Page 91 of Unspoken

Each step toward Vlad's office feels like a march to my own death, my heart hammering against my ribs. I'm ready to resign no matter what happens next. If Vlad doesn’t want my assistance as Sasha’s security detail, he can’t stop me if I’m not his employee anymore.

Yes, things look very crystal clear in my mind…until I step inside Vlad’s office. Immediately, the scent of expensive cigars and whiskey washes over me. Vlad stands at his desk, the line of his shoulders rigid with barely contained rage. He’s dressed innavy slacks and crisp, white shirt with sleeves rolled up, as if he’s ready for war. There’s a stack of papers in his right hand.

"Logan." My name is a snarl on his lips. "Come in."

The door behind me shuts.

I move closer, my eyes meeting the man’s gaze. "Care to explain these?" He slaps the papers on the desk and they scatter like pieces of the puzzle across the polished wood.

My breath catches in my throat, a wave of nausea crashing over me. Intimate moments with the brush of skin against skin—all laid bare, all reduced to a tawdry expose, a damning proof of the forbidden relationship Sasha and I share. All captured in the glossy photos in front of me.

For a second, I forget to breathe. I just stare at the images, trying to keep it together, trying not to let myself get too emotional over this revelation.

Vlad’s eyes are blazing with fury when I look back up at him.

Shame and anger war within me, a vortex of conflicting feelings. How dare they invade our privacy? How dare they use this as a pawn in their twisted games? How dare they? Whoever they are.

"I asked you a question," Vlad grits out. "I. Want. An. Explanation."

"Vlad, I..." My words falter, the speech I've rehearsed a thousand times turning to jelly on my tongue. "It's not what you think."Why did I say that?

Vlad's lips curl into a mean sneer. "Really? Because it looks like you have been fucking my little brother behind my back." He rounds the table and stalks closer. Although he’s not much bigger, his presence is oppressive. "So tell me, McKenna, what exactly am I supposed to think?"

I swallow hard. "I never meant for this to happen," I begin, my voice sounding strained. "It just did. He is lonely—"

Vlad cuts me off with a harsh laugh. "So because he was lonely, it gave you the right to seduce him?" His words are a knife, twisting in my gut, making me bleed.

"It wasn't like that," I protest, but even to my own ears, the excuses ring hollow. What the fuck is wrong with me? Why can’t I just tell him how it is?

Vlad closes the distance between us entirely, his face mere inches from mine. His eyes bore into me, cold and unforgiving. "Then what was it like, Logan? Enlighten me."

I open my mouth to respond, but before I can utter a sound, Vlad's fist connects with my jaw. Pain explodes through my skull, stars dancing across my vision. I stumble back, barely catching myself on the edge of the chair.

Silence falls.

I blink to rehabilitate my vision. The blur begins to recede and when the image of Vlad is clear, he’s breathing heavily, his face filled with anger.

"Fair enough," I rasp out, tasting blood on my tongue as I rub my jaw.

"You lied to me," he says in a low, deceptively calm voice. "You betrayed my trust, and for what? A quick fuck with my baby brother?"

"It's not like that," I repeat, my voice stronger now, fueled by a growing anger of my own. "What Sasha and I have is real. I like him." Saying it out loud feels important.

"You what?"

"I like him. I’m ready to resign."

"Come again?"

"I want to be with him. I understand that I can’t do that while I’m in your employ. So, I resign."

Vlad’s face is a strange combination of harsh lines and surprise. I can’t read him. I can’t tell what’s a bigger shock to him—Sasha liking men or Sasha liking me.

"I am going to end you, Logan," Vlad hisses out.

"Do you even understand how invasive this is for him?" I gesture at the photos. "He’s been trying to talk to you for weeks now. Trying to tell you who he is, trying to get your damn blessing."

"Blessing to be with a washed-up former cop?"

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