Page 38 of Savage Beauty

No. If I keep thinking about her, I’ll end up getting arrested for jacking off in my car. I’d look back on it and laugh, but today is not the day to attract attention.

Time to get to work.

I take my gun from the glove box and tuck it into my waistband beneath my jacket. I cross the road and stride purposefully into the motel. No one accosts me; I look like a man with somewhere to be. I slap the button for the elevator and take out my cell, checking the room number for the third time.

A minute later, I’m outside the door. The corridor is silent, and I take out the pistol, checking if the silencer is correctly attached. I hold the weapon behind my back and knock on the door.

“Sir?” I say. “I’m the relief concierge. There’s a problem with your charge account.”

My mark opens the door, his expression frosty. He’s a pallid man with a paunch and a dusty patch of cocaine under his nose.

“Sorry to bother you, sir,” I say, suppressing the Russian burr in my accent. “Your name is Larry?”

“That’s a bit informal,” he scowls. “What’s the problem?”

I raise the gun and squeeze the trigger. Within a split second, the hapless fool realizes what’s happening and starts to turn aside. With a muffled ‘whump,’ the bullet pierces his temple, and he falls onto me, blood and chunks of brain everywhere.

“Thanks, Larry,” I say aloud as I bundle him into the room. “You fucked up my clean shotandmy clean shirt.” I close the door and dump the dead man on the ground, taking a better look at his face.

There’s something oddly familiar about this guy, though I can’t quite place him. Over the years, I’ve met countless scumbags and climbers, and I’ve dispatched more than a fair share of them. My memory for faces isn’t great, but I’m glad I can’t identify this particular loser right now. How stupid can you be to fuck a mafia don’s married sister? He deserved everything he got.

Finally, things are looking up. Wedding number two is tomorrow, followed by a meeting with thekomissiyathe day after. Then, it’ll be done. My world can return to some semblance of normalcy, whatever that means. And just maybe, I’ll gather the courage to risk giving Josie my heart.

Because if it’s a choice between that and losing her, there’s no doubt—I have to take the chance. Life without her would be no life at all.

26

Josie

The spa is fantastic, all gray marble and relaxing soundscapes. Morgana and I bob around in the hydrotherapy pool, surrounded by tinkling waterfalls, while we wait for our treatments to be prepared.

“I’msolooking forward to this,” Morgana says, leaning against the side of the pool. “A leg massage is just what I need. I feel heavier every day. My ankles are like an elephant’s.”

I smile. Of course, my beautiful best friend is only more stunning now, her blooming belly making her look like a fertility goddess. It’s good to see her so serene, and I envy her. I’m restless, struggling to let the calm environment settle my thoughts.

I wanted Sasha to fall for me, and I think it’s happening. Something has definitely changed, and I don’t think it’s just sex that did it. We opened up to each other physically and emotionally, and things will never be the same between us. So why am I still so afraid?

Morgana sees my pensive expression and clicks her fingers in front of me. “Helloooo? Stop daydreaming about Sasha for a minute, will you? Surely you two have been at it every second since you returned to New York?”

“Actually,” I interrupt with a shy smirk, “I put up a bit of a fight at first.”

Morgana’s mouth falls open in astonishment. “You’re kidding! Why? And seriously, no offense, but I’ve seen Sasha—how?”

“It was the only power I had over him. Now I’ve given it up.” I turn to Morgana. “What do you think is going on in his head?”

Morgana furrows her brow in thought. “Vladi knows him best. He says that Sasha has always kept women at arm’s length, but it’s different with you. You have a hold on him, making him aspire to be a better man. He was lost the moment he met you.”

I sweep my wet hair back from my face. “Sasha told me I could divorce him when all this mess with Tosca is sorted out. Why would he let me go?”

“These bratva men have a way of making things happen. Maybe he wants to see whether you’ll choose to be with him.”

Her words strike a chord with me. Every man I’ve ever known has wanted to possess me, and they’d go to great lengths to achieve it. What I desired was often inconsequential. But now, with all the power and wealth at Sasha’s disposal, is he truly willing to let me go?

Only two types of men would do that—a man who doesn’t give a shit and a man who is truly, deeply in love.

My husband is obsessed with me, but now he’s got what he wants. Is his interest already waning?

“Josie, you’re too hard on yourself.” Morgana scooches closer and puts her head on my shoulder. “You think Sasha is just a player and won’t change, least of all for you. Well,Ithink you’re wrong. You’re a wonderful person, and he sees that. He has the same problem as you; he believes he’s not enough.” She nudges me. “But I see the effect you have on him. All he has to do is look at you, and he’s home.”

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