Page 25 of Kidnapped Prisoner By the Bratva
He glanced at it, eyes squinting slightly as though he was scrutinizing the job. A moment later, he rose to his feet and then walked over to the swivel chair behind his desk.
No, thank you. Nothing of the sort.
Why am I not surprised?
“You’re welcome,” I said softly, turning in his direction, my tone dripping with sarcasm.
He slipped into a crisp white shirt, fingers fastening his buttons.
I got up and watched him in silence, my eyes catching the outline of his body beneath the fabric of his shirt. “Thank you,” I said, my voice low but laced with genuine gratitude.
He glanced at me while tucking the hem of his shirt into his pants. “What for?”
“You saved my life last night,” I answered. Then, I lowered my head to add under my breath, “Even though it was only in danger because of you.”
“What?” His brows furrowed slightly with a faint scowl on his face.
“Hmm?” I raised my head, feigning ignorance. “I didn’t say anything.”
I watched something that resembled a smile flash at the corners of his lips. It was almost imperceptible. But I caught it.
“I protect what’s mine,” he said, his expression darkening ever so slightly.
I didn’t like the sound of that because now I wasn’t sure what I was to him anymore: prisoner, leverage. Or something else entirely.
He locked eyes with me, and neither of us said a word for a short while. Until I broke the silence.
I cleared my throat. “This might come off as cringe or weird, but uh…what’s your name?”
Yep. Definitely weird. It sounded less creepy in my head, though.
He looked directly at me but didn’t answer, didn’t change his expression, or even move a muscle.
Great. I felt so stupid.
“You know what?” I raised my hands defensively. “Forget I asked that.”
It wasn’t until I turned around to leave that he answered.
“Valarian.”
I paused in my tracks but didn’t look back.
“Valarian Tarasov.”
My lips curled into a small smile, and with that, I walked out of his study feeling a lot better than when I came. I wouldn’tsay that I trusted him, but I wouldn’t say he was my enemy either. There was something broken about him today. I couldn’t tell what it was, but I could sense it.
As twisted and nearly one-sided as it was, this turned out to be the first meaningful conversation we've had since I arrived. Today, beneath that flat expression, I caught a glimpse of a man. Not a monster. A human being. Broken.
When I returned to my room, I didn’t lock the door behind me. I left it slightly ajar, like the line between us: thin, fragile, uncertain.
Throughout the rest of the day, Valerian lived rent-free in my head, and I couldn’t stop myself from replaying our little time together. More than once, I caught myself smiling at the thought of him and how insanely attractive his body was.
That was how I knew this was the beginning of a new kind of trouble. One that I wasn’t ready for.
Chapter 10 – Val
Two days after the attack on my mansion, my house was graced by the Bratva elites. They’d informed me beforehand of their arrival. At first, I thought they wanted to discuss the details of the attack. However, I realized soon after that the reason for their arrival was the little shutterbug.
