The Arrangement (Crimson Romance)

by Bethany-Kris

  “Here …” he added, waving his hand to the space they were in, “… is your zone. When it’s just me and you alone, Vine, the only thing I want and need is for you to just be you. Normal. Happy. Mine. That’s it.”

  Resting back into the bed, she let his fingers trace pathways over her stomach and sides. There wasn’t much else for her to say when he laid it all out bare for her like that. The comfortable silence that enveloped them didn’t feel awkward. She wasn’t even sure how long they stayed like that before the light hum of Anton’s phone vibrating out in the hallway had him sighing an unhappy sound.

  “Insufferable idiots,” he grumbled.

  “You’ve ignored them for hours.”

  “They pissed me off. You had a terrible bruise on your back and cheek; I’ve got a massive bill to pay in Toronto, and a shipment is coming in at the end of next week that is probably going to get intercepted by the authorities if they can’t get the cargo in after midnight. Given the way the trip has been going, it’s probably not going to happen. I need a goddamn break.”

  Viviana coughed, knowing Anton probably shouldn’t be telling her some of those things.

  “Well, I’m here and the bruises have already started to fade.”

  “True,” he agreed, sounding sullen. “But I’ll still remember.”

  “Everything is taken care of in Toronto with all the important aspects, right?”

  “For now.”

  “And this … cargo …”

  Anton’s brow furrowed in the sexiest way as he glanced away from her. “What about it?”

  “Guns or other?”

  “Does it make a difference?”

  “I don’t know,” Viviana replied just as quiet. “You told me, Anton. Does it?”

  “Not really.”

  “So, delay it.”

  The laugh that barked from him sounded a bit contrite. “It’s not that simple.”

  “Sure it is. A few loose bolts on the ship’s mainframe can cause a complete security failure. Engines stop. Ships just float. Maybe it’ll float for a few extra hours just out of US waters with a viable excuse to be doing just that while someone else keeps an eye on the docks and coastguard to give a signal. See, simple.”

  The surprise that registered in his eyes had her grinning.

  “That’s brilliant.”

  “I’ve overheard a few things here and there. Some of it could be useful, but a lot of it really isn’t.”

  Anton was covering her body with his again, lips finding hers as his tongue swept the seam of her lips teasingly. The languid speed he took to taste and love her mouth was a soothing beat to the aftershocks her body was still experiencing from their previous coupling. Before Viviana could try to get his cock rising again, he leaned over and hit the call button on the conference phone sitting on the bedside table. The panel on the wall lit up with an immediate response.

  Clarissa’s voice suddenly chimed through the panel. “Mr. Avdonin?”

  “It’s nearly six, yeah?”

  “Yes, sir. Supper is almost finished, but if you’d like to take it in your office, I can bring the plates up.”

  Anton hummed indecisively.

  “I’ll unlock the door to your stairwell. Allow Rocco up. How many calls have Ivan and Erik pestered you with, Clarissa?”

  “Not many.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “A few …”

  “Next time, tell them to stop calling. You’re not my assistant and you don’t deliver messages. I’ll call them back when I can. Otherwise, turn the phones off for the evening. Viviana and me, we still have some catching up to do.”

  Viviana smiled against the strong arm lying beside her face. She caught his eyes traveling over the length of her naked form with an open brazenness that was filled with want. That lump returned in her throat with a vengeance. Despite her muscles being sore and her body feeling sticky and in serious need of a bath, she wasn’t about to complain.

  “Oh, and you have all that spa nonsense in the bathroom downstairs, yes?” At Clarissa’s quiet agreement, he said, “Bring it up for Vine, and in the next few days you can take her out to show her where she can get some more if she likes it. You can pick up whatever you need also, okay?”

  Viviana swore she could hear the knowing smile in the woman’s voice when she answered, “Absolutely, sir.”

  Chapter Eight

  “Hmm.” Viviana hummed indecisively. “This one is a maybe.”

  Anton leaned over and sniffed the body lotion as she held it out to him. The slight crinkle of his nose told her he didn’t like the scent of the product. Despite him having asked Clarissa to take Viviana out to get some of her own things for the bathroom, Anton ended up going with her himself. She didn’t mind, seeing as how it would be good if he enjoyed the stuff she bought, too.

  Well, that and Viviana was starting to get stir crazy inside the safe house. A walk everyday with Rocco wasn’t enough to make her unrest disappear, and Anton hadn’t allowed her to go anywhere else unless she had at least three bulls with her at all times. It wasn’t fun, but she understood.

  Today, it was just Anton and her.

  Viviana loved that.

  Anton eyed the lotion. “No. Too spicy. Women shouldn’t smell spicy.”

  Coyly, she raised a single brow. “And just how should a woman smell?”

  “Beautiful,” he replied, smirking. “Delicate. Soft, like their skin. Silky, like their hair. Sexy.”

  That hadn’t been the answer she was expecting. Something akin to anticipation coiled in her stomach as he stared down at her with mischief in his gaze.

  “Those things aren’t smells, Anton.”

  “Nope,” he agreed, “but that’s how I’d describe you. I think you smell like that naturally. Without all of this other stuff, baby.”

  “Oh.”

  When his hand came up to graze along her jaw, Anton added, “But you also smell like flowers because of that perfume you use. Soaks right into my lungs. You should find something like that.” Viviana nodded as he grabbed a candle from the top shelf and added it to her basket. “Also, these candles are nice.”

  “Should I start questioning your sexuality because of this sudden scent love you’ve got going on?”

  Without warning, Anton’s arm reached out and wrapped her shoulders, pulling her back into his chest. A dark growl formed in the back of his throat before he nipped her neck playfully while his other hand slipped down to cup her ass over her jeans. At the same time that she melted into his embrace, the door to the spa shop chimed to say another customer had entered. While they were closer to the back of the store and there weren’t a lot of people inside, she certainly didn’t want to be caught in a suggestive position, either.

  When Viviana squirmed in his hold, Anton only chuckled.

  “You question my sexuality, Viviana?” She felt his lips form a grin against her skin as she shivered. “That’s not what you should be worried about. What you should be worried about is whether or not I can fuck you in the stockroom without someone overhearing you scream my name.”

  “You wouldn’t da—”

  The cell phone in his pocket stopped her from saying more. Anton released his hold around her waist before pulling out the phone and turning his back to her as he answered the call.

  “Talk,” Anton demanded. “They lifted what? Oh, those greedy fucking idiots. Are they stupid? Those are loaded with GPS. Get them out of my warehouse before …”

  Clearly the conversation wasn’t meant for her to hear, or at least she should pretend like she couldn’t. Viviana went back to scanning the items on the shelf. A kiss was placed to her cheek, bringing her attention to Anton who was back at her side. Covering the phone’s speaker with his hand, he shrugged apologetically.

  “I’ll be right back. I have to take this somewhere private.”

  “Sure,” she said, offering him a smile.

  With one more kiss, Anton disappeared through the aisles of bath and body produ
cts. Viviana appraised the row of pillar candles as the store’s front door opened and closed once more.

  Slipping down another aisle, she finally found products in the dozens for floral scents. Viviana always did have a thing for roses, so she picked up a bubble bath product with a rose petal design on the label and opened it up to smell. A flash of red hair in the corner of her eye made Viviana nearly drop the bottle.

  With her head tucked down to stare at her phone, Cici Carducci stood five feet away from Viviana’s very spot. The youngest daughter of her Uncle Sonny, Cici hadn’t been especially close with Viviana or her older brother, but they had the same family. Not to mention the girl’s father was the same man who was probably planning at that very moment how he could put a bullet through Viviana’s brain and get away with it.

  Viviana’s heart and lungs stopped working as she watched her first cousin type on her phone. They were too close to the safe house, she knew. It was maybe a fifteen-minute drive away. Why the girl was even in this part of Brooklyn, Viviana didn’t know, but it wouldn’t lead to anything good.

  Cici could easily report back to Sonny about where she’d seen Viviana. The bratty little bitch that her cousin was known to be surely wouldn’t hide it from her father. God knew Sonny spoiled all of his daughters to the nines and back, but Cici had always seemed to be his favorite. How long would it take her uncle to find her after that?

  Panic welled in Viviana’s gut like a poison.

  Where the fuck was Anton?

  As if her mind had suddenly shifted gears and started working again, Viviana stumbled backwards to go around into the other aisle and hide. Instead, she just ended up bumping into a shelf in her panic and knocking over a half a dozen bottles and soaps.

  Shit.

  Sure enough, Cici glanced up at the commotion and straight into Viviana’s eyes.

  “Vine …” Cici took a step forward, her hand holding the cell phone falling limply to her side. There was something all too nasty in the smile she leveled on Viviana. “Daddy said you were back.”

  Viviana forced herself not to blink as she said, “Hey, Cici.”

  “Where’s your Russian? Doesn’t he know it’s not smart for you to be out on your own?”

  That was all the conformation Viviana needed for her to know Cici would tell Sonny. She didn’t know how much her cousin really knew about what was going on, or even if Cici knew what her father had done to Viviana’s family, but the girl had a mean streak, either way. A little taste of power could do that to people, and Cici likely thought she had that in droves, considering her father’s status in the mob.

  There had once been a time when Viviana was the Don’s daughter, and now she wasn’t.

  Cici was.

  And you’re the fiancée of a Bratva boss, Viviana thought. Act like it.

  Exactly.

  But she was still fucking terrified.

  Lifting her chin to regard Cici as if she was unfazed, Viviana shrugged. “My fiancé is around. Where’s your father, Cici? Is he around?”

  “I’m not the one who needs safeguarding, Vine,” Cici replied with a smirk.

  She really was a goddamned bitch. It probably wasn’t the best idea for her to be poking the beast, but Viviana wasn’t about to let Cici see how much her very presence worried and bothered her. “Are you still fucking around with Sonny’s messenger boy?”

  It would sure explain why or what Cici might know.

  Cici’s glare turned to ice. “Maybe I should call Daddy and—”

  “Cici, look what I found!”

  The voice of Lucille Carducci helped to ebb Viviana’s panic, but only for a second. Surely her aunt wouldn’t do a thing to hurt her, but Cici was another matter altogether. Especially if the way her cousin’s eyes narrowed in her direction was any indication. When Viviana’s aunt stepped around the corner, the white bag in her hand dropped to the floor. Surprise wrote lines across Lucille’s soft features.

  “Viviana. Oh my God, honey, you need to—”

  “What in the hell is going on here?”

  Anton’s deep tenor had Viviana turning sharp on her heel to meet his stare.

  “We need to go,” she breathed. “Right now.”

  He nodded, but the action was wrought with tension and anger. Anton stared over her shoulder, his gaze blazing as he took in the two people behind her in the aisle. There was no doubt in her mind he was thinking the same thing she was about the situation.

  “Sure, baby. Are you …?”

  “I’m okay, but please, let’s just go.”

  “Vine, listen to me—”

  Anton’s short bark of laughter had Viviana flinching. “Lucille, right? Sonny’s wife. Tell your husband if we happen to meet up with anyone associated with him like this again, he won’t like the result. Understood?”

  “Anton, please,” Viviana whispered.

  “Is that understood?” he repeated through clenched teeth.

  “Yes, we understand.”

  “Good. Be sure your husband does as well.”

  • • •

  Anton tossed a black gift bag with gold trim across the table. It skidded past Viviana’s head and she barely glanced up over the bridal magazine she was knee deep into reading. Sasha had brought her about ten of them that morning, swearing if Viviana and her son didn’t pick a date soon, she would be picking one for them.

  It wasn’t that Viviana didn’t want to, but more she couldn’t figure out which would be best for Anton. When they spoke about it together, he also couldn’t seem to come up with a suitable date that really worked.

  “What’s that?” she asked, nodding at the bag.

  Ivan slid into the kitchen with a wave at her before sticking his head inside the fridge. Anton didn’t seem to care much, instead shrugging and reaching over to grab a carrot stick off the plate Clarissa had brought for dinner.

  “Something I thought you might like.”

  Viviana cocked a brow. There had been about fifty different things that continued showing up at the safe house that Anton said she might like, and she did, sure. The credit cards and laptop she had were only a few. And really, that served her purpose just fine. If she needed something, she bought it, typed in the address Anton wanted her to use, and he’d bring it home whenever it arrived.

  The graze of his thumb over the apple of her cheek drew her attention up to him again. “Find something you liked in there?”

  “Not really.” The answering frown she responded with had her shrugging. “We need to settle on a date then maybe picking out all this nonsense can feel more … fun.”

  “Planning weddings aren’t fun,” Ivan muttered, still poking around in the fridge. “It’s fucking torture. My wife spent two years planning ours and between her father and mine, it cost them close to half a mil for twelve hours of hell. Who spends that much money on a wedding? A nice foreign car, sure. A house, absolutely. A wedding, no.”

  Viviana suppressed a shudder. “I don’t want do that, Anton.”

  “Hmm, do what?”

  Apparently, his hand still curving her cheek had all but distracted him. It wasn’t long before those fingers came to dance along the strap of her tank top before trying to dip lower beneath her shirt. She batted his fingers away with a pointed glance at Ivan, who was still trying to find something to chow down on.

  It hadn’t taken Viviana long to learn that Anton was an insatiable man. From his businesses, to the things he enjoyed, to getting her into the bedroom, his attention focused and his drive began. At that moment, she was thinking his focus had turned to her and sex again. Especially since it was a little after dinner and his day was all but done.

  Of course, there was still Ivan, too.

  “Ivan,” Anton barked. “Doesn’t your wife feed you?”

  “Sure, but you know she’s at her mother’s estate for the next few weeks. I can’t cook. Your pretty little thing there can, and I’m trying to find out what she made for me today.”

  Viviana snickered. �
��Nothing, Ivan. Clarissa felt like I was doing her job and told me to back off.”

  “She did not,” Anton argued.

  “All right, so she said it in a politer way, but the sentiment was still the same. What’s the in bag?” Viviana asked as her gaze caught the toppled over gift bag again. “Did you buy me something else?”

  “Patience is a virtue.”

  “I’m not a very virtuous woman.”

  “You can pretend to be,” he replied, winking.

  She scowled at him playfully. Anton had grabbed the magazine from her hands. Pages were skimmed under his scrutinizing gaze as Ivan finally came to join them at the table. “By the way, I meant to thank you, baby.”

  Viviana glanced up, surprised. “For what?”

  “That shipment arrived without a lick of trouble.”

  “Oh, well, you’re welcome.”

  “That is horrid,” the lawyer said with a nod at a particularly poufy dress with way too much crinoline.

  “Agreed.” Another page was turned, and then another. Anton’s finger tapped down to a mermaid styled, ivory colored dress all done up in lace from top to bottom with intricate pearl work along the bodice. While the capped sleeves and modest cut of the front was sweet, the deep plunge in the back showcased a great deal of skin. There was no denying it was a beautiful wedding dress. “Now, that is something I might enjoy taking off of you.”

  Viviana cleared her throat at his suggestive tone while Ivan chuckled and gave a short wave before he left their space. “At least you didn’t pick something white. Still, it’s a little too daring, isn’t it?”

  “For what?”

  “A Catholic service, Anton. What in the hell else?”

  “Oh God, no. I am not marrying into that mess. A Justice of the Peace will be just fine.”

  Viviana felt stunned. Traditionally, men married in the church of the woman if their religions weren’t shared. Anton, however, was Jewish and he very well might want her to convert. “You’re not Catholic. I’d forgotten.”