Chapter 32 Liev
LIEV
I have a wife.
Sera is my wife.
The words settle over me, warm and absolute, shining into the shadows of my life.
Holding her against my chest last night, her body soft and spent against mine, there wasn’t a shred of doubt in my veins that I’d done the right thing.
Buried deep inside her, our breaths still ragged, I knew.
She is my home. A home a man like me never hoped to find.
I couldn’t get her to the little chapel fast enough, terrified she’d come to her senses. But her smile as we walked out, her wedding band and engagement ring glinting under the neon lights, assuaged any remaining guilt. My job, as I see it, is to never give her a reason to lose that smile.
Was marrying a young woman, who has no real idea of what my world consists of, selfish?
Absolutely.
Wrong? In the eyes of a healthy, normal individual… well, yeah.
But I vow to spend the rest of my life making her happy—or die trying.
Unfortunately, the world doesn’t give a fuck about the fact that I want to spend the day in bed with my wife.
We’re supposed to meet one of Elite’s operatives downstairs in a couple of hours to deliver Sera’s phone and then spring Keke from her spa exile in time for her to get ready for tonight’s event.
When Mikhail’s contact flashes across my screen while Sera is in the shower, my gut twists and Alex’s warning rings in my ears.
My survival instincts scream as I step into the suite’s living room.
Dani and Marco’s doors are thankfully still shut tight.
I don’t want anyone overhearing this. Answering in Russian, I keep my voice steady despite the foreboding knotting in my stomach.
“Liev.” Mikhail’s voice is curt. “I’m in Vegas. I have a job for you.”
The words slam into me. How does he know I’m in Vegas? I hadn’t realized he’d be keeping such close tabs on me. Does he know about her? About us?
Have the Taggerts already given him her name?
Tension tightens in my chest. If the choice comes, I will choose Sera every time.
My loyalty is to her, but right now, I can’t give him any reason not to trust me.
“What do you need?” My voice gives away none of the emotion churning inside me.
A low chuckle rumbles down the line. I suspect he was expecting an argument. “A car will pick you up in front of your hotel at ten o’clock tonight.”
My mind races. It’s doubtful Keke will be done by then. I don’t want to leave Sera alone. There hasn’t been any real threat to Keke, and the jewelry store is in the shopping area of the hotel. Even if something were to go wrong, there is plenty of security around.
And I don’t really have a choice.
“I’ll be ready.”
There is a heavy pause, then Mikhail grunts before the line goes dead.
I stare at the phone for a minute, pulse thumping, before returning to the bedroom. Sera is standing wrapped in a towel, water droplets tracing tempting paths over her skin.
Her sharp eyes search mine. “Alex?”
“Mikhail.”
The word lands between us, and she flinches. A tiny gesture that twists the knife in my gut deeper. “What does he want?”
I had hoped to spend a few hours of peace with my wife, but reality refuses to wait for us.
“He’s in Vegas. He’s picking me up tonight.”
“Should I be worried?” Sera tries to hide her trembling lip, lifting her chin defiantly.
“No.” I catch her shoulders in my hands, stroking my thumbs over her skin. “There’s other security around if protestors try to disrupt the opening.”
“I’m not talking about me,” she snaps, hazel eyes flashing. “I’m asking if I should worry you won’t come back. Why is he here?”
“I’ll come back.” My chest aches with the realization that her concern was for me.
“What does he want from you?”
I hesitate. “I don’t know. He says he has a job for me.”
Her eyes cloud, and I realize she’s thinking about what a ‘job’ means. She chews her lip, and as much as I want to reach for her, reassure her that what I do for the bratva won’t touch our lives, I can’t lie to her. Not about something as important as this.
Because I’m not a bodyguard. I’m bratva.
My stomach clenches when she turns from me and paces to the window to stare at the Las Vegas landscape.
I’m an asshole. Why did I think this would work?
“If you’ve changed your—”
“It’s not a coincidence,” Sera says, turning back to face me, her brow creased, cutting me off.
“What?”
“Mikhail showing up in Vegas on one of the few nights we’re here with a mysterious last-minute job. It’s not a coincidence. It’s a test.”
“Yes.”
“Because he doesn’t trust you?” Her voice wavers.
Her worry is for me. Pressure grows in my chest, and I have to clear my throat before I can answer. “Mikhail doesn’t trust anyone. I’d say the closest who ever came was my father, and he betrayed him.” I shrug. “My loyalty will be in question for a while.”
“But you’ll be safe?”
As long as I do whatever he asks.
I nod.
She blows out a breath, her body relaxing. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I trust you know what you’re doing. And if you tell me not to worry, I won’t.” She scrunches her nose, a small smile breaking through. “Well, I won’t have a panic attack anyway. But if you think I’m not waiting up for you, you’re out of your mind.”
There isn’t a single doubt in my mind that the massive individual planted near the concierge desk is the man we are looking for.
At least six-four, maybe taller, with shoulders broad enough to block the desk behind him, the copper-haired man glowers at everyone around him with piercing light blue eyes.
Sera’s pace picks up the moment she spots him, a wide, genuine smile breaking across her face. The mountain doesn’t smile back, but there is a small flicker at the corner of his mouth and a slight softening of the lines in his forehead when he sees her.
“Sera.” The slight Scots accent surprises me. “I hear you have something for me.”
“So nice to see you too, Callum,” she says sarcastically. “This is Liev. He’s helping with this assignment.”
Callum’s steely blue gaze shifts to me with an assessing look.
“You’re on your way back to Atlanta?” Sera asks.
“Aye.” He stands even straighter, if that’s possible. “Got a month before the next assignment. The phone, lass. I haven’t slept in over forty-eight hours, and I’ve got a plane to catch.”
Sera’s mouth wrinkles. “He’s still into the clubs?”
Callum scowls and gives a curt nod.
“Callum gets a lot of celebrity athletes, and one of his regulars likes to party,” she explains to me, and then says to him, “Thanks for coming by to get it.”
She holds out the phone, but Callum doesn’t take it. Instead, he grips her hand in his and turns it over, staring at the rings on her hand.
His frown deepens, brows knitting together. “This is new?” Callum’s eyes flick to me again, and to the band on my left hand. “When?”
“Last night.” Sera says simply.
The air between the three of us thickens for half a second before Callum seems to shake off whatever it is he was going to say, settling for, “Your brother know?”
“Not yet.” She grimaces. “Don’t tell him.”
Callum arches a copper brow. “Not a problem. He’ll most likely shoot the messenger.”
“It won’t be that bad.” She doesn’t sound convinced.
Her brother better not give her shit about this, or he and I are going to have a problem.
The giant man studies her for another beat, that faint softening returning to his face. “You’re different. Smiling.”
Sera scowls, and he chuckles. Or at least I think that’s what that noise was.
“It’s good.” He releases her wrist and slips the phone into the inner pocket of his dark leather jacket. “Need anything else from me?”
“Nope.”
Without another word, Callum turns on his heel and marches toward the exit.
“Is he always so friendly?” I ask.
“Nah. Sometimes he’s cranky.” I raise a brow at the ridiculous statement. “Trust me, that was nice for Callum.” She slips her hand into mine. “Come on, husband. We have a supermodel to fetch.”