Page 12 of Corrupted Guilt

“This is an opportunity, Kat.”

Yeah, for some reason, I doubt that.

“I’m giving you the chance to start over.”

Start over in the same place, under someone else’s control.

“You’re a smart girl, always have been.”

Iamsmart. Somewhere along the way I forgot that. The stupid decisions I keep making don’t help. And the biggest one was sleeping with Yuri that night. Not stopping him from sleeping with me, anyhow. And briefly, for begging him.

“I’ll find us a place to live. Since I can’t keep track of you 24/7, I’ll get another.”

“A roommate?”

“Another bodyguard.”

I still felt guilty being here and not saying a word about Yuri’s plan to my father, but it was for the best. He had been terribly mismanaging the territory since Dmitry died, and even though I briefly thought I could takeover, which was shot down quick.

If Yuri doesn’t overthrow my father, then someone else will, and even though Yuri might be the devil himself, there are worse men than him out there. Better a devil you know than one you don’t. Besides, I would do everything within my power to make sure he doesn’t kill Viktor. He shouldn’t be leading the Kolesova Bratva, but he doesn’t deserve to die, either.

In any case, Yuri wouldn’t make any moves while he was here with me, so this delayed him, got my dad a stay of execution. I hoped I could figure something out in the meantime, while going to school and figuring out my life.

I unpacked my stuff, decorated the apartment, bought my books, but I hadn’t met my other bodyguard yet.

Yuri had given me the run down on her though. Of course my other bodyguard is a woman – there would only be one rooster in this hen house. And Yuri was that cock.

Tasha was an MBA student, was a lawyer for 3 years before that, and a bodyguard in the Bratva before that. She went back to school because the Bratva wanted someone with an MBA.

She was the worst: smart, beautiful, and deadly. In another universe that was supposed to be me.

The very worst thing about her, though, was she was likable. She wasn’t horrible and miserable and ugly inside, no, she was completely unfair. No one should be that smart, beautiful, and accomplished and still be likable. If you’re a total asshole for being so amazing, at least have the decency tobea total asshole and/or be terribly unhappy.

But when I meet her, Tasha doesn’t have a single hair out of place and has impeccable manners and social graces.

“Sorry to intrude on your meal,” are the first words she says to me when she comes to my apartment.

“You’re fine,” I say. “I’m done. Want any of this?” I waive my hand over the sparse grapefruit breakfast I made for myself.

“I already had the same thing,” she says.

“Great minds think alike, right?” I try to joke, maybe I’ll have wit over her everything else.

She cringes a little, “Well, the rest of that quote is ‘and fools seldom differ’so I’ll take it as a compliment this time, but it can be used the other way, too.”

Nope, not going to have wit over her either. She was very slim, but you could tell it was exercising not just diet— trim, toned, strong, and healthy.

“I just wanted to meet and exchange schedules and let you know I won’t be intrusive, but I will be around you a lot. It’s better if we’re friendly but it’s not at all a requirement.”

“I’m not sure you’re a requirement at all. I really hate to have you wasting your time protecting me from nothing,” I try togo easy, but I should have known a woman like this wouldn’t go down easy.

“Thank you, but I don’t work for you, I work for Yuri. He thinks I’m necessary, and like I said, it’s better if we’re friendly but not a requirement. You can hate me and resent my presence, but I’ll still do my job.”

The information that she reports directly to Yuri, not me or my father, or anyone else said all there was to say. She was an extension of him and his control over my life.

“If you’re working for Yuri, you should charge him double. An asshole tax.”

She smiles. “Double nothing is still nothing, though.”

---