Page 77 of Baby for the Bratva

I’m surprised by how open he’s being. It almost makes me feel guilty for asking.

The key word here is almost.

I sit down next to him, looking at the ring on my finger again. Guilt creeps up my throat, but I shove it down. I’m doing something insane just to protect Yuri. It’s not wrong to want to know what his financial situation is.

“There you go,” he says, handing his phone to me with a smile. “Scroll away.”

I hold his phone in my hand for a moment, surprised that he’s actually given it to me. Tyler would never. He was always so paranoid and touchy about his phone, but I know why that is now. It wasn’t because of the porn. It was all the real women he was texting.

But Yuri doesn’t even flinch when I close his banking app and hover my finger over his messages.

“That’s not where the money is. I just opened it for you,” he says, guiding me back to the banking app without actually touching the phone. “Just close it and open the blue icon.”

I’m surprised by his calmness. I didn’t think he had anything to hide, but this ultimately confirms it. Yuri isn’t a sneaky conman or a cheater. Nothing he’s said has given any indication of that, and it’s only my past trauma that’s causing me to take the extra precautions.

More guilt threatens to shut me down, but I remind myself that I still have to protect myself. At the very least, I need proof that Yuri is capable of paying me what he has promised.

I close the message and move back to the banking app. Opening it, I find a number so large I have to blink my eyes hard several times to make sure I’m not hallucinating it.

“Holy shit,” I whisper. “You really have that much?”

“Some of it’s in investments,” he says, scrolling through a few transactions. “You can see I like tech companies. Good growth there.”

I realize that the half billion dollars in his bank account isn’t even all that there is. It’s just what’s in cash, and his investment portfolio is even bigger than what he’s keeping liquid. I’m stunned.

He takes his phone back from me and tucks it into his pocket with a pleasant smile. “There, you’ve seen it with your own eyes. Nothing too crazy, but we’re comfortable.”

“Nothing too crazy? Are you kidding me?” I ask, my heart rate climbing as I process what I just saw. “You’re filthy rich!”

He laughs, amused in a way that suggests he doesn’t think he’s that rich. “It’s a start, but I’d like to do some expansions into another industry once we’re settled in the United States. I’m tired of drugs, and the margins aren’t as good as they used to be.”

“Fuck,” I say, slapping a hand against my forehead. “Yuri, if I were you, I’d just retire.”

He struggles with what I’ve said for a moment, like it’s not possible for him to explain why he can’t retire. He thinks about it, sweat forming on his hairline before he’s able to give me a response. “It’s just that… so much depends on me. I can’t stop now.”

“You kind of sound like you want to,” I reply. I put my hand on his muscular forearm, squeezing it lightly.

He shakes his head. “No, that’s not going to happen. I’m sorry, but I can’t give this up.”

“It was only a suggestion. Don’t take it too seriously if you’re not interested,” I say, sensing a sensitive topic. I’d like to avoid those until we’ve settled down about. This is all very raw and exciting for both of us. It’s better not to stir the pot more than it’s already been stirred.

Yuri turns his body toward me, looking me in the eye deeply. “Thank you for caring, Stella. You’re the first woman who ever has.”

36

Yuri

The only thing harder than surviving three weeks on a cruise ship when there are still idiots coming after me for the bounty is realizing that once this is over, once we’re back in the United States, all intimacy with Stella will end.

No more passionate kisses in the moonlight.

No more romantic dinners that end with our clothes on the floor.

And no more claiming Stella without protection.

I’ll admit that I shouldn’t even be doing the third one, but it’s gotten to the point where neither of us cares. It’s like the more we have sex, the more we crave it, and the less we think about what’s going to happen once this little fantasy trip is over.

Selfishly, I want her to get pregnant.

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