Page 47 of Forced Bratva Bride

“I bet you threw him the best party,” I grin.

“Of course. He is obsessed with Spiderman at the moment, so we had a guy dress up and swing around. It was amusing.”

“Is my dad home?”

“He's around here somewhere. Do you want me to call him for you?”

“No, don’t worry. I'll find him. And Stefano?”

“Stefano has been out all morning.”

“Thanks Ivan, see you soon.”

Ivan smiles widely. He has always been kind to me.

“Have a lovely day, Chiara. You should visit more often.”

I let myself in and walk quietly through the house. I don’t see my dad anywhere, which is good. I don’t see Stefano, either, so he must still be out. This is the perfect time for me to get into his office.

My heart hammers against my ribcage. I feel nervous, but that isn’t going to stop me.

I have to do this, for Max.

I glance up at the security camera in the hallway. It is not unusual or out of place for me to be walking around here, but if they spot me going into Stefano’s office, that might raise questions.

The camera blinks, and I hesitate. No. I just need to do this. Look casual, open the door. Walk in. It will take two seconds, and I can just hope that they aren’t watching the hallway camera at that exact moment.

I push the door open and step inside, pulling it closed behind me.

I lean against the closed door, trying to calm my racing heart.

I had better hurry, though; the less time I spend in here the better.

I pull open draws and look through the filing system. I go through his bookshelves. I look everywhere I think he might keep sensitive records and don’t find anything. Then I realize he wouldn’t just have it out in the open, in case my father stumbled across it. I duck beneath his desk and spot a key hooked to the underside. But what does it open?

I pull the bottom drawer open again, realizing that the size of the drawer and the size of the space inside it did not match up.

And there it is, a small lock.

I pull the secret panel open and lift out four large files. One of them is labeled Dubrov. I put the other files back and close the drawer. I'm about to open the file when I hear laughter in the hallway. Shit. That's Stefano.

I duck under his desk, change my mind, and then quickly move to slide my body between the bookcase and the wall next to the window.

The office door opens, and Stefano walks in with a woman I have never seen before.

“I just need to check the status on one shipment, and then we can go,” he says, walking over to his desk.

“Stef, you promised me we would have fun now, and this is not fun,” the girl whines.

She is wearing a tight pink dress and killer black heels, very overdone for any daytime event. She huffs and drops herself onto the sofa near the door of his office.

“Stop whining at me, this won’t even take long.”

Stef sits down in his office chair and pulls it closer to his desk, typing quickly on his laptop and then staring at the screen thoughtfully.

A dark smile flashes across his face and a deep chuckle rumbles from his chest.

“What’s so funny?” the girl in pink sighs, not amused at all.

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