11. Chapter Eleven
Chapter Eleven
Natalya
M ikhail decides to throw a party to celebrate his new deal with the Irish.
“The Irish?” I ask, after he tells me.
“Yes. Cillian Kennedy. We’ve made a deal to take down Nico Bernardi together.”
I follow him into the kitchen. Watching him, I sense an excitement in him I’ve never seen before. A giddiness almost. “Can you also work together to take down my uncle?”
“That’s the plan. But I know Cillian will want to go after Nico first. Nico is the bigger threat to him.
But once that’s over, we’ll focus on going after your uncle.
And in the meantime, I keep looking into ways to help your sisters.
” He starts making himself a sandwich. I haven’t seen Mikhail cook anything since I moved in. We have a housekeeper for that.
“How?”
“Nothing definitive yet, I’m afraid. He has them under lock and key and it will be hard to get one of my men to go undercover again. Not when Denis knows I already did it.”
I slump against the counter, feeling defeated. “How long will I have to wait?”
He wipes his hands on a towel and cups my face. “I want to make you happy, Natalya. But things in this world – in our world – are never that simple.”
“I know. I just don’t want them to get hurt in the process.
What if you finally find a way to save them but he’s already married Sasha off?
Irina will be eighteen next year and then she’ll be free game too.
And then Ana will be all alone with my mom.
She’s only fifteen. She’s vulnerable. She’s lived such a comfortable life that she’s never known pain. ”
“I know you’re worried. But you know I’m working on it.
I’m not just twiddling my thumbs. I have men scouting Denis’s house every day.
See where he goes. Who he meets up with.
So far, he’s mostly stayed inside your house where he knows I can’t reach him.
Not with so many guards surrounding the place. ”
“Can’t you just go in there and kill all his guards and save my sisters?”
His eyes search my face. “You have some darkness inside of you, don’t you, baby?”
I flush as he lets me go and returns to making his sandwich. “Maybe. I’m just ready to have my sisters back.”
“I know. Don’t get consumed by it though. I know what that’s like. I know how the darkness can pull you under. I don’t want that for you.”
Mikhail wants to protect me and I want to let him. I want it with a deep ache inside of myself that I have never wanted before. But it feels wrong to enjoy my life when my sisters are in danger.
I don’t voice my worries though. Not when Mikhail wants me happy.
The party isn’t really a party but more of a gathering. Cillian Kennedy and some of his men along with a few of Mikhail’s men come over for the night. In total, there’s ten of them.
I’m the only woman.
Mikhail had me wear a simple light pink dress.
Nothing too revealing like I wore at the orgy and nothing too sexy to draw the eye of Cillian and his men.
But the dress still hugs my body and is flattering on me.
He wanted me to be beautiful to impress his new business partners.
I’ve never felt more like a trophy than I do today.
“Mikhail,” Cillian says, extending his hand and giving my husband a large smile.
Cillian is in his fifties but it still conventionally good looking.
Grey hair but a full head of it. A strong build like he works out.
He’s what Sasha would call a silver fox.
She always had a thing for older men in movies that worried our mom to no end.
Sasha would just tell her that it was only for actors and not men in real life.
Now, I can’t help but worry that Denis will marry her to an older man and ruin her life because of it.
Cillian sets his eyes onto me. “And this must be your new wife.”
“Natalya,” Mikhail introduces me. I give Cillian my hand and he kisses the back of it. Mikhail tenses next to me.
“Nice to meet you.” Cillian lets my hand go which eases some of Mikhail’s tension. He doesn’t want any man touching me – not even a simple hand shake.
“Let’s go into the living room. My housekeeper has already made drinks for us.”
Cillian claps his hands together. “Excellent.”
Once we’re all settled in the living room, me and Mikhail together on the loveseat while Cillian and Mikhail’s men take the other two sofas and chairs, Cillian turns to me and Mikhail, though I notice his eyes linger on me for longer.
“I don’t want to discus business tonight,” Cillian says. “I want to enjoy my time in the home of my new business partner.”
Mikhail holds up his wine glass. “I agree.”
Cillian smirks as he drinks from his old fashioned. “So, I heard that you two recently got married.”
“A few weeks now,” Mikhail says.
“Tell me. How did you meet?”
“At the ballet. Natalya is a dancer.”
Cillian’s eyes light up in a way I don’t like. “A dancer. How fascinating.”
“The principle dancer at her ballet. She was the lead in Swan Lake.”
“You’re not anymore? I saw it a few days ago and I don’t remember seeing you on stage.”
“I took a break,” I explain. “After… after my dad died.”
“I heard about that. The great Lev Petrov. My condolences.”
“Thank you,” I murmur but my lips are numb. I haven’t allowed myself to think of my father too hard in the past couple of weeks. Not when I’ve been focused on saving my sisters and exploring my new relationship with Mikhail.
But now the memories of my dad hit me in full force and I almost break down crying. I hold it together but my stomach shakes from keeping the tears at bay.
Mikhail’s hand finds my shoulder where he gives it a small rub, silently telling me that he’s here for me. That he can sense I’m upset and he wants to take it from me.
“You must have worked hard as a dancer to become the lead,” Cillian says.
My eyes flit over to all of the other men but they’re silently listening and just watching me. It’s unnerving to be honest.
“I did.”
“When I saw Natalya dance, it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. And then I met her in person and realized she was even more beautiful than she was on a stage.”
“She is beautiful,” Cillian agrees, his eyes darkening. I shift in my seat. “You must have been a marvelous dancer to capture Mikhail’s attention. We’ve never worked together before but I had heard stories of Mikhail. Of how exacting he could be. Of how it was hard to impress a man like him.”
“I didn’t know that,” I say.
“Oh yes. Mikhail, wouldn’t you agree?”
Mikhail shrugs as he takes a sip of his wine. “I am a man with standards. I will not deny it.”
“Only the best for you, huh?”
His hand tightens on my shoulder. “Of course.”
Cillian turns his eyes back onto me. “I wish I could have seen you dance. Why don’t you give us a little something? I’d love to see it.”
“Oh. I’m not wearing the best dress for dancing in. It’s a little too tight.”
“You could change into something easier to dance in.”
“You don’t get the right to tell my wife what to do,” Mikhail warns.
Cillian shares a look with his men and raises his hands in surrender. “I didn’t mean any harm. I just wanted to see her dance. Is that a crime?”
“I can dance,” I offer. I don’t want something to get out of hand. Mikhail and Cillian may be business partners now but that doesn’t mean they like each other. There’s a tension between them. They’re only working together to reach an end goal; not because they’re friends.
“You don’t have to,” Mikhail murmurs.
“Cillian is your business partner. I want to make a good impression. I’ll change into something easier to dance in if that’s all right with you.”
Mikhail nods. “It is.”
“You need his permission?” Cillian asks.
“She does. Natalya listens to me.”
“Ah. The man of the house and the submissive housewife.”
“It works for us.” Mikhail lifts his arm off my shoulder. “You can go change. Something easier to dance in but nothing too revealing.”
“You don’t want her to show off her body? When I saw Swan Lake, I couldn’t help but notice all the little outfits the women wore. I’m sure she’s used to showing off her body.”
My mind goes back to the orgy and how Mikhail literally exposed me to a room full of people.
“It’s respectable clothing,” Mikhail says. “It may be small costumes but they’re still not revealing.”
“I understand.” Cillian’s eyes gleam like there’s more he wants to say but he’s holding back. “So, there’s no way Natalya will dance naked for us?” There’s an awkward pause before Cillian laughs and his men join in.
Mikhail’s face turns to stone. “No. That will not be happening.”
“Lighten up, Mikhail. I was just making a joke. Of course she’s not going to do that. I never expected that to happen.”
“Natalya, go change.”
Slowly, I leave the room and hurry upstairs.
I’m not sure I want to go back down there but Mikhail will expect it and so will Cillian and Mikhail wants to impress Cillian tonight.
He needs this partnership to take down Nico so he can then take down my uncle, which means I need this to work tonight too.
Since Mikhail never bought any pants or leggings for me, I have to settle with a simple summer dress and pantyhose.
At least the pantyhose will help cover my underwear.
I doubt Mikhail will appreciate me flashing his guests.
Tonight isn’t about sex or pushing boundaries.
It’s about making connections. He wants me to be the respectable trophy wife, not the sex kitten.
The white swan and not the black one.
After changing, I take a deep breath and head back downstairs.
The conversation between the men stops as they all turn to look at me.
“Where should I dance” I ask, gripping my hands together to stop myself from shaking.
“The middle of the room,” Mikhail says.