Page 45 of Unwilling Bratva Bride

I pulled on it, and it slid toward me with zero resistance—because it was, in fact, not locked anymore.

“Adley, what have you been up to?”

Extending the drawer out to its full length, I added the notes I’d taken to the small book with all my details regarding the rival families and big players in town. I’ll transcribe it later. As I tucked the drawer back into place, noting that all the contents were still there and accounted for, I locked it back up and leaned back in my chair.

Putting my hands behind my head, I reclined in the comfortable leather seat and stared up at the ceiling. Adley had been snooping around the house, looking for hints about my line of work, no doubt.

“Oh, sweetheart. What are we going to do about this?”

Still, as I sat there, it wasn’t rage or annoyance that flared through me. No, I wasn’t angry. I was just…interested in making sure Adley understood the rules. If she had a question, she needed to ask it. Not go searching through my shit to find it herself.

However, the lack of fury struck me. I’d never been a particularly forgiving or merciful kind of guy but with Adley…Well, something about her made the entire thing more amusing than infuriating.

She would be punished, in any case. Actions have consequences, and of anything, I wanted honesty from her. I didn’t accept liars. Adley had made a mistake, and I would give her the chance to make up for it.

Down on her knees.

But dinner needed my attention right now. I got up and returned to the kitchen to finish cooking up the stir-fry. Adley would be done any minute, and I was looking forward to seeing how she handled dining with my brothers. So, her punishment would wait.

***

I sat across from Adley at the large formal dinner table. My brothers sat to either side of me, and they lasted until about five minutes in before they started in with the annoying comments.

Well, Vlad just snickered and smirked behind his hand. Abe supplied all the actual words.

“So, you’re Ivan’s new plaything, huh? Gotta admit two days is longer than any of his other dates. And he’s had a lot of them.”

Adley’s eyebrows rose, and she looked across the table at me as a subtle blush started behind her cheeks. I could tell she was already ready to head back upstairs.

“How’s the food, Abe?”

He glanced over at me as I asked. I never asked about the food. They could eat it or get fucked. So, when I offered him the chance to take a potshot at me, Abe narrowed his eyes, calculating my motives. I could see him reading me, and it didn’t take him long to realize that I was putting out an olive branch and a distraction simultaneously.

Abe could take the chance to insult me, and it took the heat off Adley. If only for a second. Would he take it, though?

“You could give up crime and work at Panda Express, bro.”

I laughed, actually amused by that one, and took another bite. Abe did the same, and when I glanced over at Adley, she relaxed slightly into her chair.

Running my eyes over her face and body, I appreciated what she’d chosen for dinner. Adley had pulled her long hair back into a ponytail that sat high on her head, and she wore another flannel top, this one green and black, and had paired it with a black cropped tank top and a pair of black shorts.

The bottoms came up high on her waist but barely covered her ass. Needless to say, I liked them.

“So, Adley,” Abe started up again, “how’d you meet my brother?”

She swallowed down her bite of food and then set her fork down on the table, wiping her mouth.

“Oh, well, I was at a bar feeling sorry for myself about my parent's failing bodega, and Ivan came over and offered to help.”

Abe’s brows hit his hairline, and I fought the desire to roll my eyes and groan.

“Oh really? We got a new meet-up location?” He leaned forward on his elbows, resting his chin on his hands.

Vlad clicked his tongue, something I knew meant “ditto.”

“Yes, we have a new meet-up location. I already texted Lev about it. It’s a cute little place. Quiet. And it’s unknown.”

The benefits of a new place to conduct business unknown to our rivals were clear to all of us, and Abe nodded as the corners of his mouth turned down.

---