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She’s all I’ve been thinking about since that night.

I can’t even sleep properly unless I jerk off to the memory of her trapped beneath me on that sofa.

Fucking hell—she is perfect in every single way.

And the mischief I saw in her eyes when she challenged me. It breaks me down.

I still managed to be gentle with her, gentle enough so that she wasn’t bruised the next day. And by the looks of things, she was right; she has no problem with a little rough play.

I chuckle to myself and then realize I’m in my office, and the door is open—and I have another raging hard-on as I sit at my desk.

For fuck’s sake. Can I think about something else? Anything else?

I’ve got important things I need to deal with, and I’m obsessing over her. Every inch of her. Every little sound she makes.

The way her hair spilled over her back, the way her fingers gripped the pillow, the way she arched her back towards me as I pushed into her.

My cock throbs, getting even harder.

I groan in annoyance.

Work, Nestor. Work, or go home and fuck her again, but stop this fucking obsession.

I can’t go home and take her again.

We haven’t even spoken about what happened. It’s been awkward between us as we skirt around that conversation. I have no idea if she regrets it or not.

I press my fingers against my temple, massaging in circles, trying to push away the frustration.

I need to focus on the shit with my stepbrother. I have more investigators looking into Miron, but the urgency of this matter is beyond the norm at this point.

I have to get that proof. Once I have it, I can take him out. It’s as simple as that—yet so far, nothing about it has been simple at all.

I’ve been on the phone with Roan three times this morning already, going through the information we have discovered, but none of it would be enough to convince my mother.

And she is all that matters in this specific issue.

I don’t want her to lose faith in me or to think I’ve done something wrong.

If I present the evidence to her, then she will finally see what I see, and she won’t be angry when I take Miron and Sergei out of the equation.

My family will be safe again, freed from their tyranny.

Glancing at my watch, I notice that it’s already three. This day flew by, and I don’t think I got anywhere near as much done as I wanted. It’s because of her, always in my head.

At least the raging hard-on has subsided, and I can stand up. I need a walk. I’ll grab a coffee, then come back and try to finish up the last of this work before I head home.

Walking around the side of my desk towards my office door, I’m surprised by a visitor.

“Nestor, man, it’s good to see you,” he says, grabbing my hand and pulling me into a hug, slapping his hand against my back.

“Benedikt, I thought you were arriving tomorrow.”

“I had some free time, so figured I’d come down today and see if I could help with anything. But I stopped at the warehouse, and you have everything under control. A very impressive team.”

“We are fully prepped for tomorrow’s exchange. Your products arrived earlier in the week, and it’s all packed and good to ship.”

Benedikt smiles his usually charming grin and steps away from me, releasing me from his handshake.

I run San Francisco; Benedikt Karamazov runs Las Vegas. We hold the same power and position in the mafia, but in different cities. And because of that, we often have joint operations that run together, and some of our businesses are shared. It’s just how it works.

I respect the man, but that doesn’t mean I have to like him.

I don’t dislike him. He’s given me no reason to do that. I guess it’s just a basic fact that in my line of work, you treat everyone with suspicion. He’s just one hell of an arrogant mother fucker.

I do trust Benedikt, though. We’ve worked together long enough.

“Listen, I heard about the attack on you last week. How are you? Is there anything I can do to help sort the situation out?” he asks, his jaw muscles feathering as he folds his arms across his chest.

“No, it’s nothing for you to worry about. I have it handled.”

“You sure? It’s no skin off my back to throw a few guys in your direction.”

I smile, nodding. “I’m sure. I’ve got it covered. Do you want to grab a drink later this week, after the shipments have gone off?”

“I can’t. I’m already booked for an event on Thursday, so I’m leaving the same day as we finish up. Next time, though.”

His offer to help is genuine. I appreciate it. But I know how Benedikt works, and he is not someone I want to owe any favors to—him or anyone else. I am perfectly capable of handling my own affairs.

There is a light knock at the office door, and we both turn towards it to find Lara standing there.

She’s wearing a gorgeous tight blue dress that matches the color of her eyes. She’s chosen blue high heels and her hair is braided over one shoulder. Benedikt’s smile spreads wide across his face.

“Who is this magnificent creature?” he asks with confidence as he walks towards her, holding his hand out.

I clench my jaw in annoyance.

It’s obvious he is smitten with her the moment he sees her.

“I’m Lara.” She smiles her sweet, perfect smile.

He takes her hand, and instead of shaking it, he holds it to his lips, and I envision ripping his eyes from his head.

“My name is Benedikt. Do you work here? Are you free tonight? Can I take you to dinner?”

Lara looks uncomfortable, but politely pulls her hand away. “I, um, I don’t work here.” She glances nervously towards me, her eyes almost pleading. She doesn’t want to be rude; she has no idea who this man is.

I walk to her side and wrap my hand around her waist, pulling her right up against me, and Benedikt takes a step back.

“This is my wife,” I say, staring right into his eyes.

He seems to find this amusing.

“Never,” he chuckles. “She’s far too good for you.” But he takes a polite step away from us, his eyes still taking her in, but with a hint more respect than before.

But I already know what he’s thinking. What he’s doing to her in his mind.

“How did you get so lucky, Nestor?” he says, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“I don’t believe luck had anything to do with it,” I say harshly, realizing that I’m struggling with jealousy for the first time in my life. I’ve never experienced this before. I’ve never felt so possessive over a woman or wanted to stake a clear claim on her in front of another man.

With Lara, I can’t stop myself. She is mine. She belongs to me, and the fact that he even dared to look at her like that—never mind asking her out to dinner—has my mind exploding with rage.

Lara turns towards me, smiling, a little tense. “Sorry, I didn’t know you were busy. I just wanted to say hello and find out what time you were coming home this evening.”

I brush my hand over her cheek, another gesture to show Benedikt that she belongs to me. I still haven’t let go of her waist. “It’s completely fine, little one. You can visit me anytime. I’ll stop whatever I’m doing. I’m actually ready to leave now; if you wait a bit, we can go together.”

“It’s still early,” she smiles.

“I’m done for the day.”

Benedikt watches the exchange between us.

“You two could both join me for dinner if you’re free,” he grins, knowing he’s playing with fire.

There is no chance in hell I am going to sit at a restaurant with him all night, watching him devour my wife with his eyes, flirting and charming her while I sit there and keep my mouth shut. It won’t happen. It’s literally a risk to the diplomacy between us.

“I have other plans for my wife this evening,” I say sternly.

“Oh, I bet you do.” He chuckles. “I wouldn’t let her out either. Especially not looking as gorgeous as that.”

He is shameless, but I get the sense that he’s doing it now because he can see it’s annoying me, and I take a deep breath to calm myself.

“You’re full of shit,” I warn him.

He laughs louder, his game exposed, and the amusement in his eyes hints that he meant no disrespect by it.

“Like you didn’t already know that,” he says.

I pull Lara in front of me, her back against my chest and my hand resting on her stomach. She leans into me, and I smile.

Benedikt rolls his eyes. “Alright, love birds. Enjoy the evening’s games, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Nestor.”

“Have a good night.”

“It was lovely to meet you,” Lara smiles.

Benedikt’s grin grows wider for a second and he winks at her. “The pleasure was all mine.”

“Get the fuck out of my office,” I laugh.

“I’m going,” he says, throwing his hands in the air defensively.

With Benedikt gone, I step away from Lara. “I’ll grab my keys and things, then we can get out of here.”

“Do you work with him?” she asks.

“Yes, he runs Las Vegas. Why, are you interested in him?” I raise my brows at her, still feeling the hot sting of jealousy.

“Don’t be silly. One crime boss is enough for me to have to deal with.” She rolls her eyes, teasing me as well now.

An image flashes through my mind of Benedikt reaching his arm around her waist, and I clench my jaw tightly.

This is ridiculous.

She’s married to you.

Yes, but you know nothing about her. What if she wanted to leave with him?

I clear my throat loudly. Jealousy is a fickle, nasty thing, and not something I want to entertain. If the girl wanted to be with someone else, I would no longer be interested in her. I don’t chase anything.

But I would rip his limbs off and leave him bleeding to death.

“Do you want to go out for dinner?” I ask, walking towards her, placing my hand on the curve of her lower back, and guiding her to the door. This simple touch, and having her near me again, it’s already pushing me over the edge, my body pulsing with desire for her.

“No, I got a whiff of what the chef was making before I left the house, and I’ve been thinking about it all the way here. It smells incredible.”

“Do you know what it is?”

“Bone marrow steak. I have no idea what that is.”

“Oh, yes, we are definitely eating at home tonight. He slow roasts the bones and makes a buttery sauce from the marrow and serves it with wagyu steak and roasted vegetables. It’s better than anything a restaurant could make for us.”

Besides, I don’t want any other man looking at Lara the way Benedikt looked at her. She is mine, and I want to keep it that way.

We walk through the office, and I pull her tighter to my side as we pass my employees, men who need to get the clear message that she belongs to me. But they are more respectful than Benedikt. They don’t have his power or his egocentric boldness.

Most of them only glance at her, then quickly turn away.