Shattered Cradle: A Russian Mafia Romance (Makarova Bratva Book Two) by Fox Nicole

Author:Fox, Nicole
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-04-27T16:00:00+00:00

22

ALEKS

“Miss me already?” Jennifer asks when she answers on the third ring.

I roll my eyes. “I’ve got new marching orders for you.”

She sighs. “Typical man. You’re calling because you want something. Well, give it to me. Should I be scared?”

“Since when have you ever been scared?”

“Flattery will get you everywhere, Aleks. What do you want?”

“Olivia has a lunch tomorrow. I want you to accompany her.”

“You have Demyan and an army of goons who are good at breaking shit at your disposal. Why me?”

“I have my reasons.”

The pause is loaded with tension—until she figures it out. It was never going to take her very long, but even I’m impressed by how quickly she gets to the bottom of it.

“Oh God. Who is she having lunch with?”

“Jen—”

“I can’t see him, Aleks,” she says before I can even explain. “I can’t. You know that.”

“I’m not asking.”

“You’re being cruel," she hisses with an undercurrent of desperation I’ve never heard from her before.

“Maybe so, but I’m not changing my mind, either. You need to see him. More importantly, he needs to see you.”

“He’s already made up his mind about me.”

“Actually, he’s only made his mind up about me,” I retort. “The man still thinks I’ve managed to hoodwink you. It’s time to disabuse him of that notion.”

“Aleks, please—"

“Begging doesn't work with me.”

“I’m not begging; I’m asking.”

“And I’m saying no. There’s no way out of this.”

She goes quiet, but I can hear her grinding her teeth together, trying to find a legitimate excuse out of this. “I would have thought you’d be more grateful to me after the asset I handed over to you.”

“He was trying to make contact. He would have found a way to do that with or without you.”

“She doesn’t even really need security," she says, changing tack. "This is her brother we're talking about. Rob would never hurt her.”

“But Hargrove might. And as long as Robert is in his pocket, I need to play it safe.”

There's a long pause. Once Jennifer realizes there is no way out, she sighs. “What do you want me to say to him?”

"Nothing, if you don’t want to. That’s entirely up to you.”

“Great. Very helpful. This is going to be a fucking nightmare.”

“Be here at twelve tomorrow. The car will take you both to the restaurant together.”

“Which restaurant?”

“Some Italian place in the city."

“Giovanni's,” she breathes. “It was their parents’ favorite restaurant. I think it’s where they got engaged.”

It strikes me how much family history she’s been privy to. How much she’s still emotionally invested in the Lawrence tribe.

“You should have taken me up on my offer,” I say. “I gave you an out so you could be with him.”

“And I appreciate it. But we were doomed from the moment I accepted the job.”

“There’s no such thing as doom, Jennifer. Or fate, or predestination, or any of that bullshit. The world is what we make it. If you don’t like it, remake it.”

“Did you read that on a fortune cookie?” she snaps. “Forget it. If he kills me tomorrow… well, I’ll probably deserve it.

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