Betting On Her (A Wilde Love Novel Book 2) Read online

  “I made a deal to save Katya. It was the deal Yuri had, except now Katya would be free.” Alex ran at me, and when his body hit, we fell to the floor. He had the upper hand being on top, and the first few punches hit their mark. No doubt I’d be black and blue in hours.

  “My wife almost died so we could get out of the business. God, I wish I had Dad’s cane right now.”

  The mention of Dad’s cane sent a raging fire through my system. How many beatings had Alex taken for me? He had a crosshatched back to show for all the times I’d pissed Dad off and he’d stepped in to take the punishment. I owed him, so I stopped fighting and let him get in another hit or two before he realized I wasn’t fighting back.

  He rolled off me, and we both tried to catch our breaths. Seconds later, there was a screech from the doorway.

  “What the hell is going on here?” Katya stood with her hands on her hips, scowling.

  At seeing she was safe, everyone stuck the extra weapons in the safe and disappeared. I jumped to my feet and wiped the blood from my face with the edge of my T-shirt and helped Alex up from the floor.

  He looked at me and shook his head. “You’ve got shit to straighten out.” He turned his head toward Katya. “Start with her, and then figure a way to get us out of that deal with Sergei. Out means out, Matt. You can’t have one foot in the mob. It’s an all-or-nothing assignment.” He swiped at his bloody nose and walked out of the room.

  When I heard the click of the lock, I moved on Katya like tape on lint. “What the hell were you thinking?”

  She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. “I was thinking I could sneak in and sneak out and get home and be back in bed before you noticed.” She reached up to touch my bleeding lip.

  I pushed her hand away. “You don’t get to touch me until we get this settled.” I stormed by her on my way to the kitchen to get ice. I could already feel my nose getting too big for its skin. “I saw him with the gun at your head.”

  “Oh good, that was my plan in case you had noticed me gone.”

  “Oh good? That’s what you have to say?”

  She pulled up her jeans to show a checkerboard of bruises and reached for her own ice.

  “I’m going to kill that asshole.” I forgot about my injuries and tended to hers. She winced when I took my ice pack and pressed it to her shin.

  “You won’t have to kill him. I already did.”

  I stood up and looked into her eyes. “You killed Yuri?”

  Her head tilted slowly from side to side. “No, I didn’t actually kill him, but I started something that won’t end well for him.”

  I lifted her from the counter and took her into the living room. Half of me wanted to turn her over my knee and spank her ass for putting herself at risk. The other half wanted to kiss the hell out of her for being here and being safe. The second half won. I pressed my lips to hers and ignored the pain. She melted into me and let out a sigh of contentment.

  “I’m sorry. I just…I wanted my mother’s journal. I wanted my ribbon. I wanted my damn computer.”

  I cupped her face and nipped at her lips. “You can’t do that anymore. I’ll never survive if I don’t know you're safe. Promise me you won’t put yourself at risk again.”

  “I promise I won’t sneak out. I can’t promise I won’t be at risk. Being raised by Yuri puts me at risk, regardless. Loving you compounds it.”

  She was right. Being Katya Petrenko came with risks. “I love you. When I saw the gun near your head, I called in the cavalry. We were planning a coup.”

  She laughed. “You were going to go Scarface for me?” Her hand fell to the Glock I had tucked into the waist of my pants.

  I gave her an exaggerated brow waggle. “You want to meet my little friend?”

  She gripped my erection. “I wouldn't call him little.”

  Even though I wanted to throttle this woman, making love to her seemed the better plan. “I’m going to make you beg for me, and then we’re going to talk.”

  She rose from the couch and walked into the bedroom. “I’m so glad you want to tackle the important stuff first.”

  God, I loved this girl. She was tough as nails and soft as satin, and she was mine. I made sure for the next hour she realized what she’d miss if she snuck out again. After, we showered and met at the dining room table.

  “You want to tell me what your brother was talking about? What deal did you make with Sergei?”

  I touched my sore nose. I hated to have to explain myself. I hated more that there was a good chance Katya would fist up and punch me too. She wanted out of this life, and my deal made sure she never would be if she stayed with me.

  I really hadn’t thought it through. All I wanted was a guarantee that she wouldn’t have to walk down the aisle to marry the Bull.

  “Before you get mad at me, I need to tell you my love for you got in the way. All I cared about when I made the deal was that you’d be free of Sergei and Yuri.”

  I told her what we had agreed on. She rose from her chair. Like my brother, she flew at me, but her fists didn’t connect with my face. Instead, she threw herself into my lap and kissed me.

  “You would have sacrificed everything for me?”

  “I did sacrifice everything. That’s why Alex kicked my ass.”

  “No one has stood up for me like that before.”

  “I’d die for you.”

  “Oh…oh…” She bounced in my lap. “I almost forgot. You no longer have a hit on you. At least not tonight.” Her smile was as bright as the sun.

  “You negotiated a cancellation of a hit on me?”

  “Yes, I did. I got caught in the house trying to sneak out. Yuri threatened to take me to Sergei and have him dispose of me, but I told him I had dirt on Sergei that would change his life.”

  “What did you tell him?”

  She smiled that cat and the canary type of smile. “I didn’t tell him anything he didn’t know. I didn’t tell him what I found out that could change everything and put him back in the position of power. Yuri doesn’t need to wield power over people. He’s a poor leader.”

  Katya was talking in riddles. “What do you know?”

  She wiggled in my lap, making it almost impossible to pay attention. I lifted her and sat her in her own seat. “You need to stay here, or we’ll never get to the good stuff.”

  She stuck her lip out in a pout. “I thought I was the good stuff.”

  “The best. Now tell me what you’ve got on Sergei.”

  “How much would you love me if I have something so big on Sergei that it could release you from your deal?”

  “I’d love you forever?”

  She pursed her lips. “You’re going to love me forever anyway.”

  “That’s true, but let’s pretend otherwise, and that will make you want to tell me everything.”

  She rose from her chair and went to the bar in the corner, grabbed a bottle of vodka and two glasses. “This is going to take a few stiff drinks.”

  “Oh hell, it must be good.”

  She poured us each a shot, and then another. It was rounding on three in the morning, and I was wide awake.

  “First, you should know that I told Yuri that the Bratva wanted him dead.”

  “Is that true?”

  She shrugged. “Does it matter? It’s believable. I advised him to take his money and run.”

  “Will he?”

  “Probably not, because he’s not that smart. I’m so glad he’s not my father. I hope when I find my father, he’s at least got an ounce of intelligence and a pound of compassion.”

  I smiled because the more I looked at her, the more I saw bits of Liam in Katya, from her blue eyes to her smile, but I’d promised my brother I wouldn’t say a word, and this was a promise I’d keep.

  “Mafia families are different that way. We grow up hard but privileged.”

  She rolled her eyes. “You grew up privileged and with choices. Yuri was a dictator.” She tucked her chin and mimicked his body la
nguage. “You will marry whom I choose,” she said in a deep voice tinged with her accent. “You will do as I choose. You are my minion.” She poured another shot and emptied it. She dropped her chin. “Not all families are like that. Look at Kirsten O’Leary. She’s a veterinarian, and she probably gets to choose who she marries.”

  It took everything I had not to blurt that he was probably her father too. “She may be able to marry who she chooses, but she’ll never marry someone who doesn’t fit in her father’s plans. You know the deal. They have to be on board, or they’re a liability.”

  “Fine, back to Sergei. You know he didn’t want to marry me. I’m not his type.” She gave me a pageant worthy smile. “You understand what I’m saying, right?” She cupped her breasts before she moved a hand between her legs. “I’m. Not. His. Type.”

  “No shit?” My mind was blown. Sergei was a badass, and no one would have guessed he played for the other team. “How do you know this?”

  “I caught him in the act?”

  “And you’re not dead?”

  “I can be quiet and sneaky if I have to be.”

  No shit. “You’re banned from room service.”

  “What if they only bring a tray? I love the cobbler.”

  I was a sucker for this woman. “Fine, but no covered tables.”

  “What now?” she asked.

  “We call another meeting with Sergei.”

  Chapter 21

  Two days later, I sat in the corner booth of Gatsby’s and waited for Sergei to show up. This was a private meeting. So private that Matt closed the doors and gave the bartender a long paid break and palmed him a healthy tip. On the table sat a bottle of top-shelf vodka and four glasses.

  Rafe had been summoned by Alex and arrived in town yesterday. He was fresh out of school and the recipient of his license to practice law since passing his bar exam on the first try.

  He and Alex argued about the sanity of meeting Sergei and Timur alone, but I knew the more who knew the truth, the less likely we’d stay alive. While Alex insisted on knowing everything, we told him nothing.

  “You okay?” Matt sat at the head of a long table facing the door. I sat to his right to send a message.

  “Yes, of course.” I would have added I’m a Petrenko like I usually did when someone questioned my strength, but I wasn’t a Petrenko. I had no idea what I was. “I’m...yours.”

  “And don’t you ever forget that.”

  The door opened, and in walked the two men. Alone they were intimidating, but together they looked downright deadly. Dressed in dark suits, they moved like twins toward the table.

  Matt gave me a knowing glance. This was the first time we’d seen the men and knew they were lovers. It didn’t make them seem any less threatening.

  Sergei sat to Matt’s left, and Timur took his side to protect him. The way he circled Sergei said everything about their relationship. He would kill for him or die for him just like Matt would for me.

  “What is this about? You said it was life or death.” Sergei leaned forward and took in Matt’s black eyes and his split lip. “Did she do that?”

  “Yep, in a roundabout way she did.”

  “You’ll look worse if you don’t start talking,” Sergei said.

  Matt opened his mouth, but I broke in. “This is really about me, so is it okay if I start?”

  He smiled and set his hand on top of mine. “Of course, my love.” He winked, knowing that was how Sergei addressed me. Coming from Matt, there was conviction behind the words.

  “First, I want to say it’s nice to see you alive.” Both of their eyes lifted. “I would have sworn that Yuri would have killed you the other night.”

  “He tried, but how do you know?”

  I smiled. “I told him it was you or him. That the Bratva sent you to kill him.”

  Timur pounded the table, and Sergei soothed him softly in Russian. “You want to die too?” Sergei asked.

  That was interesting language. Was it a slip or simply a translation issue?

  “Too?” Matt asked.

  “What stops us from taking you out right now?” Sergei pulled his gun from the holster inside his jacket and set it on the table. “It would be so easy. You didn’t check us for weapons.”

  “There was no need,” I said. “We are friends here. You used to be my fiancé. Why would I kill you?”

  Matt looked to the closed door. “You’re in my kingdom. You’d never make it out of here if a shot were fired. I’d prefer we have a constructive conversation that will benefit us both.”

  Sergei laughed. “I already have what I want from you.”

  I let out a heavy sigh. “About that. The deal is off the table. The Wildes are out of business.”

  “You do want to die, don’t you?” Timur asked. It was odd for a second to break into a conversation, but Timur was more than a second. He was a partner in every sense of the word.

  “No one is going to die.” I reached into my back pocket to get the paper that outlined the terms of our new agreement. “Here’s the new deal.”

  In big, bold letters on the top of the page was the sentence, The Bratva doesn’t have to know you and Timur are a couple.

  They both stared at the page, then stared at each other and then stared at Matt and me.

  “Don’t deny it. That would be disrespectful to your lover.” I looked at Timur, whose face held the emotion of a stone. “I saw you making love to him, and it showed the passion you feel for each other.”

  “You watched?” Sergei asked.

  I blushed. “I didn’t stand there from the beginning, but I did see the end, and it’s obvious you two belong together.”

  For the first time since Sergei walked into my life, he appeared shaken. There was a lot at stake here. “Did you tell Yuri?”

  “No, I had two choices. Tell Yuri your secret or tell him the truth. I confirmed what he already knew; he was living on borrowed time. You didn’t come here to be his helper. You came here to take his throne.”

  “You sent him to kill us?” Timur asked.

  It was laughable. So much so that Matt and I both laughed. “No, I left him in his office knowing you killed my brother and that he was next.”

  Sergei didn’t deny responsibility for Mikhail’s death. “What do you want?”

  I sat taller. Who knew I’d take on the position of power? “The Wildes are out. You deal with Yuri; we don’t want to know what happens to him. For all I know, he took his resources and ran.”

  Timur smirked. “He did run. He didn’t get very far.”

  That told me everything I needed to know. “Then it’s settled. I will keep your secret. You will keep us safe.” I threaded my fingers through Matt’s. “We want a normal life.”

  Sergei shook his head. “You’ll never escape the wrath of the Russian mafia.”

  I pressed the note forward and pointed to the line that read, Only Matt and I know your truth. It will stay a secret as long as we are safe.

  “You’re wrong. It’s in your best interests to make sure we do because I’ve made arrangements for the truth to be revealed if anything were to happen to any of the Wildes.”

  Sergei sat back and rubbed the scruff on his chin. “I imagine you’ll be a Wilde soon.”

  I looked at Matt. “Who knows, he hasn’t asked.”

  He squeezed my hand. There was no doubt he’d get there eventually. He’d already branded me with his love.

  “What else do you want?” Timur asked.

  “Nothing.”

  They sat back and twisted their heads to the side like confused puppies. “You don’t want the house? The assets?”

  I leaned into Matt. “I’ve got everything I want right here.”

  “We have a problem.” Sergei leaned forward like he was divulging a secret. “Your father…I mean Yuri took an extended vacation.” He looked at me. “I’ve been told that while your skills are amateur at best,” he looked at Matt, “your fiancé has the skills to access the finances I�
�ll need to take over.”

  I wasn’t sure who to punch first. Sergei, who insinuated my hacking skills were subpar, or Matt, who fed him that bullshit.

  “You want everything?” Matt asked

  Sergei and Timur nodded. “Of course,” they said in unison.

  I opened the bottle of vodka that sat on the table and poured four shots. “The money is easy, but we will need a lawyer willing to falsify records if you want the house and properties.”

  “I want it all,” Sergei replied.

  “Then you shall have it.” I looked at Matt. “Can your brother do the paperwork?” The furrow in his forehead told me he wasn’t sure that was a good idea. Everything came down to transferring ownership, and the fewer people who knew, the better, so in my mind, that meant keep it in the family.

  “I’ll see what I can do. Shall we seal it with a drink?”

  I rose and raised my glass. “To those who have our hearts. May they have our backs as well.” Every one pounded back the shot, and we all walked to the door, where there were no less than six goons waiting on the other side.

  Sergei’s men stood stoic and proud while Matt’s men analyzed their every move. When they saw all of us walk out blood-free, there was a collective nod. Today, no one would die.

  Sergei turned to Matt. “If she ever hits you again, I hear that filthy leprechaun O’Leary has a daughter who can stitch you up. At least the Irish bastard contributes something.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.” Matt laughed all the way back to the apartment.

  “What’s gotten into you?”

  “Nothing. I just find his aversion to the Irish funny. It will be interesting to see how this all pans out.”

  I opened the door to the apartment to find Rafe and Alex pacing the living room. Stella and Faye were in the kitchen, and the smell of something wonderful filled the air.

  “How’d it go?” Rafe picked up his beer and emptied the bottle before he took another from the iced bucket on the coffee table.

  Matt nodded but didn’t say much.

  “Your silence means there’s a hitch in the plan. Since we aren’t privy to the damn plan, we don’t know how to help. Why can’t we know?”