36

I stood under the pleasantly warm water of the shower and just wished that Rian wasn't such a stubborn head and would simply enjoy the time with me.

Of course I understood him and his fears, but he had to understand that I was afraid too. After all, Yuri certainly didn't threaten me for fun...

When I was done showering, I pulled on one of the robes and stood right in front of the mirror, then started blow-drying my hair in frustration.

Only after I had put on a little make-up did I leave the bathroom and go to Rian's bedroom to put on underwear and a pair of short white shorts. I was about to grab a top when Rian's dark shirts caught my eye.

If he didn't let me get close to him, then at least I could sweeten my day with his smell.

After putting one of his shirts on, I was about to leave the bedroom and go downstairs when Rian walked into the room and looked me up and down.

And I knew exactly how it turned him on when I was wearing his clothes!

"If I go to dinner tonight, I would like, or rather I require, that you stay here in the room at all times."

He gave me that look that I knew no arguments would count for, so I nodded in agreement and sat on the edge of the bed, only to watch him get fresh clothes from the closet.

"What's the dinner about?" I asked him and he explained at length that this Mr. Porter was in charge of who would be elected to Parliament. I listened to him but didn't understand a thing anyway.

Politics was never my thing...

When I suddenly had to yawn loudly, he looked at me with a smile, put the clothes he had collected on the dresser by the door and came over to me.

"So boring?" he asked and I just nodded in confirmation.

"Not boring, but that's kind of dry," I tried to explain as he sat down next to me and fell backwards.

I did the same so that we lay shoulder to shoulder in bed and stared at each other intensely for a while as our hands found and locked tightly.

"That was my mother's dream, you know," he explained, avoiding my gaze to stare up at the ceiling. "She didn't want the three of us to keep making money with guns and prostitutes. Her dream was that I would become a respected politician, so that I could then help the poor and make the world a little bit better."

I looked at him wistfully and it really hurt not to be able to meet such a woman. Through his stories, however, I knew where Rian got his kind-hearted side from. Apparently it came out through me because initially he had so much of Cathan's traits that it was frightening. But now that I got to know him better, this cold façade faded a little more and more.

"Can I do it?", he suddenly asked me and turned his face back to me, whereupon I just looked at him encouragingly.

"I'm sure of it," I encouraged him, and it was also the truth. I had seen him many times before, how well he could articulate himself. How well he could deal with people and captivate them. If he couldn't do it, who could? I had rarely seen so much charisma in anyone else.

He pulled my hand to his mouth with his, kissed it gently and we probably just lay there for hours and talked about everyday topics until he unfortunately got up at some point and helped me up by my hands.

"I'll be back in no more than three hours," he promised me and then disappeared into the bathroom to shower and get dressed while I made my way into the living room, where Odran was sitting at the table with Senan. They were playing cards again and I just sat down to take a quick look at Odran in his gray suit.

Of course, Senan was only wearing boxers and a tank top again, but he hardly ever left the house anymore, so I guess it didn't matter.

"We can," I then heard Rian, who was still closing his watch on his wrist and looked so incredibly good in the black suit that I thought I would blush just from the sight. "Senan, you know?!", he turned to his brother, who nodded in agreement and when Odran was about to get up, Rian bent down to me.

"I love you," he breathed in my ear, kissing gently down my cheek to briefly pause in front of my lips as he looked deep into my eyes, stopping time.

"Me too," I whispered almost breathlessly, wanting his lips on mine. I could already feel his breath and was about to close my eyes, but then he moved away and ran after Odran to the front door.

He wanted to punish me! Fine, but not like that!

"Rian!" I then blurted out loud and while I got up and walked towards him, he turned to me with a questioning expression.

I stopped right in front of him, standing on my tiptoes and as I wrapped my arms around his neck, I pressed my lips eagerly to his and happily received that unique tingling sensation throughout my body while feeling with a smile how he put his hands on my waist and pulled me even closer to him.

We deepened this passionate kiss and only when I threatened to choke from sheer intensity, I reluctantly pulled away from his lips to look deep into his gray-blue eyes, in which I must have sparked a storm.

"I should be dismissive of you more often," he grinned, grabbing my ass once hard, causing me to take a deep breath and grin just as stupidly.

"Guys?!", Odran then called stressed from outside. "Can we? I was slow-"

"Hunger! We know it!", Rian whispered and then gave me one last kiss on my forehead before finally leaving the house, much to my disappointment.

I glanced at the door and then turned to Senan, who was busy on his cell phone.

"And?" I asked him, standing next to him. "What do we do now?"

He glanced up at me and fleetingly at Nero, who was already sitting nervously at the patio door. "I'll go with Nero for a moment, then we can watch a movie if you like?"

I nodded and of course Senan got up with a stupid grin to provoke me again. "You're welcome to snuggle up to me."

"We should find you a girlfriend urgently," I replied, shaking my head and then flopping down on the couch while he laughed out loud and disappeared into the darkness with Nero.

As I flipped through the many channels, I thought for a moment about how many women used to come and go here at first. There was the blonde, Pirina, the duster and all those half-naked ones from Senan's party. Apparently I had really messed up Odran and Senan's sex life, although it wasn't even my intention. Only these stupid bitches were all staring at Rian like he was the jackpot of the lottery, I just couldn't take it!

When someone suddenly knocked on the window front, I was almost scared to death and looked directly into Senan's eyes, whose expression sent goosebumps down my arms.

What was wrong with that?! And where was Nero anyway? Since he had already cut off Senan several times, I ran annoyed to the door and then stopped a meter in front of it as if frozen.

In the dark, a few meters from Senan, the guy with the mask was standing and aimed straight at Senan's head from the side...

fuck!!!! Where was my dog and where the hell were those fucking security guards?!?!?!?

RIAN POV.;

After an hour's drive we finally arrived at this posh shit place and met my father and Mr. Porter right in front of it.

"I greet you."

With these words, my father briefly hugged me and Odran before we also greeted Mr. Porter with a firm handshake and disappeared inside together.

This huge restaurant looked really inviting and while my father gave our reservation details to a little blonde with glasses, Odran and I looked around curiously.

I recognized several Members of Parliament and after the golf course this seemed to be the place to really network.

"So, your table is at the back, as you requested."

The blonde was speaking to my father, but her eyes were on me and I could almost tell her pulse quickened as my eyes briefly met hers.

My only thought was that I finally had to get myself a wedding ring. Where before I couldn't get enough of such attention, now it just annoyed me.

"Then if you would follow me," I heard her, and after my father and Mr. Porter followed her past the bar, my eyes fell on a couple at one of the front round tables and I gave Odran a light pat on the shoulder.

"I'll be right behind you."

He gave me a questioning look, but then nodded and followed the others while I straightened my tie and made my way to the table.

"Good evening Mr. Burke," I greeted him and addressed his wife in a friendly manner. "Mrs. Burke, I really hope you're feeling better now."

"Oh, Mr. Gallagher," she turned to me, smiling, but there was also a frown on her brow. "I'm happy to meet you here, but I don't quite understand what you mean?"

Did she have Alzheimer's or dementia? Brandon had never said why he had to care for her.

"I'm sorry," I then turned to Mr. Burke uncomfortably. "Your nephew Brandon had told my wife-"

"Nephew?" he interrupted me and now both of them stared at me in confusion while my brain just slowly started to put two and two together. "We are both only children. We have no nephews."

Eyes wide, I held the air in my lungs and clutched my racing heart as I backed up a few steps, crashing into another table, which threw glasses and rattled loudly.

"Are you okay?" Mr. Burke got up and started towards me, but I caught myself and immediately ran past the tables to the back, where Odran and the others were already seated at the table.

"Oh, there you are at last," I heard my father, but it was as if I were under water. Everything looked blurry and I didn't really see anything anymore.

"Come with me immediately," I said to Odran, my voice shaking with anger, but Odran just stared at me in perplexity.

"GET THE FUCK UP!" I yelled so loud that even my father jumped in shock.

"Rian!" he admonished me, but when Odran finally got to his feet, I ignored everything around me and yanked my brother outside with me by the arm.

I felt like I was choking all the time and I would be gone in a heartbeat without him, but I was terrified of knocking over someone else from losing control!

That stupid son of a bitch!!! I should have shot him in the head back then on the beach!

"Can you explain to me what's going on?!" Odran asked when we got to the car and when we both got in, I ran my hands over my face excitedly to get my gun out of my jacket.

"It's Brandon! Now drive!"

****

My blood froze when I saw Senan, who looked at me with wide eyes and kept telling me through the glass between us that I shouldn't come out.

My heart almost jumped out of my chest, and as I looked at the masked man with bated breath, he nodded his head, telling me to come outside immediately, despite Senan's warnings.

With trembling hands, I wrapped my fingers around the handle of the patio door, causing Senan to suddenly yelp, but the masked man hit the back of his head so hard that Senan passed out in front of me.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!

"It's okay!" I shouted in panic and hastily opened the door to immediately bend down for Senan outside. "Do you still have them all?!?!" I hissed, looking up at Brandon, who didn't want to know that I knew who he was. Otherwise he would know that Yuri had betrayed him.

I gently stroked Senan's hair and wanted to help him somehow, but the guy suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me down the stairs with too much force.

"My husband will kill you for this," I whispered menacingly, but that only made him stop and cock his head at me. My heart stumbled at that moment and if the evening wind hadn't been so refreshingly cool, I would certainly have been sweating from fear, but I was able to hide my chaos to some extent and be self-confident.

The guy averted his gaze from me again and pulled me further to the beach, walking along it with me for a good distance, where I suddenly saw something black lying on the ground in the distance.

I held my breath in shock, then my eyes widened in disbelief when I realized, close enough in the darkness, that it was Nero.

"No!" I screamed in agony and now my self-confident facade completely collapsed. A little girl was left behind, who only felt fear and sadness. "Let go of me!" I yelled with tears in my eyes, but he held my arm so tightly that I couldn't free myself despite using all my strength.

But I was a gypsy trained to fight insidiously.

I twisted in his grip so that I was standing right in front of him, and despite the gun in his other hand being pointed at my head, I lifted my leg with all my might and rammed my knee into his balls with such force that he immediately let go of me and grabbed his crown jewels with a groan.

I wanted to keep beating him, but I ran as fast as I could in tears to Nero, who was lying all alone in the moonlight.

"Big boy," I whimpered when I got to him and stroked his head trembling, only to take a deep breath when I felt that he was still breathing. I couldn't find a gunshot wound or anything else either. Presumably that bastard drugged him. "Everything will be fine my angel," I sobbed and then felt the aura of the masked man behind me, who, to my amazement, left me sitting in the sand with Nero.

I glanced up at him as he looked around, giving me time to collect my confused thoughts...

Why didn't the guards stop him?!

"Finally", I suddenly heard Yuri's voice out of nowhere, coming out of the darkness together with three other Russians and now I didn't understand anything anymore...

Shouldn't I be used as a decoy to get confessions out of Brandon? How should that work now if Juri showed up way too early?

"Here," Yuri said with a smile and threw money to the masked man behind me, who then took off his mask. It was actually Brandon, but he didn't look all that happy about the situation.

"I'm so sorry, Keeva," he whispered, and I was about to get up and lunge at him when one of the three Russians who had been with Yuri grabbed my chest in pain.

"Get out before I change my mind," Yuri said to Brandon, who then handed the gun to the second Russian, gave me one last look and then disappeared into the darkness until Yuri spoke to him again. "Is the junkie dead?"

I looked confused at Brandon, who then just nodded and my head started spinning uncomfortably.

Why was he lying now?

Brandon then disappeared for good, which made Juri turn to me.

"What is all this?!", I hissed, completely overwhelmed, but just for opening my mouth, the Russian behind me yanked my hair so hard that my head started to pound painfully and I took a deep breath, not to to cry out.

"What's that about? Do you want me to explain it to you?" Yuri asked with a grin and stood right in front of me, while the guy behind me let go of my hair and now fixed my arms behind my back, but he didn't hurt less.

Yuri then took a step closer to me and when I suddenly saw how he wanted to put his hand on the waistband of my shorts, my whole body started to tremble and I wanted to take a step back, but the giant behind me made me one Escape impossible.

"Don't worry," Yuri whispered, and before his dirty fingers could touch my pants, I desperately kicked him several times, but that only seemed to amuse him more.

"You're a sick bastard!" I then screamed with a trembling voice and hysterically tried to free myself from the Russian, but I had no chance. "If you so much as touch me, Rian will kill you!" I warned him and he immediately grabbed my neck and squeezed my breath away, causing only panic to envelop me as he repeatedly slapped my cheek so hard that I jerked could taste the blood already on my tongue.

"So, where's Rian?" Yuri laughed afterwards and I had to think how crazy this filthy Russian really was. But what was his fucking motive?!

"Why?!" I asked him straight out, spitting blood out of his mouth at his feet, causing him to take a step backwards, much to my relief.

"Oh, Keeva. This really has nothing to do with you, you pretty creature," he began to talk calmly while lighting a cigar. "You know. It was me who wanted to go into politics. It was me who wanted to use you dirty gypsies and what is he doing? He takes my plan and takes away any chance of success."

"That's not true at all!" I interjected angrily, shaking my head violently. "Rian hates politics! It was his mother who wanted this for him and his father who still makes him do it to this day!"

Juri looked at me thoughtfully for a short time and then blew the disgusting smoke of the cigar in my face with a dirty grin.

"When I heard about your marriage, I paid Brandon to watch you and scare you into leaving, but that idiot is useless!" he fumed, walking in front of me and here. "Rian just had no right to steal my life! There are penalties for that and they have to be enforced."

"Then why didn't you just shoot me last week?! When we were alone??"

"Because I knew for a fact that he had a camera. I also knew that you would tell him about Brandon and now I can kill you in peace and then watch him shatter on it up close."

He laughed out loud, but I suddenly laughed frantically too, causing him to stand right in front of me. "You find the thought of your grieving husband amusing? Maybe I should keep you after all."

"Rian doesn't know it was Brandon! I didn't tell him because I have honor and I keep it! We gypsies are extremely picky about promises like that! We would never break one! Besides, I know Rian for wanting me as a decoy and even if he thinks Brandon killed me you'll die too" I grinned triumphantly and then looked deep into his eyes. "And that's a real promise you stupid asshole!!!"