Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 89090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 445(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 445(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
“Leave before I call the police.”
“For what?” I fire back, my mood ropeable. “Standing on the street?”
I laugh when he says, “For stalking.” He nudges his head to a camera fixed above a shop frontage across the road from Polina’s boutique. “I have proof this isn’t the first time you’ve done this. It’s enough to prosecute.”
I’m tempted to ask if his proof includes Polina begging me to take her hard against the wall her shoulder was braced against only minutes ago, but I keep my mouth shut. I can’t do Polina wrong like that, but I also don’t want to admit I was someone’s side dish.
From what I heard in the bathroom, I wasn’t the only man Polina was getting hot and heavy with that evening.
This fuckhead was in on the action as well.
The realization makes it extremely hard to keep my fists balled at my sides and not in his face. The only reason I maintain my cool is because our exchange is being watched by more than the people monitoring the security system. There’s a crack in the thick drapes covering the living room window of Polina’s apartment, and I’d recognize her heated glare from any distance.
“You owe me three thousand dollars.” I cross my arms over my chest, my attitude rife. “I expect it by the end of business tomorrow… with interest. If I don’t get it, I’ll do more than break your hand.” I fight the smile dying to spread across my face when panic flares through Vasily’s eyes. I knew his pricy suits were bought off the rack. He wants to be wealthy, but he’s nothing but a shitkicker who does as ordered, which doubles my assurance he will adhere to all my threats tonight. “I also suggest you have an early night. We don’t want you too exhausted to earn the big bucks tomorrow doing the shifty shit that makes you believe you deserve a woman like her.” When I nudge my head to the window, the gap minimizes as Vasily follows the direction of my head jerk.
Assuming we’re alone, Vasily shifts his eyes back to me before saying, “You have no fucking clue what you’re walking yourself toward.”
“Perhaps not.” I shrug. “But do you think I care?”
He hits me where it hurts, even with his hands remaining glued to his sides. “I bet your brother would have liked more warning.”
I’ve only just grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt when the wail of police sirens suspends my fist midair. Their spotlight is on me, and their noisy arrival gives Polina an excuse to no longer hide her watch.
She eyes me with panic, like she’s worried I’ll hurt her douchebag of a boyfriend.
The knowledge sees my fist landing in the brickwork behind Vasily’s head before I stalk down the alleyway in search of the closest watering hole.
9
POLINA
“What do you mean you lost half a consignment?” Vasily slides through the back passenger door of his ride, grumbling a cuss word when he can’t hold his cell phone to his ear and shut the door at the same time.
His attitude is as predominant as it was when he arrived at my apartment earlier this week to disclose his supposed shock that he had spotted Yev entering an establishment known for prostitution.
He was attempting to act surprised. All I was slammed with was haughty superiority. His aim was to announce that he’s a superior man to Yev, but when he left my apartment before a single excuse left my mouth, he landed in his own trap.
Yev isn’t a man who’s done and dusted in five minutes. Even our hard-and-fast romp against the wall lasted well over twenty minutes, and before we were interrupted, his expression exposed that it was only the commencement of our night.
If Vasily had spotted Yev after I left him on the sidewalk, he would have only been inside Spanks for ten minutes maximum. That was nowhere near enough time for my worry about how close Vasily is watching Yev to switch to jealousy.
Don’t get me wrong, some jealousy was there, but it was more in response to Vasily associating with Yev instead of me.
I texted him multiple times the past week, requesting to speak with him. He’s yet to return a single message. It’s made me a little spiteful. I was usually the one who ran when Yev and I fooled around. It made the game of chase oh so enticing.
I don’t feel the same when I’m the one doing the chasing.
As Vasily plonks into his seat, he tugs at the cast circling his wrist and hand. Even with Yev breaking his wrist three weeks ago, he still hasn’t mastered the skill of using only one hand. The damage to his wrist required him to have two separate operations in the past week—his birthday week.