Page 17

After a few weeks of Aria getting back into the swing of things with her operations and following our demands as necessary, it was all going better than I expected it to.

In all honesty, I didn’t hate it.

Before everything, I didn’t get the chance to see her in her element, taking command of her ranks and doing whatever needed to be done without hesitation. I was able to watch from afar how well they all responded to her, and how they respected her decisions regardless of what they were.

At first, it was only supposed to be a temporary thing—I was going to let it go on long enough to keep the peace between us while I pulled some strings in the background, but in a sense, I was getting used to her being involved. In a way, I didn’t mind it.

I didn’t have much faith in her to begin with, but she was handling things on her side without issue, and I didn’t have to put up with her constantly riding my ass about being bored, or not being able to communicate with her men. She wasn’t as combative with me, and while I wasn’t one to shy away from conflict, it was more peaceful. Quiet.

We were both focused, and while she was a bit of a distraction for me, seeing that confidence of hers drew me in. It made me wonder if she was meant for it. If she did have that natural leadership quality about her.

She could command a room with such efficiency and prowess that it made me question just how new to everything she really was. I knew better, but it was impressive for a newcomer, for a young woman to decide to step in after a life of having nothing to do with it.

Her happiness hadn’t been a priority of mine for even a minute before, but it was almost refreshing to see something other than fury and disdain for me in her features. To know that the move served us both, and it had more benefits than anticipated.

Before, I assumed Aria was a weak link. I thought she was foolish for ever taking over the family business and meddling with things she shouldn’t have. I didn’t have faith in her at all—not while she had been nothing but a pampered daughter who didn’t know anything about how to lead that kind of operation.

But it seemed I had been wrong.

She was stronger and more able than I gave her credit for.

Aria was proving just how ridiculous my preconceived notions were with every passing day, and while it was both irritating and attractive at the same time, her being more of an asset only made my thoughts on it more complicated.

We were both in the warehouse busy with our own tasks, Aria directing a handful of her men while they brought in a shipment of new products. She kept an eye on them, making sure they didn’t leave them in the wrong place or cause issues.

Everything was going fine until one of them was in the face of one of mine, voices suddenly raised.

“Say it again,” the Pesci worker said louder with a sharp tone as he gripped the collar of the Novikov.

The latter clenched his jaw and maintained a similar grasp of the other’s arm. “I said watch it—we can’t have those greasy fingers taking any more firearms.”

Angered by the accusation, the Pesci swung, causing them both to throw punches.

Growing irritated that they were busier fighting each other than actually doing their work, I made my way over, brows furrowed in question.

“What the hell is going on here?” I snapped at them, catching as Aria also moved in, waiting for an explanation while she tried to get them under control. Some of the other Pesci men worked to pull their guy away, holding him back.

My worker took a step back and wiped his mouth before glancing at me. “I caught that one looking too closely at the rifles…looked like he was planning on swiping some.”

My gaze narrowed slightly at the accusation, but the Pesci man scoffed before I could say anything. He gave a slight shove to whoever was holding him back while he straightened himself out, looking between me and Aria.

“That’s not even close to the truth. These Novikovs think we’re all waiting for the chance to steal the floor out from under them.”

There was equal resentment in his tone, reminding me that despite the arrangement between me and Aria, tensions were still high between our forces. They were still ironing out the wrinkles of that long-standing feud.

“Aren’t you?” mine retorted, gaze sharp with disdain.

“That’s enough,” I fired back before the Pesci could lose his cool again. I looked at them both. “No more of this bullshit. Both of you get back in line or face the consequences. I’m sure neither of you want to find out what those are.”

They both pulled back at the warning, but the Pesci man was still tight, looking like he had far too many creative words that would do the opposite of keeping the peace.

“You expect us to take these insults? These baseless accusations?”

“I expect you to know your place and get the job done without losing your minds,” Aria said, voice firm while she looked at her men pointedly. “I don’t expect the change to be easy, but I better not see any more of this. Certainly not in a Novikov warehouse, of all places.”

She may have had their loyalty and a determined appreciation for them all, but it seemed she wasn’t afraid to let them have it when the need arose.

Her guy still didn’t seem all too impressed with what was going on, but he bit his tongue at least. He doubtlessly didn’t agree with merging, throwing me a look.

I was tempted to say something else, to snap at him to get my point across and to keep him in line, but Aria spoke up first.

“We’re working with the Novikovs whether you like it or not, and that means there needs to be mutual respect here. What Daniil and the others say goes, even when it doesn’t come straight from me,” she began, looking over at my worker to include him. “That being said, I can assure you, nobody from my ranks will be stealing anything. We’re all on the same side here. There’s no need to make something out of nothing.”

Despite myself, I was impressed by her handling of the situation. In a way, it was almost amusing to watch Aria put them both back in their places, given how she was half their size.

Even so, it was effective enough to get them to disengage.

“What she said. Now back to work,” I said finally, giving both men pointed glances.

I wasn’t going to voice it, but a part of me appreciated how Aria included that part of respecting me and my men—how everyone’s full cooperation would make or break the agreement—because it was true.

My guys shrugged it off, well aware that they weren’t to push their luck. The Pesci man, however, forced out a breath and mumbled mostly to himself, “In all my time…we’d never be caught working with Russians...”

Despite catching what he said, aware of the irritation behind it, I didn’t say anything when he returned to his task without arguing further.

“Sorry about that,” Aria murmured to me, mostly to my surprise. “Some of them are still adjusting.”

Not wanting to escalate the situation further, I nodded. “I know. It’s to be expected.”

With that, Aria returned to her supervising, and I drifted back to what I was doing, but my mind was still stuck on that moment. On what the man had said.

During our time working together, I had caught a few instances of her men expressing things about how the Pesci ranks used to be lead, almost like some of them still held the same sentiments as Esidor. Regardless of the truce and partnership, and most of them supporting Aria’s decisions, some weren’t quite as obedient as others.

It was worrisome to a degree, and I couldn’t help but wonder if Aria was aware, or if it was indicative of a shared feeling going around. If some of her men didn’t agree with her being their leader, or her deciding to partner with us.

At the same time, the thought irritated me. We already dealt with Esidor before, and we didn’t need his way of thinking coming back. Not with our collaboration being as shaky as it was. I didn’t want to deal with carbon copies of him, and I was certain Aria didn’t want to, either.

While Aria directed her group and oversaw their job for a while longer, I couldn’t help but steal glances at her every once in a while, silently appreciating the way she worked. The way she kept a firm leash on everyone and was respecting our rules.

She really had more authority than I ever wanted to admit, and seeing her in that leadership position had a bigger impact on me than I would’ve imagined.

Something in me stirred at the focus in her eyes and the unwavering determination in everything she did…it made my mind start to wander despite myself.

Despite the hiccup, the day continued without any further issue, and the two of us got in the car to head home. Things between Aria and myself had been different lately…strange, but not unwelcome.

It seemed my attempts to make her warm up to me were working—so well, in fact, that I often forgot it was supposed to be another step in my plan. Another play on my behalf.

In some unforeseen turn of events, I found myself not minding the way we seemed to get along much better than before. How there was more of an understanding between us, and while I wasn’t going to get ahead of myself and think it was moving in any other direction, it was certainly making it easier to be around her.

In a way, it was actually nice, knowing she understood what my day-to-day life was like. She could relate to me in more ways than I initially gave her credit for.

I wasn’t at all used to that, and I wasn’t going to tell her that.

Aria was busy responding to text messages while I drove, and given the uninterrupted focus in her eyes, I knew it was work-related. She always had a certain glaze when it came to handling business, and I found myself admiring the fact that she was still locked in despite it being after hours.

She was serious and knew that was what it took sometimes.

Despite not being obligated to, she’d vouched for me back at the warehouse, even if it was in a small way. Even so, she reminded her men of how they were to respect not only my family’s authority but also that of my workers, and by instilling her confidence in us, she was also going to bat for us as a whole.

It wasn’t just for appearances—she was invested in our partnership.

I couldn’t help but wonder just how far she was willing to take it, and if it applied to us at home, as well.

No part of me ever imagined being a married man, nor did I expect to enjoy it. The routine. The new ease of it.

Even if we were still holding back to some degree, I had no doubt she could still feel that tension between us. Rather than it being out of anger and spite, it came from a place of anticipation. Of want.

I did whatever I could every day to keep my hands off her, to respect her space and boundaries, but after seeing her at work, leading as bravely as she did, that self-restraint was getting more precarious every day.

While I had planned to sideline her completely and push her out of the daily operations, witnessing the way she led had me second-guessing myself.

With how well everything seemed to be going, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to throw all of that out. If I wanted to say goodbye to that truce to get what I wanted.

Something was changing in me regardless, and it was unnerving and thrilling at the same time.