Page 53 of Forced By the Bratva Beast

Sighing, I nod. “Okay, keep on it. Makar’s working on it from this end too. So far, we don’t have anything, but I’m not making the same mistake and leaving a loose end untied like I did with Christopher. It was too costly.”

“Agreed. I’ll touch base with Makar and keep you informed. Say hello to Sophia for me.”

“I will.”

“Bye, Cousin.”

“Talk soon.” Hanging up the phone, I’m pleasantly surprised when Sophia emerges in a long maxi dress, most of it hiding her baby bump, but the contrast of the rust-colored dress brings out the emerald in her eyes. Apparently, it was worth me waiting as she smells like a beautiful floral garden, her lips shimmering with gloss that tempts me to lick it off. Her cheeks are highlighted with a bronzer, her eyelids covered in the same.

My mouth must be hanging open as I stand because a worried frown crosses over her face. “What? What is it?”

“You look stunning. Maybe it was worth the wait after all.” I’m dressed in my customary all-black outfit, opting for a casual T-shirt with a white skull on it, and black jeans and boots.

“And you look as if you’re going to a rock concert.” She smirks, passing me, a whiff of her heavenly perfume, forcing me to inhale.

“What is that you’re wearing?”

“The perfume you brought me. Is it too strong?” she asks, and I can see she wants to make a good impression on my family. I have mixed feelings about how they’re going to respond to her given the quickness of the wedding. My mother wasn’t so excited about the timing and let me know it many times.

“God only knows why you and your brother had to marry so fast. We don’t know them, and you marry!”

My argument at the time was would she have preferred we had children out of wedlock and that seemed to shut down the conversation quickly.

Opening the front door, I skim my eyes over Sophia wanting to walk her right back to the bedroom. “No. It’s enough,” I remark gruffly, not wanting to get in any deeper than I already am with her.

“Okay.”

In the car, I give her the news about Dr. Perri. “We don’t have the final details on her whereabouts. She’s been spotted in New York. Did she ever mention having a place there?”

Sophia plays with the ends of her hair, her face crestfallen, but I feel no remorse for the woman. She set Sophia up with monsters. “No. She did talk about having a place in Boston. She taught there for a semester.”

“Right,” I say. “We might have been looking in the wrong direction.”

“What do you plan to do to her when you find her?”

Narrowing my eyes at Sophia, I snicker. “What do you think I’m going to do to her? Play chess.”

“Don’t be condescending. I don’t want you to kill her,” she pushes nervously, her eyes boring into the side of her head.

“You know, your compassion is what causes trouble, Sophia. If I would have killed Christopher the first time, you would never have been kidnapped,” I snap angrily, merging onto the freeway.

“Don’t guilt trip me! As if I want to see you killing someone in front of me,” she shouts.

“That’s not what you were saying when we were on the couch together. I remember you wanting to know all about what we do,” I bite back, acid on my tongue.

“That was different,” she says, pouting and crossing her hands over her ample chest. “Please don’t kill her. Do something else.”

“What do you suggest, Sophia? Getting her fired? Singing around the campfire with the woman.”

“I don’t know! I don’t know!” She throws her hands up in the air, emerald fire dancing in her eyes. “But don’t kill her.”

“You break my balls.” I sigh, turning into the parking lot of the function hall where we’re all getting together.

“Just making sure I keep up my side of the wifely duties,” she remarks with maximum sarcasm, her smile fading.

Parking, I turn to look at her, drilling her with my eyes. “Enough. Let’s stop the bickering for the next couple of hours, can we?”

“Whatever you say,” she replies, her voice drifting off as she opens the door, not waiting for me to open it for her.

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