“Why give me this kind of authority? I’m nobody. Just someone you married for—” I stop, aware of the other diners, the staff who might be listening.
“For strategic reasons,” Dimitri finishes quietly. “Yes, but strategy doesn’t work if no one respects you. They won’t respect you if they think you’re powerless.”
“So you’re letting me have authority because it benefits you.”
“I’m letting you have authority because you’re my wife. That comes with certain privileges.” He leans back as wine is poured. “Use them however you see fit. Just understand that your actions reflect on me. I will hold you accountable for consequences.”
It’s not freedom, not really. Just a longer leash.
Still more than I expected.
***
The afternoon stretches into evening. Dimitri has more meetings, more business that requires his attention. I return to the penthouse alone, mind churning with everything I learned today.
I have power here. Real, tangible power.
People defer to me. Listen when I speak. Adjust their behavior based on my presence.
The question is, what do I do with it?
The plan was always revenge. Learn his world, find his weaknesses, destroy him from the inside when opportunity presents itself.
Except I’m starting to see nuance I didn’t expect. The employee I protected this morning wasn’t some faceless cog in a criminal machine—he was a terrified kid who needed someone to intervene. The authority I wielded wasn’t just about power games. It actually helped someone.
That complicates things.
I’m standing by the windows, watching the city lights flicker to life, when I hear Dimitri return. His footsteps are distinctive.
“You’re thinking too hard,” he observes from behind me.
“How can you tell?”
“You get this line between your eyebrows when you’re working through something complicated.” His hand settles at the small of my back, warm through the silk of my blouse. “What’s bothering you?”
“Everything. Nothing. This entire situation.”
“You’ll need to be more specific.”
I turn to face him, and the proximity makes my breath catch. He’s still in the suit from earlier, tie loosened slightly, looking exactly like the dangerous man he is.
“I don’t know how to be this person,” I admit. “Your wife. Someone people listen to. Someone with authority in a world I don’t understand.”
“Then learn.” His hand slides around my waist, pulling me closer. “You’re smart. Observant. You’ll figure it out.”
“What will you do if I use what I learn against you?”
“Then I’ll deal with that when it happens.” His other hand cups my face, thumb tracing my jaw. “I knew what I was getting when I married you, Janice. A woman who tried to destroy me once and might try again. I’m not naive enough to think marriage changed that.”
“Then why—”
He kisses me before I can finish the question. Deep and thorough and completely derailing whatever point I was trying to make.
When he finally pulls back, I’m breathless and furious and wanting him despite every rational reason not to.
“Stop doing that,” I manage.
“Doing what?”
