Throne of Power (Throne Duet #1) by Rina Kent

“What do you mean?” Katia asks.

“It means I have to dig harder with the man himself.”

Ruslan shifts his attention to Katia then back to me. “He could lie.”

“I won’t be obvious about my digging, so he won’t figure it out. First of all, I want to do a secret DNA test to know if his parental relationship with Igor is real. I’ll get you Kyle’s hair.”

“Igor’s won’t be easy to obtain.” Katia grimaces. “His security is like a fort.”

“We can bribe one of the servants,” Ruslan offers.

I shake my head. “They’re not susceptible to bribery, and the whole thing might backfire in our faces. Igor won’t stay still if he knows I’m spying on him, not to mention I’m already walking a fine line with him ever since I dug into his financials. I’ll make up a reason to visit his wife.”

“Yes, Stella likes you and kept asking about you at the wedding.”

“Let’s hope her opinion doesn’t change after I do this.” Because if she really turns out to be my mother-in-law, she’ll probably know I’m not sincere toward her son.

During the rest of the evening, my guards and I continue our strategic planning for the brunch. If I want to have the Italians join, led by Lazlo’s wife, I can’t do it in our house. None of the Italians would send their wives to the Russians’ compound. We may be allies, but it’s jungle law, and no one completely trusts the other.

It needs to be a public place that’s in a shared territory so that the Italians can feel like they have the same control as us and, therefore, will be safe.

Anastasia and Lia will have to join me so I feel more in my element with my people. It would’ve been perfect if Reina were here, too, but I would rather be shot in the chest than bring my twin sister into this world.

After my guards leave, I spend some time with Ana and tell her about the brunch, and she jumps up from excitement. Being sheltered her whole life makes her giddy at the slightest change of patterns.

Seeing her happy is contagious, and I go back to my room with a big smile on my face.

It immediately drops when I find Kyle sitting in the lounge area, his fingers moving over the keyboard of a laptop that’s settled on the coffee table.

My stomach dips, and the toy that’s still lodged deep inside me tingles, even though it’s not moving. I hate these emotions, the familiarity, the intimacy I can’t stop myself from feeling toward him.

So I go straight to the defensive. “What are you doing in my room?”

“Our room,” he says without lifting his head. “We’re married, Mrs. Hunter, remember? Or did you have too much to drink and need me to punish you again?”

I grab the nearest object, which happens to be a pillow, and throw it at him. He catches it over his head, his focus still on the laptop, but his lips tilt in a smirk as if he knows exactly which of my buttons to push.

Well, he’s not the only one with surprises. But first… “I’m removing the toy.”

“No.”

“It’s already night. You’re not expecting me to wear it while I sleep, are you?”

“Whatever I plan is none of your concern. All you need to do is keep your part of the deal. Now, be a good little princess and stay silent while I have a conference call.”

“With who?” I approach him slowly.

“The Lucianos’ underboss and two of their capos. They want to discuss business with Adrian and me.”

“I take it your visit to Lazlo went well?”

“Excellent, actually. He likes that I went personally, and he already dotes on Adrian, so it was as expected.” He finally lifts his head to meet my eyes. “Do you now see how you would have ruined it by tagging along?”

I purse my lips, but it’s not only because of the whole Lazlo thing. It’s the fact that I can’t stop staring at Kyle’s face, at his gleaming eyes and sensual lips, his sharp features and the way a stray hair is falling haphazardly on his temple.

And now I’m ogling him. Stop ogling him.

“I’ll stay and listen,” I blurt to distract myself.

“Why?”

“Because this is Bratva business and I want to be in the know.”

“And you don’t trust me to do it alone.” His declaration is strange, almost like he’s anticipating a certain type of answer.

“Good. At least you know that.”

His eyes fall back to the laptop, but he doesn’t deny or confirm my demand. After a moment, he says, “If the Italians hear your voice, the deal will be null and void. They won’t be able to trust us. Do you understand?”

The tone in his voice bothers me. It’s mechanical, almost like he’s dismissing me or pulling away from me.

I hate the sting that explodes in my chest. “Fine.”

Kyle has no idea what will come to him in this exact conference call. I slip over to my closet and change into a short, dark red nightgown Ana bought for me as a wedding gift.

The lace that covers my breasts is see-through, so my nipples are visible if someone is close enough. The soft silk falls gently against my body but barely covers the crack of my ass.

I stand in front of the mirror and contemplate what I’m going to do. This looks like the last thing I would ever wear. Besides, seduction is my absolute weakness. Not only have I never tried it before, it also puts me in a vulnerable position.