Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 69662 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 348(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 232(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69662 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 348(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 232(@300wpm)
I didn’t ask about the conversation, or any of them he had—presumably all with Timur—because I knew if Kostya wanted me to know he would tell me.
But it wasn’t as if I didn’t have my own inner issues to deal with, like the fact I was still processing that I killed the person I’d known as my father, that my mother was murdered right in front of me, and that my actual biological father was the man Kostya was currently speaking with.
“Just like that?”
The sound of Kostya’s voice was sharp and drew me out of my thoughts. I watched as he paced the small motel room we were currently in.
This was the second one in the past three days, slightly more updated than the last one, but still giving off “Vacancy” vibes.
My ankle wasn’t getting any better, much to my horror. What I first thought was a nasty sprain was turning into something deeper. But I hadn’t been to a doctor to verify anything—for obvious reasons—so elevation, icing it, and Kostya refusing to let me walk on my own anywhere, and instead carrying me to where I needed to go, was how it was being handled.
Not ideal, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit being cared for by my big, strong fighter, and seeing this softer side of him wasn’t something I was complaining about.
And I was pretty sure the chair and then bed sex we’d done days ago hadn’t helped the situation. But then again I wouldn’t have changed it.
It was that moment that had broken through the shock I’d been feeling and let reality crash back in. It had been painful. It had been rough and scary. But I’d come out on the other end okay and breathing.
“I won’t risk her safety for anything.” There was a long moment of silence before Kostya cut his gaze in my direction and gave a noncommittal grunt. “She isn’t going anywhere near you. If anything happens to her, I’ll cut your head from your neck with a dull knife.”
Kostya disconnected the call and shoved the burner in the back pocket of his jeans. He ran a hand over his short dark hair, still pacing as he stared at the floor.
I lifted my brows and said, “Well? Can you please fill me in?” He stopped and looked at me, an unreadable expression on his face. “I understand you enjoy me being in the dark because you think it’ll keep me safe, but given the fact this concerns me as well, I want to know what the hell is going on.”
I held out my hands in surrender although I wasn’t being submissive. I felt like I was on edge, teetering close to a cliff, knowing that if I fell over there was no chance of me surviving.
I had to know what the next steps were.
“This is my life, Kostya. This is our lives. No more silence on it.”
He exhaled and nodded, and for a second, I found my eyes widening and shock filling me.
That seemed so… easy.
He was always so hard, unyielding, obviously used to getting his way, that the fact he was giving in—agreeing with me—almost had a hysterical laugh bubbling up in my throat.
Maybe it looked like I was about to lose it because Kostya was kneeling right in front of me a second later, cupped each side of my face in his big, warm tattooed hands, and leaned in to rest his forehead against mine.
For a moment, we just breathed the same air. I let that creep into me, let the steady feel of his strength surround me, knowing I was stabilizing him as much as he was me.
It was only after a moment or so when he exhaled and pulled back, gazing into my eyes.
“Timur wants me to come to Desolation for a meeting. He wants to talk to me about what’s going to happen next.”
“Okay. This is a good thing, right?” His expression was unreadable.
“Maybe. Or maybe it’s a setup.”
I was shaking my head before he stopped. “Even I know that’s not how the Bratva operates when they want things taken care of.”
He huffed out a laugh. “No, but there’s new leadership, or so Timur tells me. That means things could be a clusterfuck right now. Tensions are high. Shit isn’t running smoothly.”
I started worrying my bottom lip at the very idea of them ambushing Kostya. Although he was the most powerful and deadly person I knew, that didn’t mean he was invincible.
It was my turn to reach out and cup his scruff-covered cheek, trying to ease him like he had with me. He looked a little surprised at first, just a flicker of emotion that was so rare in him.
“But I’ve been speaking with Timur this past week, and I don’t think that’s how things will play out. Although I didn’t see a lot of shit happening like it had.”