Page 32 of Savage Boss

Robert looked up startled, some of the defeat easing from his shoulders. He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “You’re good.” He was looking at Jane with new appreciation, while Vlad felt completely left in the dark. “It’s worth two million dollars.”

Jane turned toward Robert, her body language softening, though she was careful not to touch the man. Her hand rested on her thigh, close to the taser.

“How did you find out?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I’d planned on asking for a divorce; suspected she was cheating. I was going through our assets and found the policy tucked away in our joint safety deposit box.”

“You had no idea?” she pushed.

“None whatsoever.”

Vlad was starting to understand. This case of a man kidnapping his children was more complex than it seemed on the surface. It would appear that Robert’s wife made a critical error when she hired Jane. She underestimated her PI’s desire to seek the truth over Jane’s desire to close the case as quickly and quietly as possible and collect the cash reward.

“Did she make an attempt on your life?”

His Adam’s apple bobbed again, and he nodded. “Yeah, we had a break-in at the house. She was out of the city on business. It was 1:00 AM and the kids were asleep in their rooms. Normally I would’ve been in bed too, but I was up late working. I was in my main floor office when I heard the glass window of our back-door shatter. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I froze. It probably saved my life. The guy went right past my office door toward the stairs leading up to our bedrooms.”

“You should never be ashamed of acting like a human. Anyone would’ve been frightened in that situation,” Jane reassured him.

Robert nodded, turning toward Jane as he spoke. “When I realized he was heading up to my kids, I knew I had to do something. I didn’t really think about it. I went after him, grabbed hold of him and slammed him into a wall. He was bigger than me, but I had the element of surprise. I was able to hold on to him while my eight-year-old called 911.” His eyes grew hard as he added, “I will never forgive her for putting our children through that.”

Vlad felt a chill go through him at the man’s description of a harrowing home invasion. The fact that the children were in the house at the time only increased his rage. If the woman had been standing next to him at that moment, Vlad would have snapped her neck without a moment’s remorse.

“Thank you, Robert.” Jane stood and looked at Vlad. “We’re done here.”

Robert looked stunned. He stood, his hands on his hips. “But… I’m wanted for kidnapping, right?”

Jane shrugged. “Not technically. Your wife didn’t file a report with the police. She gave me some bullshit excuse like she wanted to try to work things out with you first. That was my first inkling that she was full of shit. Any woman frightened for the safety of her kids doesn’t skip the police report and hire a PI.”

Robert looked as though he wanted to hug Jane. She stepped toward Vlad, leaning against his shoulder as she nodded at Robert. “You don’t need to worry about her anymore. I’ll take care of it.”

Robert frowned. “How?”

Vlad was amazed at the concern in Robert’s voice for his wife. But then, maybe Vlad did understand. If Jane had fucked him over, cheated on him and tried to have him killed, Vlad might feel the same. He couldn’t imagine the bright light of his love for her going out, even if she betrayed him. If Robert felt even a fraction of what Vlad felt for his wife, then the poor bastard had Vlad’s sympathies.

“I have proof that she tried to hire a hitman. Your wife is pretty stupid, you know.” Vlad had to stifle a laugh at the startled look on Robert’s face as Jane treated him to her unvarnished truth. “She actually used her regular email to connect with the hitman she hired. It took me around ten seconds to hack her password and a further ten seconds to dig up the emails. She’ll be going to prison for approximately 10-15 years and if you’re smart, you’ll get a restraining order for life.”

“I’ll… I’ll do that,” Robert murmured, staring at Jane.

Vlad didn’t appreciate the look. As though Robert were seeing through Jane’s tough exterior to the intelligent, beautiful woman underneath. He took her arm and gave it a squeeze, letting her know it was time to leave.

Jane fished out a crumpled business card from her jacket pocket and handed it over to Robert, who took it with a sheepish smile. It was as though months of tension drained from his shoulders in the space of five minutes.

“If you need anything, you can call my office. Ask for me, Jane Sitnikov, or my partner, Mack Hudson.”

As the front door closed behind them, Vlad grabbed Jane’s arm and swung her into his chest, trapping her in a hug. Before she could speak, he dropped his head, kissing her. “I’m proud of you, malysh.”

She blushed and ducked her head. “It really wasn’t a good showing of my skills. This was an easy one to solve.”

“You fucking rocked it,” Vlad insisted. “Take pride in yourself, you deserve it.”

She grinned up at him and Vlad was momentarily stunned by her beauty. She smiled like this so rarely Vlad felt almost burned by the heat of her radiance. She glowed and it was because he complimented her work ethic. Two years ago, he’d gotten her fired from the job she loved. At the time he hadn’t quite realized how devastating it would be for her to lose such a defining part of herself. Now he understood. He would do everything he could to protect this part of her life and the joy she got from it.

Then she sent her fist into his stomach, hard enough to wind him. Especially because he wasn’t expecting it. She pulled away from him as he groaned out loud and she skipped down the steps of the house. “You shouldn’t underestimate me, Vlad.” She looked over her shoulder at him. “Hurry up, we have an apprehension to make, then we have to pick up Joseph from the nanny and meet Lucy at the diner for pie.”

Vlad grinned and, rubbing his stomach, followed his wife back to their vehicles. He was beginning to think the domestic life was definitely for him. Especially when it included apprehensions and a wife who didn’t have a boring bone in her body.

Chapter Seventeen

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