Page 95 of Captured Obsession

“Your beauty is blinding,mishka, especially when we agreed on somewhere discreet.”

We’re in a packed restaurant, though I have no appetite. Especially since Dmitri accepted our invite.

“Rare of you to give me such forward compliments,”she quips, then smiles and asks the server for a bottle of sparkling water.

“I show my appreciation through action,” I say, reminding her of her battered ass. A hot flush streaks her cheeks.

It’s a week after our confrontation with The Wolf. And though I’m still healing, I’m no worse for wear. My hunger for the hunt increases by the day, and it won’t be long until I leave, making good on my promise to take out anyone I deem a threat to me and my future with Sienna.

There are still too many variables around The Wolf’s death. Apparently, it was Mikhail who sold his sisters out to Luca to use against their father. It seems Mikhail wanted him out of the way just as badly as I did.

From the information I’ve gathered, Mikhail has gone missing. Most likely because if anyone else uncovers that he’s the mastermind behind The Wolf’s fall, there will be a target on his back. What I can’t understand is why he went to these lengths, and how he could betray his sisters. But that’s not something I have to concern myself with. I just have to make sure he doesn’t become a problem in the future.

“Oh, there they are,” Sienna says, getting to her feet. When I see Dmitri, the hotshot billionaire, I must confess, I feel nothing. He’s well dressed in a dark-blue suit, and his hair buzzed short, revealing the scar on his head. He sizes me up in the same way I do him. Butit’s when my gaze slides to Elanee that my stomach sinks.

As Sienna pulls away from their hug, I notice Elanee’s swollen stomach.Pregnant.

Dmitri nods to Sienna in greeting, but his gaze hasn’t left mine, and he noticeably moves Elanee behind him.

“Dmitri, it’s fine,” Elanee says, practically shoving him out of the way. And when her eyes meet mine, she says. “Hello,Udav.”

She looks healthier now. Her complexion warm and pink, when it was once pale and sickly. Her curly blonde hair frames her face, and her light-brown eyes no longer hold resentment or vacancy. She’s alive. Safe. Thriving, even.

Sienna once asked me if I regret anything in this life. I told her no, but that there was one woman who haunted me because of my inaction to help her. And when facing that ghost, the subtle shift of shame and relief washes through me. Emotions I wasn’t acquainted with until meeting Sienna.

“It’s good to see you as well,” I say sincerely.

Dmitri’s gaze narrows. “You know my wife?”

Sienna’s gaze bounces between us, and I can see the moment it clicks into place, when she realizes Elanee is the woman who haunts me. Her eyes prick with tears, but she quickly says, “Let’s sit down, shall we?”

Dmitri’s gaze bores into me as we sit across fromone another. The hot-commodity billionaire himself. I must confess, I don’t know what I expected, but I thought perhaps I would feel more.

“I expected you to be bigger,” I admit.

“I expected your speech to be slower,” Dmitri replies, and we both smile insincerely at one another.

“Dmitri,” Elanee reprimands.

“You’re pregnant,” Sienna blurts, obviously trying to turn the conversation in a more positive direction.

Elanee’s hand goes to her stomach, and a soft expression comes over her face. It’s different from the version of her I remember—frightened, tormented,hurtby the hand of my and Dmitri’s father.

He used her in his game to coax Dmitri out. I never understood his obsession with Dmitri, but what I know is there was no familial love. Not between them. And not between us. Just a sick, twisted fascination.

It was only ever a game to The Lion. He only cared about who was the strongest so he could fight them. Which is why it had come as such a surprise to me to hear that this man, stacked on all his riches, was able to take him down.

“Yes, I’m six months along, actually,” Elanee says with a warm smile. “I never thought I’d be able to have children. We’re feeling very blessed.”

I slide my hand beneath the table to Sienna, who smiles brightly. “That’s incredible, Elanee. I’m sorry I didn’t already know, but I’m happy for the both of you. Truly.”

I want to fight the pain I can tell Sienna’s holding back, even with the sincerity for their joy. She will never have this. It’s something she’s wanted so badly, and I despise the fact that there’s nothing I can do to fix it.

I wish she weren’t so nice as to congratulate others on their growing families when it probably causes a tiny piece of her light to die each time. Perhaps, like a lot of things these past few months, it’s another weight Sienna is choosing to let go instead of fighting against.

Elanee turns to me. “As long as you’re not here to kill my husband, I wanted to thank you,Udav.”

I mask any expression, but I’m confused as to why she would thank me.