LOGINLELLA
It was deep, possessive, and hungry. A kiss that tasted like a beginning and an ending all at once. My sanity frayed as he kissed me back, his weight settling over me, grounding me in a way I had never felt before. A rage of heat dropped to my core and I needed more. I touched his face, ran a hand across his cheek and into his hair and pulled his lips harder against mine. The graze of his teeth made a desperate noise down my throat. I thought he might step away, conflicted and with my heavy breath between us, but he drew on my lips sweetly, first the top lip, and then the bottom. Every inch of me vibrated beneath the surface, hummed, and inflamed whenever my body touched his. I rolled my hips and arched closer against him, feeling incredible heat beyond our wet clothes, and then I licked the inside of his mouth. Like a reflex, he sucked on my tongue. Heat, tiny pricks of heat, consumed me from the inside out. I gave in to the urge to slide my tongue across the scar on his lower lip. The lick saturated the air like some kind of dirty, carnal sin. With a dark look, he closed the small distance, and I was lost. Any reservation in him melted with every press and dip, every touch of our lips. Each kiss was harder and wetter than I had experienced from anyone. A blaze seared through me as I drew my blunt nails down the length of his back. He growled low in his throat, and the slow glide of his mouth roughened. When his lips moved to my throat, my head fell against the mattress with a moan. He pressed his hard-on against my lower stomach as his hands remained braced on my sides. Hot and wet. He kissed a path down my neck that set off sparks deep in my core. My vision turned hazy, a heavy heartbeat pounding between my legs. I was a combustible ball of fire burning hotter every second. He dragged his lips past my collarbone and nipped the soft flesh above my bodice. My nipples tightened at the closeness and warmth of his mouth. I was losing my mind and I would do anything for him to tug my dress down, bare my breasts, and put his mouth on them. My hands were all over him. His face, his hair, now sliding up inside his shirt to feel his stomach, which was as tight as it looked. He pressed his thigh between mine as if he knew what I needed. Right against my clit. I panted, a wave of pleasure sliding down my spine when I rocked against it, already feeling the budding pressure of release. I moaned into his mouth and rocked against his leg, needing more friction. I can feel the empty pressure between my thighs as he presses his leg harder against me. I put my face into his neck, biting down when the orgasm whipped through me, a sweltering inferno that knocked the breath from my lungs. In its aftermath, I shivered against him. He finally touched me, fisting my hair and pulling my head back to look at me. My head fell to rest against the pillow. Maybe I should be embarrassed by how easily and ridiculously fast he brought me to release. Instead, I felt nothing but his body heat, how incredibly hard he was against me, and an overwhelming tingling in my veins. He stared at me and something violent swept away the lust in his eyes. He pushed himself up and off of me, leaving me cold while I struggled to catch my breath. "Take a cold shower and leave, Lella. NOW!” I flinched when he raised his voice, causing me to wake up from my sanity. I jolted off the bed when he slammed the door shut. I touched myself down there and cursed at the thought that I just had an orgasm. What the f*ck did I just do?! ***** I groaned and rolled off my bed, frustrated that I stayed up all night thinking the most embarrassing thing happened in my entire life. Every time I closed my eyes, I felt the phantom heat of Viktor’s body and the way he had looked at me, like I was the only thing in the world that mattered. It can't get out of my mind and I think I'm going to bury it with me until I die. Jesus Christ, Lella! I was humiliated. Not just by the slap or the pool, but by how easily I had crumbled into the arms of a man who belonged to the very family that had destroyed me. I just want to disappear. Why did I do that to my ex's uncle? Am I attracted to him? Because he's hot? Or because of that goddamn whiskey. Wait, was I drugged? I instantly sat up on my bed. “That alcohol have drugs?” Why was Sofia holding a whiskey with drugs in it? Why does she have hard liquor? She said there's– God! What a family of liars! Is she trying to drug me?! That drink was supposed to be for me, right? Or not? A thunderous pounding at my door made my heart leap into my throat. I slowly get off my bed and open the door. But I instantly closed the door and run to my closet. But the door swung open again. “Lella, did you just slam the door on my face?”VIKTORThe conference table was lined with the top executives of Russia’s largest energy conglomerates and the highest-ranking members of my own inner circle. But I couldn't focus on a single word they were saying.Beneath the edge of the table, my fingers are pressing the redial for the fifth time with my airpods intact to my ear.It just keeps ringing.My jaw clenched.I disconnected and immediately dialed Lev's private line. It rang out to the very end before cutting off. I tried the secondary security detail stationed at the New York penthouse. No one was answering. The entire grid around my wife had gone completely dark.Worry is starting to grow in my gut.Lella never kept her phone off, not after everything that had happened. Thomas and Lev knew that missing a call from me was a punishable offense. For the connection to be severed like this meant only two things: either my security protocols had been violently breached, or Lella was intentionally hiding from me. Both option
LELLAConrad leaned back against the velvet booth, and a smug smile spread across his face as he gestured to the empty seat opposite him.“Please, sit."I simply slid into the booth and immediately reached into my bag. Without a single word, I open my phone and find that one photo Sofia had sent me from that night at the club. A candid shot of the gorgeous woman who had targeted Joaquin and bragged about my husband.I slid the phone across the marble table, planting my finger firmly on the glass."Do you know her? Or more importantly, do you still have access to the roster of every pretty girl hanging out in that specific VIP lounge? Because I know nothing happens in that district without your name attached to it."Conrad looked down at the screen, and for a second, his smug expression wavered into surprise. Then, he let out a chuckle, shaking his head as he looked back up at me."Well, well." He leaned his chin on his hand as his eyes glinted with amusement. "I have to admit, Le
LELLAThe lukewarm water of the bathtub swirled around my shoulders, but it did nothing to wash away the suspicion settling deep into my chest. I stared at the ceiling as my mind spun out of control.Viktor.My own brother’s words from earlier kept echoing in my ears, shattering the peace I had found after the family dinner. Why would he? The question tore at my throat. Viktor was fiercely protective of me. He had given me his unspoken devotion. Was I just being naive? Is he really telling the truth about wanting to build a family with me?I sat up instantly, causing the water to splash against the porcelain. I grabbed my phone off the marble ledge, but my fingers paused and stared at Viktor’s name in my contacts.I wanted to press the call. I wanted to demand the truth, to hear it from his voice, but the phone call was cowardly, and Viktor was too smart. He could mask his tone over a line. No. I will demand a face-to-face confrontation. I needed to look into his eyes to know
LELLAI followed Papa through the long corridor of the restaurant toward another private VIP room. I took a deep breath, trying to settle the lingering adrenaline in my veins.Behind this door was the woman who had broken my mother's heart, alongside the one-month-old baby girl she had given birth to just days after my own wedding.Papa pushed the door and I braced myself for the wave of resentment I expected to feel. But the scene inside instantly caught me off guard. I wasn't shocked to find Sofia and Joaquin already there. Sofia was gently cradling the tiny bundle in her arms, while Joaquin leaned over her shoulder with a soft warmth on his face.The moment the door shut behind me, Joaquin snapped his head up. His eyes widened in shock to see me standing there, knowing the deep, bitter history I shared with our father's new life.But I didn't look at Joaquin and at my stepmother, Eliza, who sat anxiously on the nearby plush sofa, holding her breath.My gaze was instantly fixed
LELLA"Next month?!" Galina suddenly exclaimed, her voice piercing the heavy air of the VIP room as she slammed her hands onto the table. "Absolutely not! A rushed shotgun wedding with a family from Spain? Think of the optics, Sofia! The empire will be whispering before the ink even dries on the certificate."I frowned. My chest tightened as Galina immediately tried to steamroll over them.Sofia’s cheeks flushed, but she held her ground, looking directly at her parents. "I don't want the rumors spreading once I start showing a baby bump. If we marry next month, we control the narrative. Joaquin and I want this."Sofia started to anxiously explain further, wavering under her aunt's harsh glare. Sensing her distress, I raised my hand to cut her off before she could lower herself to defend her choices to Galina."Sofia, stop. You don't need to explain anything to her.” I turned my head to look directly at Sofia’s parents. "If Sofia and Joaquin have already talked this through and dec
LELLAThe silence inside the sprawling VIP room of the luxury restaurant was suffocating, broken only by the faint clink of crystal glasses. I sat gracefully in my chair, staring at the grand round table before me as we waited for Sofia and Joaquin to arrive.I should not have come here alone. Why? Because sitting directly across from me was Galina, Conrad’s mother and Sofia’s aunt. Beside her sat Sofia’s parents, looking anxious, and Sofia's older sister Selene, a girl Sofia had never been close with, who already looked entirely bored by the family drama.I understood perfectly why Galina was here. What I did not understand, and frankly had zero patience for, was why Conrad and his bratty younger sister, Catya, were currently occupying two of the chairs at the table.I understand that they are Sofia’s cousins, but duh, they are not close enough to be present at their cousin's family dinner with her boyfriend.Catya was swirling her water glass, throwing entitled glares in my direct
LELLAThe air in the garden became cold when Conrad appeared on our left. He walked to us, but his gaze locked on mine. He looked haggard, having lost a bet he was sure he’d win.A smile curved on my lips as my hand slid down to Viktor’s hand. His gaze followed my hand until he saw how I interlocke
LELLAI stood before the floor-to-ceiling mirror in our master suite, smoothing the skirt of my mini dress. I'm wearing a one-shoulder peplum-style top in a rich wine-colored brocade fabric with an embossed floral pattern. I paired it with minimalist jewelry and black stiletto heels. I let my wavy
LELLAA savory scent of garlic, toasted crusts, and fresh espresso pulled me from the depths of sleep. I shifted beneath the sheets as my skin still tingled with Viktor’s touch, but the memory of the early morning came flooding back. He kept apologizing until I fell into a dreamless sleep. He hel
LELLAHis cock jutted out, huge and hard, and the mere idea of it inside me sent twin frissons of apprehension and anticipation spiraling through my stomach.There was no way he'd fit. It was impossible.When I finally dragged my gaze back up to his, his eyes were already focused on me, dark and sm







