Page 49 of The Tsar's Obsession
“I have people who do things for me.” I admired the sight. She took a small sip of her coffee and assessed me without reservation.
Sitting with her was a breath of fresh air. Her presence refined and elevated everything around me. It brightened my mood, it gave me hope, and it made everything else in my life seem manageable but also deeply insignificant. It was like being in the presence of a goddess—everything was correctin the world.
Somewhere mid-breakfast, she asked, “Are you going to talk to me like a normal person? Why are you so on edge this morning?”
I was on edge, and she saw right through me. This trip was pivotal in securing our new dealer, better product, and pricing. My meeting with Manuel, the head of the Colombian cartel, was this morning, but my last phone call with him threw me into doubt. “It’s hard to explain.” I did my best to avoid the conversation, but she responded without missing a beat.
“Try.”
Not fully committed to it, I made an attempt without actually telling her anything. “Let's say you want to...open a store..." I began from afar. "And the person selling you the materials for you to make clothes told you one price and then, right before the store opens, wants to raise the stakes. What do you do, hm?"
Her face in contemplation and her arms crossed, she looked me over, but after a few seconds she responded and hit the fucking bullseye.
"I would probably delay opening the store so I could recalculate my margins. I would most likely have to rebrand because I would have to sell my clothes at a higher price...or I would find a new person to buy drugs from.” At her last words, I dropped my fork on my plate, the loud clatter echoing in the dining room.
“So that's what you do every day? You’re a drug dealer?!" Disgust permeated every one of her words, and she looked at me both with disappointment and anger.
I hadn’t actually told her what I did, and I wasn’t even sure she understood what I revealed. "No, I'm not a drug dealer." Notonlya drug dealer would have been more correct, that’s just one of the things I did. It was just my original business, which bloomed every year, and I didn’t want to give up such a profitable source of income. I’d be crazy to do that. Plus, it was the best way to enter this North American market.
Mia’s body language was closed off, and she stared right past me. I wondered what was going on in that pretty head of hers. She was probably coming to all the wrong conclusions.But then, I was honest with myself. She was probably coming to all the correct conclusions and hated me for it.
“I want to go shopping on the island.” Her eyes flicked to mine after a long silence, the request blindsiding me. “I don’t want to be locked up here all alone. Arrange for someone to take me. Please.” Mia didn’t have to say please or thank you; I would do whatever the fuck she wanted. But this I didn’t want.
In the morning sun, Mia glowed. She was beautiful and ethereal any time of the day, but she quite literally took my breath away. I would finish this deal today, and then I wouldn’t let her out of my arms.
"Fine. Yuri will take you, but not today. Tomorrow. You are to do as he says and not leave his sight." I didn’t want to let her leave anywhere. This island was a beautiful paradise, but it wasn’t my territory, and as much as I never wanted to restrict her freedom, I would feel much easier if she stayed within the constraints of my property.
Rising to her full height, she grabbed her cup of coffee with rough movements and sauntered over to me, her hip sways more pronounced. Like a total brat, she got right in my face and taunted, "Or what? You're going to trap me on another island?" I momentarily wondered if I heard her wrong, but then I zoned back into reality. She was getting frustrated, and so was I.
Not giving me another second of attention, she straightened out and, with large strides, walked out the door, taking a seat on one of the chairs poolside.
Her disobedience ignited a raging fire in me, and I was salivating for her body and soul to be mine.
I forced myself out of the house and left her, not daring to continue this conversation lest I rip her clothes off. Throughout the day, I received updates and knew she swam and tanned and relaxed on the beach and inmyhouse. Satisfaction andpride bloomed inside me at the thought. A treasure, all mine, locked up in my house, waiting for me.
“It’s all set up; we just need your final approval. Tomorrow, you come, and we do the final walk-through, but as I said, inflation.” I woke up from my thoughts when I heard Manuel speak once more. We were sitting by the pool at his villa, the property chock-full of his soldiers, armed to the teeth.
This day was spiraling into an unknown abyss, and I deeply regretted coming here. I felt tricked and lied to and was overcome with the suffocating feeling that I had either made a huge mistake or, worse, had been set up.
Manuel, the man I had come to trust over the last year, had dropped a bomb on me this visit and raised the price of the shipment almost threefold,oneday before we were to finalize everything. Did that sound like inflation? No, that sounded like betrayal and my bullet flying through his brain.
A beautiful brunette sat on Manuel’s lap and waited for his attention like a dog, but he completely ignored her. I was even more grateful for Mia. That kiss nine years ago stopped me from becoming a complete degenerate. I had a purpose, a goal, a love I so desired that I worked tirelessly and endlessly to get it. I never needed any motivation; Mia was always on my mind. She gave me strength and added meaning to my life.
Vicious anger brewed inside me at Manuel’s news, but I kept my face neutral, thinking a mile a minute about what could have possibly caused such a change of heart on his end.
“Hmm. I’ll come tomorrow in the afternoon.” To fucking kill him and send a message. The deadlines were too close to simply cut ties, but I would be damned if this prick was going to push me around.
I bowed to nobody.
Shaking Manuel’s hand, he reciprocated with a warm smile. “Yes, talk to your partners. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I was already halfway out the door, barely listening to his words.
I found Mia napping poolside in the shade, and all my worriesinstantly flew out of my head. I was in disbelief at how much I didn’t fucking care or want anything in life besides her. I was so deeply entrenched in my world; there was no way I could walk away or escape anywhere, but I desirednothingelse than to leave it all behind and just hold her in my arms forever.
My life was a bottomless, dark web of crime, drugs, guns, death, schemes, corruption, and so many other problems I didn’t want to admit to myself. I came to New York and created a goddamn tsunami when I personally took out the head of the mafia organization that had a huge network of cocaine distribution. Dmitry and our team broke apart a whole chain of drug lords, cutting ties with very dangerous cartels in Colombia and Peru and establishing new partners.
The shock and awe campaign that we waged was wildly successful, but the risk of that happening to me was always on the horizon. That was just the reality of my world. On top of it all, I had entrusted a significant portion of my business in Russia to my best friend, Danila. Although I trusted him fully, he was ten years younger than me and lacked the experience I had. I didn’t know how things would continue in Russia, and here I was just presented with a colossal setback that I didn’t see coming.
This visit was supposed to be the last; it was a done deal until…it suddenly wasn’t. I slumped down on a seat beside Mia and watched her chest rise up and down with every deep breath she took. What if someone took her away from me? She was a true beauty both inside and out, an angel; she was perfect and the ideal point of pressure.
