Hidden Monsters (Volkov Bratva #4)(12)

For whatever reason, Alex didn’t care.

And whether he had wanted to admit it to himself at the time, he had been lonely, but while she was good for conversations and just having around when the silence was too suffocating, he couldn’t sleep with her, not when she would have wanted more from him. That was why he’d sought out Natasha.

He had made her a promise. So long as he was with her, and even after, no one would bother her. Every Tuesday was his night with her, and the rest of the time, she could do what she pleased. For two years now, he had gone to her, sating his lust and darker emotions, and it had worked for them…until Alex.

The more he tried to keep her out of trouble, the more time he had to spend with her. And there had been nights when the silence had stretched between them, but he hadn’t minded, not when she was with him. That night was his first mistake. He had almost given in to what she wanted. Shit, what they both wanted, but he had pulled away before it was too much. But with just that little taste, it was almost impossible to turn away.

From that moment, everything between them had been intense. Conversations. Arguments. Shit, just being in the same room together sparked something that could almost be physically touched.

And though he liked Alex more than he would ever admit in this lifetime, that didn’t mean he liked when she acted out. Before, her drinking had bothered him, but it wasn’t his place to say anything. But ever since the night she had gone off on her own to handle Anya, he had made it his business.

He knew her now, better than he knew himself in fact, so he could tell when she was spiraling. That was why Mishca had asked him to watch out for her, make sure she wasn’t doing anything that she would regret later. Seeing her today…he was doing a piss-poor job of it, it seemed.

It was clear to see that she was hungover. He’d known it the second he picked her up, but he didn’t call her on it the way he needed to. He’d gone easy on her because seeing her so fragile brought out the protective instinct in him.

She always had.

And he might have gotten through to her had she not seen the hickey on his neck.

That dropped them right back to square one.

Luka kept his hands in his pockets as he trailed behind them, his eyes constantly drifting to Alex. Despite being hungover and looking like hell this morning, she had cleaned up well. And those heels she insisted on wearing did amazing things to her legs.

Blinking, he noticed Lauren had fallen behind Alex and Amber after her phone call, and he knew with just a glance that she was going to do what she did best.

Meddle.

“Do you want my honest opinion?” she asked once he had caught up with her.

“No.” He really didn’t because, no matter what she said, it wouldn’t help him.

Ignoring him, as only she could do, she said, “I don’t think Mish would actually kill you if you had a thing with a particular someone who’s close to him.”

Rolling his eyes, though the action was lost on her, he replied, “Leave it alone, Lauren.”

“I’m just saying—”

“Jesus f*cking Christ. Leave it alone. If I wanted your advice, then I would have asked for it. Stop trying to ‘fix’ shit when you should be worried about yourself.”

He regretted his words the moment she deflated. He’d never raised his voice to her, or spoken to her any way that wasn’t respectful. She was too nice, almost to a fault. It wasn’t her fault she believed in true love and that bullshit.

“Won’t happen again.”

Shit.

Before he could right what he’d said, she was off, and by the time they left an hour later, it wasn’t just Alex who was ignoring him.

____

Luka found himself in Mishca’s office once again, waiting for the assignments he’d need to hand out while Mishca and Lauren were gone on their honeymoon. Since he would be offsite for about a week, someone needed to take the reins in his place.

His feet kicked up on the table, he whistled to himself, already thinking about what he would be doing later. The more Mishca tried to speak over him, the louder he whistled until the sound was nearly ear splitting.

“Luka.” There was a warning in his voice, but it was one Luka didn’t heed. “This is serious.”

Luka nodded good-naturedly. “Serious? This is serious. Very serious,” Luka agreed. “I’ll make sure nothing falls to shit while you’re off choking the dragon.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger, Mishca squeezed his eyes shut, grappling for patience. “Luka—”

“Jerking the chicken?” he suggested instead, nearly cracking another smile.

“Get out.”

Finally.

Luka was on his feet, more than ready to get out of there.

“One more thing.”

He turned as Mishca came around his desk, rolling up his sleeve. His brows rose as he tried to guess what Mishca would say next. But it wasn’t anything he said, but what he did. Slinging a fist out, he connected with Luka’s nose, the pain quick and absolute.

His head snapped back, his hands immediately going up to cup his nose, a surprised laugh leaving him. Once the shock wore off, Luka wiped his nose with the back of his hand, smearing the blood.

Still smiling, he said, “You hit like a bitch.”

The seriousness left Mishca as he returned that smile. “Don’t ever break my finger again.”