Page 41 of The Russian's Stalked Bride
“For family? Always,” I say sardonically, pushing myself out of my seat before moving towards the windows.
He snorts. “How gracious of you. Still an ass, I see.”
“I come by it honestly. What do you want?”
“I’ve been digging into Maksim Balakin.”
Setting aside the mental image of Mila’s irritation, my focus sharpens at the mention of him. “And?”
“His presence in Vegas isn’t spontaneous, and he hasn’t just stepped up in Yuri’s stead,” Artem continues. “From what we’ve gathered, he’s been leading operations for months. Yuri’s name might still be on the papers, but Maksim is the one giving orders.”
Watching the cars move down below, I tuck my free hand in my pocket and find myself considering every angle now. “Go on.”
“Maksim is consolidating and making a mess of things to clean house after the fact. He’s removing weak links and Yuri’s most loyal,” he informs me, giving me more to work with. “And better yet, he’s pushing hard for legitimacy, which is likely why he’s been after Mila to begin with.”
“He’s trying to push Yuri out,” I murmur, feeling as some of the pieces start clicking together. “Where the hell is Yuri then?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet, but we’re working on it. As things currently stand, keeping Mila out of reach hascomplicated things for him, so maybe you weren’t completely stupid to act.”
It’s a small, reluctant concession, but I’ll take it.
“Finally, a piece of recognition.”
Artem huffs out a chuckle, though it’s brief. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. You still have a situation to un-fuck, but I’ll send you what I have, and I’ll relay what we come up with next.”
“Consider me in your debt, cousin. Thanks for this.”
He hums, sounding all too smug. “I hope you’re ready for the day I come to collect. And you’re welcome.”
When we say our goodbyes, and I’m left with my thoughts, my head’s swimming with possibilities.
If Yuri’s men have started deserting him in favor of Maksim, then that either means we have a new competitor or one enemy split into two. Either way, it’s more obvious now just how crucial Mila is to all of this.
She’s the one thing standing between Maksim and his goals, and of course, the Grimaldis, too. So long as I keep her away, none of them will get what they want.
I just have to make sure she doesn’t lose her mind in the meantime.
Chapter 14 - Mila
I don’t regret losing my virginity, even if a part of me should.
That thought has been following me since it happened, and it surprises me.
I’ve come to regret plenty of things, like trusting the wrong people, staying compliant for too long, and believing my brothers when they said they had my best interest at heart. But being with Ivan and feeling his hands on me, feeling chosen and wanted…I don’t regret that.
However, what I do question is him. Rather, if I can ever truly trust him.
Lying in bed with warm sunlight filtering through the curtains, I stare at the ceiling in the spare room, replaying that moment again. I think of how warm he had been, the way he held me after the fact, and more importantly, how gentle he had been with me even when I was getting impatient.
Ivan had every opportunity to just take what he wanted without a second thought, but in that moment, he seemed almost hesitant about being my first, like he was wondering if he even deserved it. He showed more restraint than I ever expected from someone like him.
And so far, he hasn’t hurt me at all.
That shouldn’t feel like a revelation, or like a bar to be met, but it is.
He hasn’t been aggressive, and even if I’ve been pushing him a little, he hasn’t raised his voice in days, and he hasn’t forced anything when I pull away. He’s being oddly patient, and I don’t fully know what to make of that.
Obviously, it doesn’t erase the cameras, the stalking, or the fact that I’m still stuck here. That trust doesn’t magically appear just because we slept together, and because he was decent to me throughout.
