Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 100086 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100086 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Damn it, that wasn’t what he wanted. “That’s not necessary. I can take care of it. No need to put yourself out.”
“Wrong. And if you make contact before I get up there, I’ll skin you alive. Do we understand each other?”
Sergei cursed long and hard, though no sound made it out of his mouth. He knew better than to cross Dmitri, but he’d always had a hard time keeping that in mind where Olivia was concerned. She was special. She alone had looked at him without fear—at least at first. It wasn’t his goddamn fault that he was the best at what he did, and Dmitri had no problem putting him to work doing it. That was something to be proud of—not ashamed of like she was. He kept them safe. All of them—even her ungrateful ass. People heard the name Sergei Utkin, and it made them pause and think before they attacked the Romanovs.
And the money didn’t hurt, either.
Dmitri’s father had brought Sergei over from Mother Russia, where he could barely steal enough food to keep himself alive, and he gave Sergei everything he could need—more than he ever dreamed. He’d had money to blow, the best vodka, and any woman of his choosing. More than that, he had the respect and fear of every person he came in contact with. He liked his life, and he liked it even more with Olivia in his bed. It might have only been a year, but he’d gotten a taste for a woman of worth. He wanted her back. He wouldn’t be able to pull that off with Dmitri looking over his shoulder.
“Sergei.”
Damn it, he was so busy thinking, he wasn’t paying attention to the other line. “Sorry again, boss.”
“You’re not comforting me right now. Do I need to bring a replacement when I come?”
And have another man watching Olivia? Not fucking likely. He cleared his throat, doing his best to sound curt and professional. “I’ve got it.”
“You had better. She might be my father’s bastard—for the moment—but she’s still family. Don’t cross me, Sergei. You know what happens if you do.”
Yeah, he knew. He was usually the one Dmitri sent when that happened with someone else. “It’s under control.” Or it would be. He just had to keep a handle on his shit until Dmitri came and left—until he figured out what his boss had planned for Olivia. Because he had a plan. Dmitri always had a plan in place.
“I’ll see you in the morning.” He clicked off.
Sergei gave in to the need to curse aloud. What the fuck was Dmitri thinking? He should have hauled Olivia back to New York the second he realized she was gone. Andrei wanted her as a Romanov, and Dmitri had given his word that he’d see it done. Instead, he’d sat back and let her create a life for herself here. A life that didn’t involve Sergei. Now she had some new cock she was fucking, and the fact that it was attached to the same family that had offered the Romanovs such disrespect barely six months ago…
He didn’t like that. He didn’t like that at all.
A few more hours and I’ll have answers. That will have to be good enough.
And if he didn’t like the answers?
Well, then he’d do something about it. He’d lost Olivia because of her half brother once before. He wasn’t going to let it happen again.
Chapter Thirteen
Cillian slammed into wakefulness, Devlin’s name caught in his throat, his chest so tight it was a wonder he could draw a full breath, his entire body coated in sweat. He stared blindly at his ceiling for the space of a heartbeat, and then another, before his mind caught up with his instincts.
Home. In my bed. Safe.
He scrubbed a hand over his face, trying to convince himself that it was okay. He’d gone to bed so damn happy last night, still riding high from how well the date with Olivia had gone, better than he could have dreamed. Stupid of him to think that would be enough to keep his nightmares at bay.
With a groan, he climbed out of bed and stripped the mattress of the sweat-covered sheets. No one said anything about the fact that he was changing his bedding several times a week, but he knew the staff noticed. And if they knew, it was highly likely that his parents and probably even Aiden knew.
He wasn’t sure if he appreciated their silence or resented it. No one talked about Devlin, and no one talked about the fact that everything was different now. It was a giant elephant in the room that only seemed to grow as time went on.
It took showering to finally shake the last of his nightmare and put him back on solid ground. He scrubbed his body, letting his mind wander back to how things with Olivia had ended in the car. It had been so fucking difficult not to bury himself between her legs, but she’d given him her trust—something he knew for a fact she didn’t do lightly—and he couldn’t betray that. He didn’t want to.