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Giving in to my desire for Aria wasn’t something I wanted to do. It wasn’t something I planned to do.

But in the moment, I hoped it would at least quell my need and curiosity enough to sate me. I hoped I’d be able to get it out of my system and move on so that it couldn’t cloud my judgment anymore. That was the idea, anyway.

In some cruel twist of fate, I was completely wrong.

If I thought my attraction to her would diminish, I should’ve thought twice.

She was insufferable, and it seemed the only way I could shut her up was by giving in to temptation. By kissing her so hard she could barely breathe. And yet, I was far from done.

If anything, it was more like getting a taste—a sample of what could be ahead of me if I simply gave in again. It was against my better judgment, but I just wanted more.

Even thinking about the fact that she gave herself to me despite having never done so with anyone else before ignited something much deeper and much more intense within me.

While I should’ve been satisfied enough with what I did get, I couldn’t shake my eagerness to claim her again. To show her every way she belonged to me.

I was never one to believe in marriage or any kind of mutual ownership, but Aria was beginning to shift that thinking for me. Knowing she was my wife, knowing she couldn’t resist me even if she wanted to either, had me second-guessing everything I used to know about myself.

But as much as I wanted to take her again and fulfill that desire, I knew all too well that the trust wasn’t there. I couldn’t act like a newlywed when I didn’t even know my wife outside of her business dealings.

The marriage was nothing more than a convenience for my family, and it was in everyone’s best interest if I kept it that way.

In all honesty, it would be better the less I saw her. If I kept Aria away from me and the main action, that would pull the temptation right out, and I’d at least have one less thing to contend with.

I wasn’t sure how well that would go over, but if my restraint wavered that greatly, it could be worth a shot.

Many bratva wives were hidden in the background anyway while their husbands took care of business, and with her men transitioning into becoming ours, I didn’t have much need for her. It wasn’t like I needed heirs.

I kept that thought in the back of my mind while I got up and ready. Freshly showered and dressed, I went to the kitchen to grab myself some coffee, but it didn’t take long before Aria found her way in, too.

The sight of her was enough to further scramble the preconceived notions I had surrounding her and what my priorities were. There was a strange kind of tension between us then…both aware of what we had done in the car the day before, yet neither of us seemingly wanting to say anything.

I couldn’t help but notice the faint look of questioning on her face, as if she was silently asking me where we were supposed to go from there.

In all honesty, I didn’t know.

We had sex, and it was far more intense than I wanted to admit. The fact that she was a virgin did something to me I never imagined possible, and while that alone had me second-guessing my self-restraint, I also knew I had to focus.

The point of our marriage wasn’t to develop a real relationship and get closer. It was all for business. Nothing more.

Even if the sway of her hips while she entered the room already had that need stirring reflexively in me, I needed to keep a level head. I couldn’t let her sway me from my goals and the task at hand.

I wasn’t one to feel the need to fill any kind of silence, but in that moment, I found myself searching for something to say—anything.

Leaning back against the counter, I glanced at her from over my coffee mug. “I’ll be addressing your ranks to make sure everyone is on the same page today. Alex put the word out last night.”

As expected, it took no time at all for Aria’s expression to sour. She didn’t like that one bit.

“Do you really think you can walk in and start issuing orders to them?” she asked, tone clipped. “Those men follow my commands. Their loyalty is to me, not you.”

As much as Aria made herself out to seem prim, proper, and like a patient little saint when she wasn’t sneering at me, her ego was bigger than I once expected. She was under the assumption her men couldn’t be swayed by anyone other than herself, but if she didn’t already know, it was about to become very clear just how easily men could be bought.

Besides, my brothers and I weren’t to be underestimated.

We weren’t ones to sit by and take orders; we gave them. Handling whatever needed to be handled was how we found ourselves in our position. If anyone didn’t comply, then they would certainly find out why that was a mistake the hard way.

I lifted a brow at her, crossing my arms. “And you think they can’t be swayed?”

Her eyes narrowed at me in a slight challenge as she took a step closer. “You think you can control them just because you say so?”

“Of course.”

She seemed vaguely amused by the idea, letting out a quiet huff of breath. “Then you’re severely underestimating their loyalty. If you roll up making your demands, you’ll have more bodies piling up than men following any orders. My men used to follow my father’s orders, then Esidor’s—now they follow mine. They aren’t some scab workers you can whip into shape. Without me, you’ll never get what you want.”

Her intent was clear with every word; she wasn’t prepared to give up what was hers. She certainly wasn’t going to take the back seat while I snatched the reigns from her.

As much as I didn’t want to admit it, she was partially right.

Without her as insurance, I had no leverage over them. I had no reason for them to follow me or my brothers. If anything, they’d likely become deserters or find someone more akin to them to work for.

I knew that, but I didn’t want to admit it. I didn’t want to even consider the fact that she was right.

Aria was the key to making them oblige, and that fact alone made my blood boil.

Pulling in a breath, I tried to steady the frustration that bubbled up inside me. As much as I didn’t want her involved, she had a point. But of course, I wasn’t going to let her assume she had the upper hand. Never.

Feeling somewhat bitter about her not being completely wrong, I muttered, “They’re loyal enough to not work behind your back, right?”

Aria’s eyes narrowed further, clearly growing more tense about the whole thing. “That’s different and you know it. An isolated incident isn’t indicative of them all.”

“And how can you be certain of that?”

“I could be certain if you brought me with you. Someone didn’t give me the chance to find out who was responsible for the hijacked trade.”

Her words tweaked that irritation in me again, both because she was insistent on bringing up how greatly I inconvenienced her when the first move had been made by her side, and because she wasn’t dropping the topic. She wasn’t taking no for an answer.

But again, she had a point, and perhaps that was the most infuriating part of it all. That, and the fact that I had to admit she was going to be useful moving forward.

“Fine,” I uttered, relinquishing some of my refusal to cooperate with her. “If you think your presence will make or break this arrangement, then come with me. But don’t assume this means you’re the head honcho. This is temporary…this is to make sure they fall into line.”

That determined gleam lingered in her eyes, but something else lingered there too. Something like satisfaction.

That alone made the anger churn in me, but I didn’t have much of a choice.

If I wanted followers instead of corpses, then I had to make that sacrifice. I had to set my pride aside for a moment to ensure everything went according to plan, regardless of how vexing that was.

Aria took another step closer, showing me more of that conviction—more of the drive that made her qualified to be a leader in the first place. “You’re dead wrong if you think you don’t need me. You just don’t want to admit it.”

Clenching my jaw, I resisted every urge to look away from her. I wouldn’t give her that victory, too.

Regardless of the sex we had, she was still infuriating, and I hated how she knew exactly what she was talking about. She was right. If I didn’t play the game perfectly, I’d lose it all, and marrying her in the first place would’ve been for nothing.

The added numbers and control I was after were tied to Aria, and if I hoped to gain it, I needed to keep her around, and not just in the dark.

I wanted nothing more than to lose my cool and tell her every reason why that would never happen, why I’d never let her think she wielded any kind of power over those men. But I couldn’t.

I had to be smart. To think things through before I brought it all crashing down around me.

“Alright,” I forced out reluctantly, urging myself to keep my cool. “I’ll make you a deal. You’ll come with me to give them a sense of reassurance and to see your people again, but you’d better not attempt to pull anything or overstep. At the end of the day, they’re going to be supplemental to my family’s forces, and they will follow our commands. But for now, we can let them assume you have an equal hand in this. Deal?”

Aria’s firm gaze remained on me for another moment while she seemed to consider it. “Fine. But I’m not promising they’ll bend the knee just because either of us said so. They’re loyal and prideful, and if they decide they don’t want to listen to any Russians, then you’re going to need me.”

Gritting my teeth while tempering my anger, I drifted slightly closer to her face. “We’ll see about that. Go get ready. We’re getting this over with.”

That knowing, overly confident aura of hers lingered while she made a final sound of confirmation before turning on her heel and leaving the kitchen.

Shamelessly, I watched her the whole way out, not missing the way her steps seemed to emanate that same self-assured air.

Scrubbing a hand over my mouth, I forced out a breath and anchored myself against the kitchen counter. She was pushing her luck, and pushing my patience to the point of nearly fraying.

She may have been my wife, and the key to her empire, but I still didn’t trust her.

I agreed to let her come along, but that didn’t mean I was letting my guard down. Especially not around her people.

The sooner I had control over those men, the sooner I didn’t have to worry about her interfering, the sooner I could have what was rightfully mine.

Of course, that would take time, and me playing my cards right.

Either way, I wasn’t done with her yet.