Knocked Up By the Russian Boss by Bella King
Chapter 27
MAXIM
The look in Ivory’s eyes was unmistakable: she’s suspicious of me. I knew I couldn’t conceal my living arrangements for too long, but I definitely could have given it more time.
I’m getting over-eager, and I’ll blow my cover completely if I don’t clean up my methods a little bit.
I’ve called a meeting with Sergei and two of my other trusted men. Since I’ve expanded my generosity to include the three when I inherit Steven’s estate, they’ve gotten to be considerably more involved.
At the headquarters, I wait at the table until Sergei shows up first, then my two assistants Joey and Emery follow close behind. They tend to work together directly, so wherever one is, I’m sure to find the other. They’re convenient to have around for that reason.
“Okay, so I have a few things I need to go over about this plan,” I begin.
Sergei is unamused. I’m sure he’s been foaming at the mouth for an opportunity to tell me I’m terrible at playing the long game.
Joey and Emery are more forgiving and, therefore, more intent on hearing what I have to say.
“So, I’ve gone rogue a bit with this whole ‘kidnapping the princess’ thing,” I begin.
“Yeah, no shit,” Sergei says, more to himself than me.
“Okay, listen, I’ve called you all here to help me rework the plan so that I won’t keep running into weird roadblocks. I don’t need attitude from you,” I continue, Sergei sighing heavily as he rolls his eyes. He’s lucky he’s my brother, or he’d be put in his place fast. He abuses this fact frequently.
“What’s happened? Like, what isn’t working, I mean,” Emery pipes up. He’s the quietest of the three. “I thought everything was working out, more or less,” he continues.
“Well, for starters, I moved into the apartment directly below her penthouse, and I think that has her spooked. She can’t know for sure that I haven’t been there long, but I know she has an intuition about it, and I fear it might have set me back a little,” I reply.
“I told you it wasn’t a good idea,” Sergei says, a smug grin forming on his face.
“Yes, Sergei, I know. I was there,” I reply, barely able to conceal the irritation in my voice. His little side comments are entirely disrespectful and unhelpful to the cause.
“Anyway, I’ve been able to get close to Ivory, at least enough to take her out on dates. The trouble is that she’s so well-protected and cared for by her family’s money that I don’t have much of a chance to show her how much she needs me. Money clearly isn’t an object, so I need her to believe that I’m more valuable to her than just some other rich asshole,” I continue.
Joey narrows his eyes. “What are you implying exactly? You want her to be in more danger?” he asks, choosing his words carefully to avoid repeating Sergei’s insolence.
“That actually isn’t a bad idea,” I respond, considering exactly how bad of a person I must be to consider this an ideal plan in the first place. Why can’t I just be happy with the loads of money I have already? This is insane.
“How do you think we should go about it?” Emery asks, confusion and apprehension woven in his words.
“I mean, if we’re being honest, it’s easy to put women in danger, isn’t it? The trouble is that women always know that they’re in danger and tend to overcorrect themselves when they’re anywhere near it,” I reply, pulling a cigar from my jacket and lighting it.
“Can you not do that in here? Who smokes inside?” Sergei whines.
“Will you shut the fuck up? Say something constructive or go back to watching porn in your unwashed sheets, you fucking cretin,” I bark. Sergei’s comments are really starting to grate on me. I’ll smoke wherever the hell I want to.
Sergei retreats into his seat and stares at the door petulantly. A heavy silence hangs in the air for a moment until Joey speaks up. “So, you want us to put her into danger by manipulating her trust?” he asks.
“If possible, yeah,” I reply. It’s terrible, reprehensible even. But Ivory has no idea what I would go through to have her, and in the end, it’ll be worth it for both of us.
“How would we do it? What did you have in mind?” Emery asks, still cautious but more trusting of me than Sergei.
“Well, I know you have the capability of jamming the cell phone reception if I’m able to bug her phone, which won’t be hard since I can hardly get her off me. We’ll frame the situation as a potential kidnapping. One of you will pretend to be wounded or stranded in a less populated side of town where she walks to and from school,” I say, blowing a ring of smoke in Sergei’s direction.
“Abuse her female empathy to death, and right before you’re able to grab her and run off with her, I’ll be there to rescue her from you. I might have to kick the shit out of you too, but you’ll be compensated for that,” I continue.
“Man, this is insane. Can’t you just take her to France or something? Girls her age are obsessed with France,” Emery says.
He isn’t wrong, but I had already stated that showing her fancy things isn’t the object. She needs to need me. She needs to know she can feel secure with me, and so many men can’t provide that.
“She’s probably already been to France like six times. She went to a prep academy for fucksake. Schools like that go to France for Spring Break. That isn’t the point, anyway. What she needs is immaterial. She needs security. If I can show her that feeling, she’ll be hooked,” I reply.
“So, one of us will pose as an injured person, and she’ll try to help us? Isn’t that what Ted Bundy did?” Emery asks.
“Yes,” I reply flatly.
“Huh, okay. As long as we aren’t going hurt her, I guess it’s not as horrible if all we do is scare her,” he says, contemplating the plan as it unfolds in his mind. “I’m not keen on hurting innocents, you know.”
“Exactly,” I say, waving my cigar through the air. “See, we’re not doing anything actually bad. Consider it as a prank, except she might pass out from terror,” I say, growing excited that Emery is on my team, reinforcing my insane plan. “How do you feel about it, Sergei?” I ask, if only to irritate him and draw attention to him.
“It’ll never work, but you’re clearly beyond reconsideration,” he replies, feigning disinterest.
I scoff at him. I’ve got two of my best men on my side, and that’s all I need. I’m well-connected in the city, and I can scrape together a team of men who can pull this off without Sergei’s help.
“Before all this goes down, though, I need time to really get her comfortable with me. Maybe she’ll already have fantasies of me saving her before this happens. That’s something that girls do, isn’t it?” I ask.
“Uh, maybe damaged girls,” Joey responds. “I’ve never known any well-loved, stable girls who did that. Not any I know, at least.”
Ivory does seem very well-adjusted, especially for her age. Her parents must have done something right. How aggravating. I’ll have to think good and hard about how I’m going to proceed, but for now, the thought is still dwelling in my head. I have to drive her to me much harder.
Once isn’t enough. I have to have her over and over again until she’s pregnant.
