Page 68 of Ruthless Mafia Daddy

“The door is this way when you’re done. I’ll handle my affairs however I see fit while you focus on the security of the office,” I said dismissively, picking myself from the sofa and heading to the bedroom.

Enzo was making sense. It just was not the type of sense I was open to at the moment. His statement about what I would do when two years elapsed took me back to the club, and Arielle’soutburst echoed over the stream of hot water pouring down my back.

Maybe I took things a bit too far with my make-out session, but then she was the one who made claims of having something to do tonight. I hate this. I hate how I am the only one who seems to be affected by what happened between us. She just went ahead to relocate and have a better life, while I couldn’t find the space for another female in my life. I couldn’t punish her publicly as Enzo said. It’ll only bring more attention to me. I, Mikhail Ivanov, fell in love with a spy and got heartbroken. I’d be a mockery. My fight is with Henry, and until I find the bastard and completely destroy him, I can’t blow this up.

*****

“Good morning, Sir.” Arielle greeted, making her way into my office the next morning. I don’t like the sound of the word when it comes from her, but I’d rather drag myself through burning coal tar than admit that.

“Good morning. Please have a seat,” I replied in a professional tone, and she squinted her eyes at me before slowly settling into the seat.

I turned off my laptop and leaned back into my chair, taking her in. She was dressed in a black long-sleeved knee-length dress, paired with ridiculously high stilettos. Her hair was put up in a tight bun, her makeup was light, and overall, she looked beautiful. A far cry from the glamorous blonde I used to know, but she was breathtaking regardless.

“I want us to talk about what happened yesterday,” I said, carefully observing her.

She shrugged. “What happened yesterday?”

I curled my fingers into a fist to keep me from visibly rolling my eyes. Of course, she was going to feign ignorance and force me to go over my actions. The appearance might’ve changed, but the person remained the same.

“The event at the club.”

“You mean the part where you made me watch you almost have sex with a girl and asked me to offer myself as a replacement?” she bit out, and I felt the familiar anger only she could elicit slowly coming to the surface.

“You had no right to walk her out.” I was not an emotional being by any means, and I always have my feelings in check at all times, but she somehow brings out the emotionally unstable part of me without much effort.

“You should’ve let me go!”

“I didn’t tie you down. You stayed because you wanted to,” I retorted, and her eyes flashed with anger. Good, we’re even now.

“You’re the one who dragged me to the club with you even after I said I had something to do. You were the one who said no one leaves the club until the deal is settled.”

“And the deal wasn’t settled at the time the girls came in? I saw Antonio leave with the guests. You decided to stay!”

At this point, we were both breathing heavily and staring daggers at each other. This wasn’t the way I intended the conversation to go, but I was too far gone to turn around. I admit to dragging her to a meeting that had nothing to do with her, but the drama that followed was entirely up to her.

After what seemed like a lifetime elapsed, she closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath, and when she reopened them, she was the picture of serenity, and that infuriated me more.

She closed her eyes and took in oxygen, and she was fine while I continued fuming. How could she have that much control of her emotions, as if the history we share has no effect on her?

“Mikhail,” she started in a low tone, and I felt myself visibly tense at the sound of my name rolling out of her tongue, “I’m sorry for spying on you. I’m sorry for walking into your life, but if you’re going to punish me, just get on with it already! Torture me like you torture the men who betray you, do whatever you want, and just let me be. I’m tired of playing your stupid games, and I want out.”

A dry chuckle left me as I watched her struggle to maintain the composure she just regained. “You want out of my little game? Tell me, Arielle, should I say, Cara, did you ever plan on letting me out of yours? No, here’s a better question.” I paused, looking her dead in the eye. “Were you ever going to tell me it was all a game?”

“You’re not a saint, Mikhail,” she replied in a bored tone, rolling her eyes in the process. “drop the act. It’s not like you’ve not had someone infiltrate for you in your line of work.”

“Unlike you, I don’t stab my enemies in the back. I hold a stake to their face, and I drive a stake into their heart.”

“And you force them to look into your eyes while you snuff the life out of them. I’ve seen that one already. What’s new?” She said, cutting me short.

“At least they look into my eyes. I don’t have to resort to deceptive means to get what I want.”

“It’s not like you were completely innocent. You are a fucking criminal, and it was only a matter of time till someone gave you a taste of your own medicine.” She bit out, and I stared in shock at the woman standing in front of me, and how she was totally different from the sweet, empathetic person I used to know.

“So that's what it was all about? To give me a taste of my own medicine,” I replied, stalking towards her.

“You are a criminal, and I was merely following orders,” She said in a tone that sounded more like she was trying to remind herself of who I was.

“Was any of it ever real? Did you even love me?” I asked, standing in front of her.

---