Second Best (Volkov Bratva 1)

I was aware of the men he sent out to all areas. The spies he used to control everyone. It was how he learned of betrayals, of the greed, and of course, the rats. Everyone was in his pocket.

Even though he was considered the fiercest and most evil person around, he was also fair. If you didn’t cross him, you lived. If you showed loyalty to him, then he took care of you.

The moment you turned your back on him, betrayed, or stole from him, well, your days were numbered.

Watching the car leave the parking lot, I stood there as the cleaning crew came. They nodded at me. I was on first-name terms with most people in Ivan’s control. I made it my business to know everyone.

I’d always been a firm believer that knowledge was power, and when it came to keeping Ivan in control, I was willing to do whatever it took to keep him there, even marry a woman I didn’t trust.

It was late when I arrived home. The guard I’d assigned to Aurora’s care stood at the door, waiting for my signal to leave. I gave it to him. There were always guards around. Soldiers. Men designed to help us gain power and to forever grow stronger. They rose up the ranks, claiming to be the best everyone had to offer.

After taking a quick shot of the finest whiskey, I headed to the bedroom. Aurora was still awake, but the moment I entered the bedroom, she closed the book she’d been reading.

When all of her belongings arrived at my penthouse suite, I’d been surprised. She didn’t have many.

Books.

She’d had close to three hundred books. All in paperback. I’d gotten the designers in, and one of the spare bedrooms had been converted into a library for her. I’d also granted her a credit card in my name to which she’d not spent a single penny. We’d been married a week, and I’d known other men in my position had been near bankrupt in that time by how wild their wives’ spending could be.

I glanced at my wife. She wore a silk negligee that showed off her full tits. I hadn’t given myself the pleasure of looking at her entirely, but one day soon, I intended to look to my heart’s content.

Removing my jacket, I took my gun with me. I didn’t go anywhere without at least two guns and three blades. I was a precautious man. I’d survived this long with them, and I wasn’t about to ruin my chances by fucking it up and letting down my guard. I’d seen what happened firsthand to men who got sloppy. They ended up dead, and I knew because I’d been the one to kill them.

Once inside the bathroom, I stripped off my clothes and stepped beneath the cold water of the shower. I didn’t like taking hot baths or showers. I liked the shock of the cold. It kept me alive and alert.

Also, I didn’t linger too long doing one thing. Men struck during these times. I’d lost count of the number of men I’d taken out while in the shower.

I turned off the water, wrapped a towel around me, picked up my gun, and walked back into the bedroom. With my back to Aurora, I put the gun beside my bed and checked the time to see it was a little after three.

“You need to be careful around Volkov,” I said.

I had no idea why I was giving her the warning. If she died doing something stupid, it was on her. I wouldn’t take responsibility for her mistakes. She was the enemy. A foreigner to me.

“I didn’t seek him out.”

Her voice was so low, I only just made it out.

I turned toward her, and she immediately shrank away. I didn’t need her fear. “Do as I say.”

She nodded her head after a few seconds’ hesitation, which pissed me off. While I’d been in the shower, she’d already put the book down and had sunk beneath the covers.

My dick was hard, but I was in no mood to fuck an ice queen.

I turned off my light, removed my towel, and climbed into bed.

The bed shook a little. I was sure she cried, but it wasn’t my problem. I had a lot of shit to do over the next few days, but sleep didn’t come to me.

My eyes adjusted to the darkness, and I could make out her outline. A sniffle escaped her. Time ticked by, and she finally fell into a fitful sleep. It was while she slept that I moved in close. I didn’t touch her, but I felt her body heat and breathed in the heady scent of lemon.

It was just one of the many parts of Aurora I found … intoxicating.

Chapter Two

Aurora

There had to be some kind of survival in never seeing your husband. There had to be. The days turned into weeks, then months, and it wasn’t long before I’d been married for a grand total of three months and four days. Yay. I was still alive.