“No, he wasn’t,” I snap, wrenching away from his grip. “And even if he was, I can handle it myself. You don’t get to do that.”
His nostrils flare. “No one takes what’s mine.”
The words land heavy and wrong, tightening something in my chest. “I’m not a thing,” I say through my teeth. “And you’re embarrassing me. I need space.”
For a split second, I think he might actually lose it. His eyes blaze, and his body is rigid with restrained force. Devin materializes out of nowhere, and her presence cuts through the tension like a blade.
“People are staring,” she says coolly, flicking her gaze between us. “Take a breath. Both of you.”
Kazimir’s jaw works, his gaze lingering on me with something like panic beneath the anger. I can hear murmuring from further in the room, the hush of it loud against clinking glasses and plates.
Then he straightens, all cold control again. “Watch her,” he orders Devin, already turning away. “Don’t let her go anywhere.”
He’s gone before I can respond, swallowed by the crowd he rules so effortlessly.
Devin exhales and steers me down a side hall, pushing open the door to a small, empty conference room. The quiet hits me like a balm, and I sink into a chair, pressing my palms to my eyes.
“I didn’t love that,” she admits, the words sharp and said between clenched teeth. “That was a little much.”
“That was fucking embarrassing,” I whisper, my voice shaking. “He’s jealous, controlling, and he can’t even keep it together in public anymore. That isnotthe kind of relationship I want people to think I’m part of.”
Devin leans against the table, studying me. “He stepped over a line for sure. But he also got you the position at The Lennox, and he got me out of The Foundry. He let you push back, argue, leave, question him, and he hasn’t punished you once.”
I drop my hands, frowning. “That doesn’t make this okay.”
“No,” she agrees. “But it does make it complicated. Especially if there reallyisa threat, Aly. I don’t like the way he’s treating you right now, but I don’t like the thought of someone hunting you down to use you as leverage, either.”
I sigh, the anger draining into something heavier. “I know. I have to stick it out, but itdoesfeel like I’m trapped when it’s like this between us.”
After a moment, I stand, smoothing my vest with a determined breath. “I’m going to find him,” I say. “Before this gets worse.”
Devin smiles faintly. “Good. Just remind him you’re not something he owns.”
I nod, already moving for the door, hoping I can make this right before it fractures beyond repair. He needs to back off, butIneed his protection. It’s a careful, delicate balance.
Nika shadows me down the hall. He’s far behind me, but his presence is a reminder that this threat is very real, and this fake relationship is very much needed. I’ve been blinded byother,more enjoyable aspects of it that never should have happened.
I find Kazimir at the very back of one of the lecture halls, where the light from the stage fades into shadow and the crowdthins to silhouettes. They are talking about aerospace innovation while diagrams flash across the massive screen. The speaker’s voice is confident and animated. Kazimir stands with his arms folded, one shoulder against the wall, his face half-lit, half-lost to darkness.
The sight of him like this sends a strange shiver through me. Here, in this quiet pocket of shadow, the duality of him is almost too clear. The Bratva boss who commands without raising his voice; the tech mogul who owns the building we’re standing in, and understands these projections and numbers in a way that shapes the future.
Both exist in him at once, layered and dangerous.
As if he feels my gaze, he lifts his head. His nose flares slightly, his posture shifting before his eyes lock onto mine across the space. The tension in his shoulders ease by a fraction.
I cross the distance between us slowly, my steps careful, the hum of the presentation wrapping around us like cover. When I reach his side, he turns just enough to face me, his expression guarded but attentive.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, the words tumbling out before I can overthink them. “I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that, but that was embarrassing for me.”
His jaw tightens, then relaxes. “I was out of line,” he admits quietly. “I saw him with you and I…” He exhales through his nose. “He’s young. Attractive. I didn’t like it.”
A laugh slips out of me, soft and surprised. “You were jealous of the server?”
His mouth twitches despite himself. “Yes.”
I tilt my head, studying him. “For what it’s worth, I find you much more distinguished.”
Something warm and dangerous flickers in his eyes. He steps closer, just enough that our shoulders brush and the world narrows to the space between us. “I hate the thought that someone else might hold your attention…even for a moment.”
