“Well, if it’s okay, I’d like to go see my sister Kira,” she says quietly. “She’s pregnant and planning a wedding, so I want to see if there’s anything I can help with. I mean, I can still help my family like that, can’t I?”
I look at her for what feels like the longest time, our eyes locked onto each other. Finally, I nod. “I don’t like the idea of you going to your family on your own. It’s a trust thing, but I understand how important family is. Take one of my men, and you can go. I won’t have an issue if one of my men escorts you.”
If Tori is annoyed by the accusation, she doesn’t show it. Instead, she gives a small nod. “Thank you, Ivan. I appreciate that. I’ll take Aleks. Is there a specific time you want me to be back?”
“Dinner is at six. Anastasia is eating with us tonight before she goes out,” I explain. “You can then tell me how your day was.”
She nods. “I will be home just before that so I can freshen up a little.”
She turns and leaves, and my eyes glance at her rounded ass. Something twitches inside me as I imagine what it would be like to hold that ass as she rides me, but I shake it off. I am already looking forward to it. Now, I better focus and deal with work matters.
I finished the email to Will and sent it before returning to the financial reports. There’s something not quite right here. It’s as though we’re losing more money than we’re making. This gets my heckles up because I know we’re doing well. I visit sites to make sure of it myself, and I get reports from Evgeni and Leonid regularly. Someone is stealing money from me, and I want to know who it is.
I get up to stretch my legs. I open my bottle of orange juice and take a deep drink before I pace my office for a bit, trying to work out the pins and needles. I think of Tori, her wanting to visit her family so soon. Leonid might be right, she may be plotting to do me in, but at the same time, I know Sorvinos are about integrity. Also, I’m drawn to her like a moth to a flame. If I were an oyster, she would be the pearl I want to hide away from others. She’s beautiful, in a different way from Russian girls. Firstly her olive skin is smooth and tan, and her hair, when down, is even more gorgeous.
I should tell her to wear it down more often. She seems to prefer to have it tied up constantly. I wonder why that is?
She’s so quiet, but I see a confidence in her that I know can shine. She’ll be drawing the attention of many people at the events we attend. Such a beautiful woman on my arm for the first time since…
I push the thoughts back and bury them deep down. I can’t think of her now. It hurts too much. Anastasia used to often ask about her mother until I asked her to stop. I told her the past is in the past, and there’s nothing we can do to change it. She stopped asking, but sometimes I question if that was the right thing to do. To deny my daughter the knowledge of her mother because it felt like my heart was ripped out whenever someone reminded me of her, mentioned her, or we went somewhere that meant something special to us.
I sit back at my desk and pull up the individual reports for each of my businesses to see how much money is going through them. I will figure out who the thief is, and God help them when I do because I won’t let my men deal with this. This is a direct insult to me, and I will deal with whoever this is personally. My father always said you had to start at the bottom and learn everything you could before being the head of the family, so I know many ways to draw out torture with those who cross me.
Chapter 8 - Vittoria
The drive to my sister's Villa is quiet. Aleks isn’t a big talker, but that’s fine. I prefer him to be silent. When we arrive, the guards come to check who’s in the car, and upon seeing me, they open the gates, eying Aleks and the driver wearily.
Kira comes out to meet me at the front door. The guards must have radioed ahead to let her know I had arrived.
Her swollen belly seems more prominent than the last time I saw it, and it excites me. I love Raphael, but I didn’t get to watch him grow up. I will get to fawn over this little one.
Aleks walks with me up to Kira, and she side-eyes him. I hug her tightly. “Ignore Aleks. He’s just protection.”
“Okay,” Kira says softly before turning and leading us into her home. She shows us to the deck outside, which has a large umbrella for shade. We sit down, and a maid brings us iced tea. I offer Aleks some, but he shakes his head and stands to the side with his hands clasped in front of him.
“How’s the wedding planning going?” I ask Kira, sipping on my tea. “Are you having it before or after the baby is born?”
“After, because I’m so far along, they might want to induce. We’ll get married about three months after.”
“Do you need help planning everything?” I hesitantly ask, my eyes imploring her.
Kira smiles sweetly. “Of course, you’re my sister. You need to be involved every step of the way.”
We’re startled when Aleks’ phone rings, and he steps away to answer it.
Kira quickly whispers, “How are you really? How is Ivan treating you? Do you need me to contact Alessandro?”
I shake my head. “Surprisingly, Ivan is not controlling or forceful toward me, and he’s also given me the go-ahead to negotiate the territories between our families. Obviously, he’ll have someone checking me, but I’ll be doing what’s best for our family.”
I know this was the plan all along, but I feel guilty about betraying Ivan. There’s nothing for it, though. This is what I agreed to do.
“Please just be careful,” Kira reaches for my hand, and I let her take it. “I worry so much about you.”
Aleks comes back toward us as my brother Luigi walks outside. “Hey Tori, what are you doing here?”
“Visiting Kira, I didn’t know you were here,” I comment.
“When can I come to visit you at your new place?” he sits down next to me. “I want to see how my baby sister is living it up.”