Page 54 of Brutal Mercy

Disappointment fills me. But I don’t show it. I really thought he would go for it.

“However,” Roman glances at Rurik, “if she were to agree to marry my brother, we could move forward with a mutually beneficial coalition between our families.”

Victory shoots through me. “She will agree. Come in.”

The door opens, and Athena waltzes inside in a fashionable knee-length burgundy dress and knee-high black boots, looking like she stepped out of the pages of a magazine. Her golden hair lays in waves on her shoulders, and her makeup is expertly applied.

“Athena, change of plans. As long as you don’t object, you will be marrying Rurik Orlov, Roman’s brother.”

I don’t miss the way both Roman and Rurik cast admiring glances at Athena. She’s a beautiful woman that any man would be lucky to call theirs.

Athena’s gaze shifts to the Orlov men. She doesn’t give away what she’s thinking, but she nods. “You’ll do. Just tell me when and where this wedding is taking place.”

“And you’re okay with marrying my brother?” Roman asks her. I respect his desire to hear the words from her mouth. It bodes well for my sister and the future of our coalition.

Athena purses her lips and looks Rurik up and down. “Yes, I’ll marry him. He’s attractive enough. I figure we’ll get along fine as long as he’s not an abusive motherfucker who enjoys smacking women around.”

Rurik goes on a full rant in Russian. Roman and he converse before Rurik looks at Athena, his rage under control but still blazing in his eyes. “I don’t hit women.”

“Great. I’ll leave you gentlemen to hammer out all the arrangements for the wedding.” She flashes a haughty smirk and sails out of the room.

The moment it’s the four of us, I say, “And I want your word that Athena will be cared for in the style befitting her station.”

“She will be treated like a Russian princess and will want for nothing,” Roman assures me.

“Good. I’ve got a priest who doesn’t bother with making sure both parties are Catholic before the wedding. And for the right amount, he doesn’t mind last-minute weddings. We’ll hold it here.”

“Fine. Let’s get the prenup out of the way. And then we can plan on how we’re going to deal with this infestation. Because we move against the cartel with you, the Irish won’t like it.”

I don’t smile, even though I want to. This is working out better than I could have imagined. The alliance with the Russians will ensure we remove the cartel from our streets and will help me get justice for my family.

“I agree. And perhaps this will be a lesson to the Irish not to fuck with our families or align themselves with our enemy.”

Roman smirks, evil delight illuminating his face. “I think I’m going to enjoy our coalition.”

Rurik asks, “How did you know that guy was going to burn down our warehouse?”

“Ares.”

With a few keystrokes on the computer, he brings up the surveillance footage. I level Rurik with a hard glare. “Because I have eyes everywhere, in every part of the city. And when this came up, Ares dispatched some of our men to go pick him up. He’s been in our holding facility ever since.”

Rurik smiles. “Between our two families, we could rule this city.”

“And now you’re getting it.” I nod.

For the next few hours, we hash out the prenup and arrange the nuptials. Once those details are hammered out, we strategize our method of attack on the cartel. And it doesn’t bother me that we’re getting into bed with the Russian Mafia.

I don’t trust them fully, nor they me, even with the prospect of becoming in-laws.

But Roman and I are astute businessmen. We’ve been each other’s fiercest competitors. Except, he understands it’s better to align himself with the devil than remain against him. And time will tell if we will be even better allies.

We set a date for Athena’s marriage to Rurik. I even contact Father Rosario, and we booked him for tomorrow morning. They’ll get married in our ballroom with minimal guests, but then we’ll throw a lavish reception in a month or so once things settle down.

And it makes me think about my bride. Luna has been a goddamn revelation. When I made the offer to rescue her sister in exchange for her hand in marriage, I never thought that after a few short days, I would be obsessed with my bride.

But even thinking about her, I get hard.

And she fills me with a possessiveness I’ve never known. I don’t even want other men looking at her. If I could, I would keep her in my bedroom at all times. I know it won’t fly with her. She’s too vibrant to want to be caged. But I can’t help the way she makes me feel.

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