Page 11 of Embracing the Dark Side

“You’ve already bargained with them? And where was I during this?”

“Probably with your whore.”

The burst of rage in Adrik’s chest nearly shot out of his skin.“Don’t you fucking—”

“Quiet.”Yakov fiddled with his jacket to avoid any eyes glancing their way.“Watch your tone.”

Adrik relaxed his shoulders and gave a fake smile when he caught someone’s gaze. Despite this conversation diving off a cliff, Adrik needed it like a final nail in a coffin.“I planned to wait until tomorrow, but you are making this easier than I thought. I want you out of my house tonight. As soon as the party is over.”The decision was surprisingly easy. It didn’t hurt as much as he thought it would. Yakov’s invisible restraints had finally been severed.

Yakov snickered.“You think so?”

Adrik turned to his father and placed his hand on his shoulder.“There is no doubt, Papa. It is over. Let it go. I am Boss now.”Adrik pulled him in for one last hug. His father always smelled like cigars and bourbon. He held him with the realization he would never see his father again. Every good memory that snuck into his mind was overrun by the dozens of bad ones. There was nothing to hold onto. His father was gone, and this man that lingered was a shadow of what once was. Adrik kissed his cheek.“Please don’t make me kill you.”

Yakov gripped his arm before Adrik could pull away.“I have enemies that will not let you succeed. I’m doing this to protect you.”

The statement was absurd. Adrik never failed.“Goodbye, Papa.”

Chapter six

Perfect

Jolie stood with her arm tucked into Alexei’s in the living room. There was a display of family photos on the table, and Jolie adored the images of Adrik's sisters. They were all beautiful with blond hair and blue eyes. All just slightly different versions of Tatianna. Each photo had a story and Alexei dived into each memory with sarcastic fondness. “This was taken right before Gil and Adrik convinced me to jump off a cliff, and I broke my foot on the bottom of the lake.” They were ten in the photo, with dumb grins on their thin faces. “I came up screaming, and they were laughing their asses off. A guard had to rescue me before I drowned.”

Jolie suppressed her laughter. “Is there any picture here that doesn’t bring up a bad memory?”

His eyes landed on a particular one so clearly that Jolie snapped her head toward it, searching. “Nope.” Alexei put a hand on Jolie’s back to guide her away, but she twisted out and reached for a frame.

“Who’s this?” Jolie pointed to the young pink-haired woman. Alexei had his arms wrapped around her from behind. The teenager was so short that Alexei could rest his chin on her head. Adrik and Gil stood beside them intuxes. Jolie didn’t know if they did prom in Russia, but it certainly looked like they were going to a dance.

With a heavy sip to postpone the inevitable, Alexei shrugged. “A girl I knew.”

“Oh, you’re lying! Who is it? Let me go ask Adrik.” Alexei snatched her by the elbow, turning her around. She was giggling, and he loved the sound.

Gil came up from behind, slapping Alexei on the shoulder. “Miss me, bro?”

Alexei released Jolie, a wave of guilt slipping into his sub-conscious and forcing him back to reality. But it's not like Gil was one to judge his ethics. Alexei replied, “You’re lucky Mama’s on your side.”

Gil’s brows knitted, wondering why he spoke in English until he glanced at the woman beside him.“She’s still here?”

“What’s your problem with her?”Alexei asked.

“She’s too good to be true because she’s not. She’s playing Adrik. No one’s that perfect.”

Alexei flared with protectiveness. Jolie wasn’t like this crowd of backstabbers. She was better than all of them. In retaliation, Alexei bit back,“Coming from a fucking liar?”

Giltsked.“I knew you’d be on his side. I didn’t lie about anything. What does it matter who I like? Katia hates me. I should be able to fantasize about fucking whoever I want. I'm sure you certainly do.”

Alexei didn’t want to talk about this any further. How Gil could think of Katia in any way besides killing her is beyond him. Katia was a nasty bitch, and any kind of good looks she had weren’t worth the effort. Adrik and Katia were together for ten years, and she never once acted honestly. How could Gil want a woman who didn’t have a sincere bone in her body?

Feeling the tension, Jolie quickly interrupted. “Do you know who this is?”

Gil didn’t want to answer her, but embarrassing Alexei was one of his favorite things to do. “That was Alexei’s girlfriend. His first love,” Gil mocked, full of enjoyment. Alexei glared, but it was a look he was used to. Gil slapped his brother on the back. “Took his v-card. But she didn’t stick around much longer after that, did she, brother?” Gil winced playfully, the insinuation hanging in the air.

“Keep talking, and I’ll break your nose.”

Gil cackled. “He’s very sensitive about it. But it’s been ten years. You’ve had plenty of practice by now. You should call her up. Maybe she’ll give you another chance.”

Alexei put a hand on Jolie’s back, and warned,“You want to take any of these women home tonight? I’d stop before rumor gets around that you have an STD.”Alexei guided Jolie to the food table, ignoring Gil's stare. She wanted more information, but Alexei was far from ready to share. Melissa was the one that got away, and he’d never be able to get her again. She was happily married with children. It was a time in his life he didn’t want to think about, and he spent years avoiding it. He wasn’t about to bare his soul to a woman that wasn’t his.

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