Page 175 of Wicked Refusal

YULIAN

Of all the things Desya stole from me, I never thought he’d steal a punch.

But it was Brad Baldwin’s face, and I’d really been looking forward to punching it, so I can’t help a hint of resentment.

For that, and also for the fact he came back from the dead.Again.

I search for shock inside me, but find none. I guess part of me must have known all along. With ghosts like Desya Bogdanov, it ain’t over ‘til you see a body.

But right now, Desya isn’t my main concern.

“Mia.” I fight to keep the emotion out of my voice. Seeing her in Brad’s clutches nearly made me break my promise not to shoot the bastard dead. “Get away from there.”

“What, no thanks for me?” Desya scoffs. “I just saved your girl there, brother. A little gratitude would be nice.”

“Thanks.” I say it as dryly as I can. “Now, let her go.”

If he saved her, he sure as fuck didn’t do it out of the goodness of his heart. I’ve seen how Desya operates: He plots, lies, and cheats his way into sick games of cat and mouse. Mia was a thousand times safer in Brad’s greasy paws than under Desya’s “protection”—whatever the hell that looks like.

Besides, she doesn’t need it.I’mhere.

And I’ll protect her with my life if I have to.

“Why…?” Mia frowns, looking up at Desya in utter confusion. “Why did you help me?”

“Let’s see.” He pretends to be deep in thought. “One, I don’t like fuckboys. Two, I don’t likerichfuckboys. Three, I have other plans for you. So, if I were you, I’d save my gratitude.”

“You son of a bitch,” Brad splutters from the ground. “Ihiredyou! You were supposed to work for—OW!”

“What part of ‘I don’t like fuckboys’ didn’t you get, fuckboy?” He lands a kick straight into Brad’s ribs, sending him sprawling again. “Yulian’smyprey. So is the rest of the Lozhkin family. That kid in there? It doesn’t die unless I say so.”

“Yeah?” Nikita sneers, drawing her gun right next to me. “And here I thought we were gonna have to suffer through a redemption arc.”

“I’d never be so boring, sweetheart.”

“Don’t call me that.” She cocks her gun. “You don’t get to call me that.”

“No?” Desya taunts. “Damn. I thought we had something brewing, you and I.”

“Enough,” I interrupt. “Step away from Mia, and you don’t have to die tonight.”

He clicks his tongue, pretending to consider it. “Hmm. That’s not the prize you think it is, brother. What’s a ghost like me got to live for, anyway?”

“Revenge.” The answer rolls easily off my tongue. “But you’re not gonna get it unless you let Mia go.”

“And how exactly are you gonna stop me?” He barks out a laugh and points his gun at Mia’s head. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve got a hostage, Yul.”

“What a coincidence,” I drawl. “So do I.”

Then I press my gun to my own temple.

Desya’s face blanches instantly. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Negotiating.”

Mia looks terrified. Like she can’t believe what she’s seeing, either.

But it’s not a trick. I would die for her in a heartbeat. From the second I met her, I would have died for her.