“I’m good for it,” Sasha tells him.
His boss chuckles. “No doubt you are, but is she worth it?”
“Hey! I’m standing right here!”
All five men glare at me. I shrink back. That might have been a mistake.
Mr. Sokolov snubs out his cigar in the tumbler and snaps his fingers. Two of the four men advance on us and drag me away from Sasha.
“Aleksei.” Sasha steps forward but the other two block him.
His boss rises from the chair. “Disrespect must be handled. First the father and now the daughter?”
He strokes his chin and the two holding me tighten their grip.
“She’ll be punished. I promise you.” Sasha gives me a withering stare and I gulp back any bratty retorts.
Mr. Sokolov waves his hand and I’m taken away into another room. Before the door shuts, locking me in with the suited guards, his voice reaches me.
“You and I are going to discuss this debt along with your woman’s punishment.”
CHAPTER SIX
Sasha
While I expected Aleksei to hear about last night and be extremely displeased, what I did not expect was for him to show up at my place unannounced. There must be more to Lovensky’s thievery than I’ve been told. And while Aleksei is the Pakhan and leader of our entire organization, he’s also a friend.
“If you threaten Natalya again, we’re going to have a problem.” The two of us glare at each other, neither giving an inch. “I don’t give a fuck what you do to her father. He deserves any punishment coming to him. But she’s mine to deal with how I see fit.”
He waves me off, entirely unconcerned with my warning. “I don’t approve of this obsession you have with your little dancer. I also know that you don’t care.” He pauses. “So long as she does not become a distraction, do whatever you would like with her. But Sasha, what were you thinking letting her father off so easily? If word gets out—“
“It won’t,” I interrupt and Aleksei raises a single finger.
“If word gets out, then our enemies will think us weak. You do not steal three million dollars from the Bratva—from me—and expect to walk away. There must be consequences to actions.”
I run my hand down my face. “And there will be if he doesn’t return the money to me in a month. It’s not unheard of for a man to sell off his daughter to clear his debts.”
“But that’s not what he did.” My boss tilts his head and his eyes flash with pity. “He’s never going to pay back the money. And then what? You made promises of retribution. Are you going to be able to follow through with them?”
Damn Aleksei for bringing up what I’ve been trying to avoid. “I don’t know.”
“You should have just killed him and then begged the daughter for forgiveness. Or not. You are too soft with her. One of these days it will be your downfall.” He lightly smacks my cheek a few times without taking his eyes off mine before snapping his fingers. Valeryi heads in the direction Dima and Grigoryi took Natalya.
Moments later, the four of them return. My solnishko’s face is pale and there is fear in her eyes. I ache to reassure her, but not with Aleksei and his men here. He’s right. I am too soft with her. She rushes over and throws her arms around my waist, clinging to me. She’s trembling. My boss gives me one more steely glare and then he and his men get in the elevator leaving us alone.
I unwrap Natalya’s arms from me and cup her chin. “They didn’t hurt you, did they?” I might have to kill someone if they did.
She shakes her head. “No. Just stared, which made me extremely uncomfortable since I’m not even really dressed.”
I’m pissed that anyone else besides me saw her wearing only my shirt. Her body is meant for me and me alone. I take her hand. “Come, let’s get you something to eat. You’ll feel better after.”
Natalya lets me lead her into the kitchen and climbs up on the bar stool at the island. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to eat anything. My stomach is still a bit queasy from nerves.”
I step between her legs, spreading them wide. The bottom of the shirt parts and just slightly exposes her cunt. She tries closing them, but I grip her hips and settle into the cradle they form. She stares at the middle of my chest, her cheeks flushed.
“Look at me.”
Slowly, she tips her chin up.
“No one is going to hurt you. I swear it.”
“Even you?” she asks softly. “Didn’t you tell my dad that you’d take it out on me if he didn’t pay back the money?”
While I don’t want to appear weak and easily manipulated, I also don’t want my solnishko fearing me. “He will pay it back.”
I hold Natalya’s gaze, willing her to believe it, even if I don’t. She gives a short nod, then her stomach growls. I raise my eyebrow as though telling her “I told you so”. “You will eat breakfast.”
“I’ll try.”
I’m willing to take that much. I step away and move to the refrigerator to take out eggs, onions, green and red peppers, spinach, mushrooms, and cheese. Within five minutes, I have our omelets started.
“Where did you learn how to cook?”
I glance over and she’s got her elbow resting on the island and her chin propped in her palm. “I don’t know that making an omelet counts as knowing how to cook.”
“Is that the only thing you know how to make?” she smiles.
“I can grill chicken and steak. Those are pretty much my only culinary talents. Not unless you also count putting a salad together.”
Natalya snorts. “I don’t. If I’m going to be here for a month, we’ve got to eat something besides omelets, salads, and a steak. I’ll have to teach you my mother’s recipe for the best borscht and dumplings. You’ll never want to eat anyone else’s ever again.”
I fold my arms and lean against the counter. “Bold claim.”
“One I can back up.”
“I look forward to it. Just let me know what you need and I’ll place an order for groceries to be delivered.”
She wrinkles her adorable nose. “You don’t do your own shopping?”
“Do I look like the type of person who does their own shopping?” I wave my hands down my body.
Natalya’s head cocks and she quirks her lips as though she’s studying me and thinking hard. “No, I don’t suppose you do.”
Turning around, I grab a couple of plates out of the cupboard along with a spatula from the utensil caddy and scoop an omelet on each plate before setting one of them down in front of her. I stand on the opposite side of the island as her and we both dig in. She takes a bite and then waves her hand in front of her mouth and repeatedly blows out a breath.
“Oh my god, it’s hot.” The words are garbled, but I manage to make them out.
“It just came off the stove. What did you expect?” I quickly fill a glass of water and pass it to her.
She takes it and downs nearly half of it. Her eyes are watering and she blinks them away. “Holy crap, I didn’t think it would be that hot.”
I merely stare at her as she cuts another small section off and brings it to her mouth. This time she blows on it for a few seconds before eating it. Satisfied that she learned her lesson, I go back to eating. I’m done before Natalya is and rinse off my plate before putting it in the dishwasher, along with the skillets. When I finish and turn around, she’s taking her last bite.