I didn’t blame him. This was his home.
“He could trace the call here,” Gavril continued. “And I can’t risk the staff.”
I pulled back to look into his eyes, seeing the worry there. I couldn’t even imagine how much of a weight this was on his shoulders. He didn’t only have to worry about my safety, but that of his men. “It’s fine, Gavril. I’m following your lead.”
He looked down at me. “You are, aren’t you?”
Nodding, I reached up and cupped his cheek. “Of course. We are in this together.”
The kiss that followed was gentle, tender, even, and when he drew away, I had to blink away the tears. “Let’s get this shit over with,” he said, grasping my hand. When we emerged from the suite, Gavril led me to his own suite, where I watched him strip off his suit methodically.
Some of my anxiety slipped away as his gorgeous body came into view, and my cheeks burned when he caught me staring at his perfectly round ass. “What?” he asked as he pulled out a pair of black cargo pants.
“I—nothing,” I squeaked out. He was all mine. Every inch of that glorious body was mine to do with as I wished.
Gavril’s smirk grew wider and I swore that he slowed his movements to draw out his dressing, coming to sit on the side of the bed next to me so that he could put on his boots. “I think this is the first time that someone has watched me dress for war,” he remarked, tightening the laces.
“Well, you better get used to it,” I teased, enjoying the moment between us. We had no idea what awaited us once we left the mansion.
He moved to the other boot, his nimble fingers tightening the laces. “I think I will like that.”
It was the way that he said the words that had me wanting to gather him into a hug. It was truly crazy how this entire existence between us had been flipped on its head and now I found it easy to be around him, to know his moods. I couldn’t wait to find out more about Gavril, about his likes and dislikes outside the bedroom, of course.
We had our whole life before us, and more than that, we had a child on the way.
This plan had to work.
Once he was dressed, he methodically placed his own weapons before we headed down the stairs, hand in hand. It was clear that the entire house was fighting ready. Two men stood at the doorway, both inclining their heads as Gavril approached. “Pakhan.”
“This is Yuri,” Gavril indicated to the taller of the two. “And Pavel. They are part of my most trusted brigadiers, and if something happens, they will take care of you.”
“Um, okay,” I answered, sweating underneath my vest already. “I’m Naomi.”
“Mrs. Kirilenko,” Pavel addressed me, his entire upper form decked out in various weapons. “It’s a pleasure to ensure your safety.”
Gavril let go of my hand with a squeeze. “Get the SUVs. We are heading to the pink house.”
Arching a brow, I watched as the men mobilized around us. “Pink house?”
“One that is owned by the Belaya Bratva,” Gavril answered. “It will be a good place to have this plan go down.”
I didn’t say anything else as we were moved to an SUV, listening to Gavril and Yuri discuss the plan in a low murmur of voices. This was the Pakhan that I was dealing with now, all business and none of the softness.
Well, until he glanced at me and I could see it in Gavril’s eyes. There was something different about him, something that made me think I might have busted down a wall around his soul. Gavril had said he loved me, and I believed it.
But we were a long way from trust, from forever, and I was okay with that. Those sorts of things came with time, time I hoped we would have.
It wasn’t long before we pulled up in front of, yep, you guessed it, a pink house, and Gavril helped me out, directing the men that had gathered all the while.
“There’s a room in here,” he explained as we walked into the small house situated a few miles from the next house. It was on a dead-end road, and I wondered how many deals had happened away from prying eyes. “It’s a holding cell. This is where we are going to take the pictures.”
My throat dry, I could only nod and follow him to the room. Sure enough, there were iron bars that revealed another monitoring room, much like one would expect to see in a jail. “What goes on here?” I asked softly, not sure if I wanted to know.
“We hold our enemies here,” Gavril admitted. “When there’s something I need from them.” Pulling out a cell phone, he handed it to Yuri. “I’ve got to take off your vest to make it look real.”
I allowed him to undress me, the reassuring weight of the vest something I missed the moment it was removed.
Then came the hard part. Gavril gave me an apologetic look as he pulled out a clean bandana and zip ties. “I’m sorry, my love,” he murmured to me as he tied my hands behind my back, keeping the zip tie loose but believable. “I don’t want to hurt you.”