt so good. Wait. What had he said? “Catch him? Doing what? Killing my mother? That’s kind of too late.”
Ivan chuckled. “Ah, but what if you set a trap?”
“I’m not into the idea of sacrificing any other residents. Although my mother’s roommate is grouchy as hell.”
“No,” Ivan rumbled, obviously finding humor in her ruminating. “You keep operating under the notion that your mother must stay at Our Lady. You are a millionaire, Kaylee. You can bring her here and get private nursing if you wish.”
“Oh.” Kaylee had completely forgotten that option. “Then I could deliberately stage a time for Pershing to hurt someone he thought was my mother. He’d get caught and that would be it.”
“Things rarely go quite as planned, but essentially I believe you do have an option there you didn’t before.” Ivan gently nuzzled the top of her head.
“You’re not what I expected in a husband,” Kaylee admitted.
“And you’re not what I expected in a wife.”
She thought about the finite nature of their relationship. “When I said I was okay with only staying together as long as your business needs required, I never expected to like you this much.”
Ivan cupped her cheek very gently. The pad of his thumb brushed over her lower lip, bringing on a little shiver of excitement. Kaylee held her breath. She knew what came next and she wanted it so very much.
He lowered his mouth to hers. Their lips met in a comfortable and somewhat lazy kiss. Ivan slid his tongue against hers, coaxing her open until she was moaning and grabbing the front of his shirt. Blood rushed to her groin and her sex grew warm and swollen. She wanted him. That much was obvious.
“I think it’s time for bed,” he whispered.
“Wait.” Kaylee’s lust soaked brain took a moment to catch up. “Are you rejecting me?”
