Page 24 of My Russian Protector

We eat our lunch and Alex says, “I’m sorry, baby, but I have to get back to work. I’ll see you at seven sharp. Be ready to go.”

He kisses me goodbye and my driver escorts me to the car. He drops me in front of my flat and offers to carry my dress and matching shoes up for me but I decline. I’ve had all the pampering that I can stand today.

I’m used to doing most things on my own, and it’s hard to let new people in. It’s different with Alex. He’s so strong and confident that from the moment I met him, I’ve wanted nothing more than to have him take the lead with me.

I set the dress bag down on the sofa in my one-room flat and lie down on my bed. It’s either I take a nap or pace the floor, so I close my eyes and try to rest. Alex will be here in about three and a half hours and that feels like an eternity. I can’t wait to be in his arms again. I can’t wait for him to see me in the gown. I want to impress him in the best way.

14

THE GALA

ALEX

Ipull up to Anna’s place at seven sharp and climb the stairs to her tiny flat. I hate that she lives this way, and I’m not about to let it continue for much longer. She deserves better and she’s going to get it. I tap on the door and she opens it and takes a step back so that I can see her in her new gown.

She’s absolutely stunning from head to toe. I’ve called her a princess from day one, but she’s never looked more like royalty than she does right now. It’s not just the fancy gown. It’s the way she moves in it. She exudes an air of feminine grace without even trying. I step inside and take her hand, spinning her in a circle. She sees the look of approval on my face and giggles like a schoolgirl.

“I’m so happy that you like it!” she grins. “I tried on so many but this one felt right.”

“How could I not like it, princess? It fits your gorgeous body like a glove,” I tell her, feeling my cock stiffen in my tuxedo pants. “You make that dress look really good.”

“You look amazing, too. That tux is sexy. I like the bow tie,” she reaches out and straightens my tie for me.

I take both of her hands in mine and pull her into a long, lingering kiss. If I didn’t have to be at the gala on time, I’d be lifting that dress over her head and burying my face inside her.

“We have to go. I need to be there to make sure my guys are in place,” I take her hand and escort her to the car.

Everything is in place and running smoothly just as I expected. It’s likely that my client hires security for appearances. He likes to look important in front of the cameras. I don’t think he’s ever been in any real danger. If I did, I wouldn’t have brought Anna with me.

She looks a bit timid and uncertain as we drift through the crowd of socialites and their wealthy escorts, so I pull her close and whisper into her ear, “Everyone is looking at you. I told you that you’d be the most beautiful woman here. They’re all wondering how I got so lucky.”

She takes a deep breath and smiles. I love to make her smile. I checked the place out earlier today and set three tables side by side. One for my client and his guests, one for my guys, and the third for Anna and me.

I sense that she’s ready to retreat from the crowd so I escort her to our table and sit her down. Moments later, my client walks in flanked on each side by my guys. I stare at his face as he approaches and realize that I know him.

My hands begin to itch as I replay our last meeting in my head. It was in the restaurant in Chekalin. He was seated in a dark corner wearing a tweed suit. He looked like a factory foreman and sent me a message from Dimitri Pavlova. I’m an expert at sizing people up but I never would have pegged this guy for a millionaire entrepreneur. He was running the game all along. Dimitri wasn’t the kingpin at all. He worked for this guy.

My mind races with the obvious questions. Why is he here? Why did he ask for me to run his security? Most importantly, have I inadvertently put Anna in danger? She senses my discomfort and asks, “Is something wrong?”

Chekov spots me and moves in my direction. “No, baby girl. Everything is perfect.” If it isn’t, I need to be prepared.

I stand when Chekov approaches. He comes in close and shakes my hand, “Can you and I have a moment to speak in private?”

I nod at my guys and they disperse. They watch us from a distance as directed. I look down at Anna and say, “I’ll be back in just a minute, love.”

I follow Chekov to a private corner, not certain what to expect but prepared for anything. He’d be crazy to make any kind of move against me here, but if he’s here to make threats against Anna, he picked the wrong people to keep him safe. One snap of the finger and my guys will flip on him. Their loyalty lies with me.

“You were very impressive in Chekalin,” he tells me. “No one could have expected things to turn out that way for Dimitri. Don’t misunderstand. He was a handful and he won’t be missed, but you’ve left me in a difficult situation. I have an entire wing of my enterprise with no one to oversee it.”

“You’re the boss?” I ask, still stunned by his ability to hide in plain sight.

“You could say that,” he nods.

“Why did you pick Dimitri? He was a bottom feeder.”

“When the Moscow bosses were incarcerated, it significantly reduced my competition and opened up a world of opportunity for me, but I didn’t want to bring in captains from the old Moscow regime because they’re all cocky and overconfident. Plus, the authorities have eyes on them all. I wanted to bring in new blood that I could train to work the way that I do. Obviously, Dimitri was a bad choice. That’s something I’ll regret for some time.”

“So, what do you want with me? Why did you orchestrate this security detail to get close to me?”

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