Fucking Bitch….
South Beach, Florida
Michigan Avenue
Present Day
I t was dusk. The clear, blue sky had lulled into a fiery red and golden hues with patches of thin clouds and a peaking half-moon. A feeling of calm washed over the day’s end. And a gentle late-summer breeze floated through the back window with a hint of the ocean’s salt water fragrance as Anatoly and his family were driven through the tall iron gates of their exclusive South Beach mansion with their less-than-subtle motorcade.
The Medlov family had arrived. It had taken days of tireless preparation. The maids had come to spruce up the 5,000-square foot property and remove the furniture draping along with a grounds crew that had trimmed up the lawn. Fresh flowers were placed in all the vases and clean linen was put on all the beds. Guards had mapped out perimeter checkpoints and checked the house for bugs. A chef was already in the kitchen stocking the shelves and setting up for meals. Now, all that was needed was the approval of the mistress of the home – soon to make her first appearance at any moment.
The driver got on his earpiece and alerted the team awaiting their arrival, sending the six guards on duty scrambling to make sure that they were in place. Slowly, the white Mercedes Benz inched down the winding drive past towering palm trees, elephant ear plants and well-manicured gardens.
Alexandria had fallen to sleep in her father’s lap after playing Angry Birds on the iPad for nearly an hour, but Renee was wide awake. Miles away in her own thoughts, she sat opposite Anatoly deathly still. Her gaze had not left the window since they were escorted to the car from the jet. No words had passed her lips, but the car was full of unspoken tension.
A penny for her thoughts. Anatoly glanced over at Renee, wondering what was bothering her, but afraid to ask. It was in the pensive curve of her full lips that gave her away. She was on edge, and he had no interest in pushing her over by prying. The funeral could have just been hitting her, but he doubted it. Something else was wrong. But it could have been a thousand things. His wife had a full life. She owned the boutique, Dmitry’s Closet as well as a successful clothing line. There was also the council, she and the other women in the family were working on in their spare time. But normally, when it was work related, she talked about it. Silence was a weapon reserved for him.
What the fuck did I do now? he thought to himself. He knew she could feel him looking at her, but she didn’t turn to meet his gaze. Turning back to look out of his own window, he smirked. Yep, the silent treatment.
As soon as the car pulled in the red-bricked circular drive and stopped at the front entrance of the house, the guards opened Renee’s door and helped her out, while the others pulled their luggage from the trunk.
“Thank you,” she said, looking up at the white-stone mansion.
She remembered a short time ago when the idea of owning something like this would have been a fantasy at most, but now, she was a woman of means and the utter excitement of a lavish life had diminished into questions of taste. This simply wasn’t her taste. It was too modern, too angular, too much of a bad memory.
Anatoly scooped his daughter up in his arms and stepped out of the car. With a bounce, he put her head against his shoulder and cupped her in his embrace. He watched Renee’s reaction to the house from the other side of the car. With a silk Hermes scarf covering her jet-black tresses and glossy fire red lips to match her red wedge-heels and Capris pants, she looked like an old-time movie star – elegant, graceful, and chic. Everything about her made him want to give her more, please her in every way, but tonight, he felt like he had fallen short of that. She didn’t seem the least bit impressed.
Renee smiled gently as he rounded the corner of the car with her daughter and gave him what she knew he was waiting for. “It’s nice,” she said, face expressing something completely different.
His eye twitched at her lie. “I hoped you’d like it.”
As they walked up the steps, the doors were opened for them by the guards and they entered the house as a family. Anatoly hoped that meant something to her.
In the foyer under an elaborate crystal chandelier, a round wooden table with a large flower arrangement greeted them along with a box of Godiva chocolates.
Renee walked up to the table slowly and picked up the box. “You thought of everything,” she said as Marat breezed past her to check in with the other security staff.
Anatoly felt his phone buzz in his pocket, but he didn’t even bother trying to reach it at the moment. “I just wanted you both to be comfortable while we’re here.” He watched her as she walked into the airy living room.
It was a beautiful place, everything that a girl could want, plenty of room, expensive art, exotic flowers, posh and elegant white furniture and walls, but the little jealous voice in the back of her mind would not allow her to fully appreciate it.
“Want to help me put her to bed?” Anatoly asked, standing at the base of the long stairwell that led to the second floor.
Alexandria clung tightly to him, safe in his warm embrace. No doubt she’d stir awake as soon as he put her in her bed, but he wanted to get Renee alone as soon as possible.
The sight of Anatoly and Alexandria warmed Renee’s icy disposition despite her internal struggle.
“Sure,” Renee answered with a sigh. Throwing her silk cardigan over her arm, she walked with her husband up the stairs. Her heels clicked with each move, echoing through the hollow white halls.
When they got to the top of the stairs, Anatoly adjusted Alexandria in his arms and led Renee down the hall to the small pink bedroom right next to theirs. Renee opened the door for him and lowered the lights just enough to give an ambient glow.
While Anatoly put Alexandria in the customized twin bed, Renee pulled the soft pink curtains over the panoramic view of the infinity pool and the vast lawn below.
“I’m not sleepy yet,” Alexandria pouted, eyes flashing open with a start as soon as her body touched the mattress.
Anatoly grinned. “Well, go to bed for daddy anyway.” Leaning in, he kissed her forehead and rubbed a hand over her sandy brown curls. “Ya lyublyu tebya.”
“Ya lyublyu tebya,” Alexandria whispered.
Renee walked over to the bed and sat beside her daughter. “And I love you too.” She pulled the covers up to her daughter’s shoulders and leaned in to kiss her as well. “I’ll be back in just a bit to check on you.”
“Tomorrow, can we swim in the pool?” Alexandria asked.
“Of course...” Anatoly was cut off before he could finish.
Renee spoke up, raising a thick arched brow. She shifted to her husband, giving him another teachable moment on how not to be so gullible. “Only if you’re a big girl and go to sleep tonight,” she winked at her daughter. Bedtime was a touchy subject in their daughter’s charmed life right now. She had been caught on several occasions, sneaking in a show on her iPad when she was supposed to be asleep.
“Okay,” Alexandria said, resting back on her pillow. “It’s a deal.”
That made both her parents giggle. She was a sweet, smart little girl for her age, able to wrap them both around her finger with little effort. With a final kiss, they dismissed themselves from her bedroom, leaving her with the guard sitting outside of the door.
Anatoly closed his daughter’s door gently and nodded at the guard. “She might want a glass of hot milk at some point tonight. Make sure it’s almond milk not whole milk.”
“Yes, boss,” the man answered.
“Are you hungry?” Renee asked the guard. Over the years, she had learned that it was always wise to take care of the people who took care of them. Giving a man something to eat or drink not only helped him focus and not leave his post, it made him know that he was important.
“No, thank you,” he said, settling in for his night shift.
“Okay,” Renee said, feeling Anatoly grab her hand. She looked up at his face, a cryptic blankness over it, and knew he wanted to speak with her. In her husband’s normal modus operandi, he turned stoic when something was bothering him, especially when he wanted to confront her.
In silence, he led her to their bedroom and closed the door behind them. “What’s bugging you?” he asked, looking down at her stomach. He couldn’t wait for her to start to show. She was so very beautiful big and pregnant, but the other thing that came with pregnancy was raging hormones.
“Nothing.” Everything, she thought to herself. Renee inched out of her wedge-heels and wiggled her manicured feet in the plush carpet, trying to avoid the conversation or the appearance of being as irritated as she was.
“I’d like to think that after all these years, I know you better than that.” Anatoly sat on the edge of the king-sized bed and clasped his tattooed hands together. He bent over, Rolex watch and gold wedding ring gleaming, and sighed. Slowly, his blue eyes rose to meet her. “So, I’ll ask you one more time, what’s wrong?”
For a second, she almost opened up and told him what was wrong, but she couldn’t bear to start whining and complaining before they could even get situated. He didn’t deserve that. She knew that him asking her to come to Miami was out of love. And in that kind gesture, she wanted to be grateful, but she also wanted to explode!
Instead, she replied with careful measure and a calm, even voice that betrayed her emotions. “I’m tired, I guess. Hungry too.”
Walking over to the dresser, she gazed at her reflection in the mirror. God, she did look tired. She pulled at her long tendrils, trying to put them in place. In the background, she could see her husband watching her every move. Had he bought her flimsy excuse or was he going to pry?
“We haven’t been here as a family before,” Anatoly said, changing the subject. Alarms erupted in his head, but he opted to let sleeping dogs lie. “I brought Alexandria a few times with me while I was on business, but you and I never…I’m hoping we can use this time to do more family things.”
“Mmm.” Renee pulled her purse off her shoulder and placed it on the dresser.
They hadn’t been in this house as a family because this place was where he had screwed the Memphis police officer who turned her story into a bestselling memoir. Had he screwed her in this bed? Turning around, she faced Anatoly and tried to smile. “I’d like that. Spending more time together, I mean.”
“Why don’t we start tonight?” Anatoly asked, not giving up on getting on her good side. “My sources tell me that my brother is working at a restaurant not far from here. I figured we could get dressed and go check it out…check him out.”
Anatoly had already told Renee the other reason for coming to Miami outside of recuperating. He needed to find his half-brother, Anil, for Dmitry. It seemed odd to Renee that Dmitry wouldn’t come himself, but she had long stopped trying to figure out the mind of a Medlov man, hers included.
“Are you going to tell him who you are tonight?” she asked, forgetting her own situation for a minute.
“Net. Before I approach him, it would be nice to see what kind of guy he is. See if he’s an asshole.” Not that it mattered. Dmitry wanted to meet Anil regardless, but for Anatoly’s own edification, he needed to know what he was dealing with. None of them needed another Ivan Medlov on their hands.
“Ah…So, you’re stalking him?” her voice brimmed with curiosity.
Anatoly snickered. “Do you want to spy with me or not?” He already knew the answer. Renee was naturally nosey. The question was if she would put whatever she was mad at him aside long enough to feed her inquisitiveness.
Renee cuts her eyes at him, miffed that he had offered such a tempting olive branch. “Give me a few minutes. I’ll jump in the shower and get dressed…since you need me.” She looked toward the connected bathroom. “There is a shower in this dump, isn’t there?”
Anatoly grinned sheepishly, lude thoughts clouding his mind. Getting Renee in the shower was just what he needed after a long flight. “How about I jump in with you?” He stood up and pulled off his shirt. Taut, dense muscle in his chest flexed under the receding lights. “I’m feeling a little dirty. How about you?” He gazed at her under heavy lashes.
Renee had to admit, he was absolutely to die for half-naked. Standing there in low-rider jeans, no shirt and covered in tattoos, looking like a cover model, he was more tempting than the offer to be a spy. Anatoly was sex incarnate. Bad boys had never done it for her. She’d always dated the safe, stable type before him. But Anatoly made her rethink everything and everything he could make her rethink, he made her forget.
Moving across the room, he snaked up beside her. A single finger ran down her back to the top of her pants, eluding to his inner desires. She could smell his intoxicating cologne and feel his skin against her. So warm. So soft. Licking her lips, she tried to keep her head about herself, even as the wetness started to flood her silk panties. Damn, how did he do that? Just a second ago, she was angry as hell with him. Now, she wanted him to tear through her.
“If we go down this road, you won’t make it to dinner,” she warned, eyes closed.
Anatoly licked her neck with the tip of his tongue, trailing over the dark lines that creased when she moved. He could taste the day’s perspiration on her and the scent of her sexy aroma.
Putting her small hand over his pants, he made her feel how hard she made him on command. He was a man before everything else. His father had asked him to do a job, and he would keep his promise, but what he wanted at that very moment was to free his wife from the bonds of her thoughts.
“Then I choose the road we’re on,” he whispered huskily into her ear. His eyes closed, the need oozing out of him in animalistic pheromones. Grabbing her lobe between his teeth, he bit it. Fuck. He wanted her so bad, he could taste it. “I can deal with my father’s son later. Right now, I want you naked and in that bed, ass up and face down.”
Renee’s big brown eyes flashed open, and she looked over at the bed with images of Destiny in the position he now wanted to put her in. Face down, ass up. Shit. That completely ruined the mood.
Anatoly could feel the instant change in her demeanor. He had said something wrong again.
“What?” he asked, stepping back. “What did I do?”
“Nothing,” she said, shaking her head. She blinked fast and gave a faux smile. “We can do both. Just not at the same time.” Taking a deep breath, she found her composure and patted his chest. “Dinner at your brother’s restaurant and then dessert here.” She had to accept it. At some point, if they were going to stay in this house, she was going to have to make love to her husband in one or more of the same rooms he had been with Destiny. “We should just pick another room or at least another bed – one that has not been previously shared with another woman.”
I knew it, Anatoly said to himself. She was sore at him over that fucking bitch, Destiny. If he could take it back, he would, but Renee had seen the video of him and that woman together. Destiny had made sure of it when she delivered the CD to her years ago. It had almost cost him his relationship, and years later, he was still battling with the collateral damage.
A reasonable man would have simply complied considering his culpability, but Anatoly was not always reasonable. “Renee, that woman meant nothing to me,” he defended.
“I didn’t say that she did.” Renee rolled her eyes. “Just tell me that you didn’t sleep with her in that bed.” She pointed over to the bed with an accusatory finger.
Anatoly wanted to lie, but what would be the point? He rubbed the space between his eyes. “I can’t tell you that.”
“I know you can’t.” She bit down on her lip and pushed up against the dresser to get some space from him. “That’s why I don’t want to sleep in here.”
“Should I have another room set up for us?” The sexual bubble popped, leaving nothing but the tension between them again.
She was glad to have it out in the open, albeit uncomfortable. “I’d appreciate it. It’s either that or the floor.”
“Fine.” He stalked over to the door and snatched it open. With his broad back facing her, he leaned out. “Hey,” he snapped at the guard, who stood up and came over to him immediately. “Get someone to put another bed in here while we’re gone to dinner. I don’t care how. I don’t care how much it costs. Just do it.” He slammed the door shut and turned to her. “Are you happy now?”
His flippant response made her cock her head to one side. Was he serious right now?
Renee might have been a patient woman, but she was no one’s floor mat. She tried to bite her tongue and avoid a confrontation, but if he was going to try to play the victim, she had to check him. Crossing her hands over her chest, she smacked her lips at his incredulous statement.
“You know, it’s bad enough that everywhere we go women throw themselves at you. It was cute at first, but I hate that shit. On top of that, from one day to the next, I don’t know if you’re going to be here in the states or off in some other country half-way around the world.”
Anatoly was about to say something, but she raised a finger to shut him up. He had been given his chance to talk, and he hadn’t said a word that she wanted to hear. Now, it was her turn.
“You don’t talk to me. You don’t open up. Hell, I never know what’s going on in that mind of yours. No matter what, I give you the benefit of the doubt, because I love you.”
She counted out her points on her fingers. “I don’t try to break into your phone. I don’t spy on you. I don’t accuse you. I don’t even act a fool with these hoes out in the street that are always trying to get what I’ve got. But trying to get me to lay in the same bed that you fucked that bitch in is asking too much, and you damn well know it. So, no, Ana. I’m not happy, but you know what, you wouldn’t be either.” Her voice faded into nothingness, but she knew that she had made her point by the dumbfounded look on his face. Grabbing her purse, she waltzed into the bathroom and slammed the door as loudly as he had just done.
Well, that had been an abysmal failure. “Okay. I fucked up. I’m sorry,” he said, throwing his head back. What did he have to do to catch a break around here?
He walked up to the door and was about to open it, but decided against it. She might throw something at him, considering how angry she was. Hearing the sound of water running in the sink, he leaned against the wall.
“Does that mean we’re not going to dinner?” he asked, raising his voice.
“I said I’m going…I’m going.”
Anatoly felt guilt. Serious fucking guilt. If he had watched a video of Renee with another man, that man would be dead, but she suffered the knowledge of him being with another woman, and all that she had asked was to relocate. Okay, he had to be sensitive to that. Women liked sensitive. At that moment, however, he wanted to order his men to go and find Destiny, pull her out of whatever penthouse she was living in and put a bullet in her head.
“Fucking bitch,” he growled aloud about Destiny.
“What?” Renee said, ears perking up.
He scrubbed a hand across his face. “Nothing,” Anatoly snarled, walking away. It would be best to let cooler heads prevail before they got into this conversation. Right now, he was sexually frustrated and in need of a drink.