Page 40 of Mikhail Petrov

“I thought you were dead. I thought my father— Mikhail, you weren’t there this morning and didn’t answer my calls or texts. Where the hell were you?”

I won’t lie to her. “Handling the men from the bar.”

Her eyes grow wide, and she shakes her head. “Why would you do that on your own? What if—”

“I wasn’t. Called in some backup. They helped me take care of things, and they’re cleaning up the mess as we speak.”

Leah’s arms wrap around me again. “You didn’t have to do that. We were leaving.”

I pull back and frame her face, our eyes locked so she knows just how serious I am. “I need you to understand I’m not a good man. And there will never be a day when someone wrongs you, and I won’t rip out their heart while it’s still beating.”

“Always so romantic,” she says with a small laugh, laying her head on my shoulder and going quiet.

I allow her a moment to reflect on what happened with her father. It had taken every ounce of restraint not to mag dump on that son of a bitch. I heard his last words to her.

He doesn’t deserve her. But that’s fine because Leah is mine now.

The ride to the private airport hangar is quiet. I thought she had fallen asleep for a moment, but I caught her reflection in the window, eyes open, staring hollowly at the passing city.

“We’re taking a slight detour,” I say, fastening my seatbelt as she does the same beside me. “Stopping at Roman’s place in Vegas.” Leah watches with rapt attention, waiting for an explanation. “As you know, delayed shipments mean money lost. They want extra for the three- day delay.”

“Three days?”

I nod. “They claim we caused a scheduling conflict and needed another day to accommodate their connects. So they say.”

“And you’re picking up more inventory from Roman?”

“Exactly. Drop is tomorrow at 3 p.m.”

Leah pats her pockets, and a look of panic crosses her pretty face.

“Fuck.”

“What is it?”

“I must have dropped my phone, or maybe Carlo took it. I have to call Ann and Rodri. They have to know what he did—what he tried to do to me.”

Rodrigo and I have been close friends for fourteen years. I even consider him a brother. But circumstances have shifted. He’s loyal to his father and the business he’ll inherit one day, just as I am to mine. Expecting him to throw away everything he’s worked to achieve just to side with his sister seems improbable, no matter how deep our ties.

“I hate to suggest this,” I say, placing my phone in her hand, ultimately leaving the decision up to her. “But can you trust your brother? I care for him. You know that. But Rod was the only other person who knew our location.”

Her features sour, gaze focusing beyond me as she drinks in my words. “He would never...” she whispers, almost to herself. “Would he?”

Leah’s eyes find mine, the phone dropping to her lap. Caressing her cheek, I swipe a single tear streaking down her skin.

“A man’s heart can be traitorous, given the right incentive, moya lyubov’. And Rodrigo is ambitious, with a desire for power and wealth that rivals your father’s.”

“If he sold me out, I’ll never forgive him.”

“We’ll figure it out. I promise.”

She kisses me. “Thank you for what you did back there.”

“Don’t thank me, because the things I’m capable of doing for you would scare you. They scare me sometimes.”

She smiles, pressing another sweet kiss to my lips. “I love you. And you don’t scare me, Mikhail. You complete me.”

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

---