Page 9 of Owned By the Russian

For a moment, she blamed herself. Somehow, she always found a way to ruin dinner. Maybe she just really needed to shut the hell up sometimes.

Val slipped into her purple nightrobe and gently padded down the stairs when she was sure everyone else was asleep. Her damp hair sprawled down her shoulders, cold droplets running miles down her skin.

She slipped through the back door of the kitchen, exhaling once she felt the rush of the cold night air bathing her skin. The air was cool and still, carrying the faint scent of earth and distant pine trees.

The night sky stretched vast and infinite, its velvety black expanse dusted with countless stars like scattered grains of salt. Each shimmered with a soft, silvery glow, some flickering as though whispering secrets to the universe.

Above, a perfectly crescent moon hung low, casting a gentle luminescence that painted the landscapes in shades of silver.

Val removed a pack of cigarettes from her pocket, leaned against the balcony, and slipped a stick between her lips. Her favorite thing to do in moments like this was to smoke a blunt.

Stargazing and smoking equaled peace for her.

She flicked her lighter beneath the cigarette, the orange flame briefly flicking to life, reflecting in her irises as it ignited the tip. She inhaled deeply, the smoke curling around her lungs like a warm, heavy hug, before exhaling slowly, the gray tendrils weaving into the cool night air.

She closed her eyes and tipped her head back with a soft grin. The taste of smoke lingered on her tongue, bitter yet familiar, as the ember glowed steadily between her fingers, casting a soft light across her face.

Each drag felt like a moment of escape, the burn in her chest and the wind in her hair grounding her in the present, even as her thoughts drifted galaxies away.

The loud ringing of her phone threw a dagger in the blanket of peace enshrouding her, successfully ripping it apart. Her eyes flew open as the device vibrated against her thigh.

Frowning, she took out the phone, the nameRhiannonlighting up the screen.

A cloud of smoke escaped her lips as she lifted the phone to her ears. “Want me to tuck you in?”

She could picture Rhi rolling her eyes with a smile. “Adrian already did that. In the best way possible. You know, there’s this thing he does with his tongue that—”

Val scrunched her nose. “If you called me this late at night to talk about your sex life, best believe I’ll hang up without wasting a second.”

Her best friend’s soft laughter reached her ears. “That’s a story for another day,” her tone was tinged with excitement. “Mikhail’s throwing another event this weekend. I want you to come.”

Val sighed, glancing at the horizon beyond. She couldn’t deny the fact that she loved any party the Nikolais held. But she thought back to the last one and the comment that stupid man made that ended up ruining the rest of her night, even when she pretended she wasn’t affected by them.

We both know you’d beg me to fuck you.

Just thinking about it made her scoff silently. The nerve of Ilya Nikolai to make her feel this way because of nine stupid words. Nine words that shook her insides. Nine words that stomped on her pride. Nine good-for-nothing words that caused a different kind of fire to ignite in her belly at the thought of seeing him again.

You’re so arrogant; it’s almost endearing.

In reality, his domineering presence affected her too much to make her comfortable around him. And because of that, she always tried to act indifferent around him.

Did that make her arrogant, or was he just a big, fat jerk?

“I don’t know…” she trailed off. “The last Nikolai party didn’t exactly go well.”

Rhi laughed, unbothered. “Don’t tell me this is about Ilya.”

“He’s a fucking asshole, Rhi.”

“Which is why you should come to this one,” Rhi pressed, a smile in her voice. “Don’t give him the satisfaction of being bothered by his presence. Come on, it’ll be different this time. Just think about it. We could use some fun.”

Val hesitated, fingers tapping lightly on the edge of her phone. A sound at the back made her turn around, and she saw her father’s figure pushing the door open.

“I’ll think about it,” she murmured before hanging up.

The invitation lingered in her mind as her father’s face came into view. Val wasn’t surprised he was awake. He always stayed up late doing mafia business, and there were few times when they would smoke together on nights like this.

“Did I hear Nikolai?” was Lorenzo’s first question as they stood face to face, a calculating glint in his eyes.

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