Page 47 of The Bratva's Innocent Sold Bride
“Don’t bring her up again,” I rumbled as I got out of the car, hand on my gun.
She followed, still smiling as we easily nabbed one of Anatoli’s top men in the hopes of bringing the damn bastard to his knees.
Chapter 29 - CJ
Of course, I gave in. There was no way I was giving up the chance to do something interesting, and where else would I ever be able to take my dog to work? When the driver was ready to leave, so was I, dressed in comfy jeans and a sweater and with Artem jumping around at my heels, excited to go in the car again.
The two guards were waiting in the reception area of the office, which hadn’t been shown in the picture on Mat’s tablet. It was just as decked out, with a couch and two armchairs, a big-screen TV, and a desk for the nonexistent receptionist. Best of all, it was closed off from the main workspace so I could pretend they didn’t exist, though I did take pity and invited them to partake of whatever was in the fridge and help themselves to coffee.
They were as pleasant as armed guards could be, I supposed, and once Artem and I were alone in the luxurious, glorious area that was all my own, I really did forget all about them.
The place was better than the picture, and I zoned in on the computer equipment, which was already set up. “Sorry, Artem, I need to make sure it’s all the way it’s supposed to be before I can play with you.”
My scruffy dog whined, but was soon chewing happily on a rubber bone. Before I inspected the computer setup, I snapped a picture and sent it to a couple of my friends. I hadn’t heard much from them except basic updates since they were so busy with their jobs, and one had a new boyfriend who she thought was the one. I certainly didn’t have anything new to add about my own life until now. It was nice to be able to show off.
They were suitably impressed that I’d scored such a prime position that allowed Artem to come along with me, and I left out the fact that it was my husband I was working for. I wanted to believe he was letting me do this because I could do a better job than anyone he already had working for him, but he might have just been trying to keep me distracted from all the things he didn’t want me to know about.
Why did he care so much about Terrance Hendricks, anyway? He might have been on the way to being a big deal in the area, and Mat was determined to be the main guy, but that secretive nerd never seemed to leave his lab.
“A pretty hot nerd,” I muttered, remembering how many of the ladies at the gala had turned to admire him when he was announced. I had been busy being enamored by my handsome husband, who’d been sweeping me off my feet that night, but I appreciated Terrance’s good looks.
Artem looked up at the sound of my voice, but he’d have to get used to me mumbling to myself as I worked and give up on playtime for a while. I was eager to dive in and find out why some techie was on a Bratva king’s radar.
Everything was to my satisfaction, and I was able to get to work. Over the next few days, things at home were uneventful. I couldn’t say the chilly atmosphere between Mat and me had thawed, because he was rarely home again to find out. After the first two evenings of eating dinner alone, I decided I may as well work as late as I wanted since that was what he was doing. If he cared to eat dinner with me, one of his first decrees, he knew where to find me.
He didn’t, and on the fourth day, I wasn’t just disappointed, I was getting angry all over again. I sent my daily reports, and someone named Delta answered with assurancesthat I was doing well, but if Mat was getting the information I found, I didn’t know about it. As usual, I was in the dark.
Maybe if he’d just been my boss, that would have been expected, but he was my… I stopped that train of thought. Yes, we were married, but I let myself forget the reason for that. I was a payment, nothing more, even though those fleeting days of bliss had made me start to think otherwise.
As far as Terrence Hendricks, his life seemed strangely empty, almost as if he’d lived his whole life tucked away from the world. There were the bank accounts, the company he was starting here in town, and a few addresses, but it was odd that he had little to no internet footprint. Even without using social media, people always end up on the web somehow, through charities or awards or school, or work functions.
It was time to dig deeper and after spamming his email and even sending him a few texts about a new company that offered insanely low prices on materials I knew he was using at his lab, I finally got him to click the link I made and download the fake company’s sales app, which was supposed to keep him up to date on the market and when to buy, but really got me access into his phone.
That was how I found the ties to Russia and some people who weren’t quite on the up and up. Some of those people in Moscow were especially interesting, considering I could link them back to companies that were attached to Mat in one way or another, so I started investigating them.
Even though I was still stung by Mat’s lack of trust and the fact that he’d hardly been around for the better part of a week, I was excited to tell him what I learned and left the Russian info out of Delta’s daily report. Eager to tell Mat myself, I hustled Artem through his usual walk around the officepark’s courtyard and headed home early. If he wasn’t there for dinner tonight, I was going to swallow my pride and call him, demanding an audience.
I didn’t just want to hear accolades; I kind of missed him. At that point, I would have relished a fight, just to be able to talk to someone other than the dog. Waving goodbye to the guards, I urged my driver to get home as fast as he could, hoping Mat would be there.
He was, but it was immediately apparent he was in a foul mood. His face was set, his eyes dark, and he drummed his fingers on his desk as he spoke in rapid Russian to someone on the phone. I tried backing out of his office, but he ended the call and whipped around, pinning me with a glare.
“Made it home for dinner?” he asked, dripping sarcasm.
“Are you kidding me? How do you even know I haven’t been here when you haven’t, either?” I barely paused. “Getting reports on me?”
“Of course I am,” he said, his face softening a fraction. “Delta tells me you’re doing a satisfactory job.”
Freaking Delta could kiss my butt. I was rocking this assignment. My excitement at the new information made me smile so widely that Mat softened more. “I think we’ve both been working too hard,” I said. “How about a night out? Don’t you own a restaurant?”
With a final scowl at the work on his desk, he rose to hug me. “Yes, and it’s time you got to see it. There’s a club I’m just about ready to close on, too. Care for some dancing after dinner?”
It sounded so perfect after spending so many long hours hunched in my chair over a keyboard that I jumped at thesuggestion, hurrying to get ready. I chose one of the many new dresses that kept appearing in my side of the closet, and I’d never worn.
It was a close-fitting black number, sleek and sexy without being over the top. Sky-high heels and the same necklace I wore to the gala completed the ensemble, and, of course, my hair was up.
When Mat saw me, his jaw dropped. There. That was what I’d been missing. He knew how to give a compliment and showered me with praise, slowly moving toward me with a look of intent in his eyes. Maybe a night out was overrated. It had been days.
He knifed his fingers into my hair, tugging the ponytail holder out and sending bobby pins flying. His head lowered, and I tipped my chin, my lips already parted, eager to feel one of his masterful kisses.
