Total pages in book: 187
Estimated words: 177397 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 887(@200wpm)___ 710(@250wpm)___ 591(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 177397 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 887(@200wpm)___ 710(@250wpm)___ 591(@300wpm)
Before I can respond, a doorbell buzzes.
Nikita’s eyes pop before she strays them back to Maksim, who’s standing at the side of the living room, looking a cross between coy and frustrated. “That’ll be the event coordinator to set up the aisle.”
“You’re getting married now?”
She nods, smiles brightly, then bolts for the door to let in her late-night guests.
“Keet… I don’t think this is a good idea. You hardly know this man.” I twist to face Maksim. “No offense.”
“None taken,” he replies, stepping closer. “But we both agree that this is the best way we can move forward.”
With a proud smile, and after letting in a crew of twenty, Nikita cozies into Maksim’s side before fanning her hand over his heart. The position would have you convinced they’ve been married for decades. “I took Aleena’s advice. I told him everything. He knew most of it, but there were some things I had managed to keep secret”—she playfully slaps his chest—“despite being under surveillance twenty-four-seven.” She leans in as if sharing a secret but keeps her voice loud enough for everyone to hear. “You’re safe in the bathrooms, though I would steer clear of the bedrooms. Maksim has cameras everywhere.”
I swallow the brick her commentary caused before trying to simmer the electricity brewing in the air. “I’m glad you’ve been honest and that you’re happy with the outcome, but are you sure this is the route you want to take? Gigi will have a fit when she finds out you got married without her.”
“Maksim says we can do it again in a couple of months. We just need to wait for the heat to die down first.”
The gurgle of my stomach accompanies my brief reply. “Heat?”
Nikita looks set to answer me. Before she can, she is interrupted by a florist asking what color hydrangeas she wants on the makeshift altar.
“What am I missing?” I ask anyone willing to listen.
Maksim doesn’t seem like the type who enjoys an interrogation, but he gives me a little bit of leeway since it is late and I’m completely lost. “I can’t disclose everything now, but this is the best way for me to protect her. By becoming my wife, she won’t be just protected by me. She will also be sheltered under mafia law.”
“Mafia law?” I knew you could tell a man by his suit. Maksim’s screams mafia.
As does Andrik’s, though we will keep that confession for another day.
I appreciate his honesty when he dips his chin. I just wish the honesty route we’re endeavoring to get off the ground didn’t leave me open to infiltration.
“But I’ll have a hard time keeping her safe if you’re not on the same team as her.”
I take offense to his claim. “Of course I’m on the same team as her. I’ll always be on the same team as her. Nikita is my best friend. I would never do anything that could put her in danger…”
My words trail off when Maksim spins around a tablet he gathered off the couch table. The image on the screen is grainy, but not even poor pixelation can hide the fury in Andrik’s eyes as he drags me out of the competitor’s area of the bikini competition.
After a quick swallow, I say, “Andrik—”
“Andrik?” Maksim interrupts, his brow arched.
When I nod, he twists the tablet screen to face him, stares down at the image for several seconds in silence, and then tabs across several images.
The surveillance photo he shows me this time around makes more sense of his worry. It is a still image of Ellis goading me into accepting his bribe. I couldn’t look more corrupt if I tried.
“He was railroading me, so I said what he wanted to hear so he’d leave me alone. He wasn’t meant to show up. But when he did, I learned something I didn’t know previously, so I pretended his money was mine.”
Maksim twists his lips like this isn’t the first time he’s hearing my side of the story. “Is that how you paid for this?”
I follow his hand’s wave around the penthouse suite before nodding. “I deposited money into Nikita’s grandmother’s account before using her credit card to order an upgrade. Nikita doesn’t know about any of this. I don’t want to overwhelm her. She has enough on her plate.”
Again, he nods, his understanding a little unnerving. “If you truly want to help lessen her stress, you need to give the money back.”
“I know that. I’ve been wanting to do that. I just haven’t had the time…” I stop with the excuses and be honest. “I will give it back. I would do it tonight if I could.” I’m not sure how Andrik will feel when I admit to taking a bribe from his father, but I can’t demand the truth from him and not give him the same. “I left the majority of the money at Myasnikov.”