Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 63165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
I dig my phone out of my bag with trembling fingers.
Susie picks up on the second ring. “Are you running the whole place yet, rockstar?”
“Susie,” I groan, sinking into the chair at my desk. “You’re not going to believe this.”
“Try me.” Her voice is light, teasing, as if she already expects some kind of dramatic story.
I clutch the phone tighter. “The guy I hooked up with the other night is the CEO,” I say shakily, still trying to make sense of it myself.
There’s a beat of silence, then a gasp that nearly blows out my eardrum. “No. Way. Shut up. You’re joking.”
“I wish I was.” I bury my face in my free hand.
“Oh, my God, Mari.” She’s laughing now, the kind of laugh that bubbles up and refuses to stop. “That is legendary.”
“It’s not legendary. It’s a disaster.” My voice cracks as I try to keep it low. “He’s so cold, Susie. He acted like it was nothing.”
Her laughter softens, turning into the sympathetic tone I know so well. “Sweetie, of course he did. He’s a man. They all think they have to act like assholes to stay in control. But you’re letting him get in your head. If he really didn’t care, he wouldn’t have said anything at all.”
I shake my head, staring at the blank screen of my computer. “No, you don’t get it. He was awful. He looked right at me and told me I wasn’t the first and I wouldn’t be the last. That I should just get over it if I want to keep this job. It was humiliating.”
“Then quit.” Her words are casual, but the suggestion hits me hard. “Seriously. You’re brilliant, Mari. You could get another job tomorrow. You don’t have to put up with some arrogant prick treating you like trash.”
I hesitate. The thought of walking out, of slamming the door behind me and never having to see his cold blue eyes again, is intoxicating.
“I can’t just quit, Susie. This is Levcon. It’s everything I worked for.”
“And you’ll find somewhere else that’s even better if you have to. You’re too good not to.”
I press my forehead against my palm, torn between anger and despair. “I don’t know if I can work for him. Every time I look at him, all I can think about is…” My voice trails off as the memory of his mouth on mine, his hands gripping my hips, surges up uninvited.
Susie snorts. “Honestly, I’m jealous. But he’s right about one thing, Mari. It was just sex. He made it clear he doesn’t care, so why should you?”
“Because it’s humiliating,” I snap, then sigh. “Because I feel like an idiot for letting it happen. And now I have to sit in meetings with him and pretend it wasn’t a big deal.”
“Then do exactly that.” Her tone sharpens, full of the practical certainty she uses at the hospital when everything is chaos. “Pretend it wasn’t a big deal. Ignore him. Or better yet, show him he’s not the only one worth noticing. Find another hot guy in the office, flirt a little, remind yourself that you have options. That’ll drive him crazy.”
I laugh weakly, shaking my head. “He wouldn’t care,” I protest.
“Men like him always care. They just won’t admit it. You want to get back at him? Show him what he’ll never have again.”
I lean back in my chair, staring up at the ceiling. The idea is tempting, but I’m not here to play games. I’m here to work, to prove myself, to finally step into the career I’ve dreamed of.
Lev doesn’t get to take this from me. He doesn’t get to make me feel small in the very place I fought so hard to reach.
“You really think I should stay?” I ask softly.
“Absolutely. You’re stronger than this, Mari. You’ve been through worse. Don’t let some arrogant jerk scare you off. If anyone can handle him, it’s you.”
I close my eyes, letting her words sink in. She’s right. Walking away would be easy, but it would also be giving up. And I have never given up before. Not when my parents died, not when I had to work my way through school, not when my grandmother passed and left me on my own. I clawed my way to this point, and I’m not about to let Lev Borikov be the reason I turn back.
4
LEV
I’m usually good at compartmentalizing my life. There’s business, there’s the Bratva, and there are women who blur the edges when I let them. But Mari refuses to stay in the box I put her in.
It’s been days since she first walked into my office, and I still can’t shake her. I told myself she’s just another employee, another body behind a desk pushing numbers. She is utterly replaceable. Yet every time I catch sight of her through the glass wall, something in me tightens.