6. Liam

As I head to my office, I remind myself that I’ve always been an asshole.

Being so cold and cruel to Kate shouldn’t matter to me. But fucking hell, it does matter.

The way she looked at me as I ignored her pain and told her the rules gutted me. Moments ago, I shot one of my men and didn’t feel a thing except relief that he was dead.

But Kate… fuck… she twists me up inside, and I hate it.

I pour myself a double scotch, not vodka as my Russian heritage would suggest, and sit at my desk annoyed that Kate is still in my system. I guess I was na?ve to think the last few days apart, unleashing revenge on Peprov’s followers, would kill my conscience and rid me of my ability to care about anything or anyone.

I down my drink, willing it to burn away the guilt and the desire. Fuck, how I want her.

It’s almost as if there is a part of me that wants her to bring my goodness out. My soul wants to connect to her, but that can’t happen.

For one, there’s not enough goodness in me to be worthy of her. Then there is the fact that she’s not made for my world. She’s an innocent bystander whose dirty cop father and friend, Elena, dragged her into danger.

I thought I’d protected her, but in the end, I brought more danger to her.

“Boss.”

I look up as Robbie walks in. “How’s Kate?” Fuck. I shouldn’t give a shit. I should be planning Dimitri’s demise.

“I sent Cherry up to help her settle in. I sent my brother and Serg to dispose of Alex.”

I scrape my hands over my face. “What the fuck was he thinking, drugging her?”

Robbie shrugs. “He was always a little unhinged. If he wasn’t Bratva, he’d probably be a serial killer.”

That comment sends a chill through me. “Did he touch her?”

“Only to carry her out of the hotel. At least, I’m not aware of his doing more than drugging her and bringing her here.”

Would she have said something to me if Alex had touched her?

Dammit. I should have moved her myself, but I was busy systematically terminating Peprov’s men.

And, if I’m honest with myself, I didn’t want to deal with the feelings that surface every time I’m around her. It’s fucking distracting.

The sooner I can kill Dimitri, who has set his sights on Kate as a means to get to me, the sooner I can get Kate off to her new life.

“Any word on Babichev?” I ask about Dimitri.

“Not in terms of our finding and killing him. He’s going around saying he’s the true Boss.”

“How many believe that?”

Robbie goes to my minibar and pours a drink. “Not enough. And some are rethinking things. We had contact from Dani Burkov who wanted to leave Dimitri and come to you.”

I’m only peripherally aware of Dani. I don’t take just anyone into my circle, especially if they once were loyal to Peprov or Dimitri, but I’m willing to vet men as I need an army.

“Is he here?” I ask.

“No. Dimitri must have found out about his defection. Dani’s body was dumped outside your place in Manhattan two days ago. Luckily, we had men watching the place and were able to deal with it.”

“I’m only now hearing of this.”

Robbie shifts uncomfortably. “You were busy. We dealt with it, and I planned to let you know in my report tonight.”

I nod, accepting his explanation, even as I wonder about how Dimitri was able to get to my apartment. God. It feels like a million years ago since I’ve been there. The place was comfortable. Quiet. A sanctuary from the brutal world I live in, not just with Niko, but with the FBI as well.

It’s another reason to kill Dimitri as I strongly suspect he’s the one who suggested to the FBI that I was dirty.

To me, that means he’s an informant. Too bad for him, I’m smarter and still have friends in the FBI.

Right now, I could probably arrange an FBI raid on all of Peprov and Dimitri’s properties and known hangouts. But I don’t want him in jail. I want him dead and gone.

Robbie must decide it’s safe as he sits in a chair near my desk with his drink. “How long will the woman be here?” His voice is tentative, as if knows Kate is a sensitive subject. “However long, I know Cherry will make things nice for her.”

“Cherry is a good woman.”

Robbie grins like a loon. It reminds me of Donovan who gets that same lovesick smile when his wife, Lucy, is mentioned. I don’t get it.

Both Donovan and Niko fell in love and got married despite the risks to the women. Despite the risks to their hearts and sanity.

I know without a doubt, if anything happens to Elena or Lucy, they will burn the world down from grief and anger. Better to avoid that sort of attachment, which is why I need to get away from Kate ASAP.

I don’t love her, but I feel something that feels too much like affection.

“Listen, I can’t say for long. I need to get back to deal with business. Especially the gambling. There’s no way Dimitri is getting his hands on that money.”

Robbie nods. “Plus, there’s the skimming. Peprov thought it was someone with you.”

I shake my head. “No. I’ll look into it.”

“Whoever he is, he’s as good as dead, then. I’m glad you’re here, Boss.” Robbie looks at me similar to how Kate does. Like I’ve got a fucking halo over my head.

But I’m no savior. No hero.

And if Robbie knew the truth about my reasoning for taking over, he might rethink my loyalty to him and the Bratva. I’m not here because I want to be a Boss. I don’t give a shit about power except when I need it. No.

Every decision I’ve made since the moment Peprov handed Kate over to Fiori has been made to keep her alive.

Do I care about skimming?

Not really, but I’ll do my job and ferret out the dipshit who thinks he can steal from the Bratva and deal with him. But my focus is on killing Dimitri to protect Kate and then send her off to a place where she doesn’t have to be afraid.

A place where she can have a normal life. A place that is far, far away from me.