Page 16 of The Bratva's Plus-Size Bride

She cocks her head to the side with a smile. “Mr. Milov has already paid for everything, Honey.”

Of course he did. I know I’m lobster red as I take the boxes from her and scurry out of the store. Of course, he knewI’d try to get around our agreement and pay for myself, so he went ahead and did it for me. That bastard.

“All set, miss?” Billy asks, getting the door for me and taking the boxes from my hands in one smooth motion.

I climb into the car and glare daggers at the far side where Mr. Milov would be sitting if he were here. “Yes, thank you. Can you take me home, please?”

It’s a long drive back to my part of town and I spend it with my phone in my hand, debating sending a very strongly worded text to my boss.

The night of the event, Billy picks me up and drives me to the venue. I’ve spent all afternoon on my hair and makeup, multitasking while I review the guest list for this evening, memorizing the names and connecting them with their businesses and net worths in case Mr. Milov needs a reminder.

Part of me was disappointed that Mr. Milov hadn’t come to pick me up, but then I remind myself I’m not his date; I’m his assistant, and his sending the car is more than enough. Nerves burst like fireworks in my stomach as I walk up to the venue. The dress is eye-catching, and I know I won’t be able to slip in unnoticed like I want to.

Luckily, the place is packed, and even though I feel some eyes on me, there’s too much chatter and excitement for anyone’s attention to linger for long. I start to wind my way into the crowd, searching for Mr. Milov and snatching a flute of champagne from a passing tray, more to keep my hands busy than to drink. I want my wits sharp tonight.

I catch a glimpse of Mr. Milov through the crowd, head bent to hear whoever he’s speaking to, and stop short. He looks incredible. Somehow, in a crowd filled with men in expensive suits, he stands out. It’s more than just his height and his perfectbody. It’s the way he carries himself. The way his green eyes shine in the light from the chandelier. My toes curl in my shoes. No man should ever look this good.

“Ella?” A woman’s voice saying my name startles me before I start drooling, thankfully.She’s got nearly black hair and deep blue eyes, but there’s some sort of unplaceable resemblance between her and Mr. Milov that tells me she’s part of his family. Or maybe it’s the way she walked up to a stranger without a hint of anxiety.

The woman holds out her hand and introduces herself. “I’m Anya. Anton’s sister. He’s told me so much about you and me, of course, I had to stalk you on the internet a little, so I recognized you right away. Killer dress. You look stunning. Like, the pictures online donotdo you justice.”

Anya talks about a mile a minute and with the sort of enthusiasm that is infectious, bringing a smile to my face even as I try to keep up. She looks about my age, maybe a little younger, so she’s got to be his little sister.

“Oh, thank you,” I say, barely resisting the urge to interrogate her on exactly what Mr. Milov has said about me. Barely. “I’m not much of a social media person, really.”

“I noticed. Very buttoned up, which makes sense with what Anton said about you being really serious about your career. He’d kill me for saying this, but I’ve never heard him talk about anyone as much as he talks about you. You must be some assistant.” Her eyes sparkle as she says the last, and I glance back over to Mr. Milov.

The crowd has thinned a bit, and I can finally see who he’s talking to. The sight makes my stomach flip. She’s older but beautiful, of course. I’m beginning to realize that everyone he associates with is attractive and clearly into him. She’spractically falling all over him, smiling from ear to ear, reaching up to touch his lapel.

I can’t seriously be jealous right now. He’s just my boss, right? He has the right to talk to whoever he wants. Flirt with them, even. I’ve completely tuned Anya out, and it takes me a second to realize she’s talking.

“And this is one of my other brothers, Viktor. I have way too many siblings, I know.” She’s laughing, tugging the arm of a man who makes me do a double-take because he looks so much like Mr. Milov, I realize they must be twins. “Say hi, Viktor. This is Ella, Anton’s new assistant.”

Viktor’s eyebrows shoot up, and he appraises me, head to toe, without any of the heat I find in Mr. Milov’s gaze. “Nice to meet you, Ella. I’ve heard so much about you.”

Seems like I’m the only one uninformed around here. Family is another one of Mr. Milov’s secrets, something he never talks about beyond the context of business. Add it to the bulging file in my mind of things he likes to keep from me, even as he seems intent on bringing me closer. Another reason I need to keep the wall between us.

Chapter 9 - Anton

Damn, I have good taste. The dress I picked out for Ella looks incredible on her, like I knew it would, and I can’t keep my eyes off of her for a single second. She’s got her hair twisted half off, showing off the pale skin of her neck, and I want to be kissing every exposed inch. The rest cascades down her back in bouncy curls, ending just above the low-cut backline of her dress.

She’s talking to Anya and Viktor, and I’m trapped here talking to the potential investor Viktor told me about, Mrs. Kozlov, a widow who inherited her husband’s sizable fortune after his untimely death two years ago. The worst part is I can’t even excuse myself from this conversation because we’re right on the edge of something here, and her money might be the last piece I need to begin building an empire of my own.

But I’d rather be talking to Ella. Or dragging her to a dark corner to do a whole lot of not talking. I try to peel my attention off of her, to focus on Mrs. Kozlov, but it’s damned near impossible.

“My dear Dimitri loved getting involved in new business opportunities,” she says, plucking a piece of invisible lint off my suit. It’s just an excuse to touch me. “It was his passion. You remind me so much of him at this age, though he wasn’t quite so good-looking.”

She laughs, and I force myself to join in, hoping she won’t notice how stilted it sounds. But for God’s sake, her husband was knee-deep in the black market and made all of his real money there, not through clever investments. Yet this woman has been prattling on for an hour about how much of a saint the man was.

“I truly believe your husband would have considered this an excellent choice of investment,” I say, waving a waiter over tofreshen her champagne glass. She’s three deep by now, and I’m not above using lowered inhibitions to secure this deal. Bring on the bubbly.

Ella is listening earnestly to something Viktor is saying and I chew the inside of my cheek to keep from stalking over there. Her doe eyes look even bigger tonight, set off by the makeup she’s done, and they should be on me, not my brother. She should be on my arm. If she’d just let me claim her, let me tell the world that she’s way more to me than an assistant, she’d be beside me right now.

Viktor laughs and something ugly, hot, and raw courses through me. Jealousy. She’s smiling at him. Laughing with him. I don’t give a damn that he’s married. Happily. Right now, he’s standing way too close tomygirl. My Ella.

Like she can feel my attention, the way I can feel her presence, her gaze locks on mine across the crowd. There she is, and god, I want her. I want attention. Her body. Her heart.

“I just worry about the overseas prospect,” Mrs. Kozlov carries on. “I’m not much for traveling these days, after what happened to Dimitri, you know. It’s important to me that I can visit the places I’m supporting.”

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