Page 4 of The Pakhan's Kidnapped Bride

Not Georgie. Not his sister’s best friend.

His sister.

“Anya.” Her name tumbles from my lips, and the knot in my stomach tightens. She glares at me, her eyes wild, her golden-brown hair a mess over her shoulders.

Her cheeks are flushed bright pink.

I lean forward and grab the edge of the tape and pull it slowly from her lips. She scrunches her eyes shut, wincing until it’s off.

“Emmanuil?” she whispers in shock.

“Logan, do you know who this is?” I say darkly.

“Yes, sir—"

Before he can say anything else, I turn and slice a sharp slap across his face.

He growls and raises his hand, but doesn’t retaliate; instead, he steps back.

“Get out,” I snap.

He gestures for the other two guys to follow him and leaves me alone with Anya and the lawyer.

Anya lifts her hands to her lips, rubbing across her face to massage away the sting of the tape. “Emmanuil, what’s going on?”

It’s like seeing a ghost.

My eyes are burning into her.

My heart is wild, churning chaos.Hate her.I remind myself, while my thoughts slip into the past.Hate her. She deserves nothing more.

I push the confusion away. I do hate her. I hate her for what she did to me. I hate her for leaving me and never speaking to me again. I hate how she handled it, how she betrayed me, how she broke me.

I will never give her that power again.

I can’t look at her, but I can’t look away. My insides are churning.

My heart is racing a million miles an hour.

They took the wrong girl.

They brought me the very thing I’ve spent the last five years trying to forget.Her.

My heart tightens, then breaks, shattering all over again, years of suppressed emotions exploding through me as I stand dead still, watching her.

Her beauty has only intensified over the years.

Her long, willowy figure, her slender legs, and narrow waist. Her sharp, pixie-like features. She is perfect. As perfect as the day I last saw her.

My body doesn’t know I’m not allowed to have her anymore, and it’s already flaring with hope, lust, excitement.

But then comes the hurt.

Five years of agony after losing her.

Five years—and not a single word from her.

I force my eyes off her, spinning away towards the lawyer.