Chapter 10 - Yefim

Once our honeymoon that we didn't even get to go on is over, Leon sends us an invite for a family gather at his place.

Even though we didn't go away together like I had originally planned, I really enjoyed my time at home with Tia. It took her a while to warm up to the idea of living with me, and I think she's still tense about it even now, but she has been having meals with me and seems to be more relaxed around me. We actually talk now, which is great.

I'm slowly getting to know her.

The biggest problem I face on a daily basis is controlling myself around her.

Fuck, she is beautiful.

I wander through the house looking for her on Friday night. We technically arrived back from our honeymoon this morning, and work starts again on Monday for both of us.

"Tia?"

"I'm in the library," she calls back, and I follow her voice through to the library and sunroom.

"Tomorrow night we are attending a family event at my brother's home. Leon and his wife have invited us, as they wish to welcome you into the family now that our wedding and honeymoon are over."

"Um, okay, your entire family will be there?"

"Correct. But it's just the family, no one else, so it will be a relaxed evening."

"Okay, that's great." She looks nervous.

"It'll be fine, Tia."

I feel a little bad, because I know my siblings are going to pile on her, asking her all kinds of questions, and I just hope she can handle it.

I'm busy telling her it will be fine, but I'm nervous about whether or not she actually will be fine. My siblings can be brutal if they suspect something is up, and I know Oleg in particular suspects something. There's no telling what seeds of curiosity or doubt he's planted in Anya's and Alexei's minds since I last saw them at the wedding.

***

At six on Saturday evening, we arrive at Leon's home. It's a beautiful mansion, one I am very surprised to find feels very homely. I don't know what I expected from Leon, but this was not it.

His wife, Sasha, is friendly and sweet. She welcomes us in with a massive smile and then immediately pulls a very nervous-looking Tia away from me to go and meet the other girls.

I look around the place, wondering how someone like Leon can marry a girl like Sasha. The Leon I knew—he wasn't the marrying kind.

"Yefim, my brother, it's so good to see you. Congratulations again on your wedding."

"Thanks, man." I say as Leon walk over to me and pulls me into a hug, slapping my back fondly.

"Come on, let me get you a drink. What are you having? Whisky? Vodka?"

"Vodka."

He leads me through the house and as we walk past my other family members they all shout hello.

Leon is friendly and welcoming and smiling so much I barely recognize him. The Leon I used to know—I don't think I ever saw him smile. In fact, he hardly spoke at all. He would just sit in the corner looking broody and cold and unapproachable. I've known him my whole life, and the way he used to be, I was scared of him. He used to make me nervous. He came across as a man who was capable of great darkness, angry after the loss of his parents, twisted with the obsession he had about losing them and the man who killed them.

This man, standing in front of me now, I don't recognize at all.

My brows are knotted as I watch him pouring us each a drink and listen to him chatting about his kid and his wife.

"Man, what's wrong? You look like you're in pain," Leon says, handing me a vodka.

"You've changed, Leon," is all I can really say without insulting him. He has changed, but is it real? What is going on with him? Can a man really change that much in such a short amount of time? I doubt it.

"I met the most amazing woman in the entire world, Yefim. Love changes a man. Marriage changes a man. I'm a lot happier than I've ever been in my life." He grins at me.

I nod, wondering if he's maybe just drunk.

Oleg spots me from where he is standing outside on the patio. "Yefim, brother," he shouts, waving in my direction.

"I better go say hello to everyone else," I smile at Leon.

"Go on, we'll catch up later."

"Oleg," I say, stepping outside and slapping my brother on the shoulder. "Is the business managing without me?"

"I think it's doing better without you," he teases, his eyes scanning the crowd for Tia. "Where is your wife ?"

He spits the word 'wife' out as though it is tainted with suspicion.

"Tia is meeting the other girls."

"Hmm." He nods, not smiling.

"You need to get over yourself, Oleg," I warn him.

"We will see about that."

Later in the evening, while we are all sitting around the dinner table, I finally find out what he meant when he said that.

Oleg, Alexei and Anya are grilling Tia heavily. Question after question, they seem to be going out of their way to catch Tia off guard and find out the truth about what is going on.

I'm beginning to grow more and more nervous as the questions intensify over time.

She is so soft and gentle compared to my family. She doesn't know enough to handle this kind of interrogation. But somehow, she looks relaxed, she's laughing, she's teasing them a little with her answers, and to my surprise, she's even impressing them with what she knows about the business and her feedback on where she might suggest changes.

She was listening this past week when we went over things.

I'm surprised she remembered so much from what I showed her.

I think I am learning that Tia is far more observant that she lets on. She watches and learns and catches you by surprise.

Staring at her as she smiles at my brothers, answering another question, I feel my heart tugging in my chest.

I wonder how long I will have to wait before she gives in to me. Before she lets me near her without reluctance.

After dinner the whole family goes out onto the patio again for drinks and to stretch our legs.

We are chatting and enjoying the cool evening air when Leon receives a surprise visitor.

One of our allies has dropped in to say hello.

"I'm so sorry, Leon, I didn't know you were hosting a family event."

"It's no problem, come in, grab a drink, join us," he says warmly, welcoming Renaldo into the party.

The Dubrovs all know him, as he works with us a lot. And it is, of course, no surprise when he spots Tia right away and asks who she is.

"That's Tia," I hear one of the wives answer him.

I watch closely as he makes his way over to her to introduce himself. It's good that he does, as she will be working with him soon, seeing as she is going to be involved in both sides of the business now.

I head inside to get another drink and pour a gin for Tia, as that is what the girls have been making for her all night.

She seems to fit in really well with them all, and even my own siblings appear to like her. They certainly didn't manage to catch her out when they questioned her.

Once I have the drinks, I head back outside, stopping just on the patio to watch Tia and Renaldo talking. They look like they've known each other for years. They're laughing and she looks comfortable and happy.

In fact, she doesn't even act that comfortable around me, so why is she enjoying his company so much?

I walk straight towards them, not happy with the way they are smiling so much.

"Yefim, how are you?" Renaldo says warmly when I arrive.

"I'm good, thanks. Here you go, my love." I hand Tia her gin.

"Oh my goodness, thank you, I don't think I should have anymore. The other girls really love their cocktails, don't they?" she laughs.

"You're a lucky man, Yefim." Renaldo gestures towards my wife.

"I am aware. Very lucky indeed." I step close to her and put my arm around her possessively.

I don't care if this is just some friendly banter between them. I don't like the way he is looking at her, and I especially don't like the way he is making her smile.

"I was just telling Tia I want to steal her brain." He laughs loudly.

"I kind of need it still, though." Tia laughs as well.

I can't take another second of this. He needs to back off.

"Tia, it's time to go," I snap angrily.

"What's wrong?" she says, immediately looking concerned. "Are you okay?"

I glare at Renaldo, looking him up and down with a dark tint to my eyes.

"Nothing is wrong. But we are leaving now." I take Tia by the arm, and before she even has a chance to say goodbye to Renaldo, I pull her inside the house.

"What are you doing?" she says in frustration as she pulls her arm away from me.

"You were flirting with him, in front of everyone."

"Don't be ridiculous. I was not flirting. We were talking. Having a laugh."

"I don't like it. You are my wife, and I don't want to see you talking to other men like that."

"Are you kidding me right now? I can't talk to other men? It's going to be impossible to do business if I can't even talk to other guys—"

"Don't back talk me like that, Tia. I am your boss and your husband."

"Excuse me?" she shouts angrily. "Does that mean you own me?"

I grab her arm and drag her into passage, out of sight, before anyone can hear us arguing.

"Keep your voice down," I growl, looking down at her as I press her against the wall in the passage.

"I won't. You need to understand that no one owns me, and no one controls me." She is furious, and for some reason, it is turning me on like crazy.

I grab her jaw in my hand and pull her face up to look at me.

"While you are married to me, you will do as I say. I will control you," I warn her.

She shakes her head, and I grip her jaw tighter, forcing her to stop.

Our eyes are locked tightly, and we are both refusing to back down.

I can't help myself.

I press my lips against hers and slip my tongue into her mouth.

I expect her to try and slap me or fight me off, but she doesn't. To my surprise, she kisses me back—with force.

She wraps her hands around my neck and pulls me harder against her. My cock begins to throb, desperate to feel her.

Wrapping my arm around her waist, I hold her against me as the kiss becomes more heated, deeper, more intense.

She tastes of strawberries and gin.

Tia lets out a moan against my mouth, and my cock pulses as I push it against her.

We hear footsteps approaching, someone walking towards the bathroom. They will walk straight past us.

I step away from her, my eyes practically devouring her.

"Take me home," she demands, still sounding salty.

***

If I had hoped that anything was going to happen when I got home, I would have been mistaken.

Tia stormed off to her room as soon as we arrived, and that was after a car ride in which she didn't say a word to me. She's angry—perhaps a tiny bit drunk, too.

Alone in my room, I am feeling more frustrated than I have in a long, long time.

My body is begging to feel her. My mind is flooded with images of her.

I march into the bathroom, stripping my clothes off as I go. Stepping under the hot spray of the shower, my body shudders.

I want Tia in here with me.

Tonight, when I saw her talking to another man, I got so heated, so possessive. I know I overreacted, but in the moment, I was shocked at how intensely I felt about it.

Tia has so quickly become my entire world, my every waking thought, my obsession—it still takes me off guard sometimes.

And to make everything worse, we aren't even together—not in the way I want to be.

I want to possess her in every single way possible. I want to thrust into her and make her mine. Officially. Until I've tasted her body, I won't be able to relax. I won't be able to stop thinking about her.

I tilt my face up into the flow of water and close my eyes as I imagine her stepping into the shower behind me.

***

She wraps her arms around my waist and pushes her breasts against my back.

"Hi, sexy," she purrs as her hands run over my stomach, down my hips and grab my cock, which is already rock-hard the second she touches me.

"Hi, baby girl," I say, but the words catch in my throat because her long fingers are wrapped around my cock and sliding up and down.

It feels too good.

It shouldn't feel this good.

I shudder beneath her touch and she giggles.

She's teasing me.

Well, we shall see who wins at this game.

I turn around and press her against the shower wall.

She gasps when I grab her, lift her up and wrap her legs over my shoulders so that I can bury my face against her pussy.

Her hands are against the ceiling as she balances herself while my tongue dances across her sensitive skin.

She cries out loudly when I push my tongue inside her and lick as deeply as I can.

I begin to fuck her with my tongue, and the more I do, the more she cries out with pleasure. It makes me so hard to hear her.

One of her hands knots in my hair and pushes my face harder against her. I move my mouth back and forth over her until her legs begin to shake.

She arches her back against the tiles as the water splashes over my back.

Then she screams as an orgasm steals her away, her thighs clamping down against my face.

I chuckle, letting her unwrap her legs and drop slowly to the ground.

But I'm not done with her yet.

I turn her around so that her back is facing me, running my hand over the curve of her spine she pushes her ass towards me.

"Was that fun, baby girl?"

"I want more," she begs, rubbing her ass over my throbbing cock.

I spread her legs open and press her hands against the wall, positioning myself behind her.

I thrust my cock into her waiting pussy and push myself all the way inside her.

She arches her back against me, moaning loudly as I begin fucking her, harder and harder, faster and deeper.

I wrap my hand around her stomach to steady her as I move, slamming into her.

She can barely stand, her legs are shaking so much, my cock filling her up and then leaving her empty and begging for more.

I feel her pussy tighten on me and her entire body shuddering as another orgasm slams into her. I can't control myself anymore. I explode inside her, thrust deep into her, and feel the waves of pleasure wash through me.