13
Sienna
I’m stacking jars of ingredients when the bell above the bakery door jingles.
I glare because I’ve told Benedikt’s men and their boots a million times to wait outside.
I have to mop every time they come inside.
Turning on my heels, I’m not above tossing a pack of flour at one of them when I discover who’s really walked inside my bakery, and it’s not any of them.
“Evening, Sienna. I was hoping we’d get a private little chat.”
My stomach drops straight to my toes.
Nikolai stands in the middle of the floor, grinning in a way that makes my skin crawl.
He’s dressed in blue jeans and a black T-shirt, not looking the role of mob boss but instead, someone who’s out for an evening stroll.
“What are you doing here?” I feel every hair on my body stand on end.
“Checking in,” he deadpans. “I’m disappointed, Sienna.”
“About.”
“Your car accident.”
“What about it?”
He chuckles softly, stepping closer. “It didn’t work. Obviously.”
The room is suddenly impossibly small. My pulse hammers in my ears as every instinct screams at me to run, but fear has me frozen to my spot.
“You…tried…”
He smirks, reaching behind him and dragging a gun from the waistband of his pants.
My stomach lurches. “What are you doing?”
He doesn’t answer right away, just stares at the weapon as if mesmerized. “You know… I thought maybe you’d be smarter. Maybe you’d have stayed down when I gave you the chance.”
“He found me.”
“I told you to come to me if you needed something.”
A small scoff escapes my lips. “You think it would’ve been that easy?”
Nikolai shrugs. “Bat your eyelashes. Spread your legs. When I thought you could’ve been a tool, you ended up being just a waste of my time.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He looks up, almost amused. “Sure, you do. You’re the reason my brother’s walking around thinking he can have something to love. You’re the weakness that didn’t fucking work. So, now I have to fix it.”
I want to ask how, but I don’t need to.
He’s holding a gun, and I’m pregnant. It’s pretty obvious what he’s going to do.
“Nikolai, I’m not involved in this,” I force out. “I just want to be left alone.”
