Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 106159 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106159 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Alas, I couldn’t be so lucky.
I’m forced to remove my eyes from the divinity of manliness when Polina’s exchange with Yev ends sooner than planned.
They’ve barely shared a handful of words, but she’s farewelling him as if he’s an old acquaintance instead of the lost love of her life. “I need to go. We’ll catch up soon.”
Yev attempts to snatch up Polina’s wrist, but she slips out of his hold before charging down the busy sidewalk like her booty is on fire, along with her panties.
Unsure of what is happening, I give Yev a confused shrug before taking off after Polina. My heels pinch my feet, but that isn’t the only pain I suffer while racing to catch up with her. My love of drama isn’t as perverse when my sprint sees me losing the interest of the gorgeous specimen lingering in an alleyway.
He doesn’t follow my weave through thousands of partygoers like most men do when I toss them the slightest bit of attention. He keeps one polished black dress shoe crossed in front of the other, and his what I am certain is a magnificent body concealed by an ankle-length trench coat and folded arms.
My disappointed response is odd. I’m not a girl who chases men. I prefer they come to me, but I’d be a liar if I said a stab of regret isn’t hitting me square in the stomach.
It worsens when I learn the cause of Polina’s quick exit.
Her boyfriend has arrived to kill the fun, and he does it in a way even I’m shocked about.
He slaps Polina.
2
NATALYA
“I said I’d get you your money,” I snarl while yanking out of Vasily’s grip, my words shaky.
I’m not usually a skittish type of girl, but Vasily is giving arrogance a run for its money tonight, which is shocking since he’s sporting a freshly bruised face and contorted wrist.
Yev responded to Vasily’s slap how you’d hope any man would when their woman is in trouble—with a good old-fashioned beatdown. With a handful of punches and a hold on Vasily’s wrist that had everyone surrounding their exchange cringing, Yev had Vasily regretting the day he was born.
Then sirens started wailing, and the party-like atmosphere dulled to the unwanted hum of a funeral parlor.
Although every girl wants to believe they’re a frisky wink away from securing anyone’s freedom, flirty banter barely gets you out of a parking ticket around these parts. Kronstadt PD is corrupt, and don’t get me started on the government officials who pay their wages.
I’m lying low in Kronstadt purely because money was the only thing needed to enter this part of the country. Every other bustling metropolis demanded at least a photo ID.
There’s less chance of being found when you keep things basic. I know that better than anyone, but Vasily is a leech. He won’t let Yev’s beatdown be seen as him protecting his girl. He will drag it through the media and to the authorities, meaning Polina’s boutique could be placed in the spotlight.
Since that is the last thing I want, I spoke before considering the repercussions of my actions. I offered Vasily a bribe.
I have a trust fund—a massive one. I once thought it was the solution for all my issues. Then I found out that nothing in life comes free. Every penny in my account has a stipulation attached to it, and to access it, I’d have to give up more than my pride.
But I don’t have much choice. Yev was here because I sent him a text pretending I was Polina, and Vasily reacted to his jealousy poorly because you can’t miss the sparks that forever zap between Yev and Polina.
Technically, this is my fault.
I learned over two years ago that the consequences of my actions belong on no one’s shoulders but mine. I just wish I had given my bribe the consideration it deserved. Vasily wants payment tonight, and I can’t adhere to his demand.
My parents are old-fashioned. Before my access was revoked, any transactions I made to my trust fund account were done in the branch. Furthermore, it is late on a Friday night. No banks are open at this hour.
Needing time to think, I shift on my feet to face Vasily before vying for more time with fluttering lashes. “I’ll bring it to your apartment.”
Kronstadt PD isn’t the only corrupt entity in Kronstadt, so surely I can find a way to come up with the funds without ruining years of personal growth and development. My smarts just need to kick back on. They’re still incapacitated from the immediate incineration of my panties when the mysterious stranger assisted me at the start of Yev’s lesson.
My trip down memory lane is cut short when Vasily shakes his head. After dragging his eyes away from the medic he’s refusing service from, he instructs, “Call me when you have it. I’ll come to you.” Never one to end a conversation without issuing a threat, he tilts in close and bares teeth. “You have until midnight. If I don’t hear from you by then, I’ll do far worse than report him to the authorities.”