*Adrik*
I made a call to Trino, informing him about our plan to see if Dario and Massimo would also contact him. He agreed that it was a good plan. He was still making Anthony and Lorenzo wait for an answer for another few days. “I know it’s a dick move, but it’s really fun, man. They just wait like little puppy dogs for me to talk to them. I made them wait for weeks, Jefe!” He was laughing so hard on the other end of the phone that he couldn’t speak. I enjoyed Trino. He was a typical Spanish man. Very flamboyant with his wealth and just as likely to cuss you out as he was to help you out. He was passionate in everything he did, but he loved his family, and he took care of his city. Rules were different in South America. They played a little dirtier than we did, but he had brought order to the chaos once he took over the cartels in Colombia. They’d enjoyed many years of peace under him. The people loved him because of it.
“The longer you make them wait down there, the longer they’re out of my hair, so it’s much appreciated. I’m sending you a gift, to show you just how much.”
“Jefe, you send the best gifts, but watching these pendejos squirm is a gift in itself,” Trino said. “And now you’re sending me two more? I should be sending you the gift, Jefe.”
I laughed. Trino was a good guy. He enjoyed his evil side as much as I did.
I had a few minor meetings the rest of the day. Armando had made plans to meet with Dario and Massimo that evening. Viktor organized a security detail to escort him. He would accompany them, but stay out of sight so neither Dario nor Massimo could spot him. It was admittedly difficult for my guys to blend into a crowd.
It was the middle of the afternoon, and I still hadn’t seen Sephie. I was trying not to be worried about her. I didn’t know if she was still asleep. It wasn’t like her to sleep quite this long, unless something was wrong. I called Misha, assuming he was the one waiting on her to wake up. He answered on the first ring. I could hear laughing in the background.
“Where are you?”
“Boss, she’s fine. She’s been awake for a while. Ms. Jackson called her down a little while ago.” He moved so he was out of earshot, since Ms. Jackson could understand Russian. “She’s been trying to leave for the last 20 minutes, but Ms. Jackson and Giana just keep talking to her. Giana has said more today than I’ve ever heard her say. Shopping is the way to that girl’s heart.”
“Tell her I need to see her and you, then. You can always use that excuse, anytime you see her trying to get away. I will always confirm that.”
He sighed. “Thanks, Boss. We’ll be right there.”
I ended the call, smiling at the thought of Sephie trying to get away from them but not being able to. She might be cranky again…
I didn’t have to wait longer than two minutes and she rushed into my office. I barely had time to stand up before she literally jumped into my arms, wrapping her legs and arms around me tightly. “Oh my God, you saved me. You have no idea how much I love you right now.” She was clinging to me like she’d barely escaped death. Misha walked in, laughing.
“They were making plans to go shopping again,” he said, trying not to laugh.
She leaned back enough that she could look me in the eyes. “They hate me. They must hate me. Why else would they want to torture me like that? I mean, Giana I don’t know very well, but Ms. Jackson? I thought she loved me.” She put both of her hands on either side of my face, looking at me very seriously. “I was wrong. I was so wrong.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at her, making her laugh as well. “I can give you a curfew this time, solnishko.”
She wrapped her arms around my neck again, hugging me tightly. “See? You clearly love me.”
“I do love you, solnishko. I’m also working on getting Armando his own security detail. Giana can go shopping as much as she wants, and she’ll be safe once that detail is in place.”
She leaned back to look at me again. I was expecting her to say something funny, but instead she kissed me. Hard. I was caught off guard by her passion, but found myself very turned on by it. Misha cleared his throat, reminding her that he was still in the room. She broke the kiss, pointing at him, but not looking away from me. “Don’t be rude, my adorable Russian guardian.” He laughed as she unwrapped herself from me. She stood on her toes, kissing me one more time and turning to glare at Misha, before laughing. She leaned back against me, which I appreciated as I needed to adjust my pants otherwise. Her excitement to see me was unexpectedly arousing.
She pulled my arms around her waist, wondering out loud, “so if they get their own security detail soon, does that mean we can go to the house for the weekend?”
I pulled her close, knowing she felt exactly what she had done to me, poking her in her back. I rested my chin on the top of her head. “Of course, solnishko. Do you like it better there? I thought you were happy here?”
She squeezed my arms. “Of course, I’m happy here. I’m happy wherever you are. I was actually missing the piano,” she said quietly. She was still somewhat shy about playing in front of us. I loved it and I knew the guys did too. She had a real talent for it and we all got to enjoy it when she would play.
I suddenly had an idea on how to surprise her. *Can’t believe I hadn’t thought of this before now*.
“We can go to the house whenever you like, Sephie. We have enough security to leave with Armando and Giana that they’ll be fine for a couple of days. He’s meeting with Dario and Massimo in a couple of hours. I’m sending a detail with him, along with Viktor.”
“Won’t Dario and Massimo recognize Viktor, though? I mean, I know they know that Armando is loyal to you, but that might be a bit too obvious,” she asked. I pulled her toward the couch, keeping my arms around her as I sat down so she would sit in my lap. She kicked her shoes off and crossed her legs in between mine.
Misha laughed. We both looked at him. “Ivan was right. You two are fucking adorable.”
“It’s because I’m the goddamn princess and he’s the goddamn prince. Thank you very much,” she said. She tried to get that out completely before laughing. She almost made it, but started laughing before she could finish it completely. I shook my head at both of them, moving Sephie’s hair off her shoulder, exposing her neck.
“Viktor is very good at staying out of sight, solnishko.”
“Really? There are some Syrian prison officials that might disagree with that statement,” she said.
Misha laughed loudly. Even I laughed at that one. She wasn’t wrong there.
“He’s improved since his time there,” I said, still laughing.
“He’s gonna love that one,” Misha said.
“Did you talk to Trino about Dario and Massimo?” she asked.
“I did. I think you need to meet him at some point. I think he’s a good guy, much like Armando, but I would like to get your opinion on him as well,” I said, my face brushing lightly against her neck. I felt her push her hips backward into me slightly. I knew feeling my facial hair on her neck drove her crazy. I was just returning the favor for the way she greeted me earlier.
“Has he given Anthony and Lorenzo an answer yet?” she asked, trying to control herself.
I laughed. “Not yet. He’s really enjoying making them wait. I think he called them puppies? I told him I was sending him a gift for keeping them out of my hair for a little longer. He said that making them wait was the gift because he was enjoying it so much. And now I’m trying to send two more to him.”
Sephie chuckled. “I like him already.”
We were eventually joined by Ivan, Andrei, and Stephen. Viktor had left already for the meeting with Dario and Massimo. We would wait until he and Armando returned to get the news.
“Bubba, they want to go shopping AGAIN. They want to drag me with them. Help me,” she said as they walked into the office. They all laughed at her blatant hatred for shopping.
“Boss told me I could use him as an excuse to get Sephie away from anything she didn’t want to do from now on. Just tell them he needs to see her,” Misha said, smiling broadly at Sephie.
She leaned her head back, kissing my cheek. “You really do love me.” She smiled sweetly at me. I’m not sure if it was her smiling at me or the fact that she was starting to believe that I really did love her, but I felt my cheeks blush slightly. My entire body suddenly felt warmer, too.
“I really do love you, solnishko.”
“Fucking adorable,” Ivan and Misha both said in unison, which made everyone laugh. Sephie just hugged my arms to her a little tighter as she sighed. She always seemed happy anytime she was in my arms, which made me happy. When she wasn’t in my arms, I always felt an invisible pull toward her until I was touching her again. I’d never experienced anything like it before, but I loved it. I was completely addicted to her now and I hoped that feeling never went away.