Chapter 6 - Joseph
“How’s the weather there in LA?” I ask, smiling into the phone.
“Hot. But I hear you guys are having a heat wave? On the news, it was warning people to be careful and make sure they have water and not to leave pets in the car and stuff,” Leila says. It’s good to hear her voice. I should call her more often.
Lately, things have been a bit crazy, though. I guess things are always crazy, and I always make excuses.
“It’s only six in the morning, and I’m already surprised by the heat.”
“Where are you?”
“Walking around outside in the garden in my swim trunks. The house is a bit crowded at the moment,” I chuckle.
“Oh, who’s there?”
Shit. I’m not ready to tell her about the new alliance or the marriage. I hadn’t intended to mention any of it.
“I have some guests staying for a bit. How are things with your men?” I ask, referring to her husbands.
The main reason I don’t want to tell Leila about the whole thing is that she was once kidnapped and forced into marriage with four Pakhans.
The whole thing turned out okay for her in the end—in fact, it turned out better than okay, and she is really happy with her life.
But it doesn’t excuse what they did to her in the beginning.
It doesn’t excuse her being taken against her will or forced into a marriage she had no say in.
I hate what we did to Maria.
“They’re all good. We’re having a family dinner tonight.
It’s been a while since we all sat down together for dinner.
Everyone is so busy it’s hard to get us all in the same place.
But otherwise, things are great. I’m super happy.
” She sounds happy. It warms my heart to know that my sister is in a good place with men who love her dearly.
But I also remember how furious I was with the four of them when I found out what they did to her. And now I’ve done the same damn thing to Maria. I’m such a hypocrite.
“Oh, sorry, Joe, I have to run,” Leila says, then says something in the background to someone near her. “I’ve got a delivery that’s just arrived,” she explains.
“Go ahead, we’ll talk again soon. Love you. Stay safe,” I tell her.
“Love you too! Talk soon!”
After the call, I stand around like a moth in a rainstorm. Out of place…and heavy with guilt. Maria will probably hate us forever. I don’t blame her.
The heat bakes down on my shoulders, and I can barely handle it. I’m wearing black board shorts and no shirt. It was too early to face the thought of putting clothes on, and I thought I might jump in the pool before the day started and do some laps.
Yes, that’s what I should do. A swim will help clear my mind of this guilt.
I turn toward the pool on the other side of the house. We have two pools, one facing the lake and one in the back. The pool out back is a full-length training pool. That’s where I head.
The sound of someone swimming reaches me just as I turn the corner.
Maria.
My chest tightens.
I wander closer to the pool to watch her form. She’s not stretching her arm far enough forward or using her legs to kick. It’s a common issue with untrained swimmers; people forget to kick and end up having their arms do all the work.
She stops at the side, out of breath, standing in the shallow end as she wipes her hair out of her face, and water runs down her back.
“Morning,” I say.
She jumps.
“Oh my goodness. I thought I was alone,” she splutters.
Maria turns to face me. Her lashes are dark with water droplets.
Her lips are full and pink, and her cheeks are rosy from the exercise and cold water.
Her long strawberry-blonde hair is loose and sticking to her shoulders and back in wet curls.
“Sorry,” I chuckle. “Getting your morning exercise in?” I ask, making conversation.
She shrugs and wipes her face self-consciously. “I thought it might help ease some of the frustration of being…um…stuck here.”
I nod, clenching my jaw and looking away from her.
“You’ve got good form, but I could give you some pointers to streamline your style,” I say, dropping my phone onto one of the sun loungers and walking to the shallow end, looking down at her.
Her full breasts are pressed tight against her one-piece blue swimsuit, her nipples raised against the tight fabric.
“You can teach me?” she asks, sounding excited.
“Sure, if you like,” I say, jumping into the water next to her.
“Okay,” she nods, biting at her lip nervously when I step closer to her.
I step behind her, my hands on her hips to turn her so that I can pull her back against my chest.
Instantly, my body hums.
I run my hand down her arm until I’m holding her wrist.
“Move your arm with me, slowly,” I tell her.
I guide her arm in a full circle to show her the correct way to pull through the water.
“You want to keep your arm close to your body and reach as far forward as possible. This way, you streamline the pull and have a smoother stroke,” I explain as I move her arm again, my hand brushing her thigh beneath the water.
She twists her body as she rotates her arm, and I place my hand on her stomach to steady her. “Keep this part straight. Your chest should always face the bottom of the pool, unless you’re taking a breath.”
My heart is beating hard, excitement churning inside me at her closeness.
“Okay, I see, because I was taking much shorter strokes, I think?”
“Yes, you were dipping your hand in here…” I show her. “Instead of here,” I pull her arm high. “You see the difference? That’s how much traction you lost.”
“Alright, let me try again,” she says, eager to give it a go.
I watch as she kicks off the wall and swims across the width of the pool instead of the length, so I can watch her style.
She stops near the wall and immediately turns to look at me, her brows raised with anticipation.
“That was a lot better, swim back to me, but now I want you to move slower. It’s not a race. Rather, focus on your form instead of speed.”
She nods and dives back under the water to kick off from the wall.
Much better. She’s a fast learner and a good listener.
When she reaches me, she stops and grins. “I can feel the improvement,” she says, proud of herself. The gleam in her eye makes me smile.
“It was really good. Here, let me show you this again, though.”
I pull her against my chest again. At this point, I’m not sure if I need to hold her this close or if I just want to find an excuse to do it. She feels good in my arms.
“Here, you want to dip your hand in here…” I explain, gently pulling her arm up and around.
“I’ve only ever been to the beach twice,” she confesses out of nowhere.
“Are you serious? And now you can see the lake from the garden,” I say, stunned.
“My brother didn’t like me going out on my own. I didn’t have many opportunities to go anywhere, really,” she says quietly, shrugging.
“He was protective?” I ask, knowing how I feel about my sister and how I used to stop her from going places.
“Very,” she nods.
Her brother is going to be breaking down our door soon. He’ll figure out where Maria is and come hunting for her. I’m surprised he hasn’t already.
“Well, perhaps this evening at sunset we should go for a swim in the lake,” I grin, thinking I’d like to do something nice for her.
“Oh…That might be nice,” she blushes.
I chuckle, wondering what it is that she is thinking about that’s causing her to blush.
Damn. She’s gorgeous.
The way she looks at me stirs my body again, spiking my intrusive thoughts as I picture myself pulling her legs around my waist and pushing her against the side of the pool.
She bites her lip, letting her eyes wander over my face, studying me. What is she thinking?
I know what she’s thinking. She’s obliged to entertain me. Obliged to speak to me. She isn’t here by choice. And here I am excited by her, enticed by her. What right do I have to be turned on by her beauty when I’ve trapped her here with me?
That same guilt snakes in my veins, and I let out a low huff.
Maria tenses, her brows knitting for a moment as she reads my frustration.
“Okay…um…so I should put my hand in along my side, reaching as far forward as I can…” she quickly returns to the lesson, her cheeks glowing redder than before and her posture turned slightly inward as though I’ve made her self-conscious.
She turns her back toward me. Instinctively, I slip my arm around her again and pull her to my chest.
“Yes, so reach forward,” I say, running my hand over her waist. You’re pushing your luck touching her like this. You know you’re crossing a line. But damn, it feels good. And she isn’t exactly stopping me. Does that mean she likes it?
“Like this?” she asks, repeating the movement, her body brushing over mine, her ass pressing against my cock.
“Uh, yes, let’s try again, and I can—”
“What the fuck is this?” Artur grumbles, standing at the side of the pool, looking down at us.
Maria jumps in fright and moves away from me as though she got caught doing something she shouldn’t have. Instead of letting her go, I hold her tighter and pull her close again.
“We’re busy,” I snap. “Find somewhere else to spill your toxic mood.”
“Is he teaching you how to swim?” he blurts out, speaking directly to Maria as though I didn’t exist or wasn’t worthy of his time.
“Yes,” she says, her eyes narrowing and her voice tight.
I give in and release her, because at this point, it’s just weird for me to be clutching her like that.
Maria only takes a small step from me, turning her body to the side to glare at Artur, who looks incredibly unimpressed.
“And you don’t think that Joseph has better things to do than waste his time on you? He’s a Pakhan, not a babysitter or swimming instructor. Don’t you have any respect for other people’s time?” he snarls at her.
Anger shoots through me, and I’m about to tell him to mind his own fucking business when Maria snaps back at him first.
“You walk around here like you own everyone. Like you own their minds and choices. You aren’t any better than any single one of these men, Artur.
In fact, you’re worse. You’re disrespectful, selfish, and mean.
” I think she’s been holding that in for a while, because she whips the words out at him like fire.
Artur growls, clenching his fists at his side.
I press my lips together, my brows raised. I’m fucking impressed. Timid little Maria isn’t as timid as she comes across. She’s got fire in her that would make me take a step back.
“Don’t speak to me like that,” Artur snaps.
“And how should I speak to you, Artur?” she challenges him. “Shall I call you, sir?” She asks sarcastically. “Shall I grovel at your feet and beg for your mercy?”
I watch him. The way his face heats. How his eyes drift over her. How he presses his lips together and squares his shoulders, and how his breathing changes.
He fucking likes this. He likes the way she challenges him. There’s tension here, but not just anger. It’s heat. Desire. Need.
Chemistry.
Artur is silent, his jaw is tight, and his muscles are rippling over his face.
Maria lets out a frustrated sigh. She turns away from him to face me.
“Thank you for teaching me. I really appreciate it and enjoyed it,” she says politely.
“Anytime, darling,” I reply.
We both watch her climb out of the pool with the same hunger in our eyes.
She wraps the towel around her perfect curves and walks toward the house.
I shake my head, chuckling softly.
“You think that’s funny?” Artur snarls. “She’s manipulating you, and you’re so fucking blind you’re falling for it,” he huffs.
“She isn’t manipulating me, Artur. Not everyone is out to screw someone else over. You’re the one who kidnapped her, don’t forget that.”
He shakes his head. “She’s our wife, Joseph, but this isn’t a luxury cruise. This is business. This is for the alliance. You should remember that next time you have your hands all over her ass,” he snaps angrily.
I snort with laughter.
“Fuck, you really are a piece of work,” I scoff.
“Stop feeling sorry for her and focus on the alliance,” he demands.
“And maybe you should stop treating her like a tool and start treating her like a human being,” I snap back at him.
Artur sneers, glaring at me with cold, dark eyes. I hold my ground, not looking away until he scoffs in annoyance and leaves.
That man is trouble. I get the feeling he’s up to something, but maybe it’s only because he’s so confrontational all the time. He’s got a massive chip on his shoulder, and if he doesn’t drop this entitled attitude, he’s going to come up short.
I was enjoying my swim with Maria. Pity he interrupted.
I kick off the wall and start swimming the length of the pool.