Page 7 of Cruel Obsession

Sergei won’t just come after me—he’ll go after my businesses, my men, anyone connected to me. He’ll call infavors, make alliances, turn this into a full-scale conflict that could fracture the entire Bratva power structure. People will die. Probably a lot of them.

And my father—

Khren.My father’s going to see this as the ultimate betrayal. Not just walking away from the wedding, but destroying years of careful political maneuvering. He’ll never forgive this.

“I know,” I say finally.

Stefan stares at me. “You know. That’s it? That’s all you’ve got?”

“What do you want me to say?” I start walking again. “That I should’ve gone through with it? Married a woman who means nothing to me, just to keep the peace?”

“I want you to tell me there’s a plan.” Stefan keeps pace. “That you’ve thought this through. That you havesomeidea how we’re going to handle the shitstorm you just created.”

I don’t answer.

Because the truth is, I don’t have a plan. I acted on instinct—or maybe pride, or maybe just pure rage at being manipulated. And now we’re all going to pay for it.

“Yob tvoyu mat,” Stefan mutters. “This is bad, boss. Really fucking bad.”

“I’ll handle it.”

“How?”

“I’ll figure it out.” I push through the door leading to the parking area.

Stefan exhales through his nose. “You’d better. Because if Sergei moves first, if he catches us unprepared—” He doesn’t finish the sentence. Doesn’t need to.

We both know what happens when you’re caught off-guard in this world.

You die.

The thought should focus me. Should clear my head and sharpen my instincts.

Instead, all I can think about isher.

The registrar. Standing at that altar, trying so hard to maintain her composure while her dress betrayed her. The way the fabric had clung to her curves, outlining every soft line. The scarf she’d wrapped around herself—useless, really, just drawing more attention to what it was supposed to hide.

Then the tear.

That single moment when the silk gave way, and her breast spilled free. The shocked silence that followed. The flush that climbed her throat, staining her cheeks. The way she’d looked at me—mortified, vulnerable, completely undone.

Khren poberi.

My cock stirs just thinking about it.

This is wrong. Dangerous. I should be focused on Sergei, on the retaliation that’s coming, on shoring up defenses and preparing for war.

Instead, I’m standing here, cock half-hard, imagining what she’d look like bent over my desk. What sounds she’d make when I peeled that dress off her body. Whether she’d fight me or melt into it. Whether she’d—

“Boss?”

Stefan’s voice cuts through the haze.

I blink. Realize I’ve been standing frozen in the parking lot, staring at nothing.

“You good?” Stefan asks, and there’s genuine concern in his voice now.

“Fine.”