Page 90 of Sinful Promise

“It’s probably time for me to call Katsia,” Dasha murmurs.

“Oh, right,” I say. “Let me show you to our room, and we’ll call her.”

As Nikolay converses with Alex, I excuse myself, and the women wander to the backyard overlooking the sea to take in the view.

I lead Dasha to the belly of the house. “This is similar to but much smaller than my brother’s house in London, which has nine bedrooms and ten bathrooms. I gave up a larger house because it didn’t have the view,” I tell her.

We take the circular floating staircase with wooden steps, and Dasha slides her hand along the metal railing as we climb to the second floor.

The house has many windows and a more modern floor plan with more open spaces than other houses. The furniture is modern, Scandinavian in design. The sleek curves of the sofas blend in with the Persian area rugs and chrome-framed coffee tables with glass tops. Simple but elegant furniture provides continuity throughout the house. The walls are painted light gray, providing a backdrop to highlight the numerous and colorful pieces of art that adorn the walls.

“I didn’t know you liked art,” she says. “I noticed some on the yacht. Are you a collector?”

“Somewhat. Some come as payments for things. Others, I buy.”

I lead Dasha to my room overlooking an infinity pool in the backyard and beyond that, the sea. Along the coastline, colorful houses punctuate the fact that I’m no longer in Italy. My room has an oversized bed made perfectly with throw pillows. At the end is a soft gray bench with armrests. A long, curvy chaise faces the window.

“This is beautiful,” Dasha murmurs, walking around the room to take in the panoramic view. She yawns and politely covers her mouth with her hand. “I’m sorry, it was a short night.”

“Mm, it was,” I reply, knowing I’ve skipped sleep to fuck on more than one occasion.

I pull my phone out and open the app. The phone rings on the speaker.

“Dasha?” asks a young woman’s voice.

“Yes, Katsia. How are you?”

“Fine. Your brothers have left. They are headed to France.”

“How many men are in the group?” I ask.

She’s quiet.

“It’s okay, Katsia. He’s helping me,” says Dasha.

“He wasn’t sure. He thought six or seven.”

I put a finger to my lips in silent warning. I don’t want Dasha to mention anything about the disparity in numbers.

“Thank you, Katsia. Do you have a number where we can reach Albert?”

“Albert may not be able to answer when you call. He’s afraid of getting caught.”

“That makes sense. Message him this number, and we’ll wait to hear from him.”

“All right. Dasha, are you okay?”

“Yes, fine. And you?”

“Yes. I can’t wait to see you. I heard your father is not with the group.”

“Really?”

I find this weird. I thought Ratmim would want to be in on the action. However, using younger men makes more sense. The fact that Albert’s number doesn’t match Pavel’s concerns me. Alex has known Pavel for years, and he makes good money with us. Albert has nothing to lose and something to gain if he sells us out.

I rub my hand over my five o’clock shadow.

“I don’t know. All I know is that he’s home.”

---