Page 19 of Possession of the Bratva

Staring at the horses in the field, I thought it sounded good but didn’t respond. “If you want to leave earlier or later…” Aleksandr started saying.

Turning to him, I smiled. “No, five is fine. I was just considering when I should start getting ready. Are we going to the same casino as last night?” If we did, I was sure I would find a phone that I could use to call home.

“No, I’m taking you to one of our restaurants,” Aleksandr replied. “You’ve been there, seen it. So, we’ll go to another one of our places.”

Nodding, I started walking back to the mansion slowly. I felt Aleksandr taking my hand and pulling me to a stop, twistingme around as he did so. “Is everything okay? You don’t seem pleased.” He asked.

Pulling my hand free, I lightly tapped him on the chest as I spoke. “All is fine. I just think we should head back.”

He nodded, and we strolled back to the house in silence. I could feel his eyes on me. He was watching me, but I didn’t care. Once we got to the mansion, I headed to the room we shared.

After a long soaking bath, I got ready. Seeing his reaction to the red dress, I decided to wear my black evening gown. The body of the dress hugged me like a glove, pushing my breasts up and exposing quite a bit of cleavage. From my hips down, it hung loose. On both sides, the dress had slits running up from my feet to my hips.

Pinning my hair up loosely, I grinned at my reflection. “You have a mean streak,” I said to the woman staring back at me.

Looking at my watch, I noticed it was almost time. I considered waiting a while. I wasn’t sure how Aleksandr would react if I was late. Although he didn’t seem to mind yesterday. I couldn’t yet pin his mood points. But I was sure I would get to know them.

I decided not to wait. Getting up, I headed downstairs. Aleksandr was already waiting at the door as I descended the stairs. He was wearing a black suit that framed his muscular body perfectly. His black hair was smoothed back, and his face clean. For a moment he looked like he had climbed out of an advertisement with his clean-cut look.

His face brightened as he watched me. I felt a tiny fluttering in my stomach. Tapping my stomach lightly, I decided it was from hunger and nothing else. Aleksandr held up his armas I approached. I placed my hand on his forearm and allowed him to walk me out.

The dress surely had the impact I had hoped for. He appeared to be stumbling as he moved around and got in on his side. “Are you comfortable?” he asked, taking a deep breath. Even his golden eyes appeared to be sparkling.

As we drove, I couldn’t help but notice the smile on his lips. He kept glancing at me and smiling. It was almost as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Yet, I was sure he had been with many beautiful women before. I just couldn’t figure out why he kept staring, as if I was made of gold or something.

The drive was longer than I expected. The place was almost outside of the city. We pulled into a big parking area and drove to the side of the building. “This is one of three restaurants we own,” he said as he got out.

Aleksandr held his hand for me as he opened my door. Taking it, I exited the car. “We’re not using the front?” I asked, looking around. We were parked on the side of the building. At the back were some garbage cans and what looked like a couple of tables and chairs. There was more light on the other side. I also noticed we passed some fountains which were surely the front.

“No,” Aleksandr replied. “We’re entering through the kitchen. I want you to meet the staff.”

This was slightly odd, but I enjoyed meeting his workers and could learn more about him this way. Nodding, I walked with him to the door. The kitchen was a hive of activities, with people moving left and right. The mixture of smells filled the air around us.

Even though the people were scurrying around, they stopped and greeted us. Each took time to introduce themselvesand tell me about what they do. They appeared very excited to see Aleksandr. We moved through the kitchen slowly as everyone had something to add.

Once we entered the dining area, we were flooded by more staff. The place was bigger than I had imagined. Walking from the kitchen towards the front, we moved through some private booths. About halfway across the floor was a long counter. “This is the salad bar,” Aleksandr said, waving his hand toward it.

It was stunning, and I was sure it held every kind of salad known to man. We entered an area with round and oval tables. To the other side of them was another long counter. Actually, it looked like two as the counter ran in a horseshoe shape. “This is the bar,” he added, grinning.

Before this, towards the front door were smaller booths and square tables. “The place is massive,” I breathed out turning in a slow circle. We greeted the bar staff as we moved around and headed toward the back again.

I was surprised at how friendly the staff were. They all greeted Aleksandr with openness and warm handshakes. He spoke longer to some listening as they informed him about their home situations. I was amazed at his spontaneousness and empathy.

The waiter led us to one of the larger booths at the back. There were two glasses and an ice bucket with champagne waiting. Aleksandr poured us each a glass. “To love and friendship,” he said, holding up his glass. I found this statement a bit odd but toasted with him.

We had appetizers, a main meal, and dessert. During our meal, we were interrupted three times by some of the staff. Aleksandr rose and took their conversation to the booth next toours every time. Not once did he get upset or send them away. I could see he cared for his workers and their well-being.

Seeing him this way made it hard to keep my wall up. As the evening progressed, I felt my defenses slowly cracking. Once the table was cleared after dessert, Aleksandr got up. I watched as he pulled a curtain hanging on one side around, closing the opening. I had not noticed it before, but it gave us total privacy.

Sitting back down, he poured another glass. Aleksandr slid closer. Turning to face him, our knees touched. “Did you enjoy your meal?” he asked softly, moving his fingers lightly up and down my thigh.

My stomach turned and twisted. Shifting back, I nodded as I replied. “Yes, it was very nice, thank you.” Trying to shift the focus, I shot a strange question his way. I didn’t know where it came from, but as I asked it, I could hear how ridiculous it was. “Tell me, if there were no limitations on pets, what animal would you have as one?

I could see I had caught him off guard as he burst out laughing. Rubbing his chin, he smiled as he spoke. “Now, where did that come from?”

Glancing down for a second, I shook my head. “I don’t know,” I responded, feeling slightly embarrassed for asking something so insane.

Aleksandr placed his glass down as he shifted forward. I felt his tender touch as he moved his hands up and down. “Mila,” he breathed out. “You are amazing, dear. I would most likely have a Siberian tiger as a pet.”

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