Page 43 of The Bratva's Forced Bride

“Can I come with you?”

That question startled me. Never in my life did I think she would want to see what I got up to during the day. It was a foreign world to her, not a thing we typically exposed our wives to.

When I still didn’t say anything, Grace continued, “I don’t know anything about the business, but I feel I should. I’d like to understand it better.”

Searching her face for any joke or trick being played on me, I was surprised to find only uninterrupted sincerity.

I wasn’t sure how to feel about it.

“It’s dangerous, you know. I can’t guarantee nothing will happen.”

While I expected that to shake her determination somewhat, her resolve didn’t waver.

“I don’t care, I want to see what you risk your life for,” She murmured, reaching for my hand. “I won’t take long to get ready.”

The warmth of her hand seemed to travel through my entire body, and for whatever reason, I didn’t want to deny her curiosity.

“Fine. Get dressed. We leave in ten.”

A small smile settled on her lips, and she squeezed my hand before she slid out of bed and did exactly that.

As she got ready, I found myself bewildered by the idea of Grace taking an interest in the business. But I shouldn’t have been surprised, not after I told her she would eventually become an asset to us.

It was easy to forget she was majoring in business, which surely made her more curious to see just how we managed things.

To my surprise, it almost felt like an honor to know she didn’t completely hate my line of work and that she was willing to get out of her comfort zone to understand it better.

As instructed, Grace got herself ready in under ten minutes and met me by the front door wearing black leggings and a matching sweatshirt, almost like she was ready for a heist. The thought made me laugh, but I told myself to concentrate.

Something serious had happened, and I needed to evaluate the damage. I needed to be there for our men.

Pulling up to the warehouse that wasn’t far from the last hit site, my stomach dropped. It didn’t take long to see just how much damage had been dealt.

But before I could address it, I brought Grace around to the trunk and pulled out a black Kevlar vest. She lifted her brows in question, and I handed it to her.

“You’re essentially about to walk into a crime scene, and I need you protected, even if it is minimal,” I said, watching as the realization moved through her eyes.

Of course, she didn’t understand the full extent of what that meant yet. While something had already happened, that didn’t mean another strike couldn't happen while we were there.

Once she had the vest strapped on, I motioned for her to follow me.

Immediately, there was no missing the garage-style door that had been cut into and seared at the edges. The scorched piece had been cast aside, big enough to let a person walk through. Tire tracks suggested they had peeled out of there as fast as they could manage, likely when they were caught.

Two of our men stepped out of the warehouse, one holding a clipboard as he approached.

Immediately, tension pinched their shoulders together, more aware of the full damage than I was.

“What happened here?” I asked, unable to hold back the wave of immediate frustration.

The first one pulled in a discreet breath. “The warehouse was broken into and ransacked in the night. They took a considerable amount of product, but when they were found out, our guys tried to take them down. Unfortunately, they got away with a substantial amount.”

I narrowed my eyes at them. “How did they have the chance to get away with it? Why weren’t they taken care of sooner?”

The two men glanced at each other, likely searching for the appropriate excuses to ease the sting of my anger.

The second one looked young and inexperienced as he swallowed hard. “Apparently there was a shift change—”

“I don’t care if there was a shift change or not. There was no reason for this place to be unguarded long enough for them to slip in without being seen!” I snapped at them, bewildered by how it ever even happened.

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