Semua Bab Reckless Hearts: Bab 61 - Bab 70

Unable to look away, Andrei watched her vigorously dry her lush hair with a hand towel, the thin fabric of her nightie stretching over her barely-there chest, the exposed skin on her arms gently calling out to him, seducing him into breaking all his self-imposed rules. Andrei stood up, grabbed the throw blanket and draped it around her shoulders, averting danger and temptation, for the moment at least. "What is wrong with you?" Holly snapped, a stormy look in her eyes as she tried to shrug off the throw. "You'll catch a cold in that skimpy thing," he replied. But it wasn't her wellbeing he was concerned about. It was his own sanity and peace of mind. He didn't trust himself to behave in her presence, and if their heated encounter in the elevator was anything to go by, surely keeping his hands to himself was a challenge he was destined to fail. "You must be starving," he said, redirecting his thoughts to something banal, like food. Still focused on her hair, Holly shrugged, "Not

Holly woke up feeling happier than she had in a while. How could she not be when she'd shared not one but several kisses with Andrei? She sprung out of bed and belted into song as she went about her morning, preparing for her visit with her parents. But, like all good things, her joy came to an abrupt end when Katherine pounced on her as soon as she stepped into the lobby hours later, as she headed to Glen Eagles to meet her folks and siblings. "What the hell is wrong with your phone?" Katherine demanded, grabbing Holly by the arm and pushing her towards the revolving doors. "I called you numerous times, and the imbeciles at the front desk refused to give me your room number. You have got to put the brakes on all this madness. The Institute can't afford any more negative press—" Katherine's wild appearance—from her uncombed hair to her mismatched outfit and the poorly done makeup—made her look as frazzled and agitated as she sounded. A complete opposite of the woman Holly had known

"No," Holly whispered, gasping for air as the walls of her chest moved closer, squeezing her lungs. "He wouldn't do that." "He did, and right in front of Sabrina," Cooper said in a hauntingly calm voice. "I didn't realise you have a thing for psychopaths." "What the hell is he saying? He's not making any sense!" Liam said, glancing at Holly, annoyance and confusion flitting on his face. "Yeah, what does Andrei have to do with this?" Willow chimed in. "I'm so confused!" "For God's sake, Holly, tell me you are not involved with Andrei!" Liam said softly, disappointment and anger burning in his eyes. "Oh, they are involved, alright. He was with her at The Castle the other night, threw his weight around like some hotshot," Cooper added fuel to the fire, fanning the flames of Liam's rage. "Is it true?" He demanded, turning all his anger on her. "Were you with Andrei a few nights back?" "I was," Holly admitted, nodding her head. "But it's not like that. He agreed to sell the penthouse

Little Osaka, the brothel where Nathan Gopal died in a hail of bullets a few months earlier following the fallout with Jaco and the De Jagers, was a fortress when Andrei and his lieutenants arrived just after 11:00 PM. Several highly skilled security teams, trained in crowd control and threat management, were stationed at all entry points, armed to the teeth and ready to handle any ambush, big or small. A year ago, Andrei would have thought it was overkill. But after Willem unleashed hell on Rock Castle and sent his henchmen to slaughter Nathan and several escorts like pigs, he understood Lev's overly cautious approach. They could not afford a repeat of the chaos, especially when they were hosting a prominent member of the Mexican cartel. Ivan killed the engine and switched off the headlights, but they stayed put and scoped out the place from the safety of their seats, waiting for Lev's all-clear. Despite the infamous massacre, now known as the 'ambush of Little Osaka' in the under

Could it be? Could the two men be related? Could this be Jaco's return to The Corporation and the start of his long-anticipated revenge? And could Anton be just a chess piece in whatever deadly game Jaco was playing? "No fucking way," Andrei whispered as he pushed the contract away and reached for his laptop, getting down to some serious internet sleuthing as soon as it blinked to life. There were several photos of Anton from LinkedIn and other social network sites for professionals. A quick scan through his online résumé confirmed everything he'd told Andrei at their meeting—from his educational background to the founding of Nexus. Andrei breathed a sigh of relief he didn't really believe in when a search through his connections revealed no apparent link to Jaco. But, he thought as he sat up and stared at the screen. Just because he couldn't find an obvious link between the two men didn't mean he wasn't right. In fact, the longer he sat there, going over the timing of the mee