Adrik inhaled deeply once the call was over. He turned to face me, his hands running up my thighs. He was stressed over this entire situation and legitimately worried about Trino’s safety. He caught me smiling at him. “What?” he asked, his smirk slowly appearing on his face.
“You’re worried for Trino’s safety. That’s not very Lord King Boss of you, but I happen to like it. Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone,” I said.
He laughed quietly. “Trina has always been honest with me. He’s a good guy. He had a rough rise to power, but things have bees great since he took over. I don’t want to see him lose that.” He sighed. “And it seems like he might be the only one 1 can trust now.” I just wrapped my arms around him, not really knowing the right thing to say. At least I could give him some comfort in the moment.
I hadn’t mentioned anyone yet, but I was starting to feel a sense of impending doom. I just didn’t know exactly what it was about yet. But I knew the storm was almost upon us.
The weekend was over all too soon and we had to move back to the penthouse to face reality for another week. I was starting to enjoy our weekend getaways where no one really knew where we were and we could just relax, enjoying being together. Adrik. and I always managed more alone time at the house than the penthouse, which I was never going to complain about. I knew he was busy, but I was grateful for any chance I got to have him all to myself.
Viktor, Stephen, and Ivan had left for the private airport, leaving Andrei and Misha with Adrik and I. Dario was set to arrive. from Colombia shortly this evening. Adrik wanted him brought to the penthouse right away, so no one would know he was back in the city without Massimo. He knew Salvadori had been trying to get Darin away from Massimo as well.
We were waiting in Adrik’s office for them to bring Dario to the building. Of course, we were talking about everything we’d learned over the weekend while we waited.
“We have to remember to add the end of the month to the whiteboard tomorrow. I think Giana is going to rob him and disappear at the end of the month,” Misha said. We’d talked about his anger toward Giana a few more times after we finished a run in the mornings at the house. He was starting to feel less angry toward her, but there was still no love for her with him.
“I think that’s a safe bet, my adorable Russian guardian. The bigger question is whether Armando will disappear with her or not,” I said.
“And what he’s going to do to her when he finds out she’s stolen from him,” Andrei said.
I looked to Adrik, curious. “What was Armando like with his ex-wives?” I asked.
Adrik thought for a minute. “I’m not really sure. Once he ended the relationship, I never really heard much about any of them. He moves on quickly to the next woman and his focus is on her.” I suddenly felt a sense of dread when he said those words. Something didn’t feel right, but I couldn’t figure out what. Adrik and Misha both noticed. Misha also felt something was wrong, but wasn’t sure what yet, either. Adrik had been at his desk while I was on one of the couches. He moved to the couch with me as soon as he felt my mood change. “What is it, love? What’s wrong? I can feel something is wrong,” he said as he sat down next to me.
“I’m not sure. I just got this weird feeling of dread when we were talking about Armando,” I said. I chewed on my bottom lip. trying to figure out what it was that made me feel this way. “I did too,” Misha said. “But I don’t know why.”
We didn’t have time to analyze what had happened, as the doors to the elevator opened. Viktor was back with Dario. Adrik looked at me, concerned. I smiled at him, my palm resting on his cheek. “It’s okay. It can wait until later,” I said. He leaned in and quickly kissed me before standing to meet Dario as they walked into his office.
Sephie
Viktor walked in first, with Dario behind him, and Ivan and Stephen behind Dario. “Any problems?” Adrik asked Viktor.
“None. Everything was quiet. Only your people at the airport. They put a different flight path on the paperwork, so no one will know that plane came from Colombia,” Viktor said. He walked past Adrik to sit down with Andrei, Misha, and I. I stood up quietly to hug him. They were only gone for a short time, but I was always relieved when they came back safe. The smile on Viktor’s face when I went to hug him told me that he felt the same relief. He hugged me tightly, kissing the top of my head, before sitting down.
Ivan and Stephen had walked around Dario, who was talking to Adrik. Each of them hugged me before finding a seat as well. Stephen whispered, “it’s bad,” in my ear as he hugged me. I looked at him, surprised, but said nothing. I took my usual spot behind Adrik’s desk so I could see Dario as he talked.
He looked like he’d ag ed at least ten years since the last time I saw him. His once salt and pepper hair was now much more salt than it was pepper. Dario had always been clean-shaven before. He was an older man, probably in his 60s, but I never thought he looked bad for his age. Now, however, he looked much older than 60, especially with his wh ite facial hair growing in. He had a nervous look to him, like he was legitimately afraid for his life.
Dario had been a quiet man in the meetings. He rarely argued with the other bosses, but they rarely argued with him. I was never sure if it was because they were scared of him or Massimo. He exuded a quiet confidence in the meetings. The man sitting before us now was in no way confident. His eyes darted around the room like he was waiting for something to happen.
Adrik noticed the change in him and caught my eye as I walked past his desk. My eyes went wide as I walked past him, knowing no one else could see me. He gave me a knowing look as he looked back toward Dario. Adrik usually liked to make people nervous by staying quiet, but he chose to speak first this time, trying to put Dario’s nerves at case. “Dario, Trino tells me you’d like to get out,” he said quietly,
Dario looked to Adrik, then glanced around the room again. His eyes never stayed on one thing for very long. He looked to me, then back to Adrik, then the door, the couches, each one of the guys, back to me. He nodded his head, his eyes still darting around the room. “I just want to be left alone. I won’t bother anyone. I can disappear. I’ve been planning it for years. No one will find me,” he said.
“You’ve been planning it for years?” Adrik asked. “How do you know no one else knows about it if you’ve been planning it that long?” Adrik’s tone of voice was similar to one he’d have with a young child.
“I haven’t told anybody where I’m going. They can try to look for me, but they won’t find me,” he said.
“But you’ve told people you’re going to disappear?” Adrik asked.
Dario nodded his head. “I told Sal. My kids don’t want any part of the business. They’ve been estranged from me for years. After they found out what Massimo did to my parents and that I stayed with him after I found out, they left. I haven’t spoken to them in years. I don’t even know where they are now,” he paused, like the weight of what he’d just said was hitting him. He started to speak, but stopped himself. Instead, he just sighed. “I was going to turn my part of the city over to Sal and disappear.
“Why didn’t you come to me or my father about what Massimo did to you?” Adrik asked.
Darlo’s eyes darted to Adrik. He looked scared. “Massimo would’ve found out. Sal told me that you wouldn’t do anything anyway. He was very adamant that I shouldn’t come to you. He told me you would punish me.” He looked to the floor quickly. He stared at the floor for a few moments.
“Apparently Massimo isn’t the only one that’s been fu cking with his mind,” I said in Russian.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.