Page 129 of Bratva and Betrayal: Kirill

And yep, his Escalade is parked outside a brick building. That sickens me even more if he’s meeting another woman here. A war rages in my head, one side convinced Kirill wouldn’t cheat on me. He had every opportunity while I was missing, and rightfully so, if he believed I’d left him on my own.

The other side is protecting me from being a naïve wife of a rich, powerful man. Could it be, now that he is officially pakhan, other expectations have surfaced? Does he feel more emboldened after being crowned?

I keep a visual sitting in my SUV dozens of feet away in a convenient bend in the road. But a black Mercedes drives right past me and stops next to Kirill’s armored Escalade.

My stomach drops, seeing a woman step out. I don’t have binoculars, and all I can see from this far away is that she’s got dark hair, but I can’t tell if that’s Tamara.

Kirill gets out of his car, and I hate how handsome he looks. How he’s smiling.

“Damn you,” I mutter as tears build up in my eyes.

As I wipe them away, my vision blurs. I see Kirill meet the woman at the door. They don’t shake hands, they don’t kiss hello. But he steers her into the building with a hand on the small of her back to lead her inside.

Jealousy punches me right in the stomach. I now get the fight or flight conflict. My muscles are burning to throw this SUV into gear and drive home to Iron Keep. Move back to a separate bedroom and be a mother to my daughter. Freeze Kirill out, and maybe he’ll get the hint.

That’s not who I really am, is it? I fought to be with this man once before. I might be setting myself up for more heartbreak or looking like a huge fool, but I won’t hide.

The Bratva doesn’t hide.

I heard Kirill say that again and again.

I put the car into drive and roll back onto the road. Heading toward Kirill and the mysterious woman. Because that man is mine.

Seeing the Escalade and the Mercedes getting bigger, and knowing Kirill’s guards are in that SUV, I know I have to gun it and run into that building.

So that’s exactly what I do. Hoping I don’t get shot.

Not much registers as I push the glass door open. I stop, noticing everything looks and smells new. There’s a waiting room with an empty desk that leads to an open space beyond.

Preparing to see Kirill on top of someone, under someone, naked, not naked, I was not prepared to see gold lettering stretched across a glass wall dividing two rooms that reads…my name.

SANDRINE VOLKOV STUDIO.

Chapter 41

Kirill

“Breach. Breach!”

“Incoming!”

“Pakhan, take cover!”

My guards warning me of someone charging into the studio, spins me around. Drawing my gun, I brace myself. There’s nowhere to take fucking cover.

Then I see…Sandrine. Running toward me.

What the fuck?

How did she get here? Who is chasing her? Then I see my guards. My guards are chasing her.

“Stand down!” I roar, and everyone freezes. “Sandrine, what are you doing here?”

She’s under the sign that reads SANDRINE VOLKOV STUDIO, staring at it, looking confused.

“Kirill?” She says my name on a choked sob.

I march that way and make eye contact with my guards. “Get back.”