Page 55 of Savage Truce

“Oooh, I’m shaking in my boots,” she sasses him.

We all pile into my office and watch as she takes a leather pouch from the backpack. Opening it, there are five injections.

When she picks up the first one, Constantin pushes me closer, muttering, “You can go first.”

“Are you afraid of needles?” Atanas asks him.

“No, fuckface. Rodian needs to get back to his wedding,” he grumbles.

Taking off my jacket, I rest it over one of the chairs in front of my desk before unbuttoning my cuff.

“No,” Rosie shakes her head at me. “I want to inject the tracker into your shoulder in case you lose your arm while being tortured.”

“You could’ve told me you were planning on doing this before I got dressed,” I mutter as I undo the bowtie.

When I finally peel my dress shirt over my shoulder, I’m scowling at Rosie, who gets way too much fucking pleasure from jabbing a needle into my skin.

While she moves on to Atanas, I get dressed again.

“Are you nervous?” Enzo asks me.

I shake my head and gesture at Atanas. “He is. Did Raya fly in with you guys?”

He nods. “When we left the hotel, she was on a business call, so she should be here soon.”

“Thank fuck,” Atanas whispers while buttoning up his shirt again.

I’m still busy with my vest, but when he hightails it out of the office, I grab my jacket and jog after him.

“Hold up,” I say, shoving the jacket into his hands so I can fix my bowtie, then I ask, “How does it look?”

“Perfect.” He holds the jacket up so I can slip my arms into it, and while I button it, we walk out onto the porch.

I’m just in time to welcome Christiano, the Capo dei Capi of the Cosa Nostra, and his wife, Sienna.

Everyone arrives with their own entourage of guards, and by the time Yegor’s associates pull up to the house, they are outnumbered a hundred to one.

“Here goes everything,” I mutter to Andrei as I take the stairs down, and as Zubkov, Yeltsin, and Popov get out of the same car, they glance at the side of the estate where Tamara has decorated the garden for the ceremony and reception.

Noticing all the influential people I’ve managed to get together in one spot, the fuckers smile at me as if we’re old friends.

“You didn’t waste any time forming alliances,” Popov says as he comes to shake my hand. “We look forward to witnessing the vows between you and Yegor’s granddaughter, then we can talk business.”

I gesture to the tall tables where drinks are being served. “Enjoy the day.”

When I turn my attention back to the porch, Atanas hurries down the steps and makes a beeline for a brunette. The instant she spots him, she freezes and stares at him.

You can cut the tension between them with a knife, and when Atanas reaches who I can only presume is Raya, he presses a kiss to her cheek before offering her his arm.

Andrei taps my shoulder, then says, “Your mother says it’s time for you to take your place.”

I walk with my friend to where an arch made of tiny white flowers is standing, and taking my position by it, I glance over the rows of chairs as my guests find their seats.

Artem and Dad come to sit in the front row, and only once everyone quiets down do the opening notes of Pachelbel’s Canon in D begin to fill the air.

After our date, I’ve spent every available moment with Anastasia, and it’s become a routine for us to talk late into the night until she drifts off to sleep.

The couch has been fucking uncomfortable, but after today that will be a thing of the past.