Novels by Author Chris

Talia POV I’m sick with worry for the next day and a half but Dante knows where Alexei is. The times I’ve asked him directly, he’s told me it’s not a woman’s place to know “these dealings” in this man’s world, which is bullshit.I vacillate between anger and paralyzing fear. Anger at Dante and Alexei for their secrecy, fear that he’s gone to do another job but what if there’s more after this one? Frustration and worry have me in the kitchen at four in the morning, pouring myself a glass of vodka. I stand at the glass doors and look out into the vast back garden, the trees of the forest behind which is a twelve-foot solid wall topped with barbed wire.I wonder if either man would let me, though. A sound from inside the house has me turn toward the living room through which I can see the foyer. I hear the front door open and two men speak in hushed tones in Russian, and I find myself exhaling, thanking God.The door closes and quiet footsteps head to the stairs.I set my glass down o

Alexei POV “I don’t understand.” Talia glares at me, her fingers digging into my jacket. “Where could you possibly have to go without us?”“One day, sweetheart.” My lips graze her forehead, and she shudders beneath my touch.“That’s all I’m asking.”“One day for what?” she croaks. “I don’t want you to go anywhere. I need answers, Alexei. You promised me that you would be opened to me in everything.”“Talia,” Dante interrupts, saving me from having this conversation right now. “Alexei has to go. He won’t be gone long. In the meantime, you can help me pick out some furniture for the house.”Talia looks set to argue, but I give her a quick kiss just as Ethan comes flying into our path, tugging at Talia leg. “Can we go swimming now?”“Take the boy swimming.” I squeeze her hand in mine. “And don’t be too pissed off at me. I’ll be back just as soon as I can.”Talia calls after me, but Dante steps in and gives me a moment to make a quick exit. It’s not that I want to leave her behind, but t

Aria POV Five days later, I gave birth to Matteo in a guest room of our mansion with Talia and Viktor help, the homebirth I’d always dreamed of.All pain was forgotten as I marveled at the little boy on my chest, at his crumpled face. He was a big baby with brown eyes and dark brown hair.Talia kissed my cheek. “He’s beautiful, Aria.” She was covered in sweat and blood, but was smiling.Viktor stood beside the bed, watching the doula who’d supported us, only ever so often glancing my and Matteo way. “Why don’t you try if he latches on?” Talia asked.Matteo was already squirming toward my breast and making small sucking motions. Talia helped me and after a few tries, he finally latched on.The doula left fifteen minutes later and shortly after Talia did too. Viktor bent over me, kissing my forehead. “You are so strong, Aria.”I raised my gaze from Matteo and smiled at Viktor. He gently covered Matteo back with his palm. “I’d always condemned people who accepted their fear, who didn’t

Aria POV Noah rolled over on his stomach and pushed onto his knees then braced himself on his hands, shoving his butt into the air.At only ten months, he was already hellbent on starting to walk with his bum in the air, he peered up, unsure how to straighten. He grinned when he saw me watching and my heart exploded with love.“Viktor!” I called. Two days past my due date, I had trouble rising from the sofa without help, much less bend down to pick up Noah. Viktor hurried into the gaming room, alarm on his face. “Contractions?”I shook my head, stroking my belly. “Massimo seems pretty content in there. I really hope he comes soon. I feel like I’m bursting any day now.”Viktor slowly came over and spotted Noah still in his awkward position. He picked him up and raised him up over his head, much to Noah delight. He wasn’t a very vocal baby, definitely not as loud or boisterous as Ethan.“He was trying to stand,” I said. Viktor came toward the sofa, sank down beside me and set Noah down

Viktor POV Three Months Later Noah was sitting in his shark floaty that looked as if the thing was going to swallow him whole. He gave Aria a toothless grin while I pushed him through the water because two weeks from her due date Aria wasn’t as mobile.She leaned against the edge and watched everything with a happy expression. Alexei and Talia came back for summer break and they lounged on the sunchairs, keeping an eye on their son.Sometimes I wondered how things would have been, if my brothers and I were alone. Would we have moved on just as easily?With the children and Aria pregnancy, the future beckoned stronger than the past ever could.We still worked our asses off to guarantee the blacktop success but we tried to spend as much time as possible with our family. Seregi and Ivan had taken over more responsibilities, which allowed Alexei and me additional free time.Aria suddenly released a sharp breath and cradled her belly under the water surface. “What is it?”She shook her h

Aria POVHaving Alexei back in the house felt surprisingly nice. I hadn't realized how much I had missed him until he was actually sitting at our dining table again, talking to his brothers and laughing with everyone as if he had never been gone.For the longest time, I had simply gotten used to his absence. Life had continued, and with everything that had happened, I never really stopped to think about what it meant to have one of the brothers missing from the house but now that he was back, I found myself enjoying his presence more than I expected.I actually missed him and, strangely, I was getting along surprisingly well with Talia too.I had expected things to be awkward between us, especially considering everything she had been through and the complicated circumstances that had brought her into the family.Instead, we seemed to be bonding naturally and there was something easy about being around her maybe it was because we were both women surrounded by these impossible men and t

Serena POVEthan came over for a family function, and somehow, between everything that was happening around us, I ended up telling him everything.Ethan stared at me for several seconds after I finished talking, his expression filled with disbelief. "So you went back to him after everything that happened?"I opened my mouth, but no words came out.What was I supposed to say?That I didn't understand myself either and that I knew better, but somehow, whenever Adrian looked at me, all the strength I had built over the years seemed to disappear?Instead, I looked away and my eyes landed on Noah, who was sitting on the floor nearby, completely lost in his little world. He was playing with his toys, moving them around and occasionally making little sounds to himself.Watching him made something inside me ache. "It’s officially over with him now," I said quietly.Ethan didn't respond immediately. "I've found someone new," I continued, forcing myself to say the words with confidence."Someon

Serena POV The cab stopped at the curb, and the driver waited for me to get out. I could just tell the driver to go back, but I didn’t want to leave.I finally got out of the car and moved to the front door. My finger dug into the cushioned doorbell, and I waited for someone to answer.The housekeeper opened the door, visibly surprised to see me standing there. “Serena? How are you? I haven’t seen you in a while.”I shouldn’t have expected her to know anything. I didn’t see why Adrian would explain himself to his maid. “I was wondering if I could see him.”“Sure.” She invited me inside then grabbed her phone. “I’ll tell him you’re on your way up.”There was no going back now. I entered the room with the grand staircase and started my ascent to the top floor.It was a spiral stairway, the kind that went round and round until it reached the chandelier at the top. The crystals were bright with the light, and the white banister was smooth under my fingertips as I glided up.My heart was

Adrian POV “What the hell are you wearing?” I took the seat across from my sister in the restaurant, looking at her short blue dress, enormous sunglasses, and pulled-back hair. “It’s almost October.”She took off her sunglasses and gave me that ferocious look she’d been giving me since she could crawl. Her thick lashes were full of mascara, and her bright eyeshadow made her look as if she were ready for a pool party. “I’m not ready to accept fall. I want to hold on to summer a little longer.”“Well, summer is long gone. The first official day of fall was last week.....”“Shh.” She leaned over the table and placed her forefinger against my lips. “Don’t talk like that.” She leaned back and picked up her menu, as if she hadn’t just shoved her hand in my face. “I know I should get a salad, but I don’t want to… I can dance if I’m a hundred pounds heavier, so I don’t get all the rules.”“Stop dancing."“I don’t want to do that either. I’ll retire when I turn thirty and order whatever I wan

Serena POVI got to pick the restaurant, so I chose somewhere casual....a small bistro a few minutes from my apartment.I didn't want anything fancy or overly romantic.I just wanted somewhere comfortable where we could sit, eat, talk, and hopefully get through the evening without making things more complicated than they already were.We sat across from each other at a small table near the window, sharing my favorite bottle of wine while we both ordered salads.The atmosphere was relaxed enough, and for a while, Rylan actually managed to keep the conversation light.He asked about work, complained about a few things of his own, and even asked what I'd been watching on TV lately. I played along, answering his questions and occasionally laughing at something he said but I knew it was coming.Eventually, he was going to ask about Adrian.I could feel the question waiting between us, even before he finally said it. "Did he text you back?"There it was and I lowered my eyes to my wineglass

Serena POV A week had passed since I’d stupidly texted Adrian and God, I seemed desperate but I was desperate…for one man. I could go back to find someone else, but that wasn’t what I wanted.I wanted Adrian....like always, I sat at my desk and let my thoughts drift into the past, when we’d made love on the couch while the fire burned in the hearth.I was on his lap, slowly riding his bare length as I looked into those intense eyes and I wanted to do that every night.“Sere?” Aurora stood on the other side of my desk, slowly waving her hand in front of my face.“Oh, sorry.” I snapped out of it, missing the heat of the flames the second I was pulled from the memory. “Where were you?”“You know…thinking about my grocery list.”Shry didn’t seem to believe me, but she didn’t call me out on it. “How have you been?”“Good…good.”She lowered herself into the chair. “Honestly, you look just as pale as you did three weeks ago.”It’d been three weeks? It felt like a day. It felt like he’d just

Adrian POV I descended into the lair where the crown syndicate operated in plain sight.Pedestrians walked past the building, assuming it was an old factory that may or may not be in operation. The police knew where it was and always avoided the streets surrounding it but with a few men, I got past security and descended to the bottom floor, where the crown syndicate preferred to linger with their booze and women.All the men at the tables glanced at me when I entered, their laughter dying away when they recognized who I was. Women sat on the laps of the generous tippers, their tits hanging out in their barely there clothing.Ivan sat on the wooden throne, skulls carved into the black wood, his knees far apart and his slouched frame sunk into the large chair. His elbow was on one armrest, and he stared at me with a sense of boredom.I dropped my bag of money on the ground and my men did the same.It was dead silent as Ivan stared at me, all the men holding their breaths to see what