Page 40 of The Pakhan's Arranged Bride
“Where is your blushing bride?” he asks calmly.
“Why don’t you fuck off and bother someone else?” I ask beneath my breath, making it clear to him that our conversation is over.
He smirks and lets me go, raising his hand as though he’s suggesting he meant nothing by it. But he fucking meant something, alright. He goes out of his way to antagonize meevery time we cross paths. He’s an arrogant, self-centered asshole.
Unfortunately, we have some allies in common. Even though Ardalion and I don’t see eye to eye, if I were to make a move against him, it would damage some of those relationships.
It’s the only reason I haven’t given him a taste of what he deserves or smacked that pathetic smile off his face. He needs to be put in his place. But I can’t be the one to do it.
He knows it, too. That’s why he pushes his luck with me.
I walk away from him, and another of my business colleagues calls my name, wanting to catch up.
Dutifully, I chat with the guy, still tense from the run-in with Ardalion. I have to remind myself of the bigger picture, keep telling myself it’s not worth it to let him provoke me like that. But fuck, it’s hard to ignore him.
Across the room, I see Ulyana has been pulled aside by a group of the other men’s wives, who are chatting happily with her.
She seems comfortable, and I know she is perfectly capable of handling herself with these bratva people, so I’m not worried about her.
She glances my way and smiles beautifully. It makes my heart flip, and for a moment, it’s as though we are the only two people in the room.
“So, Benedikt, what do you think? Would you like to join in on the trade route? We can set up a formal meeting this coming week to make a more official agreement, but if you can let me now—"
“I’m sorry, Diego, you know my policy on committing to new business at social events. If you want to discuss specific newcontracts, then we should save that for the boardroom,” I say politely.
It’s my standard reply when guys try to rope me into verbal agreements after we’ve all had a few drinks. Everyone knows I don’t do business like this, and yet there are always one or two will try anyway.
“It’s a good deal, though. I have some other guys ready to snatch up the opportunity if you don’t want to accept.”
“If they are ready to commit before we’ve had our meeting, then I suggest you go for it,” I say sternly, refusing to be bullied into anything. I’d rather walk away, even if the deal is as good as he is suggesting it is. This is not how I operate. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening.”
“I’ll have my assistant talk to yours and set up a meeting.”
“You do that. I look forward to it, Diego,” I say with a wide smile. It’s funny how well their egos respond to basic training.
I chuckle as I’m walking away from him towards the bar. Ulyana left a while ago to get me a vodka, but she got trapped in conversation and never came back to me.
“Double vodka and soda,” I say to the barman, sighing and running my hand through my hair. I glance at my watch and see it’s late. I reckon I’ll suffer through these forced conversations for another hour tops before we can leave. That’s enough time to show my face, say hi to everyone I should, and escape without seeming rude.
A woman in a short red dress with flaming red hair stands next to me at the bar. She turns to look at me, letting her eyes roam up and down my body with intent.
“Hi, handsome. Are you as bored as I am here?”
“Not interested.” I say bluntly.
She giggles and shifts closer. “But aren’t you Benedikt Karamazov?”
“Yes, I am.”
The barman slides my drink over to me and she peers at it. “Have a drink with me?” she smiles sweetly.
“Thank you, but I think I’ve made myself clear enough.”
She pouts in disappointment, and I turn away from her to scan the room for Ulyana. She isn’t with the group of wives anymore.
An urgency bolts through me as I search, needing to know where she is at all times.
I breathe a sigh of relief when I spot her. She has her back to me—that gorgeous curve of her ass, I’d recognize anywhere.
