Page 16 of Bought & Bred By the Bratva

Silence.

His mouth opens, then closes again.

I hold him there one second longer than necessary.

Then I release him.

He stumbles, coughing, face pale, ego cracked.

“Now get the fuck out of here.”

He goes.

Because for all his tantrums, he knows exactly what I’m capable of.

And today?

I showed mercy.

Chapter 12

SIERRA

It’s too quiet.

Which is suspicious, considering my little sister has the energy of a caffeinated squirrel and my brother never shuts up unless he’s asleep or plotting something.

I peek down the hall, then pad toward the playroom.

And when I push open the door?

I stop cold.

Aleksander Maksimov—Bratva enforcer, empire builder, six-foot-something slab of intimidation—is seated at a plastic pink tea table, shoulders hunched, knees nearly to his chest.

With bright purple nail polish on three fingers.

“Hold still,” Nia scolds, tongue poking out as she carefully paints his pinky. “You smudged the last one.”

Aleks’s mouth twitches. “You didn’t let me finish my tea.”

“It’s invisible, Aleks,” she says seriously. “You don’t have to drink it for real.”

From the corner, Jamal sighs so hard it sounds painful. “This is embarrassing.”

Aleks doesn’t even blink. “You jealous you didn’t get an invite?”

Jamal scowls. “I’m not drinking invisible tea at a Barbie table.”

Nia rolls her eyes. “You can be the dragon. Sit under the table and growl.”

Aleks lifts one brow. “You heard the boss.”

Jamal slumps down under the table with a dramatic groan. “This never happened.”

I step into the room, grinning so hard it hurts.

“I leave you alone for twenty minutes and you let them drag you into a tea party?”

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