Page 24 of Pregnant with Bratva Twins
The room goes still, both men watching me for a moment, waiting for more. My focus is already sliding, mind flickering back to Jessa. I can still see her in the lamplight, lips swollen, cheeks flushed, the way she looked when I broke her.
She’s too soft for this world, too pure. It should make her harmless, but it doesn’t; it makes her dangerous. She’s a crack in my armor, a threat to my control. Every time I remember the sound of her voice as she came, I want to drag her back and make her do it again. I want to ruin her completely.
Alexei sighs, tossing a map aside. “Recruitment is going to be a problem after this. Chris had a few loyal dogs. If we hit him too hard, we’ll lose the whole club and maybe the west side muscle. You care about that?”
I barely look at him. “We’ll replace them. I’m not losing sleep over street soldiers.” I say it flat, colder than I mean, but I don’t have the patience for the rest of it. The only thing I can think about is the girl upstairs, the way she tastes of honey and fear, the way she melts when I touch her even though she swears she hates me.
Alexei raises an eyebrow. “You sure you’re all right, Markian? You’re quieter than usual.”
Lui grins, always too perceptive. “He’s thinking about his little American, aren’t you, Boss?” He glances at Alexei. “Heard she’s pretty. That why you haven’t left the house for two days?”
I fix him with a look sharp enough to draw blood. “You’d do well to remember your place, Lui. She’s not your concern.”
Alexei just laughs, but his eyes stay cold. “Don’t get soft, Markian. A girl like that, she’ll ruin you if you let her.”
I bristle, voice going steel-hard. “She’s not going to ruin anything. She’s… insurance.” I can hear the lie in my own voice, but I press on. “Chris is the problem. Jessa’s just a complication.”
As I say it, I know it isn’t true. Chris is easy. I need to remove him, move on, the way we always do.
But Jessa? I can’t remove her, can’t let her go. The thought of anyone else touching her makes me see red.
Lui starts to outline the plan: who’ll tail Chris tonight, who’ll plant the evidence, who’ll clean up afterward. I nod where I’m expected to, add my own instructions, but my mind keeps drifting. I remember Jessa’s breath against my cheek, the desperate heat of her thighs, the helpless way she moaned for me in that cavernous dining room.
Alexei is saying something about recruitment again, but it barely registers. “We’ll need new muscle in Brighton Beach, someone who knows the clubs—”
“Handle it,” I interrupt, barely looking up. “I trust you.”
Alexei frowns, sensing my distraction. “You’re slipping, Markian. Don’t let a girl turn you into your father.”
My jaw tightens. “You worry about the job. I’ll worry about her.”
He sighs, but lets it go. I push away from the table, restless. The meeting should have settled me, given me that icy clarity I rely on. Instead, I’m burning up inside. I can’t focus.
All I want is to be with her. To hear her beg again, to see her fall apart, to remind myself that whatever else is happening, Jessa is mine.
“Let me know when it’s done,” I say.
Alexei stands, slipping files under his arm. Lui goes to follow, but I catch his sleeve, stopping him with a quiet word. The others pause, glancing back, but I give them a look that means get out. They obey, closing the door behind them. Now it’s just Lui and me in the hush of the private suite.
I look at him, expression hard. “Stay back. Watch the girl.”
He nods, no argument. “You want me outside her room?”
I shake my head, voice low and final. “No, but I want you close. Make sure she doesn’t try anything while I’m gone. If she opens a window, you know first. If she picks up a phone, you break her fingers. Understand?”
His mouth quirks, just a hint of amusement. “You think she’s dangerous?”
I fix him with a look that erases any humor. “She’s mine. That makes her dangerous to someone. Anyone tries to touchher, anyone tries to speak to her without my say-so, they answer to me. If you let her slip, you answer to me.”
Lui’s posture straightens. “Got it, Boss. I’ll keep an eye on her. Close.”
I hold his gaze a second longer, making sure he feels the weight of it. Jessa isn’t just some frightened girl now, not to anyone in this house. She’s mine. Anyone who forgets that won’t survive the reminder.
As the others leave, Alexei gives me a sidelong glance, that same warning in his eyes:Don’t let her ruin you.I don’t answer. I don’t have to. I already know she could.
The room empties, and I’m left with the silence. For a moment, I linger, letting the adrenaline fade and the need return. My hand flexes on the back of the chair, restless, aching for her. I think about going back upstairs, about pressing her into those velvet sheets and seeing just how much more I can ruin her. Just to touch her. Just to see her melt for me again.
There’s too much at stake tonight. Chris Jenkins is a bigger problem than even Alexei understands. If we don’t move first, we risk everything—the territory, the loyalty, the illusion of control that keeps the city in check. I can’t afford to let her distract me now. Not until this war is finished.
