Page 22 of Possession of the Bratva

Konstantin rose from his chair. His aggressiveness was undoubtedly visible. “You can’t hide her from us. Mila is our sister, and we insist on seeing her.”

Piotr also rose. Taking Konstantin by the shoulder, he spoke calmly. “Sit down, this is not helping.”

Konstantin glanced at him but continued to speak as they sat back down. “If you don’t allow us to see her, we will assume she is unwell, or something is wrong. We will not let it stand. Do you understand me?” I could see his siblings agreed with him. I had to disarm the situation.

I knew I had caused a rife that wasn’t good. I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep her from the world forever. In a perfect world, I would be able to pull out my guns and make them disappear. But we didn’t live in a perfect world.

Sighing, I rose from the table. I lifted my hands up, palms facing them as I spoke. “Please, bear with me. I will makeanother appointment. Soon, I will get back to you with a time and place where we can all get together.”

Piotr rose from his chair, speaking in a calmer tone than the others. “You know you have no right to keep her from us. Please make it sooner than later, if you wait,” he paused, rubbed his chin, and continued. “You may lose her.”

I nodded and left before they could continue arguing. I didn’t want to lose her. But I couldn’t allow them to interfere, and I was sure they would.

Chapter 12 - Mila

I was delighted to see Dahlia. She had called to ask if she could come around for a visit. She wanted to see how I was doing. I felt sure one or all of my brothers had put her up to it. But at this stage, I welcomed any company.

Dahlia arrived shortly after Aleksandr had left for a meeting. So, I was told by the butler. We strolled through the gardens and the Maze of Roses as we talked.

“How have you been doing? Have you settled in yet?” Dahlia enquired. She sounded eager to know how things were.

Aleksandr, being her half-brother, I wondered how much I could share without upsetting her. And without him hearing about it. “I’m doing well, thanks. How are things at home?”

“All’s good; everyone misses you, though,” Dahlia replied, looking at the ground.

I knew she was withholding something and needed to find out what it was. “Dahlia,” I said, smiling. She looked at me for a second. This was just enough to confirm my suspicions. “Would you like to play tennis?” I added. I needed to find a way to keep her a bit longer. I wanted to pick her mind.

Dahlia glanced back at the mansion. “Sure,” she replied, half hesitantly.

Neither of us played it as a sport or regularly. But we could at least hit the ball back and forth between us. It would allow me to speak to her in a calmer setting. We were both dressed casually, so there was no need to change. Especially because it wasn’t intended to be a match.

To the side of the court were some benches with a locker, a table, and a water cooler. We each grabbed a racket and gotonto the court. “Have you been playing a lot since coming here?” Dahlia asked as I served the first ball.

“No,” I replied, laughing. “It’s my first time on the court. How’s things going at home? Are there any new jobs coming in?”

Dahlia hit the ball back at me with force. It came flying past my head, almost hitting me. “Hey,” I shouted at her after ducking the ball. “What’s up, you angry at me for something?”

“No,” Dahlia replied, a bit winded. Dropping the racket, she came up to the net. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hit so hard. Are you okay?”

Shaking my head, I walked towards her. “Dahlia, I’m fine. But tell me what’s going on. I know you, and something is up. What are you hiding?”

She glanced around nervously as she took hold of the net. Placing my hands over hers, I spoke softly. “What is wrong? You know you can talk to me.”

“It’s nothing, I have to go,” Dahlia uttered. She turned and started to the court gate.

Sprinting around the net, I caught her before she could step out. “Hey, I’m not angry at you,” I said, pulling her into a hug.

Dahlia hugged me tightly. “I’m going to be late for the job,” she uttered, pushing me away.

Grabbing her arm, I swung her back to face me. “What?” I asked. “Is there a job? Why did no one contact me?”

I could see she was very uncomfortable with my questions. “Mila,” she said, pulling at my fingers. “ It’s complicated.”

Letting go of her arm, I watched as she stumbled. Looking at me, I realized what she wasn’t saying. “It was Aleksandr, right? He interfered?”

“Mila,” she added softly, coming towards me.

Stepping back, I felt angry and deceived. “No, don’t touch me, just leave Dahlia,” I spat as I turned. Hastily, I returned to the mansion, leaving her standing there. I will show him he is not the boss of me, I swore as I headed out the front door.

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