Page 20 of Bossed Around By the Bratva

Smiling at her, I shook my head lightly as I replied. “No, not yet, but it’s time to get up. I brought you some tea.”

I stepped back and waited for her to sit up before handing her the cup. “Thank you,” she said, taking it from me.

“You want me to fill the tub for you?” I asked, heading towards the bathroom.

“Yes, thanks,” she replied.

I opened the taps and added some bubble bath so she could soak and relax for a bit. Once the tub was full, I returned tothe room. “Okay,” I said, watching her collect some clothes from her bags. “You want anything specific for breakfast?”

She walked to the bathroom door. Stopping, she glanced back at me, smiling. “Pan-fried dumpling, I think,” she said, raising her shoulders.

Grinning, I just nodded as she went in and closed the door. I placed a call to room service and ordered her dumplings and a piece of steak for me.

While she soaked and I waited for room service, I ensured everything was packed and at the door. I wanted to be ready to leave once we were done. The doorbell rang as Zhen came out of the bathroom with the towel wrapped around her hair.

I looked through the peephole to make sure there was room service before opening the door. We sat in silence as we ate. I watched her trying to figure out how she felt after everything that happened.

She appeared to be fine, but it was hard to tell as she was like a closed book. I was also distracted. I hoped the drive to the airport would be smooth. But I feared we might have another run-in.

As we left the hotel, I kept my eyes open for any sign of danger. The drive went quicker than I thought, and turned out to be quiet. We were about an hour early and went for a drink in the lounge.

After we boarded the plane, I could relax slightly. She lowered her seat and lay staring out the window. Watching her, I realized that having sex with her might not have been one of my best ideas. I had hoped to quiet the intense desire for her, to ease my obsession with her.

But it seemed I had made it worse. My desire to protect her had increased tenfold. Closing my eyes, I sighed softly. I had to find a way to keep her safe and out of harm's way.

Once we landed, I drove her home. The entire drive to her place, she stared out the window. After carrying her bags inside, I just had to ask before leaving. “Are you sure you’re fine?”

She rose to her toes and kissed my cheek. “All good,’ she replied. But I couldn’t shake this feeling that something was wrong. “Thank you.”

“I’ll see you in the morning then,” I said as I left.

Heading home, I dialed Alexandr. The phone rang for a while. I knew he could be busy and was about to hang up when his commanding voice came blaring through. “Akim, is everything okay? There’s been some chatter.” I could hear a hint of concern coming through.

“I’m fine, but yes, something happened. I need your help to get to the bottom of it, though,” I replied. There was a pause of silence as I waited for his response.

“Okay, you have my full attention. Let’s hear it,” he said calmly.

“There was an attempted ambush, but I managed to get out. We need to look into it, though. We must find out who is gunning for us,” I said briefly. I purposely left Zhen’s name out as I didn’t want to drag her further into it.

I heard him take a deep breath before speaking. “I will have Tasha do a deep dive and put Anton on it as well. You want me to send some guards to the agency or your home?”

Laughing, I responded lightly. “No, I’ve got my end, and the Chernykh men are protecting the estate. We just have to get to the bottom of this soon.”

“Okay, I’ll let you know what we find. Please stay safe,” Alexandr added before hanging up.

Pulling into my driveway, I surveyed the surroundings. I couldn’t see anything out of place and went inside. I dropped my bag on the floor beside my bed and collapsed onto it. Sleep came quicker than I had anticipated.

I felt refreshed after a good night's sleep without worrying about being attacked. But I forced myself to get up. I wanted to sleep longer, but it was back to work. There was no time to waste if I intended to catch the enemies.

Walking into the office, I couldn’t wait to see Zhen. She was on the phone as I came in, so I just nodded and went to my desk. Once I was done with my emails, I glanced up, hoping to have a moment to talk to Zhen, but she wasn’t at her desk.

Shaking my head, I tried to clear the images of her from my mind. I had to focus. I soon realized that it was an impossible task. My mind kept drifting to our time together. I had really hoped that having sex with her would have cleared the obsession and cobwebs. But it was like she was now imprinted on my mind.

Over the next two days, I realized my obsession had grown to a concerning level as I couldn’t help but notice everything she did. I found myself watching her like a hawk. Hanging on her every word and interaction.

I had also started to notice her interaction with the men in the building. I felt like a wolf stalking its prey. I watched as the men flirted with her, and my jealousy slowly climbed up the never-ending mountain.

By the fourth day since our return, I struggled to keep my anger in check. Even though she kept things very professional with all of them, it didn’t help that she was seemingly avoidingme. It felt like everyone in the office with a penis was after her. It wasn’t only the Chernykh men, but now also the Morozov men.

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