Owned by the Russian Mafia Boss: A Mob Romance (13 page)

This was obviously a lesson in humiliation. If she wanted to eat, she’d have to find her way to the kitchen dressed only in a sheet. It would have been embarrassing, but the alternative was to hide in her room and go hungry. And that would mean that Alek would win.

Staring at herself in the mirror, she pulled the gray satin sheet around her and tucked it in her cleavage. It fell in waves around her body and actually looked like a pretty decent dress. “Maybe I should got into fashion after this,” she said as she gave herself a cheeky smile.

Holding the dress up so she didn’t trip over it, she opened the door and peered out the hallway. It was empty. Moving quietly, she tip-toed down the stairs and slipped into the kitchen. The staff turned around and stared at her. “I pissed the boss off. Any chance I could have some breakfast?” she asked sheepishly.

The cook shook her head and tossed a muffin her way. Biting into it, Natalia moaned in appreciation. “Perfect,” she said with her mouth full. “Thank you.”

Alek had also taken her father’s folder away from her. And that was fine. She would simply get it back. Finishing the muffin, she shuffled through the dining room and into the first office. It was empty. Pulling on the cabinet drawers, she found them locked.

She dropped to her knees and checked the hiding place in the desk for the key, but it was empty. “Damn it.” She should not have told him she’d found the secret spot. It was bold and brash, and now she was paying the price for it. Not that it mattered. He probably didn’t put the file back in the cabinet anyway.

Pressing her ear against the door to the second office, she heard Alek’s muted voice. As quietly as possible, she tested the doorknob. It was locked. Leaving the office, she ignored the looks of the other staff members and went to the other entrance of his other office. That was locked as well. Narrowing her eyes, she left the house and walked around the front to the window. From there, she could see Alek yelling on the phone. Fury streaked through her, and she pounded on the window.

He nearly dropped the phone and turned to stare at her. “Give me my file,” she shouted.

“What the hell are you doing?” he yelled back as he crossed the office and yanked open the window. “Get your naked ass back inside.”

“What’s wrong, Alek? Expected me to sulk in the room all day? You can go fuck yourself just as soon as you give me that file back. I stole it fair and square.”

“I don’t have time for this. If you don’t get your ass inside, I will lock you out there until morning,” he threatened coldly. She gasped and stared at the rage in his eyes. She didn’t doubt him for a single second.

“What happened?” she asked softly.

“Get inside,” he said through clenched teeth. “Now.”

Part of her wanted to push back, but she didn’t want to spend the day and night with only a sheet covering her. “Fine,” she muttered as she bundled her sheet around herself and headed back inside. Leaning against the doorframe of his office, he glared at her.

“If you want everyone to see your naked body, I can fuck you in front of everyone.”

“You keep bringing that up, and I can’t help but wonder if that’s something you want to do. Besides, you were the one who wanted me to be naked,” she pointed out in a low voice.

“I wanted to teach you that your words and actions have consequences. You don’t have to question your status here, Natalia. I didn’t bring you here because I was infatuated with your beauty. You’re here because I want to punish your father. The more I do to you, the more I do to him. So don’t push me, and next time you won’t have a sheet to cover yourself with. Go find Ana and get dressed. I’ll expect you to join me for lunch, and you’ll be polite and quiet and give me whatever I want. Do you understand?”

She opened her mouth to argue, and he held out his hand and gave her a folder. Her father’s folder. Without breaking eye contact, she reached out and took it. “Tell me thank you,” he said coldly.

She swallowed hard then nodded. “Thank you.”

“Go. Dress yourself. Find something to do that does not piss me off,” he said before he turned and slammed the door. Afraid he’d come back and change his mind, she clutched the folder to her chest and hurried back up the stairs. She had no plans of doing anything except absorbing all the information she could before lunch. And then taking whatever was thrown at her.

Chapter Eleven

Alek was just about to send for her when Natalia finally joined him for lunch and sat down heavily. He knew she’d read the file. He could see her struggled with the tears, but she finally met his gaze and reached for her glass of water. “I’m here. For lunch. Quiet and subservient as always,” she said mockingly.

At least she was never boring. “You’re late. That’s not very subservient.”

“I wanted to make sure that I was perfect for you,” she said sarcastically. It was clear she had even touched her hair, but at least she wasn’t dressed in that sheet anymore. He’d nearly bent her over on the front lawn and had his way with her when he’d seen her. And it was nothing but pure jealousy that had him yelling at her to get dressed. It was supposed to humiliate her, and instead he’d nearly torn the damn window out to get to her.

He nodded to his staff, and they served them lunch. “Any chance that I can get something stronger than water?” she asked as she made a face.

“I take it you read your father’s file. All of it? Did you get to the part about how he executed those five mobsters in the diner? I was ten. I came along to watch and learn. What about the time when he kidnapped my teacher, the only woman I’d learned to respect at that time, and told her he’d kill her if I ever came home talking about becoming an archeologist. I was twelve. I still thought I could be whatever I wanted to be.”

She stared at him stonily from across the table. “I read reports from a man who ordered my father to do all of those things. You didn’t turn into my father, did you? You turned into the man who pulled all the strings. If you want to blame someone for your life, you can blame Grigori or you can blame yourself, but you will not blame my father. He did some horrible things, but you’re not a saint. And I hope, for your sake, that none of your enemies kidnap your daughter and turn her into a sex slave.”

He inhaled sharply. “So you’re telling me you didn’t enjoy last night? How many times did I make you come?” She clamped her mouth shut, and he smirked. “Now you don’t want to talk?”

“I believe you ordered me to be subservient and quiet,” she muttered as she bit into her lunch. She flushed, and he knew she was thinking about last night. The problem was…so was he. Immediately, he changed the subject.

“When you do go back, what will you say to Daddy Dearest?”

Natalia ate for a few minutes in silence before finally taking a deep breath. “I don’t know, but I know that the person he is now is not the person he was back then. I didn’t know that person, and if he doesn’t want to talk with me about it, he doesn’t have to. If he can let go of his past, maybe you can let go of yours.”

Alek snorted. “You think that’s all it will take to fix me? Just to let go of my past? If I just walked away from my post, what makes you think that someone worse won’t take over? What makes you think the violence in the takeover won’t be twice what I do every day? You’re delusional if you think that all anyone has to do is just walk away. The world doesn’t work that way, Natalia.” He reached over and slid a paper across the table.

She leaned over and read the headline. “I don’t understand. Did people not already know you came from the orphanage?”

“Everyone knew I came from the orphanage. That’s how I get other people to donate. Did they know that dozens of boys were taken and recruited by the mob? Of course not. Now there isn’t a single politician in the country that will touch this orphanage. Everyone will withdraw their support, and they won’t see a cent. Do you know what this means?”

“That you’re pissed?”

“That someone in my organization leaked that information. Now, I thought about people who might be a little bit upset with me. Did I fire someone recently? Does someone want a raise? Did I humiliate or piss someone off recently?” He fixed his cold gaze on her. “Did I give someone a little too much freedom?”

Natalia rolled her eyes and pushed the paper back. “I might hate you, but I would put those kids’ happiness above my own. And you know that. So you can wipe that look off your face and tell me what you really want from me.”

She was smart. Too smart. He waved for his staff, and they cleared the plates. She was in mid bite and stopped to glare at him. “Really? What the hell?”

“The only thing I want from you is to quit causing issues. You’re interrupting my day, and now you’re interrupting my lunch. I told you I wanted you subservient and quiet. Does your father’s safety not mean that much to you?”

The blood drained from her face, and for a moment, he regretted his words. “Natalia,” he said softly.

She raised her hand. “I’m here because of my father. And if you don’t want anything from me other than this piss poor plan your executing for revenge, then let’s just drop it. If it keeps my father safe, I will be quiet and subservient. And do you think that maybe you could give me my lunch back? I wasn’t finished.”

Alek reached up and waved his hand, and the plate was returned. “What do you want to do with your life?” he asked quietly.

“What?”

“That’s what I wanted tonight. I wanted to have a conversation with you. What were you planning doing with your life?” he repeated.

She looked like she was going to say something rude but changed her mind. Taking another bite of her food, she stared at her plate. “I don’t know.”

“Really?”

“Every time I think I want to do something with my life, I give it a go, and I ruin it. I changed my degree four times in college. I’ve had five different jobs. I thought a temp job would help, but I’ve hated everything that I did.”

“Why are you single? I looked into your history, and you haven’t dated for years.”

“Obviously I was saving myself for a handsome man to come in and imprison me,” she muttered sarcastically.

“You find me handsome?” he said with a grin.

She rolled her eyes. “It’s the same for men. I like them, I try them out, and then I ruin it. Either I grow to hate them, or they run from me.”

“Run from you?”

“Why are we talking about this?” she said as she put her fork down. “Is this a new form of torture for you?”

Her life would be very difficult in the next couple days, and she would have no idea that it was coming. She stared at him angrily.

“Think about what you want, tonight,” he said quietly. “After dinner. Something that I can give you. Not your freedom. Not your father’s freedom. Just something that I can give you within a few hours.”

Her eyes widened. “Why?”

“Just think about it, Natalia. This will be the only time I offer you this.”

They finished their lunch in silence, but he could see the wheels in her head turning. She might be suspicious, but in the end, she would ask him for something. He hoped it was enough for what he was about to put her through.

***

Natalia found a pair of jeans and a tank-top hanging in the closet for her to wear for dinner. That weren’t her clothes, but they were the close to something she would wear. Normally Alek forced her to wear something fancy for dinner. Exactly what was his game?

Ana never showed up to do her hair or force her to wear her makeup. Still, she grabbed the comb and parted her soft curls to the side. Sweeping her hair over her shoulder, she brushed a little bit of makeup over her face and smiled. She finally looked like herself.

Alek waited for her at the bottom of the stairs. Her eyes widened, and she hesitated at the top. “Natalia, I’m hungry. Please don’t make me wait.”

She took a few uneasy steps. “No gown. No Ana. And you’re not at the table waiting for me. What’s going on?”

“I’ve given the staff the night off. All of them.”

“Why?”

“I told you. I want to do something nice for you.”

Her eyes widened as she reached the bottom. “Something nice for me?”

Alek smiled at her. “I can be a nice guy, Natalia.”

“Said the spider to the fly,” she murmured. “You wouldn’t be doing this unless it meant you were getting something in return.”

He shrugged, and she sighed. “What happens tonight?”

“I already told you. Tonight, I will try to give you what you want. So tonight, you can tell me what we do.”

“What I want is to go home.”

Alek chuckled as he walked her past the dining room table and onto the terrace. She shivered in the Russian night air and stared at him. “If we eat out here, I’ll catch my death.”

Smiling, he pointed to the edge of the patio where there was a hot tub lit up and bubbling. She turned to him. “You’ve got to be kidding me. You’re going to use tonight to seduce me? What’s the point, Alek? You’ve already proven you can have me even when I don’t want it.” Angrily she turned and headed back for the house, but he grabbed her arm.

“It’s just sex, Natalia. Maybe I’m tired of seeing the disgust in your eyes. And the fear,” he whispered as he ran his hands down her bare arms.

“What exactly is it that you think I want?” She turned to him, but she already knew the answer. Part of her was terrified. How the hell could he possible know her desire? How could he possibly know what she was going to ask him?

“I’ve already laid some ground rules. These are the things you want the most. You cannot ask for an early release. And you cannot ask for anything that has anything do with your father,” he said softly as his hands moved to her stomach. She inhaled sharply as he pulled at her tank top. His breath was on her neck, but he didn’t kiss her. She wanted so badly for him to kiss her. “That doesn’t leave much. But you have to tell me.”

“For how long?”

“Just tonight.”

“Just tonight.” She closed her eyes and leaned against him. She could feel him unsnap her jeans and lower them. As he bent down, she felt her balance sway, she reached over to the table in front of her. As she tried to focus on the favor, she found her resolve wavering. As if of their own accord, her legs spread, and she felt his lips brush over the curve of her ass cheeks. Through the fabric of her thong, his hands gently rubbed over her slit.