Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 59623 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 298(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59623 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 298(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
It’s ridiculous but I fall a little in love.
I don’t want to.
He certainly doesn’t deserve it.
But I can’t help it.
He’s so damn likeable. And the fact that he’s also an asshole holding me against my will, the fact that he’s a criminal, capable of great violence should be a turn-off. But it’s not. Maybe because I come from a long line of men like him. And if we do fall for men who are just like our fathers, then he fits the bill.
He may not be Italian, but the rest is all there.
Dangerous. Powerful. Cunning. Unyielding.
Yet gloriously protective and equally kind.
I peer at him. “You’re cute with a kitten, too,” I tell him. “But don’t think this means I’ll have sex with you.”
He just smirks. “You will, zaika. You’ll beg me for it. And you will like it.”
Vlad
After the initial deposit of a quarter million, I get a wire for the rest of the six million from Alessia’s brothers. All of it.
It’s a smart move on their part. Give me the lump sum at once and use it as leverage to get me to send her back.
It won’t work, of course.
I refuse to let it make me feel guilty.
Chapter 12
Alessia
Curled up on the comfortable black leather sofa in Vlad’s opulent living room, I practice my Russian with the Rosetta Stone.
Mika snickers at my accent.
I repeat it, watching for his approval until he nods.
It’s been three days since we arrived and we’ve settled into a routine with his tutoring. I teach him for a few hours and then he helps me with my Russian. I have the Rosetta Stone and also a translating app. Vlad somehow figured out how to give me a tablet that accesses only certain websites, but I can’t get online to do anything else. I can’t figure out how he did it, but I think he must be pretty tech savvy. The way his fingers fly over the keys on his laptop, he definitely seems at home.
He works long hours in his office, bent over the laptop or pacing around on his cell phone.
In the afternoons, he takes me out to the lake—my favorite time of the day. Yesterday, I found a garden bench had been placed in a shady spot halfway to the lake.
“Is this for me?” I gasped when we came upon it.
Vlad kept the stoic Russian mask on. “Rest,” he ordered, rather than just admit to the kind deed.
I sat, because I did need a rest, then scooted over and patted the place beside me. When he sat down, I pecked him on the cheek. “Thank you.”
He didn’t answer.
“It’s okay to admit there’s actually a nice guy under that asshole front you wear,” I told him.
“No,” he grumbled. “There’s definitely no nice guy. I just don’t want you to die of exhaustion.”
So he said, but when we arrived at the water’s edge, I found another surprise. One of those rustic porch swings had been placed right by the rock I usually chose to sit on.
Because I don’t want to be touched by Vlad’s efforts, I’ve upped my demands and complaints. I need new music. New clothes—when will he take me shopping? I need a Kindle and romance novels. I want to send letters home.
He doesn’t concede to anything, nor does he get annoyed. He just gives me his game face and tosses out orders to keep me in line.
I screw around on the tablet, trying to hack into the internet. Seriously, if he figured out a way to limit it, I can figure out the way to get past it.
“What’s the WiFi password?” I ask Mika casually. You never know. I might trick him by acting like it’s a normal request.
No luck.
The boy grimaces and his ears turn red. I feel bad for even asking.
“I’m just kidding. Can I borrow your tablet?” I hold my hand out like I expect him to pass it over to me.
He hugs it to his chest. “Mine doesn’t have access, either,” he says.
I can’t tell if it’s true or not. It would make sense, though. Vlad shouldn’t trust Mika not to help me, especially when I’m winning the boy over more and more every day. “Only to games and TV.”
I sigh and Mika flushes some more. I’m a bitch because I pretty much just asked him to betray the father figure I’ve been hoping he’ll bond to. It’s so wrong of me.
“It’s okay,” I tell him. “I don’t want you to feel caught between the two of us. It’s not fair to you.”
Mika looks at me, his blue-green gaze earnest. “Vlad says he will let you go,” he says.
I nod. “I know. I believe him. Do you?”
Mika swallows, but nods. Then he shrugs. “I don’t know him so very well, though. Only a few months now.”
“I’m sure he’s dangerous,” I say. “But not to us.” I point between the two of us.