The Russian's Convenient Bride: A Bad Boy BWWM Romance

by Sherie Keys

  In the kitchen, Dimitri picked up the half gallon of milk. Taking a quick glance towards the living room, he turned it over. Milk poured onto the floor, some down the counter, and he finally guided the rest down the sink.

  “Oh no!” He called loud enough for Alicia to hear. “Damn it!”

  “What?” Alicia called from the bedroom. She’d gotten as far as getting her sleep shorts and t-shirt on. Coming to the bedroom doorway, she leaned against it. “What is it?”

  “Oh, I spilled milk all over kitchen.” Dimitri called back. He was already reaching for the roll of paper towels to clean it up. Alicia laughed. He seemed so worked up over spilled milk.

  “Well, clean it up and come on to bed.”

  “No, now I must go out and get more.” Dimitri called, trying to sound as irritable as he possibly could. “I will run out to store. It will only take minute.”

  “Dimitri,” Alicia came back into the kitchen, “it’s really not that big of a deal. We’ll get some tomorrow.”

  “No,” Dimitri shook his head. “We need it for breakfast. No cereal. No protein shakes.” He emphasized that last part. He’d been insisting that Alicia make those the last few mornings, claiming that they were best for both her and the baby. Alicia had not argued. So when he mentioned that, she could only sigh.

  “OK, ok. But I’m only agreeing because I know that you’ll insist.”

  “You are right, I will.” Dimitri leaned over and kissed her. “You go on to bed. I will be back in just a few minutes.”

  “OK” Alicia kissed him again. “Don’t be long.”

  “I promise not to be.” Dimitri smiled. He waited until she was out of the room. Then he let out a sigh of relief. Quickly, he cleaned up the last of the spilled milk, grabbed his car keys, and headed out of the door.

  Dimitri hated to lie to Alicia. It seemed like the one thing that you should never do was lie to your pregnant wife. He tried to tell himself that he had done it because it was what was best. He had to do it. It was in everyone’s best interest. If he did not go out tonight, he would not get the gun. And if he did not get the gun, he would not be able to kill Rudolph and Alexei. And if he did not kill them, they would both be in danger for their lives. No, Dimitri was not going to risk that. He was going to get the gun.

  He checked his email one last time. The seller had given him an address in a neighborhood that he had heard of once or twice. He knew that it was one of the worst in the city. He was certain that he could buy not only a gun there, but any sort of illegal drug or prostitution. He would get in, get out, and be home quickly. The gun would be stashed beneath the seat of his car. As soon as he had it, he would text Victor. They would get together tomorrow and work out the last of their plan. This would all fall together in a matter of minutes. Then both men would be free to live their lives honestly with their families. There would be no more threats hanging over their heads.

  Bracing himself, Dimitri started the drive to the city. It would take him about twenty minutes to get there, another ten to get to his location. At this hour, there were not many people out-even in the summer weather. He figured that normal, reasonable people were home getting ready to go to their jobs in the morning. Anyone not looking to live honestly was in the area he was currently headed.

  It was not a good neighborhood. He saw that immediately. The houses looked rundown. Some looked completely empty, with plywood covering their broken windows. Groups of young men lurked on street corners. Some were under the illumination of streetlights, others stuck to the places where the streetlights had burned out. Dimitri did not like this place. It reminded him too much of Russian neighborhoods that he had seen in and around Moscow. This was not a place he wanted to be.

  His meeting point was the corner of Dix and Larken Streets. He pulled up to it, putting the car into park but not turning it off. He glanced in the rear view mirror as headlights filled it. A car drove passed him, and then another. It wasn’t long before a police cruiser rolled by. Dimitri held his breath. If the police questioned him now, he was in certain trouble.

  But this time, luck was on his side. The officer paid him no attention. He merely pulled up to the stop sign and rolled on by. Dimitri let out a sigh of relief. So far, one thing had worked in his favor.

  As he watched, a man with skin far darker than Alicia’s came towards him. He wore a hat on backwards and had baggy pants under a white t-shirt. He glanced at Dimitri, glanced at the car, and then knocked on the window. Dimitri lowered it a fraction of an inch. This man was either looking to sell him drugs, or it was his guy.

  “You D?” The kid asked. Dimitri finally felt like luck was truly on his side. Between the cop passing him, and this boy being the first one to approach him, this was truly his night.

  “I am. You are Mackin?”

  “Yep.” The boy glanced around. “You got my money?” At that, Dimitri leaned down, but managed to keep one eye on the boy. He reached under the passenger’s seat to pull out a paper bag. He had withdrawn five hundred dollars on his way home. He held it up.

  “It is right here.” The boy held out his hand. Dimitri lowered the window just a bit more, and slipped the money out to him. He had hoped that he wouldn’t count it, that he would just assume it was all there, but he didn’t. Dimitri watched as the boy flipped through the bills, taking note of how many were there.

  “Five hundred. All there.” The boy folded the money, and shoved it into the back pocket of his ill-fitting jeans. Dimitri shook his head. If he was going to have a son, he was not going to leave the house wearing pants like that. Actually, any son of his would never set foot into this neighborhood.

  The boy was reaching into a pocket that appeared to be halfway down his leg. Dimitri could see how his pants were really sagging there. He withdrew an object that was wrapped in a towel.

  “Here.” He held it towards the window. “Take it.” Dimitri reached for it, hesitating.

  “Has this gun…has it been used in crime before?” He didn’t know why he said it, but he meant it seriously. The boy just laughed.

  “Dude, if you was gonna use this gun legally you wouldn’t be buyin’ it from me.” He tapped the towel wrapped object on the window once more. “Come on. I ain’t got all night.”

  Neither did Dimitri. Sighing, he reached through the window. Through the towel, he felt the heavy metal of the gun. He hated having it in his possession. He wanted to go now and throw it into the harbor. He had to remind himself what having this gun meant, and what he would do with it. It would be fine. It had to be.

  “Thank you.” Dimitri muttered as he slipped the gun under the driver’s seat.

  “Yeah, bro, just make sure you delete our emails.” The kid looked around, and then started off down the street. Dimitri wasted no time putting the car into drive and heading for home.

  Chapter8

  Alicia woke up. She did not realize that she had fallen asleep. She last remembered laying down in bed, and dozing off quickly. She supposed that pregnancy was good for that reaction.

  “Dimitri?” She rolled over, extending one hand to reach for Dimitri. She was startled to find that his side of the bed was empty. Sitting up, Alicia listened. She was used to Dimitri sitting up late to watch the news, but she had expected him in bed immediately. Besides, she didn’t even hear the television right now. Had he sat down for one more interview and fallen asleep? She figured that must have been it. Getting up, she slipped out of bed and into the hallway.

  She was surprised to find the living room dark and the TV turned off. The kitchen lights were still on. Heading in there, she expected to find Dimitri sitting at the kitchen table. But that too was empty. She was shocked. Had she only been asleep a short time, and woken up to think it was much later? That must be it. But one quick glance at the microwave killed that theory. It was almost eleven. Dimitri had left around nine. It did not take almost two hours to get milk.

  So where was he? She glanced out the door. Sure enough, Dimitri’s car was gone. Fro
wning, Alicia sat down at the kitchen table. Worry began to prick at her. Had something happened to him? You heard all the time about men running out just for one thing, and then getting shot, or into a car accident on their way home. Was Dimitri hurt?

  Alicia got up from the table. Grabbing her phone from her purse, she checked all of the local news networks updates for their eleven o’clock broadcasts. There were no stories of injured men, shootings, or car accidents in the last couple of hours. But that didn’t mean something still wasn’t wrong. Alicia turned on the television. She settled on the edge of one cushion, waiting for the next broadcast to start up.

  The local television logo had just appeared on the screen when she heard the door open. She turned, glancing into the kitchen. Dimitri entered, closing the door behind him. He met her eyes through the room.

  “What are you doing up?” He opened the refrigerator door, putting in the fresh gallon of milk. Well, that alleviated some of her concern. He was not only unhurt, but he had actually gotten milk. So he was not out with another woman. “I thought that you were going to bed.”

  “I thought that you were going to be right back.” Alicia retorted back. For a moment, they just stared at each other.

  “I had flat tire.” Dimitri explained. “I had to stop and fix. It took longer than I thought in the dark. Everything is ok now. I am sorry…I did not expect you to wait up.”

  “I didn’t wait up,” Alicia shrugged. “I woke up and you weren’t here. I got concerned. I thought maybe….” Her voice trailed off. She didn’t want to be an obnoxious, obsessive pregnant wife. She reminded herself that this had never been a love match. What if it could be easily broken now because of it?

  Sighing, Dimitri crossed the room to her. He knelt down in front of the couch, taking her hands.

  “I am sorry to have worried you.” His dark eyes burned into hers. The action went straight through her and into her heart. She could not be angry at him. Sighing herself, Alicia pulled her hand back. She pressed it against his cheek.

  “I’m just glad that you’re ok.” She leaned over to kiss him sweetly. She let her lips linger on his. Dimitri smiled, pulling back.

  “Come on, let us go to bed now-for real.” To prove his point, he got up and locked the kitchen door. Then he turned the light out, and came back to the living room for the television remote. He offered her one of his hands. “Come.”

  She did. She put her hand into his, letting him pull her up from the couch. Back in the bedroom, Alicia crawled back under the covers. Dimitri took his time getting ready, and finally returned to crawl into bed beside her.

  “I am sorry.” He kissed her forehead. “Really. I did not mean to worry you, or to be gone so long.”

  “It’s ok.” Alicia raised her head to look at him. “I’m just glad that you’re safe.”

  Dimitri tucked her firmly into his arms. He wrapped himself around her. Alicia snuggled against him. She felt better, at least knowing that he hadn’t been hurt. She was able to fall back asleep with little trouble.

  Dimitri, on the other hand, lay awake for some time. He wondered just when he’d be able to sleep peacefully once more. Dimitri made sure that he did not waste time the following morning. He wanted to get to the shop, and get his phone call made before he got down to work. He needed to get the plan into action. He was tired of lying, he was tired of leading a double life, he just wanted it all to be over.

  Once again, he made sure that the garage door was firmly down before he made his call. It took Victor several rings to answer the call.

  “Dimitri.” He muttered into the line. “I waited for your text.”

  “I am sorry.” He didn’t want to explain Alicia. “I have it.” He wasn’t worried about their conversations being tracked, but he didn’t want to risk anything either. He had a very bad feeling about this entire situation.

  “Good.” Victor did not sound pleased. “When should we meet?”

  “What about tonight?” Dimitri offered. “I tell Alicia that I am working late. You come here. We can secure the building-or go up to my old apartment.”

  “I am worried that we are using your business too often, Dimitri.” Victor’s tone sounded nervous. “I do not want them to catch onto our movements.”

  “You want to go somewhere else?” Dimitri was getting exhausted. He didn’t want to be doing this either. He was getting a bit tired of Victor playing the victim card. They both had just as much to lose.

  “No, I suppose not.” Victor muttered. “I will be along tonight. Seven, perhaps?”

  “Seven is fine.” Dimitri did not like to leave Alicia alone that long. He had come dangerously close to being found out last night. He did not want to risk any more chances with more lies. But then again, she did not know the risk to their safety that was in place.

  “Fine then.” Victor responded. “I shall see you tonight.” He clicked off the call. Dimitri rolled his eyes. He hoped this was the end of this matter. He needed to get this done-quickly.

  Switching back to his texts, he pulled up Alicia’s window. He thumbed a text:

  I am going to work late tonight…lots of projects coming into shop. I be home around 8:30?

  It would not be a surprise. She knew how busy that he was. It was understandable that he would work overtime in order to accommodate the number of customers.

  Fortunately for him, her response did not seem to care. He appreciated that

  OK! I’ll see if one of the girls wants to have dinner. Don’t be too late.

  He hoped that he would not be. Would Victor want to do the job tonight? He supposed that would not be a terrible thing. If they did it tonight, he might actually be able to sleep. It would be wonderful to have this weight lifted off of his shoulders.

  I will not. I will see you later.

  OK! Love you!

  I love you too

  Dimitri closed his hand over his phone. He did love her. She and the baby had become his world. He would do anything to keep it intact. He had to remind himself of that. This was all for the best…or so he hoped.

  Dimitri was officially nervous. It was eight-thirty, and there was no sign of Victor. Dimitri couldn’t understand what was keeping him. He knew how important this was. Why would he have any hesitation about coming to a meeting that had been arranged to get this over with? Dimitri was getting angrier by the minute. To take his mind off of things, he tried to busy himself with an oil change of a long overdue Civic. It wasn’t working.

  At least he didn’t have to worry about Alicia missing him at home. She had texted him that she was still out with her girlfriends. That made him feel better. At least she wasn’t sitting at home wondering where he was, and why he wasn’t home yet. He’d given her enough to be suspicious about last night. At least he’d had the common sense to stop and buy milk on his way home.

  Finally, at eight forty-five, there was a knock at the door. Dimitri had been trying to busy himself with work. Now he rolled his eyes in the door’s general direction.

  “Finally.” He stormed across the room, fully prepared to give Victor a piece of his mind. Yanking the door open, he stepped back in shock as he found himself face to face with Rudolph.

  “What’s the matter, Dimitri?” Rudolph gave him a dark smile. “Were you expecting someone else?”

  He knew. In that moment, Dimitri knew it. What was worse was that he didn’t even have the gun in his possession. It was currently locked in his car, tucked beneath the driver’s seat where he had left it last night.

  “Of course not. What is it that you want, Rudolph?” He cursed himself for not bringing the gun in with him.

  “First of all, I want to come in.” Rudolph pushed passed him. Dimitri knew that he could have stopped him, but he did not want to get physical with the other man. He believed that he could take him, however he was not certain. He did not want to take any chances if he was not one hundred percent certain that he could finish them.

  “Fine. You are in. Now what is it that you want?
” Dimitri pushed the door closed behind Rudolph, but did not lock it. In the chance that Victor showed up, he wanted him to have easy access to him. He briefly wondered if he could get off a text to him without Rudolph knowing it.

  “Tell me, Dimitri,” Rudolph leaned against the Honda Civic Dimitri had been repairing, “do you believe that you are smarter than I?”

  Hell.

  “Of course not.” Dimitri stammered. He caught himself, trying to pull it together. He was beginning to realize that he was not as good under pressure as he wanted to believe. “Why on earth would you ask such a question?”

  “Because you have attempted to do what I thought no one was dumb enough to do.” Rudolph pushed himself off of the car. He strolled over, coming to stand in front of Dimitri. “You and Victor believe that you can come up with some elaborate plan to kill me? How dare you.”

  Dimitri felt a sickening weight settle inside of him. What did he do? Did he deny everything? Rudolph clearly already knew what was being planned. It wasn’t as if honesty was going to win him any points.

  “I do not know what it is that you are talking about.” Dimitri shrugged. “I discussed job offer with Victor, that is all.”

  “Really?” Rudolph appeared amused. “Well, then, perhaps I should inform you of just what it is I am talking about.”

  He reached into his pocket. Pulling out his phone, he took a minute to tap the screen. Then he held it out to Dimitri.

  “Perhaps this will remind you of what we are talking about. And just how serious it is.”

  On the screen was an image of Victor. He was lying on his stomach with his face was turned to his left. A puddle of blood spilled from beneath his head; it formed a halo around the white of his skin and the dark of his hair. His eyes were open with a glassy stare focused off somewhere in the distance. He was dead-obviously.

  Rudolph watched his face for signs of a reaction. Smiling, he pulled his phone back.

  “Did you like that one? If not, I have one more for you.” Dimitri did not need to see more, but he looked when he was once again offered the phone. This time, the image was enough to make him feel physically sick. He felt his stomach roll at the sight.