Page 87 of Arranged Bratva Virgin

I smile widely, because that is the first time he has ever really made a comment to show that he is genuinely happy that I am married to his sister.

“Where is that little rabbit?” Maxim asks.

“She went home to get me some things, I am sure she will be back soon.”

Maxim grabs a chair and drags it to the side of my bed. “Well, more for us then,” he says, lifting the takeaway bag in his hand.

“Oh my gosh, did you bring me some actual food? This hospital food has been more painful than the gunshot.”

“I did indeed. Good old cheeseburgers and fries.” He grins and pulls the bag open, handing me a burger box. “Don’t let the doctor see. And if he finds out, I am denying any involvement,” he laughs.

“Damn, now this is love," I sigh, taking the burger.

“Hey, hey, let’s not jump to conclusions,” Maxim says, faking horror.

I lean over and slap his shoulder, wincing again because I am an idiot thinking I can move normally. “I know it’s love. Actions speaker louder than words.” I laugh and Maxim grins, taking a bite of his burger.

“Mm. Damn, they really know how to make a burger.”

We eat and chat and laugh for a while, then Maxim clears away our burger boxes and sits down again.

He pulls out his phone.

“Alright, so these are the names we pulled together—the people who were helping Reina.”

“Oh, great. You did manage to get some more names.”

“Once they found out she was dead, the other workers were all too keen to get rid of the bad apples in their group. Turns out she had threatened all of their families if they spoke.”

“Tell me the names,” I say, feeling tense.

“Gerard Manchester, Bennie Lock, Lester Carlton and Peter Crane.”

“Mm. Alright. None of them were really close to me. I’m relieved to hear it wasn’t one of my good guys. So what did you guys do with them?”

“We took it a little easy on them, because even these guys swear they were only helping because she threatened them, and these four were not involved in Darya’s kidnapping. We didn’t break any bones, but they are blacklisted in the city. They will never find work anywhere near here again. They are going to have to relocate.”

“Okay, that’s good. As long as I never have to see their faces again.”

“Listen, with Reina out of the picture, my sister is gunning for her position. She wants to run client liaison and shipments in your company.”

“Darya doesn’t have to work,” I say in shock.

“Well, you try and tell her that. She is hell-bent on getting the job. She wants to interview for it.”

“If she really wants it, it’s hers.”

“Don’t just give it to her. She wants to work for it. She’s been an insanely hard worker her entire life, and she feels more accomplished when she actually earns her place. Our father taught us to work for what we want.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I say, nodding.

“I am going to head out of here now, then. The guys are really impressed with the new shipment plan, by the way. When you get out and are feeling better, you can put together a proper report, but for now it’s pretty obvious that it’s working damn well.”

“Excellent news. I’m glad to hear that.”

Maxim reaches out and squeezes my shoulder.

“Seriously. I’m happy you're good. We all are. They guys all send their love. We are looking forward to getting you back on your feet so we can have a dinner or something.”

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