Page 39 of Forced By the Bratva King

“Good to see you too, Grey.” I shook it.

“Sarah, Laurel.” He shifted his gaze across the two ladies with him. “Take a bow. You’re standing before a living legend, Artem Tarasov, one of the most feared men inmyline of work.” Grey chuckled, smoothing a hand over his permed blond hair. “That's strange.” He looked at Sierra. “Never seen you with a damsel before.” The statement was directed at me.

“Grey, meet my wife, Sierra,” I said, unable to keep the tinge of smugness out of my voice.

“The fuck?Wife?” His brows rose in surprise. “Don’t tease me.” He seemed to be holding back an outburst.

“Have I ever?” I asked, looking all serious.

“Are you kidding me? That’s fucking amazing—and she’s even more amazing. You hit the jackpot with this one, my friend.” He faced her, dramatically sketching a bow. “It’s nice to make your acquaintance, my lady,” he said, mimicking a British accent.

Grey was an old business associate of mine, ruthless yet so full of life and unnecessary drama. He was a short man with a charming personality that reminded me of my brother, Kostya. They had a lot in common, and whenever those two were in the same room, there was never a dull moment. Grey cursed a lot, but that was a mechanism to keep his stutter in check. At least that was the story, but I believed he just couldn’t do without cursing.

He cracked a few jokes that made my wife laugh a little then leaned forward and whispered into my ear. “Protect this one at all costs.” He withdrew from me and smiled at Sierra before leaving with his girls.

“I didn’t know you had normal friends,” she teased me.

“Trust me, there’s nothing normal about Grey.”

“Hmph. Seemed pretty normal to me,” she insisted with a contagious smile.

Everything was going fine, and a couple of minutes later, I introduced my wife to my business associates. But while we spoke, time seemed to slow down as I spotted him in the crowd, exchanging pleasantries with some high rollers at a distance.

He jerked his head in my direction, and our eyes met. The last time we were both in the same event, people died. Not thistime, though. My wife was present, so Niall Donovan better not try anything stupid.

Chapter 15 – Sierra

“Are you okay?” Artem asked me, his eyes boring into mine in one quick glance.

I managed to smile and give a positive reply, but deep down, I was fucking nervous. Not because I hadn’t been around celebrities and public figures much but simply because I might end up running into Madelyn.

She didn’t know about my situation yet, and this wasn’t how I wanted her to find out that I was married to Artem or that I was carrying his baby. Madelyn was from an affluent home; her parents were among the most important personnel in the city of Chicago. Having that in mind, the chances of running into her at this event were quite high.

I knew Madelyn could be anywhere here, and the longer we stayed, the higher the chances of meeting her. My husband was acquainted with a lot of powerful power that ran the city, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Madelyn’s parents were friends with him.

How awkward would that be, having him introduce me as his wife? Fuck! I couldn’t even bear the thought. I couldn’t bring myself to imagine the reaction on Madelyn’s face. This was really weighing me down, and it was because the secret was too heavy to carry alone. None of my family members were aware, not even my best friend. But how was I supposed to have told them that I was married to a mafia boss who had first kidnapped me for being a witness to his brutality, then married me soon after, and now I was carrying his baby? I didn’t have the courage to face my reality in their presence, and that was my biggest weakness.

I needed to come clean sooner or later, and all I was doing right now was only delaying the inevitable. They were going to find out one way or another, but how they wouldreact would depend on the method with which they learned the truth. It would make more sense if I told them myself, and as a reasonable adult, I was going to. But I just needed more time to gather the courage required for the job. Maybe the day I’d finally do that, I would be drunk as fuck so that talking would be much easier.

But other than Madelyn, there was someone else that I feared running into more, and they were the reason for my unease. The chances of meeting this individual were off the charts, and things might not end well when we met. It was certain that our paths would cross. I could already feel it. The tension was overwhelming, and my heart was threatening to explode.

I’d kept this secret from my husband since the day I’d snuck up on his conversation in his office, and it had been killing me ever since. What kind of a person was I? A fucking secretive one. I was keeping secrets from my family and friends while simultaneously keeping my husband in the dark about something so important. But inmydefense, it was a necessary evil. These truths shouldn’t be revealed—not yet because once everything was out in the open, nothing would remain the same. The exposure of this secret I was keeping from my husband would change the entire narrative of my story, and I couldn’t guarantee that it would end well.

I’m so fucked up,I thought to myself, considering all the possible ways this could end, and sadly, it depended on how they all would take the revelation.

In my head, based on the analysis I made from how well I knew each of them, there was a seventy percent chance that they wouldn’t take it well, and that scared the shit out of me.

“Artem fucking Tarasov.” The voice caught my attention, snapping me out of my thoughts.

The conversation with Gilbert Grey helped calm me down; he was humorous with a friendly personality that eased me out of this stress that had weighed me down for a long time. It felt good being cracked up by some of his jokes, and even though Artem insisted that Gilbert Grey wasn’t as normal as I thought, I still wouldn’t let that change the first impression I had of him.

Now, something else occupied my mind while Artem was proudly introducing me to his business associates—thoughts of my husband and how I was starting to see a different side of him. Kara was right when she said her brother wasn’t all bad. He was becoming more gentleman-like these days, and maybe it was because I was pregnant with his child, or maybe it was because he’d finally decided to treat me better. But whatever the case, I loved the way he looked at me now.

Sex with him had been more than mind-blowing, and I was never able to resist him—except for this evening, anyway, and that was only because he hadn’t pushed any further. If he had, I’d have fallen, giving in to his touch.

But it was beyond the sex.

These days, my husband and I were starting to bond on an emotional level. I was beginning to see his softer and more playful side, and it was so scary because now was not a good time for my little secret to reveal itself. I was finally coming to terms with my reality, and things were falling into place. But for how long until the truth scattered everything?