Leonid crouches on the ground, and Lucky throws her little body at him while Marvel washes his face with his tongue. It’s like a scene from a cheesy Hallmark movie where the guy without a heart finally thaws when he discovers that all he ever wanted was the daughter of his rival and a garden filled with dogs.
“Do you have a stash of meat treats in your pockets or have you been training them in secret to come to you?” I ask.
“I think it’s my allure. Dogs just love me.”
At the mention of the word ‘love’ I feel the heat spreading up my neck and into my face. After last night, I woke up to find Leonid gone again, and tears immediately welled in my eyes like he was never coming back. What is wrong with me? I’m his prisoner—he can’t just disappear and leave me here with the wicked witch of the west and goth-Glinda for company.
I realize that he’s dodging the furry bodies clambering all over his once-immaculate suit and watching me closely. I hope he wasn’t planning on wearing it outside of the house again today.
“Is that right?” I toss the tennis ball I’m holding from one hand to the other and deliberately throw it away from the decking. “Go get the ball.”
Both dogs follow the ball’s trajectory and bound after it without so much as a backwards glance.
“It’s a shame your allure doesn’t quite live up to a tennis ball.”
I chuckle, and Leonid comes over to me and kisses me on the lips, gripping my chin in what I’m starting to think of as his signature move.
“What do you want to talk about?”
When I found him in his study last night, he looked like a shadow of the man he is today, the man in the designer suit with his well-groomed hair and the kind of broad shoulders that Atlas would’ve been proud of. I never expected to see Leonid Ivanov looking anything less than perfect, like he was crafted from marble and steel. But last night … it was as if something had broken him.
Or perhaps that’s how he looks with the polished veneer stripped away, and his guard lowered.
Now that I’ve seen it though, I can’t unsee it, and I still have the overwhelming urge to wrap my arms around him and cradle him to sleep the way a mom would cradle a baby.
“Let’s walk.” He whistles. The dogs come running over, and I fall into step beside him.
There are still guards positioned strategically around the property, but it feels bizarre to stroll across the lawn with Leonid and the dogs like this is a game of happy families. At what point will he come to me and say that it’s time for me to leave? It’s inevitable. This isn’t real, and people like me and Leonid will only ever be game players even if I’m just a lowly pawn and he’s the king.
I should have kept him at arm’s length. I saw what he was capable of that first morning and promised myself that I would make him pay, and here I am walking beside him and counting down the hours until he slides between my legs in his bed tonight.
We keep walking, past the maze and the tennis courts, and I’m hit with a strong sense of déjà vu. This is the same route I walked with Tamara when she offered to help me escape.
Is this some kind of trick? Does he expect me to reenact what happened or is he going to give me a second opportunity to run while he looks the other way? If that’s the case, what will I do? Can I leave Lucky behind and pick up my life where it left off?
And what about Leo? To never feel his arms around me again, or his lips crushing mine, or to hear him call me his printzessa… Is that what I want?
I already know the answer.
We approach the edge of the woods, and my pulse starts to race. This is it. This is where he tells me that I get a head start if I want to reach the perimeter of his land before his men hunt me down.
He tosses the ball for the dogs to chase and turns to face me. “I have a proposition for you, Gianna. Well, two propositions. Although they’re connected so perhaps it is only one after all.”
Is he nervous? Leonid Ivanov, Russian mafia boss, casino owner, and enemy of Xander Amory is actually sweating.
“Are you going to tell me what it is?”
“Gianna, what happened yesterday—”
“That was yesterday.” I intertwine my fingers with his to stop him from pulling away from me as fresh tears collect on my bottom lashes. He’s letting me go, and he doesn’t even realize that this isn’t what I want. “And today is another day. It’s what my mom used to say when I was a little girl.”
“She sounds like a wise lady.”
“She was.”
What would she have thought of Leonid? It makes my chest ache to think that I’ll never get the chance to ask my mom’s opinion, but I think that Mel would approve. She would want me to be happy, and to experience the kind of love she has for Xander, no matter how difficult it might be.
“I want to build a women’s refuge in the city.”
I blink. I think I must be delusional because it sounded like he just said that he wanted to build a women’s refuge in the city.
“Which city?”
He grins at me like I just told him he has ketchup on his tie. Not that Leonid probably ever eats ketchup. “This city.”
“Chicago? Why?” I hear him, but the words aren’t computing inside my head.
“Why not? There aren’t enough places to go around.”
The dogs run back to us, and I throw the ball for them on autopilot. “But … a women’s refuge? I mean, it’s a wonderful idea but…”
“But not the kind of project a man like me would undertake.”
His eyes grow dark, and my chest grows heavy with guilt. This is exactly what I was thinking, and I should know better than to judge people on what the rest of the world sees. He rescued Marvel, something that I could never imagine in a million years Xander Amory doing.
Something I could imagine though, is my brother-in-law getting hold of this information and using it to his advantage.
“I’m sorry.” I suck on my bottom lip, and I swear I can still taste Leo on it. “I didn’t mean it to come out like that.”
“Gianna, you don’t have to apologize to me. Ever.” He holds my gaze, and I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to. “Perhaps it isn’t a project that I would have accepted, until now. But you’ve opened my eyes.”
My heart does this funny skipping thing. “I have?”
“I see your passion, and your conviction, and your determination to make the world a better place, and I know that if anyone can succeed, it’s you.”
“What are you saying, Leo?”
“The refuge is yours… If you want it?”
“Mine?”
“Yours.” Leo tilts my chin towards him and kisses me on the lips producing more tears. “I told you I look after what’s mine, and I’ve never wanted to protect anyone more than you, my printzessa.”
“I could fly my friends over from Montenegro to help me.”
“You can fly the Pope in to help you if that’s what you want.”
“I don’t know how to run a refuge, but I can learn.”
“Anything can be learned, Gianna.” He folds me into his arms and holds me close. “Anything.”
My thoughts are spiraling out of control. I can already picture me, Mika, and Cartier in our own refuge, helping vulnerable women to rebuild their lives while keeping them safe. I can imagine Lucky dividing her affection between the women like a therapy dog, listening, loving, and teaching them to trust again.
It’s a dream come true.
But these idyllic images shatter when I think of my father’s reaction to me rejecting Seamus to, instead, manage a refuge with Leonid Ivanov.
He will never allow it. He would rather send me back to Montenegro than have me flaunt his orders in his face right here in the city.
My fragile dreams are already turning sour on my tongue as Leo holds me at arm’s length and lowers his face to peer into my eyes. “What is it, my printzessa?”
I swallow the solid lump in my throat. “It’s a lovely idea, Leo, but it will never work.”
“Hey, that’s not the reaction I expected. You’re a fighter, Gianna. If anyone can make it work, you can.”
“It isn’t that.” Adrenaline, disappointment, the looming prospect of returning to reality, these things are all rushing through my veins and making my heartbeat feel like the dull thud-thud-thud of heavy stones inside my chest. “It’s my father. He would never agree to me working with—”
“With me?”
Of course, he already thought this through. But not even Leonid Ivanov will sway my father on this one.
“He would have no say in the matter if you were running the refuge with your husband.”
“Seamus?” I shake my head and pull away from his strong arms. It feels wrong to mention my fiancé while my body is pressed up against Leo. “Seamus would never… Why would you even suggest it?”
Does he want me to go through with the arranged marriage? Is this Leo’s way of getting rid of me, by bribing me with my own refuge when I can still feel him inside me from last night?
“No, Gianna, not Seamus. I’m talking about me.”
“You?” It comes out as a high-pitched squeak, and I wish I could take it back, but my brain has given up trying to keep up with this turn of events. “I-I don’t… I mean… I don’t know what … is going on here.”
Leonid takes my hands in his. “I realize this is probably the most unromantic marriage proposal in history, and this isn’t how I would’ve wanted to propose to you. I mean, I don’t even have a ring, but well, like I said, the two propositions go hand in hand and…” His voice trails off when the look of utter shock on my face sinks in. “You could manage the refuge as my wife.”
“Your wife?”
Excitement and joy and more excitement ripples through my veins, being quietly tampered down and suppressed by the fear that he is doing this for all the wrong reasons. I come from a mafia family. I know how these things work, especially for the daughters. And I’m frightened to acknowledge the very real probability that love hasn’t played even a tiny part in this unexpected proposal.
“I know I’ve sprung this on you without warning,” he continues, “and I don’t expect you to give me an answer immediately. But I know it would make you happy, and I want to make you happy, Gianna.”
I avert my eyes. I get a rush of warmth from these words. I know that he wants me as much as I want him; I’m not completely naïve. But he still hasn’t mentioned the word ‘love’. My head is yelling at me to ask him outright: do you love me? But my heart is counter attacking with I shouldn’t have to ask.
If he loved me, he would tell me, right?
“I don’t know.” I swallow the tears clogging my throat and behind my eyes. “I need time to think about it. My father…”
“Once we’re married, there’s nothing he can do about it, Gianna. You’ll be mine. You’ll be free to run a refuge or travel around the world or rescue dogs if that’s what you want. I will never stop you from doing whatever makes you happy. I promise.”
I’m not paying attention. I’m stuck on the word ‘free’ because I’m not free to do whatever I want. Whatever Leonid says, I’m still a prisoner in his house. I’m not even allowed to call my sister—the one person who could give me the advice I need right now.
“I’ll think about it.” I don’t meet his eyes. “I’m going to stay in the guest room tonight.”
I walk back to the house, and I don’t look behind me.
I toss and turn all night. I eat supper in my room, brought to me by Tamara, and curl up beneath the comforter imagining Leo lying next to me. How is it possible to miss someone you hardly know so much? I miss his heat, his kisses, his tongue between my legs. I feel as though I’ve instinctively raised a barrier between us, and it breaks my heart to think that the dogs, and the maze, and picnics by the pond are all on his side of the wall.
Marrying him without my father’s permission would be like sticking a middle finger up at my family and all that my father has done for me since my mom died.
Marrying him without Mel would feel like an even bigger betrayal.
Mel knows everything there is to know about me. Apart from this. But I spend the night alternating between Mel’s disappointment when she discovers that I married a mafia boss in secret, and my disappointment that my family hasn’t tried to free me.
Even if I don’t agree to marry Leo, though, how can I marry Seamus now, or anyone else for that matter? Seamus is expecting to marry a virgin. It’s part of the contract.
But more importantly, I can’t imagine being married to anyone else. I would climb into bed beside my husband and think of Leo. When we kiss, it would be Leo’s lips I’m imagining. When we have sex, it will be Leo I can feel inside me. Because the truth is, he set out to corrupt me, and instead, he has left his imprint on me that no one else will ever be able to erase.
My head is fuzzy when I wake up like my brain cells are wrapped in cotton wool. I dress and eat breakfast in the guest room. Alone. It makes me feel uneasy how comfortable I felt sharing Leo’s bed and staying in his room; staying in the guest room without him is like sleeping on the floor without a blanket and with all the windows open.
Cold and lonely.
Will he expect an answer today?
Did he go to the office early this morning as usual or did he stick around to wait for me?
I wonder if he slept soundly or if he missed me in his bed.
I contemplate telling the guard outside my door that I’m sick and will spend the day in my room—anxiety is making me feel nauseous, so it wouldn’t be a total lie—but Leonid will know that I’m avoiding him, and so will everyone else on his staff. Besides, it isn’t like there’s anywhere for me to hide. If he wants to find me, he will.
So, I shower and dress, finish the last slice of cold toast on the breakfast tray, and wander down to the kitchen unescorted. I pass several other guards along the way, and no one comments about me roaming the house alone. Has Leonid warned them to give me the freedom of the house?
I smell his woody cologne before I reach the kitchen. Closely followed by voices: Leo’s and Tamara’s. The hair on the back of my neck immediately stands on end.
She can’t be trusted. Who knows what she’ll say about me when I’m not around to defend myself, and after my reaction to Leo’s marriage proposal and me choosing to stay in the guest room, he might be more inclined to believe her today.
I know what curiosity did to the cat, but what the hell—I stand outside the kitchen entrance and listen to what’s being said.
“You know what people will say, Pakhan.” This is Tamara. “They’ll say that the cracks are starting to show.”
“Let them say what they will. You know how I feel about gossip.”
“This isn’t just gossip though. Xander Amory has been waiting for a reason to discredit you.”
My stomach twists as the image of the severed hand pops into my head.
But Leo’s voice is calm and steady. “I have already given him plenty of reasons. If he believes that opening a women’s refuge with his sister-in-law is a sign of weakness, then he still has much to learn.”
He told Tamara about the refuge!
Maybe it’s a childish reaction, but the thought of Leo discussing the refuge with Tamara taints it somehow. As though she has seen the completed building before me and has already dismissed it as a novelty that the pakhan will tire of when he comes to his senses.
I’m about to turn around and head back upstairs to the guest room when she adds, “The printzessa has changed you, and not for the better. The sooner she goes home, the sooner our lives can return to normal.”
I bristle.
I knew she didn’t want me around, but to hear her say the words out loud to Leo drives home what I already feared: I don’t belong here.
With tears making my vision blurry, I turn around and run back along the hallway, colliding face-first with a woman I’ve never seen before.
“Gianna?” She knows me though.
She stands back and reaches for my hand, staring at the tears streaking my cheeks.
“What’s wrong? Is it Leo?” Her casual use of his shortened name causes me to sniff loudly and peer at her through my tears.
The woman appears to be around Leo’s age with long dark hair slicked back into a tight fashionable ponytail, and large brown eyes. But it’s the high, chiseled cheekbones and strong jawline that tell me that she must be related to Leo.
“No.” I shake my head and blink away the tears. “It’s nothing.”
“Okay, it doesn’t look like nothing to me. Did Leo speak to you yesterday? Is that what this is about?”
She knows as well. Fresh tears spill, and she ushers me through a doorway and into the dining room where I first met Leonid. She pulls out a seat and tells me to sit, and it’s clear that, like her brother, she is used to being obeyed.
A cup of freshly brewed coffee is placed in front of me along with a crisp white napkin that I’m afraid to use to wipe my eyes. She sits next to me and pretends not to notice my streaked cheeks and puffy eyes.
“I’m Victoria, Leo’s sister. I handle the legal side of the operation.”
I don’t know what to say, so I dab my cheeks carefully, and sip my coffee.
“Leo came to see me yesterday. He wanted to discuss the women’s refuge.” Her eyes flicker across my face, gauging my reaction to see whether her brother mentioned his proposition or not. Satisfied that this isn’t a complete shock to me, she presses on. “I told him that I thought it was a good idea.”
I feel a ‘but’ coming on, so I keep quiet, and let her do the talking. I need to clear Tamara’s voice from my head before I say something that I’ll regret when it gets back to Leo.
“You’re worried about your family, aren’t you?”
I nod. “My father would never agree to me working for Leo.”
“But you wouldn’t be working for my brother. The refuge would be in your name, Gianna. Didn’t Leo tell you this?”
“I… No, he didn’t.”
She rolls her eyes, and I can imagine them bickering when they were kids, and Victoria always coming out on top. I wonder if she resents his position as the head of the family, but it isn’t the kind of question you ask a mafia family member. At least not if you want to keep your kneecaps intact.
“Typical Leo.” She sucks in a deep breath. “He expects people to know what he’s thinking.”
“Why? I mean, why would he put it in my name? Does he not want to be associated with it?”
“You really haven’t figured it out, have you?”
Sniff. My tears are drying up, but emotions are still swirling around my gut like a whirlpool. “Figured what out?” I wish this family would just learn to say what they mean.
“You’re really not like the others. No wonder my brother has fallen hard.”
My heart chooses this moment to start fluttering like a butterfly on crack, and I can’t concentrate on what she’s saying.
Victoria tugs a lock of my hair over my shoulder in an action that mimics her brother. “Leo is doing this for you, Gianna. Because, although he hasn’t had the balls to admit it yet, he’s in love with you.”
And just like that, my world flips on its axis, and the sun comes back out with a vengeance.
