Chapter 20
RODION
Son of a bitch.
Well, if it isn’t the Kopolov family, here en force, ready to greet me and my little queen.
They could’ve warned a guy. And why do they all look so pissed ?
Ember’s grip on my hand tightens as we step off the elevator. The tension in the air is suffocating.
“I didn’t expect such a welcome party,” I say smoothly, aware of Ember’s nervous breathing and shaking beside me. I know the sight before her is probably terrifying—Rafail, his dark, assessing eyes narrowed on the two of us, his lips curled in a not-quite-there smile. Semyon, his gaze cold and calculating behind thin glasses, as aloof and threatening as always. My cousin Matvei, large and looming with his weapon drawn , beside them. All are dressed in business casual as if they’re ready to step out to grab dinner with consultants.
“Put it away, Matvei,” I say in a low voice. “Jesus.”
After a moment’s hesitation, he slips the gun in a holster, but his stance doesn’t change.
“So this is the girl you brought,” Rafail says.
Well, thanks for the warm family greeting.
“This is Ember. And yes, she’s with me. Why the welcome party?”
We step off the elevator. Jesus, I hope no one heard her moans in the elevator shaft.
Rafail’s tone is icy. “You sure this is a good idea, Rodion?”
My fingers tighten on Ember’s hand, my voice as sharp as a razor. “Excuse me?”
“This is the one you asked me to expedite home.”
Rage threads through my limbs as I shake my head. I don’t appreciate the note of derision or how he’s talking about Ember like she’s fucking cargo. “Obviously, yes. Someone want to tell me what the fuck is going on? Where are the girls?”
Rafail jerks his head to the corner of the room. “Kitchen. Before you see them, we have to have a little talk. What the hell are you two playing with, Rodion?”
I haven’t heard this tone of voice since I was a fucking child.
“What are you talking about?”
Oh, shit.
Maybe they found my social media account. If they found my account, I’m fucking screwed. But then… why are they looking at Ember as if she’s the enemy?
Rafail shifts, tucking his hands in his pockets, but it doesn’t make him look more casual, just more calculating. He and Semyon share a knowing look.
What the fuck?
“I didn’t know you allowed her to post videos online about us,” Rafail says.
What?
“What are you talking about?”
Semyon pulls out a tablet and taps a few buttons. Are they really going to give her shit about having a book account about mafia men? Those are fiction. They should know?—
Oh no.
I stare at the video, cold awareness curling in my gut.
Jesus.
“When did you take that video, Ember?” I ask, my grip on her tightening. I’m careful not to hurt her, even though I want to shake her.
It’s her on the plane, holding a book up. On our plane.
“Where was I?”
It’s a viral post, with thousands of messages and millions of views coming in as we speak. Damning. Incriminating.
“I don’t know what happened,” she says, shaking her head. Even though her eyes are wide with fear, her voice is tinged with the ferocity I love about her.
Get it, girl.
“Yes, I have an account, but it has nothing to do with you. It’s about romance books. I post about fiction, not you guys. I don’t even know who you are.”
“Look at this,” Rafail says, obviously seething as he points to a corner of the screen.
Ember’s hand covers her mouth. I don’t say anything at first, as I’m trying to stay calm.
“I asked you a question, Ember. When ?”
“On the plane, you got up to talk to the flight crew, and I took the opportunity to post a quick video.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t post quick videos,” Rafail snaps. I hate the way he chides her as if it’s his fucking place. My hands ball at my sides. “Maybe you should take the time to edit them before you fucking post.”
I take a step toward him. How fucking dare he. “Maybe you should shut the—” I clamp my mouth shut at the searing glare he sends me, just as Semyon snaps, “ Rodion. ”
I can’t lose my shit, not here, not now, not with my brother the pakhan.
Ember’s eyes flash at my brothers, and her nostrils flare. “I didn’t even know the Bratva was fucking real until like two weeks ago, so excuse me for not knowing I couldn’t take a video on a plane I was invited on.” She turns to me, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “You know me. You know I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you or your family.”
Rafail jabs a finger at the video.
Right in the corner of the screen are all the details—a crest in the background with our family name. The caption suggests Bratva themes, and the whole thing maybe could’ve been shrugged off as fictional, if not for the comment section.
“Holy fuck,” I whisper, shaking my head. No.
Someone looked it all up and posted all our information for the whole damn world to see. It’s the top comment.
“Delete it,” I snap, but she’s already on it, her hands shaking as she unlocks her phone and pulls it up.
“It’s gone,” she whispers, not voicing what all of us are thinking: deleting the post doesn’t remove the screenshots or views. The leak is out there, and there’s no taking it back.
“I didn’t know. I had no idea. I thought I was just taking a video for my account. It’s part of my income, you know? I need to keep posting, and I haven’t posted in days. I had no idea you guys would have information on the plane that would identify you. I didn’t mean?—”
“To mock our family?” Rafail snaps. “To make us the laughing stock of?—”
“ Rafail. ”
I step between Ember and him. I never wanted to have to choose between my family and Ember, and I don’t want to have to now.
“Stop. She didn’t mean it. It was a harmless accident. This is what she does, and she didn’t mean anything by it.”
“It’s not harmless.” His nostrils flare. “This has gone wider than you know. We have to talk to you alone, Rodion.” His voice sets my nerves on edge.
What the hell happened?
“Fine, but no one touches her,” I warn, steel in my voice. “If one fucking hair on her head is harmed, you’ll answer to me.”
Rafail’s brows rise. Semyon whistles under his breath, and Matvei silently makes the sign of the cross.
Rafail narrows his eyes on me. “Your sisters are in the kitchen. Bring Ember there while we talk.”
I definitely have no choice, but she won’t like being separated. Hell, I think it’s bullshit myself, but I know better than to push back now.
So I take her by the hand and lead her to the kitchen. I’m still shaking. Still waiting for the fallout from overstepping my place with Rafail. He’ll fucking kill me for that.
“I’m sorry,” Ember says in a whisper. Her eyes are blurred with tears.
“Just do what they say for now. Let me deal.” I kiss her cheek. “You didn’t mean it. I know you didn’t. I know you have reservations about everything, and I know you were just trying to post a video. But I do have to talk to them privately, and I’ll make it better. Hang out with my sisters.” I roll my eyes. “They’re better company anyway.”
The little kitchenette is attached to the living area but secluded, so we can’t see or hear my sisters until we walk through the door. Sweet little Zoya, petite with dark hair and warm brown eyes, and my sister Yana, taller and slenderer than Zoya, stand up against a counter.
“Hey,” Yana says warmly, extending her long, slender fingers out to grasp Ember’s hand. “I’m Yana. This is Zoya. And you are…”
“This is Ember. Take care of her, girls. I have to go talk to Rafail.”
Zoya grimaces. “Good luck. I’m sorry, he’s in a mood , Rodi.” She wrings her hands, always nervous around my thundercloud of a brother.
Yana, however, is less easily intimidated. “Come on, Ember. Let’s get you something to eat. They’ll work things out.”
“I love your account,” Zoya says with a grin. “I can’t believe it’s you here. I feel like I’m meeting a celebrity. Your book recs are life.”
“Zoya!” I’m shocked by her admission. I still think of little Zoya as a child, the youngest sister. And I’ve read those damn books…
“What, Rodi?” She waves her hand dismissively at me. “Relax, will you? Did you forget I’m an adult now?”
“Barely,” I mutter. My brothers will be getting impatient. “I need to get out there. Take care of her.”
I go back to my brothers. They’re waiting in the sitting area.
The vodka’s out, of course.
At least I know Ember’s safe in the kitchen.
I walk straight to the vodka, thankful my brothers brought the good stuff. “Anyone want a drink?” I’m deflecting but don’t fucking care. I walk over and pour myself a few fingers.
“I don’t want a drink, Rodion,” Semyon says with a sigh. “I want answers. We all do.”
But to my surprise, Rafail stands and walks over to me. He’s as tall as I am, but it took me a while to catch up. I know when I’ve pushed too far, and god knows I’ve done it before. He’s always been like a father to me, but maybe now, in some way, he’s more a father than a brother.
When he reaches for me, I stifle a flinch, prepared for anything after what happened out there, but instead, he pulls me into a hug.
Something in my chest loosens.
I tamp it back down again.
“Good to see you, brother, even if I want to wring your damn neck.”
Well, that’s about as tender as Raf gets.
“Good to see you too.”
We step back from each other, and I sip the vodka before I take a seat next to him. “Alright. I’m going to tell you everything. Just relax, okay?”
Rafail leans against a small wooden desk and shakes his head, crossing his arms over his chest. “No. Talk.”
This is not going to go over well.
I take another sip. God, I missed this shit. It tastes like home.
I blow out a breath. “I was doing the job you told me to do. And then… I saw the video Matvei sent of the mafia thirst traps, and I thought… I thought maybe I’d have a little fun.”
“What the fuck did you do?” Semyon asks in a growl, shaking his head.
Time to tackle this head-on and brace for the fallout. Ember can’t shoulder the responsibility alone.
“I started an account,” I admit. “But I didn’t let anyone know who I was. I was masked the whole time since that’s what everyone likes right now anyway.”
“Not everyone,” Semyon mutters. “Do go on. I can’t wait for the rest of this.”
Rafail growls but doesn’t say a word.
I swallow hard. “No one had any idea it was me.”
“Which fucking account?” Semyon asks, his voice dangerous. “Show me.”
God. Shit. I am in so much trouble. Still, I pull up the account and show them.
“Motherfucker,” Rafail mutters under his breath. “What the hell were you thinking ? Were you that hard up for attention?” He looks like he wants to throttle me, and honestly, right now, I wouldn’t blame him.
“Wow,” Semyon mutters, peering at my phone. “750,000 followers already? And you barely started? That’s impressive, brother.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Rafail looks like he wants to single-handedly beat the shit out of both of us. Wouldn’t be the first time.
“It takes a lot to get this many?—”
“I don’t give a fuck how popular he is!” Rafail thunders. “The more popular he is, the more fucking vulnerable we all are! This is the stupidest shit I’ve ever seen.” He turns to me. “Go on. Get to Ember. Let me guess. She’s one of your stupid followers.”
I don’t even realize I’m on my feet going after him until Semyon and Matvei both pull me back.
“Sit down , brother,” Semyon warns. I look away. Rafail is the oldest, but Semyon’s older than I am, too, and no slouch. I have to get my shit together.
I glare at Rafail. “We need to have this conversation. I need to make it fucking right. But you need to show that woman respect just like you would Polina.”
Rafail’s brows rise. “You want to compare Ember to Polina?”
I’m seething and doing everything I can not to say something I can’t take back. “You have no fucking idea who she is to me.”
I hate that they know her name, but it was inevitable. I can’t have her in my life and have her be anonymous. My family and I are one. It’s the law of the Bratva, steadfast and dependable, and even I won’t challenge something as unmoving as family loyalty. Hell, it’s carved into me.
I hate that she’s in another room, apart from me, but I’m relieved she’s with Zoya and Yana.
Rafail simmers but finally nods. “Go on but watch your fucking mouth. I’m giving you a lot of grace, Rodion, only because you did every damn job I gave you with perfection and only because I know you’ll be the one digging yourself out of this. Make it fast. My patience is wearing thin.”
You don’t say.
“Okay, so… I kind of got a crush on her.” Understatement of the year, but I’m not clarifying. I’m deeply, madly, head-over-heels in love with the woman.
“Like fuck you did,” Semyon says, shaking his head. I go on and pretend he doesn’t exist.
“We, uh… so we started messaging each other.” I look away. I hate sharing this with them. It feels special and sacred, and I don’t want to desecrate what’s ours. I have no choice.
“I tried to stay away, I was going to delete my account, but I couldn’t. It’s the first time since I fucked shit up that I felt…like something was going right. I thought the videos were ridiculous, and then…I saw Ember. And everything changed.” my voice trails off and I shake my head. I release a shuddering breath. “So we started… flirt-texting. And then I met her, and I… I can’t help it. I maybe stalked her. She’s got this fucking stepbrother, man, and I?—”
“Rodion.” Rafail’s gaze hasn’t softened a lick. “Even for you, this is fucking dumb as shit. But now we need to fix this with your little date.”
“She’s not a little fucking date,” I snap, my voice rising. I clench my fists and glare at him.
You do not talk to Rafail Kopolov like that. Never in my life have I raised my voice to him. Never. Not even when I was a kid. I always respected him, feared him—but I can’t stand for it now, not when Ember’s on the line.
“Rodion,” Semyon groans.
Rafail is on his feet as he shrugs out of his suit coat. Fuck.
“You want to repeat that?” When Rafail goes quiet, shit’s about to go down.
He might be my brother, but he’s also fucking pakhan of the Kopolov family. I’ve pushed too hard.
I stare him in the eye. I don’t care what they do to me. I’m a member of this family, and I won’t let them fuck with Ember.
“She’s not a fucking date, Rafail. This isn’t a teenage crush.” I have to tell them the truth. I have to bare my neck and admit to them what I haven’t even admitted to myself yet. “I love her. She’s my one.” My voice breaks. “I’d do anything for her.”
Rafail studies me. Silent. For once, his gaze actually softens.
“He doesn’t understand,” Semyon says quietly. I look from one to the other.
Matvei only shakes his head. “We haven’t shown him everything yet.”
I swallow, ice pricking my spine as Rafail opens his phone. “See this?” he says in a voice I know all too well, the same voice he used when I was in the principal’s office about to be expelled, or when I took his car and totaled it, or when I fell off the roof of the garage and broke my leg. The calm before the storm.
“The location of our enemies. This is the man you killed last week, yeah? You made an example of him. Well, there’s fallout, Rodion. They didn’t know who was behind it. Now that they’ve traced Ember’s account to LA, with the Kopolov name on that plane, they know you were there.”
Fuck.
I thought I was so careful. I knew I was playing with fire.
If they brought me in here to get rid of her, if they fucking hurt one hair on her head?—
“What are you planning to do to her?”
I’m on my feet, but Semyon steps in front of me, his voice low and cold.
“Sit the fuck down, Rodion.”
He pulls up a tablet and shows me footage of Ember drinking tea with my sisters. “She’s fine.”
I sit back down, but I don’t relax.
“If you guys hurt her?—”
“We’re not going to fucking hurt her,” Rafail says. “Not if you do what we say. What have I told you every goddamn night you were in California? What did I tell you I needed you to get?”
I stare.
“A wife.”
A wife?
“Yeah, I said you need a wife,” Rafail repeats. “After the shit Semyon put up with.” He shakes his head. Arranged marriage to men like us is more complicated than it seems. Our reputations precede us.
Rafail goes on. “So these are your choices. You have two. Get rid of her, or wife her up.”
I stare. “She’s not one of us, Rafail. You can’t just?—”
“Not yet , she isn’t.”
Women in her world don’t just leap into marriage to save their lives.
Do they?
“You know I wouldn’t hurt her.” I shake my head.
My god. She’s gonna lose her shit.
“I do know. But you know what our family requires.” Rafail’s voice drops lower. “I would hate to order a hit on a woman you’re attached to. Or maybe even love.”
The coldness in his gaze makes me look away.
Jesus.
He hasn’t given me two options. He’s given me one.
Marry her? She’s not ready for something like that, no fucking way. Of course she isn’t.
“How long do I have to figure this out?”
Rafail stands. “I’ll give you an hour. Should be long enough for you to figure out what you need to do.”
“This is temporary, Rafail.”
“We don’t do temporary, Rodion. You know that.”
He jerks his head at Semyon and Matvei, who get to their feet and follow him, and calls out, “Yana! Zoya! We’re leaving.”
The girls come quickly, Ember trailing behind them.
What the fuck am I going to do?
Rafail turns to me before he leaves. “I believe you. I’m going to forgive you overstepping tonight, with one condition: make it better.”
Yana reaches out and squeezes Ember’s hand before she gives her a little wink. On the way out she gives me a hug too. “Danila will be here tomorrow. He’s missed you guys,” she says with a smile. Her husband’s been away, and she came here without him, but it seems the Romanov gala will be a reunion of sorts.
I hug her back in a sort of stupor and watch as Zoya waves goodbye to Ember. “I’ll bring that book tomorrow! And you have my number if you need anything.”
Well. Ember’s already won over my sisters. I guess that’s something.
Ember stands alone, wide-eyed and pale, as the door clicks shut behind them. She turns to me, and it breaks my heart when her face crumples.
No, no, no. I’ll do anything to stop that. I reach for her, but she steps away, shaking her head.
“I’m sorry, Rodion. I didn’t mean to?—”
“I know.” I collapse into a nearby chair and lean forward, resting elbows to knees.
How the fuck am I going to tell her this? She barely trusts me, and maintaining her agency is of the utmost importance to her. I can’t just… strip that away.
I have to.
She’ll never forgive me.
Khristos.
“What did… they say? Your sisters wouldn’t tell me anything. They were sweet, but they said you’d talk to me.”
I nod, unwilling to put this off for another minute. “Come here, Ember.”
She swallows, her eyes on me warily, but she does as she’s told. When she reaches me, she slides onto my lap and sits with her back upright as if afraid to get too close.
Fuck that.
I reach for the back of her neck and drag her mouth to mine. Our lips brush, and our tongues touch before she moans and sighs into me. I kiss her until I feel strong again, ready to do what’s next.
“They didn’t say much to me, Rodion,” she repeats, obviously nervous as fuck.
I nod. “I know. That’s because they said it all to me.”
The tension hangs between us like an impending thunderstorm, heavy and damp.
She traces a finger along my jaw. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Yeah.”
I need to get this out of the way. Lay it all out.
Be ready to chase her if she tries to run.
“They gave me an ultimatum, and I know which one I’m going to pick.”
Licking her lips, her gaze meets mine. In the distance, a dog barks and a clock ticks on the mantle.
“And… what’s that?” she asks in a whisper. “Rodion…”
“Your post drew out our enemies. They were able to identify my location and yours. It’s not good.”
“Oh shit.”
“Yeah.”
“You knew I was Bratva, but I don’t think you understood the consequences, what that meant—” Shaking my head, I go on. “But I’m not going to blame you. I was the one who pursued you. I was the one who convinced you to spend time with me.” I look away from her. “We only have two choices, and I won’t hurt you, Ember.”
Her wide green eyes register mild surprise but nothing more.
“And the other choice?”
“Marriage. Immediately. You and me.”
She acts like I’ve just prodded her with a hot brand. She leaps off my lap as if burned. “I can’t marry you, Rodion. Are you serious right now? Marriage ?”
I grab her hand and yank her back down. “Dead serious. You can, and you will because I won’t allow the alternative. But listen—” I gentle my voice. I can’t snap at her.
She shakes her head. “ No. I won’t marry you. I can’t. Look at the trouble I caused today?—”
I take her by the shoulders and shake her. Her hair bobs around her face as she shakes, trying to get away from me, but I hold her tight. “There are no other choices, Ember. I won’t hurt you. I won’t lose you because of this bullshit.”
I let her go as if she’s on fire. I hate the way she’s staring at me like that.
I brush a hand through my hair. “It’s temporary. We marry, show face at the Romanov gala, and this blows over. We look at it as temporary. And then, after things settle down… we go our separate ways.”