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I turned the gun on him when he got too close.

“Scar, sweetheart. Amateur move. Now he can’t answer any questions. This is why we left you at the apartment,” Kenji said, his condescending tone grating on my nerves. To think I’d let him stick his dick in me.

“Niko, get her the fuck out of here as we try to salvage this shit show.” Caleb’s voice trembled with rage when he spoke.

I dropped the bat, drawing a second pistol from where it had been hidden under my black blazer and pointing it at Niko’s shoulder. I didn’t want to kill the hot asshole, but I wouldn’t hesitate to shoot.

“Or you three can pull your heads out of your asses and learn a thing or two tonight,” I gritted out, nodding toward the man who’d sat quietly during this exchange. “I was 98 percent sure that Ivan was a mouthpiece for the Bulgarians, but I needed that last shred of proof. In any organization I know of, the lackeys have their boss’s dick rammed so far down their throats that they do shit like throw themselves in front of a bullet for them. Yet he didn’t move a fuckin’ muscle as his boss got his knee blown out.”

Dull brown eyes stared into mine. A hint of a smirk crept up onto his face. I’d have loved to see the look of shock and confusion on the other three, but I didn’t want to risk taking my attention off the real mob boss.

“Smart woman. But maybe I just hate my boss.” His thick accent rumbled with amusement.

I heard Kenji whisper what sounded like oh shit.

Caleb’s laptop had been comically easy to hack into, and the information for this meeting was right there on his calendar. My interest piqued when it said they were meeting with the Bulgarians. I’d done a job for them a few years prior. Killed their boss so the son could take over. Of course, I wasn’t supposed to know the son had hired the hit. It was the reason for tonight’s dramatics.

All I had to do was essentially hot-wire the elevator, which was something I could do in my fucking sleep at this point. No one should ever do anything less than biometric scanners—or iris scanners, if possible, because an eyeball was a bitch to dig out.

I tucked one gun back into my waistband. “Gregori Ivanov. Head of the Bulgarian crime syndicate, currently the main supplier of coke and MDMA for the Russians. But you double dip and supply to the Yakuza too,” I commented, walking back over to perch myself on the desk.

Gregori was young. His inky hair hung in loose curls down to about his ears. Thick eyebrows and a hooked nose framed muddy-colored eyes. His strong jaw was peppered in a five o’clock shadow. He wore an expensive suit, looking perfectly at ease as he lounged back, arm draped over the back of the chair.

“When did you get married?” he asked, amusement in his tone as he trailed his eyes down my body, lingering on the black lace bodysuit I wore. “And can it be annulled? Because it’s hard to find a bloodthirsty woman like you.” He peered over my shoulder at Caleb. “Not everyone is man enough to recognize the power in having a murderous woman by their side.”

I opened my mouth to answer but found myself being hauled backward across the top of the desk and into Caleb’s lap. His hands were like a brand against my waist, searing my skin. He buried his face in the side of my neck. Shivers of pleasure rolled through my body as he sucked and licked at the sensitive skin.

“No, it can’t be annulled, and as you can tell, she likes being my wife just fine,” Caleb growled out, his voice vibrating against my throat.

Had I been moaning?

His next words were whispered in my ear, his hot breath heating the skin still wet from his saliva. “We’re going to have a long talk about you barging in here, but if you keep writhing against my dick like that, I’m going to bend you over this desk.” The hardening length twitched under my ass, sending more moisture pooling between my thighs.

The clearing of a throat pulled me from the haze of lust. Gregori’s eyes twinkled with amusement as he winked at me. Caleb caught it and stiffened against my back, while Niko pressed forward, wrapping a large hand around his throat.

“I suggest you quit making moves toward our woman if you’d like to stay alive longer than your father did,” Kenji said, his tone dark and menacing.

Instead of cowering in fear, Gregori’s smile grew, and his eyes pinged over all four of us before coming to rest on me, an eyebrow quirked.

“Choo, choo,” I said, my lips pulled up in a cheeky grin when Caleb choked from behind me. Gregori busted out in laughter. Clearly, Niko hadn’t had an overly tight hold on his throat.

They should do their research, because if they had, they would’ve known that Gregori had a longtime partner. It was a big part of why he’d had his father taken out. The bastard threatened to have his son’s lover killed.

“Don’t worry, gentlemen. She’s all yours. My husband wouldn’t appreciate it if I brought her home,” Gregori said, watching each man stiffen in surprise. “Now, what is it that you want?” His tone switched, going into full business mode.

Caleb considered his question for a moment, determining his options for answering. There was only one: the truth. Gregori wouldn’t respond to anything other than that. If the Syndicate wanted to wage war, they needed loyalty, not coerced soldiers who would turn traitor when a better offer came.

“We want a partnership. We plan on taking over New York and need those who want to see the current four fall,” Caleb said.

Gregori looked intrigued yet suspicious—the playfulness long gone. “That’s quite the goal,” he stated cautiously.

I glanced up at Caleb. His expression was calm and indifferent, but his grip on my thigh tightened, his knuckles whitening. He looked down at me, studying my face.

Realization dawned on me. Caleb didn’t know whether he could say what he needed to in front of me. My heart sank to my feet, disappointment burning in my gut, until he gripped the bottom of my chin, pulling my attention back toward him.

“I’m taking a risk here, Scar. Don’t make me kill you by fucking me over.” Caleb’s deep eyes were piercing, a swirl of vulnerability and hope. He wanted to be able to trust me.

I dry swallowed and found myself nodding. Was it obvious that I desperately wanted these three to trust me, to bring me into the fold?