Page 26 of Arranged Bratva Virgin

“You owe me a quarter million.”

Fuck. It’s not a lot of money in the bigger picture, but it annoys the hell out of me to be paying any amount of money to cover for the shit my father did. I am paying enough emotionally to not also have to cover his financial debts.

“I will get you the money. But listen to me carefully, Marco. This is the end of it. Once I have made the payment, I don’t want to hear from you again. I am doing this out of respect, but I expect the same respect from you in return.”

He laughs. “Whatever you say, Napoli.”

I bite down, not wanting to get dragged into a pointless back-and-forth with this asshole. I just want to get off this call and back to Darya. I hate the fact that she is alone, waiting for me.

After a tense conclusion to our conversation, I hang up the phone.

Fuck's sake. I do not want to pay that asshole any money at all. And why do I get the feeling that once I have paid him, it won’t be the last I hear from him? He strikes me as being a snake.

I need to think about this. But not now. Right now I just want to get back to my beautiful wife.

I toss my phone onto my desk, not willing to risk any more interruptions and I head back up to my bedroom.

My thoughts are already off the annoying phone call and onto Darya and the things I want to do to her as I walk up the stairs.

Unbuttoning my shirt as I walk into the room, I speak. “I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long—"

But she is fast asleep.

Her beautiful face is squished up against my pillow in the cutest way, and her long caramel hair is spilled out around her. She is breathing so peacefully, so quietly, completely lost to dreams.

I brush my fingers across her cheek. Her skin is so smooth, so warm and far too inviting.

I could undress and climb into bed next to her. She will wake up when I pull her against my naked body and let her feel how much she turns me on.

But it doesn’t seem like the right thing to do.

She looks so vulnerable and innocent. I don’t want to take advantage of her. And I don’t want her first time to be half asleep.

I will leave her to sleep peacefully, and I will make her mine soon enough.

Clamping my jaw tightly, I turn to leave the room.

I think it is best if I sleep somewhere else tonight. Otherwise, I won’t be able to keep my hands off her.

Chapter 10 - Darya

I know I fell asleep late yesterday afternoon, after that long day of shopping. Stefano got the phone call and it interrupted everything. I was lying on his bed, and my eyes felt so heavy, I drifted off before I realized what was happening. But honestly, I thought Stefano would come in and wake me up.

I was so disappointed when I woke up in a dark room and found him nowhere near me.

It is late, I am not sure how late, when I wake up in his room, and he has tucked me in beneath his duvet covers. I roll over slightly, running my hand along the bed next to me and finding it empty.

Why isn’t he here with me? Why didn’t he wake me up so that we could carry on where we left off?

I sit up, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the dark. He definitely isn’t here. So where did he sleep? The house is so quiet. I can’t hear anyone moving about.

I guess he didn’t want to be near me.

Is this just another example of how little he feels about me?

In the dark, I huff loudly and toss the blankets off my body.

If he doesn’t want to sleep with me, even in his own bed, then I am going to my own bedroom. I can’t believe he was so insistent that I share his bed with him on our wedding night and ever since then has seemed reluctant to actually be with me.

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