Page 37 of Hateful Vows
Silence follows.
Irina roughly discards my jacket and shirt, until I’m naked from the waist up, seated on the velvet couch as she dabs the wound with my rumpled shirt. The blood soaks through the fabric but I’m not mesmerised by that. It’s the efficiency of her movements, the set line of her mouth and deep crease of her brow like my injury insults her.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you care,” I say.
“I’m the only one who’s allowed to kill you.”
I chuckle roughly, my cock stirring to life at her threat. She’s too addictive, her venomous mouth a poison I want to consume until I’ve wrung every last drop of it out of her body.
Then, Aleksei pours a bottle of seventy percent alcohol onto the open gash and I hiss, my cock definitely back down with the pain. “You could have told me you were about to douse me in this shit.”
Aleksei Dobrevrolls his eyes. “Did you just roll your eyes at me?” I ask incredulously, and I swear his mouth upticks into what is considered a smile where he’s concerned.
“You’re acting like a child. Why do you only have four bodyguards?” he asks.
“Four is more than plenty. Do you think we leave the house with an army?” Irina answers in my stead and I watch, mouth agape, as they go back and forth with the risks of doing daily routines, preventive measures and what needs to be changed in the security processes of the Ventura household. All while they work in tandem to clean the bullet wound and place the stitch-less closure strips on my skin. It’s an overkill but I don’t mind them fussing over me like this, their hands touching me.
There’s nothing sexual in it but my body didn’t get the memo, especially with how their scents mix in the air around us and silence occupies the space in between.
That’s not what I had in mind when I thought about bringing them closer together and fucking hell, it burnt when the bullet missed me, but I’m not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth.
When I’m all patched up, Aleksei straightens. Our eyes lock and something passes in his eyes. Before I can make sense of it, it’s gone. He retreats to the corner of the room, phone to his ear, calling his own reinforcements to secure the area.
“We need to be more careful,” Irina breathes. I like it. The way she says ‘we’ like it’s not just me anymore. Like our marriage isn’t just a sham.
I nod, sobering. I rake a hand through my hair. “You’re right. I thought West Hill was safe but I guess nowhere is safe anymore.”
“We should cancel the gala.”
“No,” I counter. “I won’t cower and lock myself behind doors. I’m gonna root out every last traitor, even if it’s the last thing I’ll do. We’ll show up at the gala as planned. As one. I’ll double down on security measures at the penthouse and the mansion.”
“Also on traveling from one place to the next,” she says.
“Yes,vipera. But I’m not hiding in the shadows.”
“Dan will be here in an hour,” Aleksei interrupts us. “He’s ex-MI-6, and will find traces of the shooter if they left anything behind.”
My mouth tastes like sand as I utter the necessary next words. “Thank you. But I meant what I said. When Irina is with us, she’s the priority.”
“I can defend myself.”
“Against a sniper?” I ask, and she keeps her mouth shut. “That’s what I thought. We need to merge our resources. The threat against me is becoming more bold. Irina found some pettytheft amongst my men but nothing more.” She perks up with pride, eyeing Aleksei like she wants to tell him ‘I told you so’.
Their dynamic is dizzying. Too bad I love chaos.
“I can organise a meet up with my men and yours tomorrow,” Aleksei agrees.
Let’s hope they won’t try to kill each other before we find the person who wants to assassinate me.
SIXTEEN
IRINA
The day after the assassination attempt on Dante, the last person I’m expecting marches into the penthouse.
Lucie’s face is red with fury and if he wasn’t wearing a sling—a precaution more than anything—she’d probably shoot Dante again herself. At least that’s what her eyes are saying. I know the look intimately.
“You’re not allowed to die,cugino!” She yells, her usually sweet voice taking on a dangerous edge. “I just got you back. Even though you’re ignoring me like an immature child, don’t you dare die on me.”
