Page 77 of My Hunger, Your Soul

“Like hell are you leaving the country without me. Have I not been clear, sweetheart?” I don’t look up at him as I’m mortified. His large hand grips the back of my neck and I want to groan at how nice it feels. His beard tickles my ear as he whispers to me.

“Where you go, I go, and vice versa. You will never spend a night apart from me, Ty. Never.”

“That’s right,” Aaron says, defending Ivan’s words.

“I know, I didn’t say I would, we were just talking.”

“And I’m just clearing up any confusion. You belong with me, sweetheart. Always.”

I look up at him and lose myself in those beautiful brown eyes before answering.

“Always.”

TYLER

Two months later

It’s a beautiful Friday afternoon, the sun outside my office window is shining and I’m sitting at my desk calculating a quote for a potential new client. We currently have roughly two months left on the Kozlov build, so I’m preparing for potential new clients. As I go through the paperwork on my desk, a small knock followed by my office door opening has me abandon my concentration to see who it is. My boss, George. Today he is in a light blue suit, impeccable as ever. As a boss, he’s pretty good. Very professional, firm boundaries and clear directions of what is expected. He walks in and closes the door behind him. This is unusual, as I don’t think he has ever come to my office. If he needs to speak to me, he often gets me to go down to his office.

“Tyler, do you have a moment?”

I stand and gesture to the seat in front of my desk.

“Of course. Is everything okay?”

George sits across from me and leans back in his seat, crossing his left leg over his right knee.

“I was hoping you could tell me. I’ve had a few members of staff mention that there has been a regular visitor to your office, someone who doesn’t work here or appear to be a client. He’s apparently been quite intimidating and people are uncomfortable. We don’t condone friends visiting the workplace, Tyler. I’d appreciate it if you would ask your friend to stop visiting the office.”

Oh shit. I was hoping to avoid all of this, but my hand is being forced.

“He’s not my friend.”

George leans forward, resting his hands on my desk.

“Are you in trouble, Tyler? “

“No…nothing like that. His name is Ivan. He’s my partner. Boyfriend.”

George blinks at me a few times before cutting the awkward silence. I can feel myself blushing.

“I didn’t know that about you. But it remains the same, we don’t want to be encouraging partners as it’s distracting.”

“Got it. I’ll ask him not to stop by.”

“That would be a good idea.”

George goes to stand to leave, but I stop him, deciding I need to be honest.

“George, there’s something else you should know. Ivan is a family member of the Kozlovs. He works for them.”

Silence again and this time George’s eyes widen.

“The Kozlov brothers?”

“Yes, he’s their cousin. I live with him. At their house.”

“Tyler, are you telling me that you’ve moved in with a client of this firm and are in a romantic relationship with them?”

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