Hitman Daddy by Aster Rae

14

Nikolai

It'sthe day of the wedding.

I've never been more nervous in my life.

Igor senses my apprehension. "Everything alright?"

"Hell no." It takes everything in me not to growl at him. "Today's the day Dad either offers to protect Christian or puts a bullet through his head."

"You're being dramatic." Igor glares at me.

"I'm not. Dad will kill Christian if he fucks with his business. He's a ruthless bastard who doesn't listen to excuses."

Igor sighs. "Dad promised to put Christian under protection. He wouldn't promise that if he planned to chop off his head."

"Dad changes his mind on a whim. Christian could look at him wrong and Dad would pull out a gun."

My father is an impulsive sociopathic bitch.

One time during Christmas I asked him for a new Nanny.

The present nanny spent too much time on her iPhone instead of going to the park with me.

Dad responded by locking her in a blacked-out room and played her obnoxious ringtone on repeat until she nearly clawed her eyes out.

He would've driven her to her death if my mother hadn't died that Christmas.

He let her go to spend the last days of my mother's life by her side.

"Dad would lock Christian in a room and throw away the key," I growl.

I can't let that happen to Christian.

Not now.

I'm not the same man I was when I saw Christian at Crave.

I've grown. Matured.

I now realize that there’s something I want more than power and cash.

Love.

It's cheesy. But it's true.

I want to hold Christian in my arms while he falls asleep and kiss every inch of his body.

I want to fly Christian out to the most luxurious Caribbean island and spend months with him.

We can bask in the sun and sip tropical coconut drinks as he sits in my lap and calls me Daddy.

Life itself is nothing without my beautiful boy.

A wave of sadness suffocates me as I realize that my fake relationship comes to an end today.

I can barely believe a month has already gone by.

"If Dad doesn't murder your fake boyfriend, do you want to continue seeing him?" Igor queries.

It would be a hilarious question if the danger weren't so motherfucking palpable.

"Yes,” I grunt. “But Christian and I have an agreement. After this wedding ends, I'll transfer the rest of the money into his bank account and never see him again."

"It doesn't have to end that way."

Rage grips me. "Christian is a beautiful angel but he’s totally out of my league. I'm a fucking monster who's not worthy to kiss the ground he walks on. Like Judas with Jesus. He'd never want anything to do with me if he discovered my fantasies."

It's weird being so honest with Igor but I feel a compulsion to tell him everything.

He's the brother I'm most comfortable with and he deserves to know.

"Is it because you're a Daddy?" Igor asks gruffly.

I may have let it slip that I wanted to be Christian's Daddy our last time talking.

I nod. "I don't want to freak Christian out."

Igor lets out a sigh. "Walk with me. I have something to tell you."

We head to the bar and grab two glasses of scotch.

Michael and his fiancée are still getting ready in the mansion with their hair and makeup assistants making sure they look their best.

The mansion is luxuriously decorated and the extended family is starting to arrive.

Even my long-lost family from Russia is coming.

Never have I been prouder to attend a Mafia wedding in my life.

After walking around the beautiful premises, Igor and I head back to the front of the mansion.

Christian's supposed to pull up any minute with my private driver and I don't want to miss it when he arrives.

"I have a funny feeling about Christian." Igor takes a sip of scotch. "You think he'd leave you if he discovered your kinks. But I don't think that's true."

Igor's words give me pause. "Go on."

"I've been involved in the scene for a long time,” Igor explains. “I’ve played the Daddy role a number of times. I only met Christian once at that barbecue but something about him reminded me of a boy I knew in my thirties. His name was Charles. We messed around at the Highland Kink Club in upstate New York."

"I had no idea you were bisexual,” I say.

"I'm pan."

This is quite a shock.

I take a look at Igor's enormous scarred features and huge muscles.

This man has seen more death than most people see in a lifetime.

Never in my life did I expect Igor to identify as pan.

I guess pansexuals come in all shapes and sizes.

I force myself to focus on Christian. "Does Christian remind you of Charles?"

"He gives me serious little vibes,” Igor grunts. “He looks like the type of boy who can't go long without a Daddy."

I mull this.

Igor is a kinky bastard.

He has a black room in the back of his penthouse with a ton of BDSM gear.

It's like Christian Grey’s room but ten times more intense.

The fact that Igor thinks Christian could be a little gives me hope.

My mind flashes as I recall the way Christian told me he had teddy bears in his room.

"I have so many." Christian turns around and wraps his arms around my waist. "So many teddies. He won't get lonely, I swear."

Could Christian be a little?

Was he giving me a sign that I overlooked?

I force myself to push it down.

Christian and I are breaking up after this wedding anyway so it doesn't matter in the end.

"I appreciate your insight," I say. "I know you're trying to help. But I can't right now. The wedding is about to start. The last thing I want is to delude myself."

"Why would Christian buy you a teddy unless he was a little?" Igor queries.

I may have told Igor about the teddy.

“Teddies are common gifts in relationships,” I grunt. “I’m not going to read into it."

"But you also said he was smitten over an LGBT bear in a storefront window. Isn't that a sign?"

Damn. Did I really tell Igor all of this about Christian?

I must've had way too much scotch at the family barbecue last weekend.

I take a sip of my drink. "Christian's a quirky cute guy with a penchant for stuffed bears. Nothing more, nothing less."

It could also totally mean that he's a little.

"You're so in denial." Igor takes a sip of scotch.

"I'm telling you how it is."

“Tell Christian your truth. See how he reacts."

"I'm not throwing my reputation away by confessing that I'm into a fairly embarrassing kink. Christian could blab."

"What's wrong with that?"

"No one would ever take me seriously again."

It's sad that we live in a world that still stigmatizes certain kinks.

But I can't do anything about that.

If I want to maintain my reputation, I can't have Christian blabbing that I'm into dressing up boys in onesies.

"Maybe you don't want to keep working in this industry,” Igor says quietly. "Maybe you don't want to be a hitman who kills for fun. Maybe you want to put that life behind you and settle down with Christian."

"It doesn't matter what I want. I'm a working professional and I refuse to throw away my life for a man."

I’ve sacrificed everything to ascend to this position.

Telling Christian I want to be his protector would jeopardize my career.

Just then the man of the hour arrives in my seven-hundred-thousand-dollar Rolls-Royce Phantom limousine.

Christian steps out of the back door as my driver bows before him.

The world falls away.

Christian looks amazing. He's wearing the expensive suit we picked out with a baby blue Louis Vuitton tie. He clutches the thirty-thousand-dollar Birkin bag that arrived last week and smiles bashfully.

"Thank God you're here," Christian jokes as he walks to my side. "I was worried you sent me to the wrong mansion."

I can barely breathe as I leave Igor in the dust and wrap my arms around my fake boyfriend. "You look so fucking good, Christian. You look like a million bucks."

Christian's cheeks flush. "It's just a cheap suit I got on clearance at Nordstrom rack," he jokes. "And this bag is faux leather. It's probably a knock off."

I part his hair and plant a kiss on his forehead.

What a tease.

"I hope you're ready to meet Michael."

Christian holds my gaze for a moment too long.

I nearly stumble over my feet as sparks burst between our eyes.

I force myself to break the connection.

"I'm ready." A smirk pulls at Christian's lips. "I'm excited to meet your business partner."

"Family." I say this firmly. "You're meeting my family today, Christian. Yes, Michael's my business partner, but he's so much more. He's my favorite cousin and someone I’ve looked up to for years. You’re meeting my family."

Christian beams at me. "I'm excited either way."

I take his hand and lead him inside.