Her smile fell. “Are you serious?”
Maxim ignored her and went back to the conversation with Lazar.
Kira scoffed. Their panic was what amused her. They didn’t know how many fights her brothers had gotten into and gotten away with. They didn’t know how many times Gil had made out with someone’s wife and was let go. They didn’t realize how Adrik would talk so much shit that Alexei would have to come to his defense. They never got in trouble.
When Alex woke, the crowd cheered, and it slowly broke apart. So many looks were directed at them, but Lazar and Maxim stood like proud villains waiting for the police to come and arrest them for their work. But minute after minute, no one approached or said anything. It was odd.
Kira sat next to Maxim at their table, and to appease him, she ate a big bite of steak. But he was too busy looking around the room, waiting for judgment to come.
“Why did you do that?” Kira wondered.
Maxim snapped his head toward her. “Why?” he questioned with knit brows.
“You’ve said worse.”
“Have I?”
“Said I was used to being on my knees.”
“You’re paraphrasing.”
“Doesn’t make it less true.”
Maxim leaned in till his lips were at her ear. “I can say whatever I want to you, Morozov. I can tell you your tits look like fresh plums I want to suck the juices from.” His eyes dipped down to her heaving cleavage, and a flush of red danced across the tops of her breasts. “I can tell you the fact that you aren’t wearing any panties has given me a hard-on for the last hour and a half.” He wanted to reach for her hand, to make her feel it. “And I can tell you, I have your panties in my pocket. Do you know why I can say all this?” He paused, waiting for an answer, but she was breathless, and it only spurred him further. He gripped the back of her neck, squeezing. “Because you’re mine.”
Kira panted heavily through her nose, feeling the weight of his words like an anvil on her stomach. She wanted to soak in them, to hear them over and over again. This was the attention she was craving, and it wasn’t hitting the mark because he didn’t really want her. He was pretending, because that’s what they did now. They made shit up constantly, so all their truths and lies were mixed into a giant pile. “Is that how you talk to your whores?”
“Perhaps.”
Kira fingered her fork. “How many do you have?”
He pulled back, and the look on his face made her regret it. “Unlike most women I’ve met, I obey my vows.”
The attack unnerved her. “How can you talk to me about vows when you are in love with your brother’s wife?”
A soft chuckle came out of him before he took a sip of his drink. Kira waited for a response, but he wouldn’t look at her. He was too stubborn to admit it, or maybe he lied so much and often that he didn’t know what to do when his secrets were exposed. She wanted him to feel like how she felt this morning: like a shivering bunny stuck in a corner as a wolf approached.
“Excuse me.” They both turned to face Alex Utkins, who approached with his father right behind him. He had his head down and an ice pack pressed against the swelling of his eye. Mr. Utkins was a beefy white man with a thick beard. “Mr. and Mrs. Morozov.” His voice was deep and heavy. “I want to apologize for my son’s behavior. He doesn’t understand the implications of his actions. But he will. Please.” He bowed his head to Kira. “Let your father know we will punish him in what way fits the crime.”
Maxim tapped the table as he chewed on those words. The fact that this wasn’t a big deal annoyed him. The fact that the Utkins were apologizing tohimwas another nail in his head. And then to top it off, they were afraid of Yakov Morozov, who was thousands of miles away on an entirely different continent.
Lazar came over, cautiously watching the exchange.
Mr. Utkins shoved his son, and Alex cleared his throat. “Yeah, sorry.”
Alex’s father dug his nails into his son’s arm. “I wish to offer some services to you in the coming weeks. If you’ll give me a call.” He handed the card to Maxim and Lazar. “Thank you for teaching my son the value of words.”
Maxim stood, slipping his hands in his pockets so he didn’t put his hands on the boy again. “Next time–” he leaned in to whisper. “What I would do to you would scare even my father-in-law. Do you understand? I’m talking weeks of pain, body parts, begging, pissing yourself, all that.” He put a hand on Alex’s shoulder. “Never speak to my wife again.”
Alex clenched his teeth and straightened his head, looking Maxim right in the eyes. But before he could say a word, his father yanked him onward.
Lazar shook his head as he gripped the chair. “Why are you trying to make shit worse with the Utkins?”
Maxim took a bite of steak. “I’m not.”
“Fedor’s brother just apologized, and then you go and threaten his son! After you punched him in the face. We can’t survive an attack by the Utkins. They know that, and still, he came over, like the bigger person, and apologized. Do you know how lucky we are right now? We could have been thrown out! My connections could have been severed!” Trina put a hand on his arm, and Lazar clamped his lips. It was a warning that he was getting too loud, and he took a breath before he ducked his head and hissed, “Do not risk everything I’ve done for your fucking ego. Get over yourself, Max.” Lazar grabbed Trina’s hand, and though she looked back and caught Kira’s gaze, she hurried behind.
Chapter fourteen
