Page 24 of The Bratva's Virgin Bride

“Testy,” he chuckles. “What's wrong? Scared, I'm going to whisk her away in the middle of the night like you did?”

“She's already married,” I say tersely. “It's for her protection, or did Roman not tell you she's being stalked by someone from the Vultures gang?”

Anton nods. “He told me. Let's take this to your office. I could use a drink.”

“Fine,” I say through clenched teeth. I lead him back upstairs and I notice he glances down the hall to where Riley's open bedroom door is.

“You put her opposite your bedroom?” he asks with a grin.

“It's for her protection. What's the point of putting her on the other side of the house?” I pour us each a whiskey and put his with a large thunk on the table.

“You are testy. Listen, I'm just here to make sure you know what you're doing.”

“Why? Do you not think I'm adult enough to make decisions? Didn't you just say I'm older than you?” I sip my whiskey before sitting down.

“Older but not wiser,” Anton sits in the winged armchair in front of my desk. “And you have a tendency to do things rashly.”

I tap my finger on the rip of my glass. “It might surprise you to know that I actually thought this through before doing it.”

“So you're not going to leave her in the lurch if anything happens?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.

“I am loyal,” I hiss. “I am a man of my word. When I make a promise, I keep it and I promised to keep her safe. Youwouldn't understand. You've never understood me. Everything thinks I'm this loose cannon, but I actually have a brain.”

“Good, then it won't hurt to tell you that the Vultures have added extra members to stalking her on campus. I would recommend she stop going altogether.” Anton’s eyes bore into mine.

I look surprised at him. “How do you know this?”

“Because I looked into it when Roman called. I've known since you've called him. I'm the first one he called while Gwen called Riley to make sure she's safe and okay.” Anton downs his whiskey.

“What do you know?” I ask. “Tell me everything.”

“The Vultures are hurting. That's what I know. And they think the key to their so-called resurrection is to strike the Milov family. They are targeting Riley because they think she is important and a soft target. So let her study online for now. Until we can get this situation in front of Rigor and have a family discussion about it.”

I clench the glass in my hand tightly. “Those fuckers need to die.”

“Calm down there, Viktor. We'll handle this as a family like we always have. Don't go off half-cocked or Rigor won't be impressed, and neither will Kervyn.” He stands up and buttons the front of his jacket. “Maybe I should check on Riley before I leave? Make sure she's settled.”

He winks at me and I down my whiskey. “You want to lose your dick today?”

“I'll take that as a no, then. Maybe you should go see if she needs some help,” he chuckles. “See you later.” He walks out and I get up and fill my glass. I sit back down and open my computer.I don't know what I want to do, but I want to do something to distract myself. I open some reports, but I can't read them because all I see is red. This Jimmy guy is worse than I thought and I thought Riley would be safe with just my name behind her. Now, it's as though I've painted a target on her back.

I down my whiskey and go to my room. I change into swimming trunks and go downstairs to the pool. I need to exercise this frustration away. I dive into the warm water and start to swim up and down the length of the pool. I try to still my mind and focus on my breathing as I swim, but all I can think about is Riley. How sweet and innocent she is in the grand scheme of things. After a few laps, I stop at the edge of the pool and wipe the water from my face. I look up to where her window is and I see her staring down at me. She quickly moves away from the window and I smile.

I wonder if she likes what she saw. I swim a few more laps before I get out and dry off. I'm not really in the mood for dinner, so I go shower and get into bed, laying on my back and staring at the ceiling. I don't know what to do about this situation. I'm normally able to come up with something on the spur of the moment, hasty and reckless but useful. That's what I am. And my family knows it. But I don't know how to tell Riley that she is now going to be stuck in the mansion on a more permanent basis, because it isn't safe for her to go to college. I'm taking away her life and access to her friends. Even if Anya comes every day, it wouldn't be the same as getting out of the mansion every day.

I toss and turn. I can't sleep. I don't know if Riley went down to dinner and if she did, if she wondered where I was. My stomach growls in protest and I know I need to eat something to settle it, but I try to hold out and fall asleep. It's useless, though. I can't switch my brain off. All I can think about is her. She'sintoxicating. She's taking over my entire life. If she never sees me as anything more than a safety measure, I'll be fine with that as long as she's okay and happy. I want her to be happy.

I look at the clock for the millionth time and see it's just before midnight. I decide to get up to make something to eat. I'm too hungry to sleep and maybe eating will settle me enough so that I can get some rest.

Chapter 12 - Riley

I cannot believe how normal Viktor is with his siblings. It is just surreal. I saw it at first when Anya came over last night, but now I've seen him again with Anya and with his twin Anton, and I have to say I'm really surprised. He is just like every other guy, not a ruthless mobster like I pictured. I mean, Gwen told me how normal they were, but I didn't believe her. I thought she was just drinking the Kool-Aid. How could a Bratva family be normal? And yet I had a fantastic day, exhausting but fantastic, and I finally got some comfy clothes to wear. Take that, Viktor.

I take my time sorting through the designer clothes already in the closet, tossing everything into a pile that I don't want, so I can give it to Rachel. I don't care what Viktor has to say about that. Rachel deserves it after all the extra work I give her. She can wear it or sell it off for some cash. I don't know how much Viktor pays her, but I suspect he does at least pay her well.

I pack my new clothes into the closet, folding the tracksuits and T-shirts and hanging up the jeans—just the way I like it. I should have bought some sneakers, but I still have mine from the night I left Roman's house. They'll do until our next trip. I hope there is another one. I had so much fun with Anya. Maybe Gwen, Anya, and I can do one next.

I sit on my bed, knowing Anton and Viktor are having a serious conversation. I don't want to disturb them, so I take out my study materials and start going through some coursework. Make-up exams are coming up, and it's my only chance to raise my grade back to what it was. I get lost in studying domestic policies until I hear a splash. Curious, I go to the window and look out. Viktor is swimming in the pool that my room overlooks. He looks really good. It seems like he has tattoos, but I struggle to see from so high up. He glides through the water,and I watch him do lap after lap until he stops and goes to the edge of the pool. To my horror, he looks up at my window, and I duck away. God, that's so embarrassing.

---