Page 13 of A Secretary for the Bratva Boss
Her face goes pale. She's shocked that I know, that I can read her so easily. "I... I wasn't... Why would I... You didn't even call to make sure I got home."
The accusation is there, the vulnerability she hates. Shewaswaiting. She was looking for a sign that I was more than the monster who cornered her.
I allow myself a small, cruel smile. "I didn't call, Talia, because I didn't need to."
"What does that mean?"
"It means I was twenty feet behind your taxi, in my own car. I watched you get out. I watched you fumble with your keys, curse, and drop your bag. I watched you finally get inside. I know you bought a cheap bottle of red wine and a frozen pizza at the bodega on your corner. I know you turned your bedroom light on at 10:17 p.m. and turned it off at 1:22 a.m. I don't need tocallto keep track of what ismine."
Horror dawns on her face, a slow-motion crash. The rich brown of her skin fades, her face turning ashen. Her mouth opens, but no sound comes out. She’s not just scared. She’s terrified. And angry.
"You... youfollowedme?" she sputters, her voice vibrating with disbelief. "Youwatchedme? That's... insane. You can't do that."
"I just told you I did." I'm so close now I can smell the sudden spike of adrenaline on her, sharp and coppery. "You said no to my offer, Talia. You did not say no to my protection."
"That's not protection," she seethed. "That's stalking."
"It is semantics." I raise a hand, brushing a stray curl from her temple. She's frozen, trapped between her fear and her fury."You walked out of here last night, wrecked from my touch, and into a city full of wolves. Did you think I would let you go alone?"
"I amalwaysalone," she cries, the words tearing out of her. "I've been alone my whole life. I can take care of myself."
"You won't have to anymore," I say, my voice dropping, rough with a possessiveness that is primal.
Before she can argue, a piercing alarm shrieks through the building. Red lights flash in the hallway, reflecting off the glass walls of my office.
Talia jumps, a small yelp escaping her. "What is that?"
I'm already moving to my desk, hitting the intercom. "Security. Status."
The head of my detail, a man named Kirill, answers immediately. His voice is gravel. "Pakhan. The blizzard has taken out a primary generator downtown. The city is enforcing a mandatory power-down of all non-essential high-rises to prevent a grid failure. The building is locking down. All systems will go to emergency power, which means no heat, no water, and no elevators... except one."
"Understood," I say. I look at Talia. She's wrapped her arms around herself, her eyes fixed on the flashing red lights. She's beautiful.
"What... what does that mean?" she asks, her voice shaking.
"It means the building is closing. Now." I round the desk, grabbing my jacket. "We're leaving."
"Leaving? But you said the bridges... the storm..."
"We aren't going far."
I grab her hand. Her skin is ice-cold, but the jolt that goes through me is electric. She doesn't pull away, too stunned by the alarm. I lead her out of my office, through the empty executive floor. The emergency lights cast long, flickering shadows. It’s apocalyptic.
"Where are we going?" she asks as I pull her toward my private elevator, the one that requires my thumbprint.
"The building systems are shutting down. It will be 20 degrees in this office within an hour." I press my thumb to the panel. The steel doors slide open with a silent, heavythwump. I pull her inside.
"But... where?"
I hit the button. Not for the lobby.
For the Penthouse.
"Home," I say.
The elevator ascends, a smooth, silent rocket. Talia is pressed against the back wall, her eyes wide as she watches the numbers climb past the executive floor, past the roof, to the private residence that crowns the Sindicate Tower.
"I... I can't," she whispers. "Anton, I can't go 'home' with you. Not after... not after last night."
