Page 15 of Bratva’s Vow (Bratva’s Undoing #2)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

WREN

T raffic was a nightmare on the way back to the office.

Sirens, flashing lights, and a tangled mess of bumper-to-bumper cars turned a fifteen-minute ride into a near-hour-long crawl through gridlock hell.

I sat fidgeting in the back seat of the SUV, staring at the time on the dashboard and silently begging the accident up ahead to clear faster.

Viktor didn’t say much, just grunted now and then, eyes flicking constantly to his mirrors like a predator tracking shadows.

By the time we finally pulled into the parking lot, my stomach was tight with nerves. The meeting should’ve ended ten minutes ago. Maybe Maxim got held up. Maybe I could still slide in, pretend like I’d been taking a long bathroom break.

The elevator pinged open, and I stepped out, keeping my head down as I tiptoed toward my desk, praying the universe would cut me a damn break for once .

Maxim’s door yanked open like it had been waiting for me.

“Wren!” His voice cracked through the air like a gunshot. “Get in here. Now.”

I flinched, my whole body reacting before my brain could catch up. I turned, forcing a weak smile at the sight of Marjorie from accounting, who’d startled at Maxim’s bellow.

“Oops.” I half laughed. “Probably shredded the wrong file again.”

“Wren!”

Shit. On a scale of one to five on the official Morozov Rage Scale, he was for sure clocking in at a six. When I stepped inside his office, the vein in his forehead popped wildly.

Fuck.

He was definitely at a seven.

I left the door wide open. In case I needed witnesses. Somebody would know where the scene of the crime was when my body washed up ashore for an unexpected person to find.

Maxim stalked toward me, fury written in every tense line of his body. He slammed the door shut behind me, the echo bouncing off the walls like he’d slapped me. Before I could react, his hands were on my shoulders, not exactly gentle, shoving me back against the closed door.

A loud gasp escaped me. Not so much from any actual pain but from the unexpectedness of him being so rough with me outside the bedroom. I was used to his yelling, his anger, but not this.

“Where the hell have you been?”

I blinked. “There was traffic. An accident?—”

“Bullshit. I called your phone like fifteen times, and you didn’t pick up once.”

“I didn’t receive any calls.” I patted my pockets. My phone. Where the hell was it? Had I left it in the store? “I don’t have my phone. I’m sorry?—”

“Are you, Wren? Because you keep doing this shit. Disappearing and not telling anyone where you’re going. Not Nik. Not me.”

I looked away, swallowing. “Now that’s not fair. I called Nik, but he was sleeping, and I didn’t plan on being out for long. I was gone just for a second.”

“With whom?”

“What?”

“Someone saw you with Bradley in the lobby, and then you disappeared at the same time he did.”

I blinked slowly. “Are you hearing yourself? I did chat with Bradley in the lobby, but we went our separate ways. What the fuck, Maxim? What are you saying?”

“I’m just reporting the facts. It’s no secret Bradley’s been flirting with you since day one.” His grip on my shoulder tightened. He wasn’t getting any calmer, but the mention of Bradley seemed to have pushed him over the edge.

“Wait a minute. Is that why you’ve been sending Bradley on assignments outside the office? You think I have something going on with him?”

“I don’t know what the fuck to think when I tell you to let me know where you’re going at all times, but you don’t. What was so important that you had to leave the office without a word?”

“It’s just…important.”

Maxim’s nostrils flared, and hot puffs of breath hit my face. His fingers dug even deeper into my skin.

“Why won’t you believe me? You’re the only one I’ve been with.”

“Then tell me where you were.”

“Ouch, Max.” I tugged on my arm, but he didn’t budge. “You’re scaring me. ”

“Good,” he hissed. “Maybe if you’re afraid of me, you’ll finally start listening. This is not a game, Wren.”

Something snapped in me. I shoved him back hard, teeth bared. My chest heaved as I stabbed a finger at him. “Are you out of your damn mind?”

He stumbled back a step, looking stunned that I would shove him.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I cried, blood rushing into my ears. “I’m not one of your men. You don’t get to manhandle me and question me like I’m on the witness stand because things don’t go your way.”

“I’m trying to protect you!” he shouted, voice raw with something dangerously close to panic. “Everyone else can see that except you.”

“Are you?” I spat. “Because all that Bradley nonsense sounds very much like you believe I’m fucking him. You think I’d cheat on you?”

His eyes flickered. “Then tell me where you were. Why is that so hard?”

I pulled the box from my pocket. “Since you’re so desperate for the truth, there!

That’s what I went to pick up.” I threw the box at him.

It hit him square in the chest and fell to the floor.

“It’s your birthday gift. The one I poured my heart into because I love you and I wanted to give you something that mattered.

But now you’ve ruined it! By the way, I didn’t go alone.

I might not have told you where I was going, but I took Viktor with me because I knew that’s what you would have wanted.

It’s one thing to treat me like I’m a child, but for you to insinuate something is going on between Bradley and me is unforgivable! ”

Maxim slowly bent and picked up the box. Still crouched, he popped the lid open to reveal the discreet medical bracelet I’d bought him.

“I had it custom-made.” I choked back a sob. “But I guess none of that means anything, since you’d rather believe I’m sneaking off to fuck a coworker than doing something nice for you.”

I yanked the door open, tears burning hot behind my eyes.

“Happy early fucking birthday, Maxim.”

I stormed out of his office, slamming the door shut.

My vision blurred as I speed-walked down the hallway, but I kept my head down, ignoring the handful of staff who turned and stared.

How much of my conversation with Maxim had they overheard?

How could I continue working for him now after this disaster of a day?

I held it in. Barely. My throat tightened, my chest squeezed, but I kept going until I reached the end of the hall and shoved my way into the nearest restroom.

The second the door swung shut behind me, it all crashed down.

“Fuck,” I hissed, gripping the edges of the sink so hard my knuckles turned white.

The tears came fast, angry and hot. I leaned forward, breathing hard. My reflection stared back at me—flushed cheeks, red eyes, trembling mouth. Only Maxim could make me feel this way when he was the one in the wrong. All I’d wanted was to do something special for him.

“Fucking asshole,” I muttered, scrubbing at my face with my sleeve. “Fucking unbelievable. What the hell is wrong with him?”

I yanked a handful of paper towels from the dispenser and furiously wiped my face, trying and failing to calm down.

“He actually thinks I’m screwing around on him?

Bradley, of all people? Like I’m just some opportunistic little slut he plucked out of a damn intern pool and now I’m gonna fuck the first guy who smiles at me?

” I spat at my reflection, feeling myself spiral.

“Controlling prick. He wants to know where I am every second of the day like I’m a damn child. ”

My insides hurt. How could he think I was cheating on him? I loved him, for fuck’s sake. I was happy with him. I spent all my time with him. When would I even have time to cheat with all the people he had watching me?

I threw the towels into the trash, breathing harder now, chest heaving as the frustration built.

“Like I don’t have a brain. Like I don’t deserve privacy or trust or anything that normal people in normal relationships get.” My voice cracked, but I didn’t stop. “I’m so fucking done. I should be done. I should leave him.”

But even the thought of leaving Maxim made the pain worse.

Maxim would never change. He was controlling by nature.

At times, I even liked it, but today he’d gone too far.

Yet I couldn’t imagine a life without him.

I would give him some space. Then we could talk about it when we got home. Didn’t he believe me that I loved him?

The door creaked open.

I froze, heart lurching painfully. For half a second, I thought—feared—it might be Maxim. Ready for round two.

But it wasn’t.

Bradley stepped in but stopped when he saw my red eyes and tear-streaked face.

“Whoa,” he said softly, shutting the door behind him. “You okay?”

I couldn’t stop the bitter laugh that escaped me.

“Yeah,” I said sarcastically, throwing my hands up. “Peachy. Just got accused of cheating, screamed at, shoved against a door, and emotionally nuked on what was supposed to be a good day.”

Bradley drew his brows together in something suspiciously close to sympathy .

“He’s impossible,” I muttered. “Maxim—he’s just… impossible. He wants to control everything. Everywhere I go, everything I do. Like I can’t even breathe without him having eyes on me.”

Fuck.

I’d said too much. And to Bradley of all people. If Maxim saw us together in the bathroom, his overactive imagination would run wild again.

Bradley didn’t say anything. Just studied me, his jaw ticking slightly. “You should come with me,” he said so softly I almost didn’t hear the words.

I frowned. “What?”

“Come with me,” he repeated. “There’s something you need to know. About Maxim.”

I stiffened, wiping at my face. Going with Bradley would only be a slap in Maxim’s face. He would never believe I wasn’t having an affair with Bradley if I went off with him after our fight. The last thing I wanted was to complicate matters.

“That’s not a good idea. I just need a moment, and I’ll be fine.”