Page 32 of The Bratva's Kidnapped Bride

My hands balled into fists as anger shot through my vein. “I’ve only started to make something good out of my situation,” I told him. “I’ve started to get comfortable with Andrei and I’ve started to feel at home now. The last thing I need is to feel threatened when I’ve started to make my own path.”

I leaned forward so I was positioned between the driver’s seat and passenger’s seat. “I will kill you if you try to mess things up for me. I know you love Andrei, but I like him too. Maybe not in the way a wife should like her husband, but I do like him.” A lot.

We remained silent in the car.

Mikhail was probably trying to process everything I’d told him, and I was trying to process my own feelings.

This was the very first time I’d admitted I liked Andrei, but even the pope wouldn’t get that confession again from me after now. And I probably wouldn’t even admit it to myself after this moment.

Still, that was the truth, and I wouldn’t let anyone take away my chance at truly being happy. Not even if it was the brother to the man I’d come to like.

“Be careful,” he finally said. “I’ll be watching you.”

“I’ll be watching you as well,” I said. “Now are you gonna let me go shopping? And I don’t need you to babysit me.”

“Andrei would be mad if he finds out I let you go alone.”

“You didn’t sound like you cared if he was going to be mad minutes ago.”

Mikhail’s frustration was obvious from the way he pinched his brows together. “Go, and you better make it quick.”

I opened the car door. “No woman shops that quickly.” Especially not a woman who had no clothes of her own.

Walking inside made my breath cut more times than it needed to as anxiety that my papa or one of his men could grab me from behind at any time made my stomach churn. I’d almost forgotten about his numerous cruel punishments in just a matter of days. I detested the possibility of returning to that situation again.

“Good afternoon, ma’am,” one of the shopping assistants greeted me as I walked to the women’s section. Her blonde hair was tied into a bun, and her brown eyes gave me a polite look. Sophia was written on the card that hung around her neck. “How may I be of assistance to you?”

“I need something expensive.”

She gave me a full-length glance, condescension lurking being her polite smile. “Uhm…”

“What? You think I can’t afford to buy something expensive?” I’d worn another set of Andrei’s oversized baggy shorts and tees which I understood could make me look shabby, but they were designer and looked as expensive as they felt on my skin.

“No, ma’am, not at all.” She gestured for me to follow her. “I’ll show you our new arrivals.”

“Thank you,” I said, holding a confiscated smile.

I spent the next hour picking out new clothes, bags, and shoes and by the time I was done, my knees were weak and my stomach was rumbling. I regretted not having breakfast before leaving.

“Your bill is fifty thousand dollars, ma’am.”

I removed Andrei’s credit card from my shorts with glee and handed it to Sophia. It felt good spending someone else’s money, at least someone who wasn’t my papa, not that he limited how much of his dirty money I spent. I just didn’t enjoy spending it as much as I was enjoying spending Andrei’s money right now.

Sophia left for a moment, she returned with a receipt and Andrei’s card a few minutes later. With a smile that reached her ears, she handed me a receipt and Andrei’s card. “Thank you for shopping with us.”

I smiled back, not knowing what to say in response.

“If you’d like, we can help you carry the bags to your car.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” I said as I rose to my feet. I grabbed the ten shopping bags. New items in nine and the clothes I’d worn into the mall in one of them. I’d tried on a short pink dress with puffy short sleeves that clung to my curves, and a limited edition, black designer slippers heels—I wasn’t in the mood to go into the dressing room one more time so I decided to wear the new dress home.

My eyes made contact with a certain diamond pentagon cufflink, glittering behind a show glass as I left the women's section. Andrei wore suits most of the time, and it would be generous to get him a gift—even if the money from that gift came from his own pocket.

I walked inside the jewelry shop and bought a cufflink worth one hundred and sixteen thousand dollars for my archenemy. The thought of a smile on his face as I handed a gift to him sent a tingle through my chest and an unconscious smile to my lips. What were the odds of someone being happy to receive a gift gotten with their own money? I wasn’t sure, but he’d have no choice but to accept it with gratitude.

“Adrienne.”

I froze as an unfamiliar voice called my name behind me. Adrenaline contacted my blood vessels, sending a mixed signal to my brain and making me confused about what action to take. Turn around and fight or run?

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