Page 17

KONSTANTIN

“ S o, you’re not going to share?” Mikhail’s annoying voice made my eyes open.

I hadn’t even realized they had closed, I was just savoring the gooey chocolate from the brownies I stole mere hours ago.

At first, I didn’t plan on eating them. Sweets weren’t usually my thing, but the scent emanating from the little container got my curiosity going. I couldn’t deny that they were delicious.

My brother tried grabbing one for himself but I slapped his hand away with a glare. Asher laughed from the opposite couch.

“I’m telling mom you won’t share.”

“Go ahead, I’ll tell her you’re a whore.”

Mikhail had the audacity to gasp, affronted. Paying him no mind, I closed the lid on the container, deciding to save them for later when I was in bed, away from prying hands.

“Dude, seriously, not even one?”

My eyes fell on Asher and I glared at the stupid grin he had on. It was the first time he’d hung out with us in over a week. When he learned he’d be there, Rhodes refused to come. They still weren't on speaking terms and it was annoying the fuck out of me but I chose not to say anything. The way Asher had treated him wasn't dignified and I couldn’t hold it against Rhodes to refuse to be in the same room. I had always suspected our friend felt more for Asher than he let on, and not only on a sexual level.

If I was right, then it meant Asher had broken Rhodes’s heart.

Royal too was missing tonight, but I had a feeling it was because he was too busy stalking the new girl.

“If one of you tries taking them from me again, I’ll fucking murder you.”

“Mom said no murders at school,” came in my oldest brother’s voice as he entered the Church.

We all turned towards him as he walked over to us, a small smile stretching his lips.

“Am I dreaming? Is that my favorite brother gracing us with his presence?” Mikhail grinned stupidly, letting his head fall back against the back of the couch idly.

“Fuck off.”

Dom sat down next to Asher, looking tired.

“What’s up?” I asked, noticing a tension around his shoulders and the way his fingers immediately started picking at the lint on the couch.

Those were signs that he was nervous and something was bothering him.

Dom and I had a pretty good relationship; I’d say out of all my brothers, he was the one I was closest to. I didn’t connect to him as much as I did with Dinara, but he came a close second.

His eyes found mine, probably a little surprised that I knew something was up, before he sighed and he too let his head fall back against the back of the couch.

“Just got off the phone with home.” He kissed his teeth. “I’m getting married this year.”

Silence stretched in the room, all of us taking a second to digest the news. That was unexpected.

As fucked up as our parents were, they believed in true love. They taught us from a young age to save ourselves for our second half, and told us we’d be glad one day to have kept some part of us for whoever that would be. All that bullshit.

So it had always been like a silent agreement that we’d get to choose our own partner. The so-called other half.

“What the hell?” Mikhail straightened, leaning forward and putting his elbows on his knees. “They’re forcing you to marry?”

Dominik winced. “Not really. They gave me a choice. Arsen Aronov wants to cement our alliances; he asked if I would consider marrying his eldest niece.”

Aronov was a Kazakh crime lord. Much like our family, he didn’t belong to one single organization but rather had them all depend on him for one thing or another.

“Why his niece? Why not his daughter?” Asher wondered, confused.

“Aronov does not have children,” Mikhail clarified for him. “His wife died during childbirth years ago and he never remarried or had any kids. He’s one of Father’s only friends, but I never would have thought he’d try to make official alliances.”

“He’s dying,” I concluded, looking at my eldest brother.

Dominik nodded slowly. “He is. Apparently, he’s been training her to take over his business but he knows if she does so unmarried, his men will turn against her and question her authority.”

“Why not have one of them marry her, then? You said he’s Kazakh, won’t the rest of his men be angry that she’s marrying outside her culture?”

Asher had all the right questions tonight.

“Probably, but they would be too scared to try anything if she’s with a Korolov,” I shrugged.

“So, you’ll do it?”

Dom closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, obviously conflicted, while Mikhail looked at him intently, waiting for an answer.

If there was one thing to know about our oldest brother, it was that he would do anything to please our parents. He chose to study business to take over Korolov Investments, our most lucrative legitimate business, even though he deep down hated it and wanted to work in art history and restoration. He followed instructions and rules to a fault, and was never too busy for our parents—or any of us, really. All in all, Dominik was like a golden retriever.

One that could kill you in the most excruciating ways without feeling bad about it, but a golden retriever nevertheless.

“Of course I will. How could I say no? Arsen has always been loyal to our family, dad would’ve been disappointed if I’d refused.”

“You’re taking that kiss-ass attitude a little too far,” Mikhail deadpanned, earning himself the middle finger from brother dearest.

“Sorry I’m not an irresponsible man-child like yourself.”

Khail stayed quiet out of respect for our older brother but I saw him grit his teeth to keep from answering. I never quite understood why he always took it personally when we called out his inability to be responsible. After all, he’d carefully crafted it throughout the years, it wasn’t like it wasn’t earned.

“Guess congratulations are in order then?” Asher broke the tension, clearing his throat and patting Dom’s shoulder. “Have you seen her yet? What does she look like?”

“No idea. All I know is she’s twenty-four and has a degree in business, like me,” he shrugged, clearly not entranced by the idea of his future wife.

“You don’t even have her name?” Mikhail inquired.

Dom frowned, his gaze looking lost in the distance all of a sudden.

“Zahar. Her name is Zahar.”

When the double doors of the dining hall came into view, I felt almost giddy. Like a five-year-old boy on Christmas Eve, I was fucking excited to see Elyssa and get another batch of her brownies.

It was pathetic, yes, but I was past caring.

Nobody would guess what was going on inside my head by looking at me.

After trying to ignore her for over a week, following her around when she thought nobody saw her, I was done. I was just coming back from the Church on the night she decided to defy me and go to the kitchens despite my instructions. I followed her from afar and she didn’t even notice, which only fueled my anger towards her.

If she didn’t notice me, then anyone could have gotten to her. Her irresponsibility irked me because it put her own life in jeopardy. I was having too much fun toying with her this year to let her get herself killed.

Entering the hall, I noticed her immediately, talking and laughing with her friends. Her hair was swept up in a ponytail, leaving her golden hoops open to my gaze. She rarely put her hair up but I had to admit, it suited her.

“What are you doing?” Royal asked from beside me when he noticed I wasn’t walking towards our usual table.

“Getting dessert. I’ll be right back.”

Advancing towards her table, she noticed me almost immediately. Her eyes widened and her hands tensed around the container she was discreetly trying to sneak out of her bag.

I smirked, secretly enjoying how nervous she was.

Once I arrived next to her, I extended my hand and waited. The room was busy but I saw some people looking at us in curiosity, whispering among themselves.

Elyssa gritted her teeth. “I hate you.”

My smirk grew. “I can live with that.”

I forcefully pried the container out of her hands, pleasantly noticing it was slightly heavier than yesterday. Putting one hand on her table and leaning down until my mouth was right next to her face, I whispered only for her to hear, “Next time, don’t disobey me.”

I knew the use of that word, disobey , would set her alight with anger and it didn’t miss. As soon as I pulled away, she glared at me with all her might. I desperately wanted to smile because I fucking loved the look of fury on her, but I kept myself from doing so.

I trudged back to my place and sat down, Royal, Mikhail, and Rhodes all staring at me in question.

Not caring enough to answer their obvious confusion, I immediately lifted the lid off the container, intending to start with dessert. But what I saw inside the box cut me in my tracks.

Where there should have been a few squares of gooey sweetness, was instead enough weed to get an entire football team high. Before I could do anything about it, or even comprehend why the hell it was in my hands, the doors to the dining hall swung open. Several guards along with their drug dogs swept in, Dean Taylor in tow.

My whole body tensed.

They were doing a drug sweep and I had enough weed on me to open a fucking business.

My head whipped towards Elyssa, just in time to see her lift a single piece of brownie to her mouth and smile cunningly.

Against my will, a sense of pride swelled inside of me, mixed with anger and—as ironic as it was—betrayal.

“Fucking bitch,” I muttered, right before one of the guards’ dogs started barking at me, making me put my hands up in surrender.

She had won this round.