Page 1 of The Bratva's Forced Innocent Bride

Prologue - Max

When I pulled up to my brother’s place it looked like a parade exploded all over it. We were a family that enjoyed Christmas, but this was something else. From the scowling guard at the gatehouse who waved me through while wearing a Santa hat to the hundreds of potted poinsettias lining the long drive, all the way to the twinkle lights festooned over every shrub and palm tree, there was no doubting what time of year it was. There was a very real-looking snowman standing at attention in the flower beds, looking wildly out of place with the bright blooms and blazing sunshine of a southern California holiday season.

And then there was more once I was inside.

The entry hall resembled a cheerful forest with all the ribbon-draped evergreen garlands hanging over every surface and tacked up to the walls. Mistletoe balls dangled from every doorway, and a giant tree with boughs drooping from all the ornaments stood sentry before their sweeping staircase.

An elderly uncle who had just arrived from the old country accosted me from behind a fully decorated tree further down the hall, scowling as he assiduously avoided one of the clumps of mistletoe and red ribbons hanging above our heads.

“What’s gotten into Aleks?” he asked.

I took a moment to breathe in the aromas of roasting meats and the undertones of gingerbread cookies and grinned down at my uncle, who insisted on speaking Russian to keep us American family members on our toes.

“I think being happily married has gotten into him,” I answered in my rusty but passable attempt to make the old man smile.

He rolled his eyes and answered in English. “She seems very enthusiastic,” he said. “So far.”

“I think she’s in it for the long haul,” I said, jumping to my new sister-in-law’s defense. Uncle Genov was currently on a break from marriage after his third wife left him and only shrugged.

Katie and Aleks might have had a rough start—a very rough start, but they were as solid as any couple I knew, short of our parents, who were still going strong after seven kids and all these years.

The red-haired fireball herself hurried up to me, giving me an absentminded kiss on the cheek before handing Uncle Genov a small plate of her impressive hors-d’oeuvres, wiping the ever-present scowl off his face.

“Have you seen my sister?” Katie asked me, looking worried under her smile. “I need to talk to her.”

“I don’t think I’ve even met her yet,” I told her, searching the crowd of friends and family members as we wandered into the living area.

People were spilling out onto the back garden and pool area, all of them holding drinks or plates or both, surrounded by twinkling lights and holly. Katie rushed off, the worry in her eyes increasing, but I didn’t have time to ponder what might be bothering her when her husband waved me over from across the room.

I pretended not to see my eldest brother and faded behind a scattering of cousins and family friends, acting like I was deep in a text conversation on my phone to keep them from greeting me. It’s not that I didn’t want to be part of the festivities; I just needed a minute to wrap my mind around how different things had become in such a short amount of time.

As happy as I was about Aleks finding his soul mate, I wasn’t sure how I felt about how different he’d been acting since Katie came into his life. He wanted to spend as much time as possible with his bride, but still wouldn’t let go of his fierce clutch on the reins of the family business. This Christmas gathering was no time to express my annoyance that he wouldn’t give me more responsibility, and half the reason I was avoiding him was because I didn’t want to hear about all the attention I gave to my diner in the bustling heart of Hollywood.

The Hustle Grill wasn’t just a hobby for me, though I loved running it and even jumping in the kitchen to make my signature shrimp kabobs when there was a special VIP. Because I spent so much time there, Aleks seemed to think I was more serious about holding court with Hollywood’s elite than I was about cultivating our family empire.

On the contrary, he could never understand the amount of contacts I made there. The upper echelon of the film industry may as well be royalty here, and many of them were just as involved in criminal activity as we were as kings of the Bratva. And they were always eager to make a few million extra here and there. The tiny town was bursting at the seams with opportunity, but I couldn’t make Aleks see that I was doing more at the diner than having a good time.

It was a good time there, though. I was thinking of ways to cut this little party short, not in the mood to argue with my brother about the new territory I was eager to forge and that he’d be just as keen to tell me to hang back on for now. It was all I could do to stay on the fringes, not getting caught up in one of my elderly relatives’ long-winded rants about not visiting Moscow enough.

The decorations put me in a begrudgingly festive mood despite keeping to myself and not engaging with anyone, and Iwas thinking about throwing an impromptu party down at the Hustle as soon as I could find a way to slip out of there.

Until I spotted someone I didn’t recognize out of the sea of familiar faces. My interest was piqued, and not just because I didn’t know her. Not just because she was flat-out gorgeous, either, though she was. Shiny chestnut brown hair fell down her back in smooth waves, and her alert eyes followed the ebbs and flows of my crowd of family members. Her clothes were simple, but the thin, cream-colored sweater and dark jeans fit her like a glove. My eyes moved down her lush curves from the proud lift of her chin to her toes. And then back up again because I liked the view so much.

She somehow seemed to draw me in with the way she was also holding herself back, standing apart from everyone but not looking self-conscious in the crowd of strangers. She was confident in being by herself, but with no air of being aloof. Her full lips were set in a half smile, partly bemused and partly curious. Her eyes were alert as she swept the tides of my relatives moving all around her. Not on edge or nervous, but as if she was calmly waiting for someone to speak to her.

Well, that person was going to be me. I was intrigued by this newcomer and could only imagine she was one of my younger sister, Mila’s, friends, since she looked about the same age. Had Mila even arrived yet?

“Did my sister abandon you?” I asked, sliding into the tiny space she’d set aside for herself by a corner window. The late afternoon sun shining through couldn’t have been more perfectly placed by a lighting expert, making her rosy cheeks glow.

She blinked her gray-blue eyes at me and swept that glorious mane of hair over her shoulders. “Who? Sorry?”

“Oh, don’t be sorry,” I said, holding out my hand. “I’m Max, one of the brothers. I assumed you were my kid sister’s friend.”

She shook her head, laughing a little as she took my hand. I held onto her delicate fingers a moment too long, absorbing the warmth and softness of her skin. I was very intrigued.

“I’m Brooke. I’m not related to anyone here. My friend is Katie’s sister, who is—”

“Ah, right,” I said. “Married to my brother Aleks. So, a friend of the sister of the sister-in-law.”

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