8
Slavik
I stood in the dance hall with my wife on my arm, and I stared around the room, checking for any possible attackers. Our enemies would be close. I wouldn’t put it past them to try to take Ivan out even while we were in a room full of civilians. Parties like these were unnecessary in my opinion. I saw no reason to mingle with the world who pretended the horrors taking place behind closed doors and in the cover of darkness didn’t occur.
Ivan needed his top six men all in one place. This was a political ploy as Roger Hampton, an up-and-coming public figure, was trying to gain popularity by threatening people like Ivan. He promised the public he’d drive out the threat and stop the flow of illegal activities. How men and women would be able to walk the streets without fear.
The truth was it would never happen. Anyone who offered that kind of freedom was a fucking idiot who didn’t know what they were dealing with.
Aurora was tense on my arm, but I didn’t let her go.
A passing waiter offered us some champagne, but I sent him off before she could reach for one.
Ever since our confrontation about my possible mistress, it had been even more tense between us, which pissed me off. I had a feeling I knew who was responsible for filling her head with lies. The moment I caught him, Sergei would learn to keep his mouth shut. The very fact he’d tried to turn my wife against me made me want to kill him.
My thirst for blood and violence was always close to the surface. All it took was a small switch to make it happen.
“It’s a busy night,” Aurora said.
We were in the watchful eye now. With the game constantly being played and the power at work, I had to make sure people saw only strength, no weakness. I was a man in control of his wife, the daughter of a Capo.
Leaning down, I whispered against her ear. “Tonight is about business. It’s a show of force but also a little reminder to our good friends in charge.”
Aurora gasped and tilted her head to look at me. Her long hair had been curled once again. Some of the strands were pulled back and tied at the base of her neck. I wanted to touch it, to run my fingers through the long locks. More than anything, I wanted to hold her hair as I fucked her hard, to finally show her what it truly meant to be my wife.
I pushed all these thoughts down and instead focused on my surroundings. I’d already spotted Ivan, surrounded by his men, charming the fucking asses off of everyone here.
Kissing her cheek, I kept my lips close to her ear. “Mr. Hampton seems to think it is okay to take money from us to help him win his political career, but when it comes to keeping his end of the deal, he seems to have forgotten.”
“What was his end of the deal?”
“To look the other fucking way,” I said.
We never asked for much from people like Roger, but what we did expect was for them to honor it.
“Now, we’re going to dance and play the part of a doting couple.”
“Wait,” Aurora said, her hand on my arm. “Why are we here? I mean, you’re … you know, and I’m well, no one.”
“Sweetheart, didn’t you know you married a very powerful entrepreneur? My expertise is expansion. I have casinos, real estate, and an entire investment portfolio.” I winked at her.
“Of course you do.”
We covered our tracks well. I was known as a member of the Volkov Bratva, but no one would have any evidence. It was what made us so powerful and also untouchable. We were businessmen, nothing more.
Taking Aurora’s hand, I led her onto the dance floor. After placing a hand at the base of her back, I pulled her in close. The feel of her soft body against mine was close to driving me insane.
Years of control kept me sharp and my dick soft in my pants.
I checked around the room, noticing the additional guards on the doors. Roger also had a man by his side constantly.
Looking back over at Ivan, I saw he kept his distance. This was always the case with parties like these.
“What do you need to do?” Aurora asked.
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“You’re here to talk to him, right?” She glanced behind her. “I guess you can’t get too close to him, can you? He knows who you are. What you’re capable of.”
“Most people do.”
She licked her lips and dropped her hands. “Excuse me.”
I frowned as I watched her leave. She’d abandoned me on the dance floor. Running my hands down my jacket, I checked out her ass. The gown she wore covered her body and yet left nothing to the imagination.
I didn’t know how it happened, but each time I looked at her, she got sexier. The curves of her ass and hips called to me. I wanted them in my hands as I took her. Maybe it was time for me to get a woman on the side because right now, all I could think about was sex and fucking my woman.
She moved through the throngs of people, and I finally got my feet moving, following behind her. She broke through the group surrounding Roger Hampton, and I was close enough to hear her speak.
“Mr. Hampton, it is an honor to finally get to meet you in person,” Aurora said. “I watched the last talk you did, and it was inspiring. In fact, I was wondering if it would be at all possible to have a quiet word with you. I’d like to consider investing myself in your future.”
The smile she gave him was … breathtaking.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ivan closing in.
“Well, thank you,” Roger said, excusing himself from the guests. He put a hand on the base of Aurora’s back, and I wanted to snap it off. No one touched my wife. “It is always a pleasure doing business with beautiful women, Miss…”
“Oh, I’m sorry, it’s Mrs. Ivanov, and you know, my husband would love to have a word with you as well.” She grabbed Roger’s arm and held her other out to me. “Hello, darling. I told Mr. Hampton you wanted to speak to him about investment. If you will excuse me, I see someone I must talk to.”
Like that, Aurora left just as Ivan joined us, along with Andrei, Ive, Victor, Peter, and Oleg. The six main district brigadiers, all present and all joined forces with Ivan Volkov.
The look on Roger’s face was priceless.
He turned to run, but Ivan had him, and together, we marched him out of the room, heading toward a private office where no one was around.
I checked the room, Ive and Victor covered the door, and Peter and Oleg took the windows while Ivan and Andrei dragged a struggling Roger into the room.
We wouldn’t hurt him too bad.
He hadn’t won yet, so all the power he had was nothing.
With my hand on my gun, I stood waiting.
“Mr. Volkov, I’ve been meaning to talk to you,” he said.
“Really, because for the past two weeks, you’ve been able to avoid my calls and every single chance to talk to me.” Ivan shoved him into a chair. With the doors closed, there wasn’t much we could do.
“Well, if you phone my secretary, we can arrange a meeting, and I know I’m fully scheduled.”
Ivan clucked his tongue. “Actually, I think right here and now. You see, the speeches you’re giving, they’re a little trying on my nerves. I wonder how the general public would feel to know the very man they’re putting all their faith in has a … gambling problem. The people that feed you, you want to rub into the dirt.”
I was bored as Ivan pulled out a blade. The security in this place was easily bought. It was how we got our guns through. Everyone here was on our payroll, which was why no security footage was being recorded.
After the standard five minutes of my presence, I made my excuses and headed in the direction of the security office.
As per my instructions, the guard on the door had taken a stroll.
I sat, glancing over the footage as Ivan made his threat. Within ten minutes, Ivan was leading Roger out of the room as if he’d not just threatened him. I extracted the data, wiped the system, and was heading back to the dance floor when I noticed my wife walking into the bathroom.
Following her inside, I stopped her from locking me out of a stall. The door closed, and I pressed up against her.
“This is the woman’s bathroom.”
“Do I look like a man who follows the rules?”
She shook her head. “No. I guess you’re a man who does exactly what he wants.”
“You’ve got that right.”
She nibbled on her lip. “Is there something you wanted to say to me?”
“Thank you,” he said.
“Whatever for?”
“You know what for.”
“Is this hard for you?” she asked.
This made me smile. Saying thank you didn’t come easy. “Why did you help?”
She shrugged her shoulder. “I’m your wife. By marrying you, I pledged my loyalty to you, didn’t I? I’m not longer a Fredo. I’m an Ivanov.” She didn’t look into my eyes.
What was going on here?
The door to the bathroom opened and Aurora tensed up.
For some reason, I didn’t want to embarrass her. I stepped back and allowed her to leave the stall. She stepped out of the stall, and I heard the women giggle and say hi to her.
I didn’t know what the hell had just happened or why I was still stuck in a bathroom stall. I could have easily followed her out. I didn’t care what people thought of me. Aurora continued to mess with my head. My wife shouldn’t be a problem to me and yet, she’d proven to be more of a challenge than I realized, and it pissed me off.
“Oh, my God, do you know who that was?” one of the women asked.
“No. She looks familiar.”
“She’s Aurora Ivanov! Oh, my God, I saw the pictures of her wedding. You know there is a rumor that said her husband is part of the Russian mafia, right? There’s this whole thing going on across the country. I don’t know the general working. It’s like the worst-kept secret.”
I frowned as I listened. I had no time for female gossip. Personally, I wanted to correct her that I was Bratva, not fucking mafia.
“I heard Slavik, the hot guy, he had to put a bag over her head to fuck her.” A round of giggles.
“Please, he couldn’t even be bothered to kiss her. You had to have seen the pictures. He brushed his lips across her cheek. I’m betting he can’t stand to touch her.”
The insults went on, and they angered me.
I had this desire to draw my weapon and kill them all there and then. Or better yet, to pull them out of the bathroom and force them to apologize to her.
This wasn’t the time or place.
Rage rushed through my body. I shoved it down.
All I wanted to do was kill. I held swift control even as I did want to kill. Who did they think they were? My wife was a fucking queen. Had Aurora dealt with this her whole life? I didn’t get a chance to confront them.
They left the bathroom after throwing more insults at my wife.
I walked out of the stall, then the bathroom, entering the dining room. I saw my wife standing with Ivan.
My boss talked to her, and I saw her smile.
Was my kiss to her cheek an insult?
She’d looked terrified, and I hadn’t wanted to cause her to panic on our wedding day. I’d also never kissed her.
Ignoring the strange looks, I advanced across the room. Everything seemed to fade all around me, and the only focus I had was on the woman.
I didn’t care who saw.
Ivan pointed toward me, and Aurora turned.
She frowned as I reached out. I cupped her face, drew her close to me, and slammed my lips down on hers. The electric current that rushed through me shocked me to the core. Never had I kissed a woman and felt so fucking whole and complete.