Page 10 of Konstantin (Marinov Bratva #1)

CHAPTER NINE

EMILIA

The sun is already pushing through the slit in my curtains when I blink my eyes open. It spills across my face in soft gold, and for a second, I forget where I am.

But then I roll over and see the time: six thirty in the morning. In a little bit, I’ll have to come face-to-face with Konstantin all over again.

This is gonna be a fun fucking day. I can feel it…

Groaning, I swing my legs over the side of the bed and pad toward the shower. The pipes in my tiny two-bedroom home creak to life as steam fills the bathroom. My muscles ache, not from sleep, but from everything else. From what Konstantin did to me. What I let him do.

I step into the hot spray, letting it scald my skin, hoping it will wash away the memories still clinging to my body. It doesn’t. I stay under the water until the steam clouds the mirror and the heat seeps into my bones.

Eventually, I force myself out, toweling off quickly, then dry my hair before stepping into the hallway. That’s when my phone pings and a message lights up the screen.

Konstantin

My driver’s waiting for you outside. Don’t rush.

Tessa

He might be waiting a while.

Konstantin

We both know you’re worth waiting for.

I fight the smile as I toss the phone on the bed and take my time getting ready. His charm won’t work on me. Not in this life, and not in the next. And I sure as hell am not about to let him think I’m scrambling for him. He may be my boss, but I’m in charge.

Grabbing my black pencil skirt and pale blue silk blouse, I slip into them before sliding into a pair of black pumps. The outfit’s modest, but sharp, the kind of thing I wore working bureau cases.

Adding a touch of makeup, I dry my hair and curl the ends just a little before flipping my head over and running my fingers through the strands. With my purse in hand and my peacoat on, I finally step outside, the morning air slightly chilly.

The black sedan parked at the curb is definitely expensive. I think it’s a Bentley of some kind, with windows tinted so dark I can’t see a thing.

I lock my front door, slipping my keys back into my bag. Just as I turn to head down the steps for the car, the front door next to mine opens.

“Morning, Tessa,” says Caleb, my sweet, kind-of-flirty neighbor.

He’s probably in his early thirties, and if I was into the whole “bring him to meet your mom” vibes, I’d have already fucked him. But I don’t have a mom who’d give a shit, and the kind of guys I’m normally into are definitely not what people would call sweet.

“Hey.” God, I despise small talk, especially with people I’m deceiving.

He jogs across his lawn toward me.

Great…

“You’re all dressed up.” He grins. “Got a big day or something?”

I shrug, trying to stay casual. “New job.”

His brows lift. “Congrats. You celebrating tonight? Maybe I can take you out. I know this really low-key place?—”

The back door of the Bentley swings open so fast, it makes both of us jump.

Konstantin steps out, to my utter shock. Black suit. No tie. Shirt open at the throat. But it’s his gaze I’m more concerned about. That lethal brutality in it, aimed at poor Caleb, like he might put a bullet between his eyes for simply existing.

This day is getting better by the second.

He stalks toward me, slow and sure. When he gets close, he leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek, but I can feel his anger coming out of him in waves.

Well, this is bad. Psycho Bratva kingpin is about to get real crazy.

“I didn’t know you were here,” I tell him, while his glare remains on my poor, innocent neighbor. I start to turn to Caleb, fumbling for something to say. “This is my b?—”

“Boyfriend,” Konstantin cuts in, smooth as silk, while his arm curls around my hips.

My eyes widen slightly at him, but his expression is filled with amusement, like he’s daring me to fight him on it.

Caleb’s smile drops. “Oh. Cool. Well, congrats on the new job.”

He retreats fast, and Konstantin watches him with his nostrils flaring.

“Why did you just say that? You’re insane,” I mutter.

He sucks in a long breath before he turns to me, fingers gripping my jaw as his face drops closer. “You haven’t even seen the tip of the iceberg.”

I can feel the truth of his words, like they’re living and breathing.

“So get in the car, Ms. Monroe…” His mouth lowers to the curve of my ear, palms tightly rounding my hips. “Before I show you exactly what I’m capable of.”

Pretty sure I already know everything this man is capable of. Nothing would surprise me. He’s a soulless monster while, to the world, he pretends he has an ounce of decency.

His fingers thread through mine, and a rush of warmth skates up my spine. I hate how good it feels to be held so protectively, especially by the likes of him. I grit my teeth against the comfort it brings, like my body is playing for the wrong team.

He leads me toward the car, opening the door in the back, and I slide in before he follows. Once we’re both seated, the driver takes the car down the road.

I turn toward him. “So, are you gonna explain why in the hell you called yourself my boyfriend? Don’t you realize how inappropriate that is?”

Konstantin reclines, spreading his knees, those dark irises roving down my body. “If anything, you should be thanking me.”

I laugh. “And why’s that?”

“Well, it seems as though I was saving you from what looked like a tragically boring relationship. And you’re not the kind of girl who thrives on boredom, are you, Ms. Monroe?”

I glare. “That was still not appropriate. You’re the furthest thing from my boyfriend.”

He sighs, as though this conversation is beneath him. As he draws closer, his fingers trail up my thigh, slow and measured. “I think you seem to be forgetting one thing.”

I quirk a brow in question, and his mouth tips up.

“You belong to me. ”

“As your assistant. Not your girlfriend.”

His chuckle drips with darkness. The kind of sound that seduces and scars. He leans closer, mouth brushing my ear, the scent of him doing terrible things to my resolve.

“I love this skirt, by the way.” His tone turns gruff. “But if you wear that blouse again, I might have to fuck you across my desk just to get it off.”

My breath catches, thighs clenching on instinct. But the way he brushed past our conversation doesn’t go unnoticed.

The bastard smirks again. “You’re blushing, malyshka.”

I force my voice steady. “I don’t blush. But know one thing. I’m here to work. That’s all.”

He cups my chin, turning my face to his. “This is fun.” His thumb swipes my lips. “Watching you pretend you don’t want me.”

My jaw tightens beneath his touch. Because he’s not wrong. My body responds to him like it has never learned how to resist. No man has ever made me feel like this, like I’m losing control.

But that doesn’t mean he gets to have all of me.

I have a mission. A brother to save. A truth to uncover.

And Konstantin? He’s the villain in this story. The kind of man who burns everything he touches. The kind of man who doesn’t just destroy lives; he plays with them first, and I won’t be his next toy.

No matter how good he looks in that suit, no matter how badly I want to give in and let him ruin me, he’ll never have the part of me that matters. Not my loyalty. Not my heart. And certainly not my trust.

If I end up in his bed, it won’t be because I love him. It’ll be because I chose it.

When it’s over, he’ll still be the same ruthless man. And I’ll still be the woman who walked into hell for her brother and never let herself forget why.

KONSTANTIN

The Bentley glides to a stop in front of my building—a monolithic tower of glass and steel that reflects the city back at itself. Clean lines, black and silver. Cold to most, but to me, it’s cathedral.

The doors unlock, and I don’t wait for the driver. I round the car and open hers myself. She steps out slowly, her heels clicking against the concrete.

Her eyes trace up the building, lips parting like she’s actually impressed. “You own this whole building?”

“Every floor, top to bottom. Even the café downstairs that sells overpriced croissants.”

She lifts a sassy brow when she catches my smirk. “How humble of you.”

Of course, she’s not at all amused. Not that I expected her to be. It’ll take more to crack that armor around her. But I have all the time in the world.

“Come, let me show you where you will be working.”

I guide her through the lobby, my hand on her lower back. She tenses beneath my touch, but doesn’t pull away, which naturally pleases me.

The elevator opens and we step inside. She doesn’t speak, simply content staring ahead as we climb to the top floor. Though I don’t miss the way her reflection watches me in the polished steel, and I would pay any money in the world just to know what she’s thinking.

As soon as the door parts, the floor secretary greets us with a polite nod. “Good morning, sir.”

We head left, down a long corridor that leads to the heart of my empire: my office. I let her in first, observing as her gaze sweeps across the room. It’s massive, intentionally so. A symbol of power that I wield freely over those who need the reminder that I’m always in charge.

A black velvet sofa rests against one wall, while my desk dominates the center of the space—a massive slab of polished obsidian, clean and cold.

I lead her toward the glass-paneled door on the right that opens to the small office within mine.

“That’s your workspace.” My hand rests across the small of her back. “Close enough that I can see you at all times.”

She lets out a snicker, but doesn’t step out of my touch. I watch her look around her new space, her gaze swimming past the black desk, already installed with top-of-the-line tech.

“Everything you need is here. Your credentials are in the drawer.”

My hand draws up and down her arm from behind as her breath hitches. Every muscle in my body tenses as this proximity, this need for her claws at me, ripping through skin and bone.