Page 40 of Forbidden Bratva Virgin

“I know what a power card is, Damir. What do you want?”

He inclined into the chair, crossing his arms over his chest. There was a knowing in his eyes and a tease on his lips when he smiled. “I saw her last night, and then I understood. You like her, don’t you?”

I wasn’t going to play ignorant; I knew he was talking about Hazel. And if he said he saw her last night, it meant he looked at her. Damir was an asset, but an uncomfortable itch grew at the back of my head at the mere thought that he’d traced her body with his eyes. I wanted to take whatever he’d seen and erase it from his memory, even if it meant punching his face to do it.

“What if I say I don’t like her?”

“Then you would be lying to yourself, not me. I saw the way you looked at her last night. Heck, you couldn’t even turn your head away. Andyouoffered to dance with her. There’s no denying it, Boss. You like her.”

“Damir.”

He hesitated. “Miron.”

“Have you ever been to a mall before?”

Damir frowned and pretended to give it a thought before shaking his head. “A mall? No, I don’t think so. What does it look like?”

I resisted the urge to smile. “I’ll assume you know what it is and go straight to the point. You see, in a mall, there are lots of beautiful things placed on those shelves, and when you go over to the toy section, ah, that’s where the magic really is.”

“That’s if you’re a kid.”

“In this context, let’s sayyou’rea kid. The toy section is the center of attraction, and nothing else really matters. Then, there’s this one toy. It’s the shiniest and most outstanding one there, and you want it. There are a million other toys you could get—”

“And there’s one other toy already in your house, going to Italy on Friday for a wedding dress fitting….”

“—but you want that one other toy so bad, you know you’ll do anything to get it,” I glared at him, “to keep others from getting it first. It’s an insane attraction—"

“That could cost you a lot. And we both know I’m not talking about the money, Miron.” Sighing, he pinched the bridge of his nose and sat forward. “Our reality is realer than a mall, and your growing obsession with your therapist is beyond wanting a shiny toy on the shelf.”

Damir was reasonable and logical most of the time, but I wasn’t ready to entertain the voice of wisdom. I groaned, throwing my head back to stare at the ceiling with my fingers laced over my stomach.

“Besides, the toy has an owner.”

A boyfriend that doesn’t talk to her in public or fuck her in private. How convenient.

“Hazel is not a toy.”

“Your illustration, not mine.” I heard his chair move when he shifted closer. “There are many things to consider. First, she has a boyfriend.”

“Established,” I grunted. “Next?”

“You have a fiancée. Alina Ivanova.” A fiancée who I was under an obligation and duty to thePakhanto marry.

The subject of being attracted to Alina was not in contention. She was pretty enough, with a spiky character and personality that needed some amendments. Most importantly, she was an easy fuck. When my balls were heavy, she willingly came through for me. And that was it.

Before our engagement, marriage was not one of those things I considered, so I didn’t necessarily care about the contents of a wife. My expectations were simple: With my permission, she had the liberty to do whatever she wanted, be a good mother to our children, and stay by my side looking pretty.

But when I thought of Hazel, the feeling that came was like a mighty rushing wind blowing doors down and uprooting trees from the ground. Being close to her, talking to her,lookingat her. Mere contact with that woman made me feel like I knew nothing and was starting life all over again.

“Alina is not a factor,” I said instead. “We’re already engaged.”

“Yet, your mind harbors thoughts about another woman. A woman who, you forget, is your therapist.”

Ah, shit.

And that was the third upsetting factor that I’d deliberately kept in a blind spot for long enough.

Hazel’s job.

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