Page 113 of The Umarova Crime Family

I nod, understanding where she’s coming from. “All right, we’ll tell your brothers to meet us there tomorrow. I’m sure no one will have a problem with that.”

Eset scoffs. “Each of them will have a problem with it, but it’s important for us to all go back to our loved ones tonight.” Nazyr, to my knowledge, doesn’t have anyone that he’s with, but maybe Eset knows something I don’t.

“Even if they do, it won’t matter because you’ve requested it, and I’ll make sure they abide by what you want.” These men are now my brothers, and this is their sister’s important day. If she wants them to go to bed at the hotel and meet her in the morning, then they’re damn well going to do it.

Eset picks up her fork and stabs a piece of her Anyhoe Park venison. I’m not typically a fan of venison. However, I’d be lying if I said it didn’t look divine. It’s the roast saddle and ragu shoulder, with a potato confit, quince puree, kale, with toasted oats to top it all off. Meanwhile, I’m eating lamb. I believe the caterer markets it as Rump of Salt Marsh Lamb, and it’s just as delicious as it sounds. Roasted lamb lump, black garlic emulsion, winter bean fricassee, braised salsify, with cavolo nero gremolata. I’ve never had lamb made this well before, and if we’re ever back in London, I’ll make it a point to mention to my wife that I want to order some premade meals from our caterer.

The rest of our dinner continues, and I keep my hand on Eset’s for quite a while. She’s worried, and I can tell her concerns aren’t being eased as much as they typically are. After dinner, we move into another room and have our first dance as husband and wife. Our guests line up around the dance floor, smiling adoringly at the two of us. As we dance, I keep my eyes mostly on Eset, though I’m still looking for my father.

He hasn’t been seen since that man tried to kill my wife, and I’m trying to give him the benefit of the doubt that this wasn’t him. But right now, I think he could’ve been responsible for it. He might’ve left after we got into our fight, but the timing is far too coincidental, and there’s one thing I don’t believe in—coincidences.

The rest of the night, Eset and I mingle with our guests, thanking everyone for coming to visit. We met with everyone from the Mackenzie family who showed up. The patriarch is Desmond, and his wife is Sofia. The only one of Desmond’s children that showed up was Liam and his wife, Caprice. Liam is now the head of the Mackenzie family. Their cousins Cillian and Sorcha O’Dea also came, as well as Keenan Gallagher, who came by himself. I guess his wife couldn’t make the trip today. They do have little ones, so it might have been easier for her to stay at home.

Bianca Petran and her men came because she’s in this throuple sort-of relationship and has been for many years. She’s the first woman to ever lead the Romanian Clans and has done it successfully for quite some time. Those are only a couple of mafia families who were in attendance, minus the Ramirezes.

Alejandro seemed to be enjoying himself throughout the evening, and I think he got a kick out of the fact my father wasn’t seen after a while. At the end of the day, Alejandro knows he’s going to win. My father isn’t going to get the power he so desperately seeks, even if he wants it more than anything else.

Eventually, my loyalty to Alejandro is going to come out, and everyone is going to know about it. I don’t fear what my father does to me, but I am worried about any sort of retaliation against my wife because, in his eyes, it’ll be obvious that she’s the one who pushed me to do this. He’ll look back at how my relationship progressed with Eset, and he’ll see it for what it is.

A couple of more hours pass us by, and Eset’s yawning. Amelia and Emily have already left with their children, and Danill came back to take them to the hotel. With my arm around Eset’s waist, we head to find her brothers, who are all sitting at a table in the back. Nazyr’s face is red, which just goes to show how much alcohol he’s had this evening. “We’re going to head back to the hotel to get some rest. In the morning, we’ll meet up to deal with the problem at hand,” I state, looking at each of her brothers.

It’s the first time Eset has allowed me to speak for her, and I take this as another win for our relationship. “All right. We won’t let anything else tarnish the memories of your big day,” Ruslan speaks up.

“Man, I really wanted to go to town on that fucker,” Nazyr grumbles lowly, and I meet his eyes with my own.

“I understand that. However, your sister wants to get some shut-eye. So we’ll reconvene tomorrow after we have breakfast,” I state, making sure he doesn’t question me again.

There’s a flash of anger that crosses through Nazyr’s eyes, and Lom cackles loudly, slamming his hand down on the table. “Come, little brother. I think I spotted a woman who’s having a hell of a time keeping her eyes off you.” Lom manages to convince Nazyr to get up and go with him, while Ruslan has an amused grin on his face.

“You have to watch out for Nazyr. He’s the one who’s more likely to snap out of anger versus my brother and me.” Ruslan ends up chuckling.

“I assure you, I can handle Nazyr. I’ve dealt with men like him my entire life.”

“No, you haven’t. Nazyr is methodical and callous, but hardly anyone would know it. He’s the type who would cut the brake line in your car and let you die a terrible, panicked death if you pissed him off enough,” Eset speaks up, raising her brows at me. “It’s probably best you learn to play nice with my brother.”

“I will, mi amor, but what I won’t do is let him give us shit for you wanting to rest tonight. He’s anxious to get answers, as we all are, but twelve hours isn’t going to kill us. We’ll find out who was behind this soon enough.” I squeeze the side of her hip, and she nods.

“He’s right, you know. Go on and head back to the hotel. I’ll text you in the morning, and we can discuss when we’ll head to the location to get the answers we seek,” Ruslan offers, and Eset nods.

“All right. Thank you, Ruslan.” Eset takes two steps and leans down to wrap her arms around her brother. He holds her tightly for a few moments before he releases her.

We all say our goodbyes, and then I walk with Eset out toward the steps, where we have a town car waiting for us. I open the door for Eset and help her get inside, ensuring her dress isn’t damaged in the slightest. I’m amazed at how beautiful she looks in it, and I hope this is something she’ll keep for years to come. Once she’s inside the car, I scoot in beside her and shut the door. “The Dorchester, please,” I tell the driver, and he takes off.

Eset sighs heavily as she leans back against the seat. “Goodness, I never expected our wedding to go like that.”

I laugh. “I suppose it could’ve been worse.”

“Don’t say that.” Eset joins in on the laughter, and she smacks my leg.

Over the course of the day, we’ve become more physically affectionate with each other. I’m enjoying every bit of it, and I’m wondering what the possibilities are of the night leading to something else. I had my first taste of her lips and have found myself craving them since then. Fuck, she’s a beautiful woman, and I want to be wrapped up deep inside her, hearing her cry my name as she reaches her orgasm.

My dick gets hard at the mere thought of it, and Eset’s eyes are locked on mine again.

For the ride, we’re mostly silent, but there’s an intense connection between the two of us. The more I think about it, the more I believe we could be crossing another line tonight. A line I will jump at the opportunity to cross.

The car pulls up to the Dorchester, and I open my door, getting out first. I hold a hand out for Eset, which she takes, and I help her get out of the vehicle before I shut the door. The two of us, hand-in-hand, walk into the hotel and head for the elevator. I tap on the button to head upstairs, and once the doors open and we’re safely inside, I ask the million-dollar question. “Are we going to yours or mine?”

“Mine,” Eset answers almost instantaneously, and this is the first real indication I have that the night is about to take a very serious turn.

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