Page 58 of The Tsar's Obsession
And we made love, something that had never happened to me before. Slow, sensual, and passionate, her body sizzled against mine, her whispers and gasps healing all the broken parts inside me.
Mia was a drug, and I needed her to survive. Without her, I would succumb to darkness that would eventually extinguish me.
But no matter how much power or money or influence I possessed, I couldn’t stop time. The meeting with Manuel was imminent, and it was time to put an end to that relationship. Like every morning, I woke up hours before Mia, my eyes lingering on her perfect naked body, tangled up in the white sheets.
Begrudgingly, I abandoned her there and left Yuri strict instructions: never let her out of his sight.
Mid-morning, my car headed to our regular meeting spot, and I watched the landscape slide by, envisioning how I was going to blow Manuel’s brains out. His sudden stab in the back placed me in a position where I had to make the first move. It was either eat or be eaten, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to be his next meal.
At our exchange spot, I switched cars, sliding into the backseat as usual. But something felt off. The change was subtle. It was too quiet, it was too fast, and none of my men were in sight.
But it was too late to react.
Before I could even turn toward the car door, two armed meatheads climbed in on either side of me, boxing me in.
This was a fucking setup.
I knew then that getting out of Manuel’s villa alive would take a goddamn miracle. I was about to loseeverything.
And that everything was Mia; nothing else mattered.
I whipped my phone out, only to have it snatched out of my hand, but not before I read one last word in Russian sent from Polina's number—RUN.
27
You hold gun before?
Mia
Viv: I don’t want to interrupt whatever Dionysian paradise you’re living in but you have to at least tell me you’re alive.
Myeyesbarelyopen,Viv’s text flashed on my phone screen and sent a giggle through me. I admitted it. I completely checked out this whole past week and disappeared off the radar for everyone. It was magical. But Viv was a diligent cheerleader for this union. I felt immense gratitude to her.
Mia: I’m alive, can’t say the same for my pussy. How’s everything?
Viv:Good for you, but TMI. Don’t get pregnant.
Viv: Or DO get pregnant, goddamn, you two will make model babies. Ari's out of the hospital. Enjoy every minute of your fuck fest. Love you.
Like every morning, the weather wasgorgeous, and after a quick breakfast, I slipped on a white linen dress. Kirill would be out all day, and I thought maybe it would be fun to go out too and get Viv a present for her continuous support of me giving Kirill a chance.
“Hi Yuri!” My voice was deliberately polite and over the top when I found him outside, calmly reading a Russian newspaper, which was shocking to me. Where do they sell newspapers in Russian in the Bahamas?! “Can you take me to town for a bit?” My request was very simple, but Yuri merely looked up at me and thought it over, incredibly hesitant to respond.
“Maybe tomorrow?” His thick Russian accent surprised me every time he spoke. He was uncertain and apprehensive, and I wondered if this was because Kirill didn’t want me to leave his property.
“Oh, come on!” I encouraged him happily. “Kirill promised me. I just want to get something to remember this trip by.” I momentarily wondered if Yuri was aware of all the action that happened between Kirill and me this week. I hadn’t seen Yuri at all, but I was sure he was around. My cheeks burned at the thought of Yuri hearing us, and I promptly stifled my laugh.
“Okay,” he finally conceded after a few minutes of thinking it over. “But not long, okay? We come back before Kirill.” This felt like I was a teenager and Kirill was my dad who allowed or forbade me to go outside.
It was strange and annoying, but the security here was beyond anything that I’d noticed in New York, and maybe there was a reason for that. A reason that I was happy not knowing about.
“So, Yuri, how long have you worked with Kirill?” I did my best to keep the conversation going in the car and started off with what seemed to be the most obvious question.
“Oh. Long time,” Yuri responded in a very laconic manner and then said nothing else.
Okay. I tried again.
“Do you like being his driver?” Eh, my attempts at extending this conversation were weak at best. His reflection in the rearview mirror smiled back at me.
