Бесплатный фрагмент - Fatal softness

Prologue

I was sitting on the table, wrapping my legs around the man’s torso. I could feel the heat of his body even through his clothes.

“This is wrong” I don’t believe what I’m saying, because right now I don’t care about anything. The only desire is to feel the touch of a man again. It’s the only one my body reacts to like this. I get lost in the sensations when this man just touches me.

“I don’t care about that,” Dane pulls me closer to him, trapping warm hands that start stroking my back until one of them gets tangled in my hair. He pulls my head up to see my face and open access to my neck.

“I will be disgraced” I have to be the voice of reason, because in the dark eyes of a man there is solid lust, that’s just one more touch and I myself will succumb to it. I will plunge into the whirlpool of passion that will overwhelm me.

“I know,” the man runs his nose along my neck, causing a herd of goosebumps on my body. I feel like I’m already soaked all over from these simple movements alone.

“My family will turn away from me” is the last argument I have. I can’t bring myself to move away from the man. It would be the right thing to do, but I want him too much.

“We have no choice, this is the only chance we have. Now you have to make a decision, are you ready to do this for us? To go against everyone to become my ‘Dane kissed my collarbone, turning off my brain completely’ only mine. I’m ready to tear apart anyone who dares to touch you, especially that boy.” against the background of Dane, my mighty bear, Peter really looked like a boy. “decide now, because in a minute I’ll make this decision for you.”

Just a minute to make the most important decision in my life. Dane, what are you doing to me?

Chapter 1

“Mom, I’m staying at Cassie’s tonight.” I quickly tried to stuff a change of clothes into my backpack so that Mom wouldn’t notice it.

“Your brother won’t be able to accompany you today, he’s busy at work.” I snorted. Busy, of course. My older brother worked at one of the family’s clubs, so his job was to keep an eye on the situation. In fact, he was just drinking and having fun with women. I knew he wouldn’t be able to accompany me today, it was the perfect opportunity to escape from my parents’ custody. There was a race today, and I just have to participate in it.

“It’s okay, Mom. Cassie’s dad will pick us up from the cafe, you don’t have to worry.”

“Yes, you’re right, dear.” Of course I’m right.

I stayed with a friend many times, but only recently my parents began to trust me so much that they didn’t check if I was really staying with a friend. I’ve only slipped away twice to get to the races. It was very risky every time. Anyone could have recognized me and informed my family about where I spend my leisure time and then I would have been in trouble.

I have a very traditional family, I wrested the right to work with great difficulty. I don’t say anything about going to university, which is full of all sorts of “horny boys’. I was allowed to work only because I helped with the Katarina Black foundation. My mother literally idolized this girl, even though she was only a few years older than me. Everyone in this city obeyed Alexander Black, and Katarina was his wife. The most important woman. Only the wives of the Black brothers could be safely near her when they appeared.

Although one of the brothers married an outsider, it was the gossip of the year. My mother had a heated discussion about it among other women. I didn’t see anything wrong with finding a mate for love, not a contract. But my mother did not share this opinion, especially considering that I had entered the age of marriage. My mother grumbles that I don’t appear in public, because no one will be able to notice me that way. I didn’t need anyone to notice me. The last thing I wanted was to marry someone I didn’t know.

I still don’t understand why we haven’t moved away from these barbaric traditions yet. The Blacks allowed women to get an education and work, but they do not interfere in family affairs, so we still practiced the practice of arranged marriages. I do not know of any family where people have entered into an alliance for love.

My parents loved each other, but this feeling came to them over time. I wanted to fall in love first and then get married, but I understand that most likely this will not happen. Although I tried to keep a low profile, I knew that my parents would soon start looking for a husband for me, because I had already turned eighteen. Our family is not as rich as Cassie’s family, for example. Therefore, it is difficult for parents to support both me and my brother. He had to earn his own living, but he was more interested in entertainment. Recently, he began to behave disgustingly and the thought crept into my head more and more often that he had started using. Mom tried to justify him, but Dad’s patience was already at its limit.

Today I decided that I want to help my family. You can’t tell from me, but I’m a fan of motorcycles. Even as a child, I began to crave cars. When I was a teenager, I helped my father fix our car, and then I fell in love. He was gorgeous, fit, with great curves. I was crazy about him, it was the first time I saw a sports bike up close. Except my father wasn’t thrilled with my love. My father still allowed me to drive a car, but I was strictly forbidden to approach motorcycles.

But I wasn’t going to give up. Sometimes I ran away from school to get to the circuit. There I learned to ride an iron beast. Fortunately, I had friends who covered for me. Cassie was a close friend of mine, but my best friend was Peter. He was a few years older than me, but since we had known each other since childhood, it didn’t bother us. Peter did not behave like other boys, he did not try to seem cool in other people’s eyes, that’s what he conquered. A lot of girls ran after him, sometimes he complained about the excessive attention from some girls, then we acted out scenes of jealousy.

Not many people knew that we were just friends. Some people thought I was Peter’s girlfriend, which was funny, because we’re like brother and sister. So we came up with a plan. When Peter got tired of unwanted attention, I would show up and act like a jealous girl. I made a scandal and promised the girl that I dared to encroach on my “boyfriend’, all the circles of hell. It was a very spectacular show. I’m ashamed to admit, but my first kiss was also with Peter. It’s just that one time I got so carried away with staging a show that I decided to end it with a kiss. In the end, it was very awkward.

“What are you going to do?” I almost snuck out, but Mom seems to have a sixth sense when I’m up to something.

“First we’ll go to a cafe, and then we’ll take over her home theater and watch some new products. It’s better than going to a packed movie theater.” I made a theatrical face.

“That’s right. If there is an opportunity to look at home, why not take advantage of it. Besides, Cassie’s parents are very responsible about protecting the house.” I rolled my eyes. My father was an ordinary soldier. Cassie’s father was also a soldier, but he had more influence and earned more money too. They could afford security, unlike us. And unlike my parents, this fact did not overshadow me in any way, but on the contrary pleased me. No guards, no surveillance.

“Say hi to Cassie. And also, ‘well, here it is again,’ how is Peter doing? Are you okay?”

“Mom, you do realize that we’re just friends, right?” Mom probably still dreams that one day we will fall in love with each other dramatically.

“Of course, of course. It’s just that I haven’t seen you together for a long time.”

“You know that after his father’s birthday, Peter had a little problem.” small problems is an understatement. He managed to get a broken arm from one of the Black brothers. The most reckless and unpredictable, his name was Chris. He was the middle brother and it was a blessing that I had never seen him in person. I only saw Alexander, he came to pick up his wife when I was working with her. And to be honest, he scared me to death...in short, the scarecrow. And it was Peter who had to piss off the eldest of the brothers. After that, the father took over his son’s education himself. And now, unfortunately, our communication has decreased, but we are trying to keep in touch through calls and SMS.

“It’s a pity that you see each other less often, but it’s good for Peter’s career” he will become a captain, like his father “so let me take you to the cafe.”

“Mom, I have my own car and I can drive it” mom just rolled her eyes. I understand that she just wanted to test me. It’s not that she doesn’t trust me. I never gave a reason to doubt myself, but that was her nature. “I love you, I promise to send a photo.” I kissed my mother on the cheek and ran out of the house.

I got in the car and immediately dialed Cassie’s number.

“How long did your mom not want to let you go again? You’re already late, I’m afraid you won’t be able to warm up.”

“You know her,” I rolled my eyes and started driving away from the house, “did you prepare him?”

“Yes, but you know that I’m not very good at this. I did everything you told me to do. You’re lucky Peter let you use his garage.”

“That’s for sure.” I looked at the time and realized that I was really late.

I’ll be lucky if I make it to the start of the race. Fortunately, I have already been entered. More precisely, the number of my bike is entered, because I did not specify the name. One of the organizers knew my brother. I had to make eyes to be entered and at the same time not tell my family anything, leaving the name of the racer incognito. This will be my first race and I will pray that it will not be my last. That’s why it’s the mafia, that the show should be interesting. Before each race, the road is rebuilt, sometimes slightly, and sometimes completely. None of the riders knows what it will be like. It should scare me, but I want to get there too much. So I shut my fear away.

I drive to the garage and enter the code and quickly fly inside. That’s my good one. Cassie really prepared him, and this… oh my god...She drew a pattern of wings on the sides. Damn, it’s certainly beautiful, but it will be noticeable and it can be tracked. The number is fake.

In fact, I worked a long time to buy this baby for myself. Well, maybe Peter and Cassie helped me a little. Okay, I have to be honest, they helped me a lot, because I gave almost all the money I earned to my family.

I quickly changed into a special suit and grabbed my helmet. On which were freshly painted wings. I’m going to kill her, well, I’m definitely going to kill her. I got on the bike and drove out of the garage.

Now I’ve experienced a real buzz, wild speed, adrenaline surging in my blood. I feel like I’m in heaven right now. I get to the race venue quickly, but not fast enough to make it to the warm-up. She usually put on a grandiose show as an opening act. Many racers went out and showed what they are capable of. I had an idea for the show, but I was too late to turn it into a reality. But it’s even better, because I don’t like being the center of attention.

Driving through, I literally had to run over the heels of standing people, because everyone was already at the start. I noticed the empty space that was assigned to me. I saw that many people were surprised by my appearance, since even in a suit it is clear that I am a girl. But although the rule did not prohibit girls from participating in the race, none of us had participated in it until that moment. Today I will be the first.

I saw a Whale pointing at my seat, trying to quickly push through the crowd. There were only a few minutes left before the start. I pulled into my seat and turned to face the darkest eyes I’d ever seen. My face was hidden, but the face of the man standing next to me could still be seen, because he hadn’t put on his helmet yet. I swallowed nervously, as I immediately recognized who it was. A huge figure, dark hair and black eyes. Dane Black. I had no idea he was going to participate today, I would never have shown up. Racing was his brainchild, but he rarely participated in it himself. My fifth point feels that I have problems. But I don’t have time to worry, because a girl appears in front of us who should give a start.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. There is a lady among the riders today. Let’s wish the lady good luck. I hope everyone is ready?” the girl raised her hand with a handkerchief up and the countdown began “three… two… One…”

Chapter 2

“Are you going to participate today?” Chris was sitting in an armchair drinking whiskey. He had been drinking a lot lately and it bothered me, but not Alec.

“I haven’t participated in a long time.” I shrugged my shoulders.

I enjoyed racing, but I also had a lot of other things that required my attention. I can’t spend all my time racing. My brothers are too involved in their personal experiences, or rather their girlfriends. Alexander was now in the hospital with his wife and their newborn child. And Chris still couldn’t come to his senses after the only girl who caught his attention dumped him.

Many people expected Chris and I to get married soon. They offered us their daughters so that we could make a choice. If one of the girls presented likes one of us, her family will rise sharply in rank. Anyway, they will receive our blessing, so now many are nominating their candidates. We all knew that sooner or later we would have to settle down, and after what Adam had done, it was more of a necessity. He married an outsider. Actually, it was forbidden, but Alec gave his permission and never came out against this union. Well, in public.

Men may find it an insult that none of us married a girl who grew up in our traditions. Alec’s wife was from a traditional family, but she belonged to another clan, so it didn’t count. In fact, I wasn’t going to get married at all, although my family doesn’t know about it yet. I feel like I won’t have a choice soon. The damn traditions we’re bound by.

“I heard it was going to be fun today, did you completely redesign the track?”

“Yes, that was the plan, but I didn’t see it.”

The point was that the rider didn’t see the track before the race started. It was dangerous, but more spectacular than riding in a circle or in a straight line. More viewers, more bets. More bets, more money. However, I had my own interest, such races brought me wild adrenaline, which ultimately made me happier.

There are few things in my life that satisfy me. Race, socializing with family, maybe even murder, and sex. Although the latter was less satisfying than it should have been. I was wildly infuriated by all the girls, they always needed something from me. Power, money, pleasure. They always think only of themselves, so I only sleep with the sh*hams. Those who know who they are and do not pretend to be more, just do their job and leave.

“If you knew the track, you’d have the advantage.” Chris poured himself another glass.

“I already have it,” I grinned, “I don’t need to see the track to win. I always come first.” I haven’t lost a single race, because unlike the others, I’m not afraid to take risks.

“You sound so narcissistic that I want to argue with you” is our little ritual. We can bet on anything. It started in childhood and it has not changed with age, only the topics of the dispute have become more complicated.

“You know you’re going to lose, right?” I arched an eyebrow. My confidence had nothing to do with self-esteem, I know my capabilities, so I am completely confident in my victory.

“I’m ready to take a chance, brother,” he grinned, “I’ll bet a thousand on your loss.”

“Get the money ready.”

I arrived at the race venue in advance to check if everything was ready. Patrick, my assistant reported to me on all matters. He also raced once, but after a bad fall, he had to quit. Then I offered him this job, which he refused, but then he came to me and asked if there was still a vacancy. I accepted him and did not regret it, he was smart enough and was in the subject to become indispensable.

“Give me the list” Patrick handed me the list of participants along with the layout. Each participant had to start from a certain place, which fell according to the lot “tell me honestly are you doing this on purpose?” I found myself in the first row. Again.

“The whole process was filmed, you know that after that incident…” yes, I remembered. One participant said that the draw was unfair and that was why he lost. I had to put him in his place, but discontent began to grow, so we began to record the lot on video, if someone could not attend, he could see it so that no one else would complain — you’re damn lucky. We’ve changed instruments many times, but your name always comes out on the first line.

“And who is this?” I have not yet seen the participant who was supposed to be standing next to me. Number five belonged to a racer who was no longer among the living and according to the rules, no one could use it for a year. When I returned to the list, there was a surprise waiting for me. Instead of the participant’s name, the motorcycle number was written there “what the fuck is this?”

“Keith entered it, and I haven’t had time to ask him about this guy yet.”

“Bring me a Whale” I didn’t like the hell that someone was acting behind my back and endangering my brainchild. Anyone could have been a participant, but I need cops here who like to sneak into events like this. The truth is, they know what’s going on here and who’s running it, but they can’t do anything. It happens that someone appears who wants to curry favor and is explained in detail that they do not need to meddle with us.

“Did you want to see me?” Keith stood there and gulped sharply. He must have been running.

“Participant number five” the man tensed up “why didn’t you enter the name?”

“I was asked not to enter the name” is he an idiot?

“So you’ve entered a completely outsider who can ruin everything and bring a lot of problems? He was probably sent, so I have a question for you. Are you a fucking idiot?”

“No one sent her, I’m one hundred percent sure of her” her?

“Is it a woman? And how long have they started racing?”

“That’s why I didn’t enter the name. Our rules do not prohibit the participation of girls.”

“Because it’s clear enough. Girls don’t belong on the highway. Is she one of us?”

“Yes, her father is a soldier.” Soldier means. Perhaps the girl needed money.

“Should I cross it out?” Patrick was already getting ready to do it.

“On what basis?” I was thinking, “she belongs to our world and knows the rules. Alexander allowed women to work, why can’t we let them into the race” it was a risky decision “does she even know how to ride?” he nodded, “then enter her fucking name, she will participate.” I was about to leave when Keith stopped me.

“I can’t.” He lowered his eyes down.

“What do you mean I can’t” is this a joke? Why is everything going through the ass today?

“She asked for it. Her family doesn’t know about it, and she shouldn’t find out.”

“That’s just what I needed to deal with a soldier, and how did you agree to this anyway?” if I thought he was embarrassed before, then I was mistaken. Now he was confused.

“I… I…” well, as much as possible.

“Just fucking answer the question, we don’t have time to deal with this all evening.”

“I don’t know,” he blurted out, “she just looks at you with her big eyes, and you’re ready for anything. Damn, when you see her, you’ll know what I’m talking about. This girl is very beautiful, no wonder she is busy. If she had asked me to kneel down, I would have done it without hesitation.“I’m telling you, you idiot.

“No girl can bring a man to his knees. You don’t have to enter her, but after the race, I should have all the information on this girl. I hope she actually knows how to drive, because otherwise we’ll have more problems.” Keith nodded and left.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? The track is difficult, I don’t think the girl can handle it.”

“No, I’m not sure, but if she wants to participate, it’s her decision. If she were a man, this conversation wouldn’t have happened at all.“I remembered the day when Alec’s wife got on my motorcycle for the first time. I almost sat down at the time from what she had arranged, but I can’t help but admit that she did her best. If number five thinks that he can participate in the race on an equal footing with others, let him participate.

“If something happens…”

“That will be my problem. I take full responsibility for myself. So, what’s going on with the warm-up? Have everyone arrived?”

“Do you want to see her?” I rolled my eyes. I don’t want to admit it, but yes, I want to see her. “Then I’ll disappoint you, she’s not here yet. Maybe she won’t show up at all.”

“It’s easier for us. I need to get ready, and you need to keep an eye on the guys.” Patrick nodded, and we parted.

I stood and watched the show from my favorite spot. It was higher than where the audience was standing. The racers have always put on a good show, the more spectacular it is, the more people will bet on this racer. Each rider gets a small percentage for this. If a lot of people bet on you, even though you lose, you get money. He will consider it an incentive.

I didn’t have to show myself, my name alone meant a lot. Being Black means being the power in this city. In our city, no one can go against us. Out of respect, out of fear. But it’s hardly because of love.

A year ago, I would have said that love does not exist. It was only by looking at my three brothers that I began to believe in her. My older brother, who has cruelty in his veins, simply adores his wife. Adam, a thug who enjoys torture and murder, has turned into a teddy bear next to his wife. But thanks to Chris, I realized that I never want to love. He’s gone crazy, not that he was a good boy before, but now he’s completely off the rails. He was looking for his girlfriend like a madman, and they weren’t even married. So now, even though I believe in love, I sincerely don’t want to have anything to do with it.

It was time to get ready for the start, I got into my seat and put on my helmet, but did not roll down the window. I needed to focus on the race, but all my attention was focused on the empty seat next to me. I don’t understand why it was so risky not to come. There are only a few minutes before the start and the crowd starts to roar. I turn my head and see people making way for the bike.

As soon as the bike stops next to me, I quickly inspect it. It’s a good model and obviously not cheap. Apparently my assumption about the money was not correct. Angel wings are painted on the body.

After that, I turned my gaze to the girl herself. It was definitely a girl, although the jumpsuit was equipped with protection, it still hugged the female figure like a second skin. Damn, she’s really good. I haven’t seen her face yet, but I obviously like her body, judging by the boner that has appeared.

“I hope everyone is ready?” I realized that I was distracted. Well, baby, let’s see you in action. “Three… two… One…”

Chapter 3

We took off at the same time. I immediately started to pick up speed in order to leave more than half of the competitors behind. What was my surprise when I realized that the girl was on an equal footing with me. The road was not perfectly smooth, so it was difficult for many to gain speed at first, the rider must make a lot of effort to stay on his motorcycle, because only one small bump could cause real damage.

It was just the beginning, but most had already dropped out at this stage. No matter how well you drive, the main thing now is attentiveness and the dark time of day did not improve the situation. I was not distracted from the road, but I knew with some sixth sense that the motorcycle with the white wings was right next to me.

There were lights ahead, they stood on both sides of the road, because then it went zigzag, at best. The main thing is to follow the main path, if you miss a turn and fly off the track, you’re out.

I focused on the road carefully fitting into each turn, if you can call a sharp turn at high speed can be considered neat. The main thing is not to fly into the damn lanterns, they were no more than a meter high and glowed blood-red. I rode first, followed by about six more motorcycles.

At the moment, I had no time to consider whether the girl was following me. I found myself wondering where she was, but I didn’t understand why. It was the first time I had seen her, or rather, I hadn’t really seen her, but for some reason I wanted to know that she was safe. She wasn’t on the list of people I was protecting, so I don’t fucking understand what’s going on with me.

I overcame this distance with difficulty without losing the championship. This time the guys overreacted. There was only a fucking dead loop not enough to finally finish off the racers. Although it had never bothered me before, something was definitely wrong.

When I hit the gravel, I turned around to see who was riding next to me. The woman’s body was pressed against the motorcycle. Long legs miraculously did not merge with the background of the motorcycle, and an elastic ass was visible from behind. It’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.

And it was a damn bad time, I lost control for just a second. The bike tilted, but I managed to straighten it quickly. However, this little hitch was enough for the girl to get ahead of me. She’s good.

The last obstacle remained, it was necessary to climb the mountain and drive along the narrow road at the top. This part was never rebuilt, because there was a huge probability of collapse. This section of the road was very dangerous, as the road was not just narrow, there was too sharp a turn, right over the abyss. The distance to the ground was not so great as to be fatal, but anyone who fell off the track would be provided with fractures. There is also always the possibility of an unsuccessful landing, which will be fatal. Therefore, this part of the way was rarely used, mostly the road there was simply blocked, coming up with something else. But not today, and this crazy girl rushed there at full speed.

I put so much pressure on the gas that my bike jerked forward, rearing up. It was a very dangerous maneuver, especially on gravel, but I didn’t care. I have to catch up with this crazy woman so she doesn’t get killed. There was a huge failure in my plan, because I had no idea how I could stop her. We were only a few meters apart. I shortened the distance as much as I could, but she still stayed ahead. The others were still far behind, the girl turned out to be better than those who have been racing for a long time. She drove as desperately as I did, and that gave her a good advantage.

We climbed the mountain together and went out on the trail. It was too narrow for me to keep up with it. We both slowed down, I was already glad of this fact, as this fool and this is the sweetest of all the curses I used in her head, stepped on the gas. Speeding on a narrow road like this was fucking suicide. I knew that the turn would be only five hundred meters away, I also knew that it would be very sharp and this damn section was not illuminated. Hopefully, she’d see him sooner than she’d fall into the damn abyss.

The girl did not slow down, and the turn was approaching faster and faster. She was so damn close to him. My heart skipped a beat when I saw her start to turn sharply. The girl skidded so hard that the motorcycle literally lay sideways on the ground. There were only a few centimeters left between the ground and the damn helmet. She accelerated, straightening the bike straight. I’m going to kick that sexy ass, even if I don’t have the right to.

I knew how to make the turn, so I quickly overcame this section of the road and pressed on the gas and rushed forward. The descent began, and the finish line was already visible from this place. Instead of revving up, I, on the contrary, slowed down and my bike jerked down, gaining speed on its own. We were at the bottom at the same time and I sharply accelerated forward.

Naturally, I crossed the finish line first, while the girl arrived second. Turning off the engine, I jumped off the bike and took off my helmet and threw it down. I was so damn angry.

“Keep an eye on the bikes,” I shouted to Patrick and headed straight for the girl.

I approached her closely and quickly picked her up and threw her over my shoulder. She tried to pull away, stabbing me in the back. I couldn’t make out what she was shouting because her helmet was still on her. I took her to the building where the workers usually rest. Opening the door with a jerk, I went inside.

“Everyone out,” I shouted to those inside. The man silently stood up and quickly went outside. I put the girl in the middle of the room- take off the helmet- she froze, but later shook her head negatively, “take off the damn helmet, this is a fucking order.”

I didn’t like to take advantage of my position, but now I liked the pleasure I had. The power that I had over this particular girl. She slowly reached for the clasps and began to take off her helmet. I was stunned when I saw her face. Brown curls fell over her shoulders, falling down to her waist. The girl had pale skin and big blue eyes. I’ve never seen eyes so bright.

“Mr. Black” she had a beautiful melodious voice.

“Shut up- “If she asked me to get on my knees, I wouldn’t hesitate to do it.” Damn, women like her would bring any man to his knees. She was incredibly beautiful, and that beauty was able to distract me from what I was about to do. But only for a moment, “do you realize that this was a rash and very stupid decision? You could have been hurt, you’re damn lucky it didn’t happen. Before you took part in this race, did you have to find out her level or did you consider yourself too cool for that?” I really want to bend her over and run my palm over her bare ass so that it turns a deliciously pink color. It will look great on such pale skin.

“I didn’t know…” I put out my hand to interrupt her. She didn’t fucking know.

“Name it. Her. Name.”

“Liv,” she murmured softly. I arched an eyebrow, “Olivia,” I still wasn’t happy with her answer-“Olivia Hill.”

“If I remember correctly, does your father work for Douglas?” she nodded, “does he know you’re racing?”

“No. Please, he must not find out.” I nodded. I don’t know why I did it, because I had to tell her father about it so that he wouldn’t let her race anymore.

“I won’t tell your father, provided…” I paused, “that you will never race in my races again.”

“But… how… do I…”

“It’s up to you to decide whether you don’t come near this place anymore or I’ll put you in a car and take you to your father. He will be interested in how we met and I will be happy to tell him this, in all your deadly details.”

“This is not fair,” she bit her lower lip. I guess she’s fighting back tears. I hated women’s tears, and if she gave me a fountain here, I’d just explode.

“Life is not a fair thing at all,” the girl took a few heavy breaths and pulled herself together.

“Okay,” she didn’t shed a single tear, which earned me respect. Usually, women start whining, thinking that this will help them achieve what they want. Now there was a void in the eyes of this girl “can I go now?”

“No” I didn’t have time to say another word, as the door opened and Patrick flew in “what do you want?”

“I came to give the money.”

“I’m not interested in winning” I didn’t even turn around to look at him.

“It’s not your winnings, it’s the girls” it took me a while to realize what he said. That’s right, she took second place and most likely raised our money well, respectively, she is owed a percentage. Patrick handed the girl an envelope that looked very impressive.

“You remember that each rider is given only a certain percentage.”

“This is the percentage.” I arched an eyebrow. I do not remember that I earned such good money myself.“most bet that the girl would lose.”

“She lost.” I saw how much her eyes flashed with rage. Someone doesn’t like to lose.

“But they thought she would come last.”

“Because I’m a girl?” she quickly shoved the envelope under her jacket and crossed her arms over her chest.

“Most likely… I think that I…” Patrick looked at me, and then looked at the girl “it’s worth going and doing my own thing” is a damn good decision. I kept my eyes on the girl, as she did on me, until we heard the front door slam.

“Are we done? I need to go home.” She pressed her lips together so that they formed a single line.

“It’s late now, I can’t let you get home alone.”

“I don’t need a babysitter, I can drive home on my own.” She tried to behave calmly, but her body gave her away. She was tense.

“Where do your parents think you are now?” if her father did not allow her to race, then most likely he also did not allow her to be anywhere late at night “and don’t lie to me, Olivia” I liked saying her name, especially liked the way she twitched, as if she had been electrocuted.

“They think I’m at a friend’s place.”

“So now you’re going to a friend’s place?” she shook her head negatively.

“I can’t show up at her place. The guards will immediately inform my parents that I arrived late.”

“And where were you going to stay?” Well, she wasn’t going to be on the street until morning.

“I was thinking of staying in the garage,” she wrung her hand, “I would have spent the night in the car.”

“Of course,” I didn’t like that she would stay in a cold garage. And most likely I will regret the decision that I made, “come on, you’re coming with me.”

“Where?” she hesitantly stepped forward.

“To me.”

Chapter 4

I don’t understand anything. I stand there and stupidly blink my eyes, I’ve always been told that at such moments I look like a doll. Dane turned around and headed for the exit.

“Are you coming?” The man has no patience.

“I can't...it‘s not decent” to communicate with men is one thing, but spending the night with them is too much. If my parents find out that I participated in the race, they will lock me up at home until I get married, if they find out that I spent the night with a man, they will lock me up for the rest of my life.

“Do your parents follow a traditional upbringing?” The man turned and looked at me.

“Not really, I mean, I can work and all that, but in the matter of the opposite sex…”

“I get it, you don’t have to go on. And so, the options remain the same. You’ve already entered my field of vision, so I can’t send you anywhere at night. Either you agree to come with me, or I’m taking you to your father. You have less than a minute and ‘Dane examined me’ I’m not interested in little girls,” I choked with indignation. Did he call me a little girl? I am already of age and besides, I am sure that I have a very attractive figure. I’m not blind, I see guys looking at me, so I’m attractive. Well, not a little girl.

“I’ll come with you if no one finds out about it.” I feel like I’m doing the stupidest thing in the world.

“You have nothing to worry about, yours… Honor is not in danger, but you’d better put on your helmet when we go out. Many people will want to know who you are, and I will warn Keith not to say anything. Someone else knows that you participated in the race today.” Yes.

“no. I didn’t tell anyone.”

“Okay,” the man walked up to the door and took hold of the handle. “Helmet” damn right. I quickly pulled the helmet over my head and followed the man.

We quickly walked to the parking lot, where they put me in a large jeep. I climbed into the front seat and took off my helmet. Dane got behind the wheel with a straight face and drove out onto the road. He doesn’t have any emotions on his face at all, it feels like he’s in the habit of driving strange girls.

“What’s going to happen to my motorcycle?” if something happens to it, I’ll make Black pay me the full cost and I don’t care what it looks like.

“They’ll be delivered to the parking lot, you can leave in it in the morning.” That’s good. At least wait, no, it’s not good.

“I’m sorry, you mean you’re taking me to your house,” he nodded, not even looking up from the road, “to your place, is it right to your place?” God, what nonsense I’m talking. It was clear from Dane’s look that he agreed with this statement, “I mean, are you taking me to where your brother lives?” The boss won’t figure it out, he’ll just send me to my parents.

“no. I’ll take you to the apartment, if we show up at the mansion, there will be questions. This will lead to big problems. And we don’t want that, do we?” his voice faltered a little on the last sentence, which made me feel bad. We really don’t want any problems, but his tone scares me a little. Maybe I’m driving myself into a trap.

“You’re not going to do anything to me, are you? Well, maybe you’re going to take me into the woods. Well, so that there would be no problems,” the man laughed hoarsely. I like his laugh, it made a smile bloom on my face.

“Do I look like a maniac?” I examined the large figure of the man. He had big strong hands and a very frowning expression on his face.

“Well, a little bit,” the man laughed again.

“So I was wrong and you still have a sense of self-preservation.” I snorted.

“Naturally, I have an instinct for self-preservation.”

“I would argue.”

I shook my head and turned away to the window. We were driving through the city and judging by the direction we were heading to the very center of the city. I didn’t like to go there, there are areas for snobs. Even walking down the street, these people show how much money they have. I’ve never been violent, even if I grew up in the mafia, but when people look at you like you’re a bug, I want to take Dad’s gun and show which one of us is a bug.

I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, I realized that we were in an underground parking lot. I must have fallen asleep, because it was already late.

“Can you walk by yourself? I didn’t get a job as a porter.” How nice.

“I can walk by myself.”

Getting out of the car, we headed for the elevator. When we went inside, the man pressed the button for the penthouse, and I rolled my eyes. Of course, the handsome man has a penthouse.

“Is something wrong?” Dane arched an eyebrow.

“It’s okay.”

“You need to control your emotions better, don’t they teach you that.”

“Teach you what?” I didn’t understand what he was talking about.

“Distort your emotions. You know, when a woman pretends that she is satisfied with everything and she is completely satisfied with life so that her husband is always happy,” I couldn’t believe it. He believes that women always pretend.

“No,” I hissed, “they don’t teach us anything like that.”

“So you don’t often attend public events.” After these words, the elevator opened, and the man walked to the door entering the code.

As much as I hate to admit it, Dane was right. I tried not to attend public events. Everyone behaved strangely and unnaturally, especially the women… Damn, he’s really right. Women really pretend all the time.

I went inside and the door slammed shut behind me, making the sound of a lock closing. Not bad, I would like this feature, otherwise I always forget to lock the doors. Dane pointed towards the spacious hall and going there I sat down on the sofa, putting the helmet next to me. It’s not a bad sofa, it will be clearly more comfortable on it than in the back seat of my car.

“Are you hungry?” I listened to myself, realizing that I was really fucking hungry. But I decided not to burden the man.

“No.”

“I’m going to order for myself and I don’t want you drooling over my food. I don’t like to share, so if you’re hungry, you’d better tell the truth.”

“Yes, I’d like a snack.”

“You can change into the guest room, there are sports clothes there. Or I can bring you something from the girls.” I grimaced. I would not like to wear all sorts of clothes.

“No thanks.”

“The items belong to my brothers’ girlfriend and wife. I wouldn’t offer you clothes of a stranger’s sweat...girls” I didn’t know why he was trying to explain himself to me, but I liked that he didn’t offer me one-day girls’ clothes. I’m innocent, but I’m not stupid. I know how things are in the mafia. Men like to have fun.

“I’m fine with a tracksuit,” the man nodded and pointed to the door to the right of the stairs.

When I entered the guest room, I immediately reached into the dresser and pulled out sweatpants and a T-shirt. The pants were too big for me and I had to tie them tightly at the waist. The T-shirt was also too big for me, it reached almost to my knees and hung from one shoulder. However, it was better than walking around in a motorcycle suit.

Twenty minutes later, I was sitting on the couch in the living room again, eating pizza in the company of a man I didn’t even know, and I couldn’t figure out how it came to this. It’s probably the most reckless thing I’ve ever done to go with this man. Even going to the races seems like nothing to me.

While eating, I constantly look at the man.

“Ask me.”

“About what?”

“About what you want, you haven’t taken your eyes off me all evening. I’m guessing there’s something you want to know or you like me.”

“I can’t race because I’m a girl?” is a question that’s been nagging me ever since Dane said I should never show up at a race again. Do I like him? Judging purely visually, yes. He is a handsome, powerful man, naturally I am attracted to his appearance, but he does not need to know about it. I’m not sure yet that he doesn’t scare the hell out of me. It’s like heaven and hell.

“no. If that were the case, I wouldn’t have allowed you to participate today.”

“Then why?” I don’t understand.

“Everyone who gets on the starting line is responsible for himself. Tell me, girl, who’s in charge of you. You or your parents? If they don’t know you’re involved, what happens if you get into an accident? Guess who will be to blame for this?”

“I?”

“I did not guess. It will be my fault and then we will have problems.” I didn’t think about it that way. If something had happened to me, my parents wouldn’t have survived it. If I got injured, they would be the ones paying the hospital bills. Even having your own hospital does not make medicine free, because medicine and equipment are also bought. We live in our own world, but we also intersect with another, ordinary one. It’s all too complicated.

“Okay, I understand. But why did you decide to bring me here?”

“I’ve already answered that question for you. I couldn’t let the girl go alone.”

“Yes, but you could just hand me over to my parents. Why did you cover it up?” the man is clearly starting to get annoyed by this conversation.

“Back in the car, you addressed me as ‘you’ and what changed?” That’s a trick question. I didn’t notice myself how I switched to “you’.

“I think eating pizza together brings us closer,” I tried to look casual.

“Let’s say for today, I’ll forgive you this liberty, but next time you shouldn’t run to me like an old friend,” I laughed.

“There won’t be a next time.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“We had many opportunities to meet and it didn’t happen.” Now it definitely won’t happen.

“You’re talking in riddles,” I shrugged, “finish your meal and go to bed. Some have jobs, get up at six in the morning,” I grabbed a piece of pizza and stuck my tongue out and went into the room that the man had allocated to me. I don’t know where I got such audacity from, but I liked the look on his face.

I collapsed on the bed and finally looked at my phone. There were a lot of messages from Cassie.

* How was the race?*

* Tell me you kicked everyone’s ass*

Liv, why aren’t you answering?*

*Liv, I’m starting to worry*

*Text me or I’ll have to call your parents*

The last message came five minutes ago.

* I’ll tell you everything tomorrow, I’m fine, I’m just tired*

* Don’t scare me like that anymore, or I’ll kick your pretty ass. I’m waiting for a full report from you tomorrow*

I put down my phone and let my body relax and fell asleep.

I dreamed that I was on a motorcycle again. It’s just the two of us, but we’re not wearing helmets, and I can’t take my eyes off those piercing dark eyes. It distracts me from the road and I fall.

I jump up abruptly on the bed, covered in sweat. Damn, this nightmare was really realistic.

Chapter 5

Going into the bathroom, I rinsed my face under cold water to freshen up. It was probably the first time in my life that I had such a realistic dream. After changing my clothes, I left the room to go home faster. When I heard a noise in the kitchen, I decided to look in there. The first thing I came across was a naked man’s back. It was very wide and covered with scars. I involuntarily froze, looking at the uncomplicated patterns. The wounds seemed deep in the past, it felt like they were taken out on purpose. I can’t imagine what kind of monster could do this to a living person.

“Have you woken up yet?”

“Yes, and I’m going to go home as soon as possible.”

“You’ll go home as soon as you’ve had breakfast.”

“Did you make me breakfast?” I was so stunned that I forgot about the chain of command again.

“Sit down” oh, that commanding tone. On the table in front of me was a mug of freshly made coffee and porridge. Satisfying and simple. Except there was no spoon. I got up and went to the drawers where I hoped to find the cutlery. Unfortunately, I had to stand next to a man. More precisely, not just next to it, but literally snuggle up to a man’s leg to get to the object I need.

It was like an electric shock even through my clothes.

I had never experienced such a feeling before, so I just froze in shock and as it turned out, I was not the only one. Dane also froze next to me. I allowed myself a glance at the man’s torso. Looking at the beautifully defined muscles, I hoped that saliva would not start dripping from my mouth. Quickly pulling myself together, I grabbed a spoon and sat down to my food.

“I hope you remember what we talked about yesterday.” I put down my spoon and looked at the man.

“I will never race again, because you have a lot of problems because of this,” the man exhaled sharply. Well, that’s what it is.

“The main thing is that you don’t come into my field of vision anymore. And I don’t care what reason you choose for it. But if it happens that we do meet again, please be polite. No one should think about the fact that we’ve met before.” I rolled my eyes, “It’s in both my and your best interests.”

So I don’t need to roll my eyes here. You’re acting like an unreasonable little kid. You play adult games and behave like an adult.

“I understand you perfectly, Mr. Black,” I reflected the sweetest smile I was capable of at that moment.

“Why do I have a feeling that you’re going to get me in trouble.”

“I have no idea, because I’m not going to see you anymore” I put the last spoonful of porridge in my mouth “well, now I have to go home. It was nice to meet you, Mr. Black.”

I saw him frown. He didn’t seem to like it when I addressed him formally. To be honest, I don’t like it either. Instead of running away right away, I held a cup of coffee to my lips and allowed myself to admire this man for a few minutes. Tall, broad-shouldered, he had slightly overgrown hair and stubble on his face, I wanted to run my nails over the latter. I have no idea what I’m thinking.

“Don’t look at me like that.” I choked on my coffee.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I put down the cup and jumped off the chair.

“Let’s assume that I believed you. And now it’s time for you.” I think so too.

As soon as Dane let me out, I went straight to the garage. There I changed my clothes and left my beloved animal and got into the car. Twenty minutes later, I was sitting in a cafe waiting for Cassie.

“You owe me. I lifted my body off the bed with great difficulty,” I smiled as Cassie plopped down in front of me.

“In my defense, I ordered breakfast for you.”

“Well, thanks for that.” I know Cassie doesn’t like to get up early.“Why do you look so pleased. It seemed to me that sleeping in the car was not very comfortable.” The girl grimaced.

“Because I slept in a comfortable bed,” I watched her eyes widen.

“Did you come home yesterday?” I shook my head negatively, “then I don’t understand anything. Don’t tell me you found some guy yesterday. God, Liv, you didn’t do that, did you?”

“Let me tell you everything before you put me in the circle of girls of easy virtue,” and I told her everything from the moment I arrived at the start, before Dane and I had breakfast.

“It can’t be. You spent time with one of the Blacks. If I hadn’t known that you rarely lie, I would have thought you were making it up. It sounds very unrealistic.” I understood her. If someone had told me yesterday that the race would end with me spending the night in the same house with Dane, I would never have believed “are you sure he won’t turn you in?”

“No, I’m not sure. Except he doesn’t look like a man who breaks his word.”

“And that’s what you found out in just one evening? Maybe there’s something you’re not telling me?”

“I told you everything,” but I didn’t say that I reacted very strangely to the presence of a man.

“And what is he like? I mean, didn’t you get a close look at him?” That’s not the right word. Perhaps I also didn’t mention that I saw his naked torso.

“He looks like a man. He just breathes this masculine energy, I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Well, now I understand why there are so many girls at these races of yours.”

Cassie was with me at the race only once. And she was horrified by the way the girls were dressed. Their shorts looked more like underpants, and their tops revealed half of their breasts. I didn’t care, but Cassie really didn’t like watching it. She had the same traditional family as mine. But if I was a little rebellious, Cassie really believed in all these rules.

“You hate these girls.” I laughed.

“Not that I hate it. I just don’t understand why I should offer myself so openly. A girl should feel like a girl, not a piece of meat.”

“Don’t worry, even against the background of half-naked girls, anyone would choose you” and it’s true. Cassie didn’t wear revealing clothes, but they were perfectly tailored to her figure. She had long brown hair and big green eyes. Her skin was a little dark against mine. We were literally in everything, like yin and yang, in everything. That’s probably why she’s my only friend.

“I wasn’t worried.” My phone rang. Peter “parents?”

“No, Peter. Can you promise me one thing?” Cassie squinted.

“Which one?”

“Don’t tell Peter about all this. Well, that is…”

“About the fact that you spent the night with a man?” I wanted to sink through the ground.

“Yes, about that.” The call stopped.

“You’re just friends, right?”

“Of course. It’s just that he’s changed so much since he started working with his father. I’m afraid that if he finds out about everything, he will definitely tell my parents about it.”

“And that’s the only reason?” her eyes seemed to flash at that moment.

“Naturally. You know. Oh no…” I shook my head, “don’t tell me that you’re now also a member of my mom’s club, dreaming of our pairing. If that’s the case, I’ll disappoint you. Peter is an exceptional friend to me.”

“I just want you to be happy. Sometimes a spark runs between you and you really act like lovers. I just hope you know what you need.”

“There’s no spark between us, Cass.” This is really stupid.

“Well, if you’re so sure of yourself, then think about the fact that maybe there are no feelings on only one side.”

“Are you implying that Peter is secretly in love with me?” I laughed, “there is no such thing. I’m still in my right mind and I’m pretty sure that guys don’t tell girls what they like about their love affairs. And I know a lot, believe me, Peter is not stingy with details.” Cassie grimaced.

“I’ll take your word for it.”

I called Peter back, but he was no longer available. He must have a lot to do. I felt ashamed that I hadn’t answered his call right away. After chatting with my friend for a while, I decided it was time for me to go home. I promised to help Mom with lunch.

When I arrived home, I heard the sound of breaking dishes and my father’s loud scream.

“Get out of my house, you ungrateful one.” I ran into the house and saw that my father was literally shaking with rage. My brother was standing near a mountain with broken dishes and grinning. Even just standing, he was still staggering. He was drunk again. “Don’t come back until you sober up. And don’t forget to apologize to your mother.” I turned to notice how my mother was standing against the wall and tears were streaming down her cheeks.

“And what exactly did I say wrong. It’s her job to serve us. You yourself adhere to such a policy “as in slow motion, I saw my father hit my brother.

“Shut your mouth, puppy.”

“What’s going on here” three pairs of eyes stared at me.

“And here’s my little sister. I wonder why she’s still here, haven’t you started looking for a man she’ll have to live with? She will be the same nice servant,” a crunch was heard. I think Oscar’s father broke his nose.

“Olivia, Addison, go upstairs” none of us moved “quickly” Mom moved away from the wall and grabbed my hand as she walked to the exit.

We sat down in the living room while there was a noise in the kitchen. Then the back door opened and there was a terrible crash. Judging by this sound, the father literally threw his brother out of the house. All this time, Mom was quietly shedding tears. I didn’t dare ask her about what had happened. She’s obviously not in that condition right now.

“He’s gone,” Dad came into the room, and sat down in front of Mom, “he’ll apologize. Maybe he shouldn’t have worked at the club. I’ll try to find another job for him.”

“I just don’t understand what’s going on with him. It’s like another person, it’s not my son.” Now more than ever, I wanted Oscar to pay for it. I paid for every tear of my mother’s. That jerk shouldn’t treat her like that.

“I’m going to clean up the kitchen.”

“It’s not worth it, I can do it myself.”

“No mom, I’ll do it.” parents need to be alone now.

I went to the kitchen and started picking up the pieces. My God, that jerk destroyed most of the dishes. How easy it is to destroy what you didn’t buy. I looked at the yellow shards. He fucking broke my favorite mug. We need to kick his ass right away.

My father is right, this job has ruined him. I used to adore my older brother, but now I can’t be around him. I can’t imagine how parents feel when they see their child rolling into a pit in front of their eyes.

After I cleaned everything up, I definitely decided that I would talk to my brother.

Chapter 6

“You’re late.” Chris was trying to put up a poster.

“I came on time. What are you doing?” Kat is coming home with the baby today. They checked out earlier. Both the mother and the child were doing well, so Alec didn’t want to take the risk of staying in the hospital any longer.

“On” Adam handed me a balloon “what are you looking at? inflate.”

“You understand that the woman has just given birth. What is all this for?” I was too fucked up for yesterday. Katarina’s birth, Lana’s abduction, and Olivia’s shenanigans like the cherry on the cake. Women are nothing but problems.

“Lana said we should have a party anyway. It’s supposedly accepted,” I rolled my eyes. Now everyone obeys their wives. If Chris finds a wife too, I’ll definitely go crazy.

“How is she feeling?”

“She wants to run home, but the doctors are against it. They want to watch her for another day. She’s definitely got a concussion this time. She won’t be able to attend the celebration, so I promised to do everything for her.”

“Yeah, and somehow we were also assigned a brother.” Chris moved away to look at the poster.

“Hanging crookedly” Mark came into the room. Chris growled and went to that poster. The three of us stood by the couch and watched him try.

“Who’s staying with Lana?” Adam looked at Mark.

“Mike plays the role of a babysitter. When I left, Lana was pulling his cards.”

“Fuck,” one side of the poster collapsed down.

“I wonder if he can handle it or just tear up this poster?” we looked at my brother in sync.

“Can someone help me already? Or just keep watching.”

“I’m fine here,” I said.

“Yeah,” Adam replied.

“Nice view,” Mark finished.

“Assholes,” Chris muttered.

The evening was wonderful. Without any problems, in a light, relaxed atmosphere. It was obvious that Katarina was a little tired, even if a child had come out of her. And Alec, oh my God. He sat with such a proud look as if he had conquered the whole world. Their child, well, he was completely ordinary. However, he had very strong lungs, judging by his scream. The holiday accordingly ended at the moment when this little toddler got hungry, and his mother took him to her place.

“So you two,” Alec pointed at Chris and me, “you don’t have much time left. Did you even think for a second who you could marry?” Chris rolled his eyes.

“Maybe that’s enough. We have already realized that we have to choose one of the little girls that were presented to us. We still have time, so let’s postpone this conversation for later.” Alec frowned.

“We don’t have as much time as you will need to find your fugitive. Maybe you will come down from heaven to earth already. She’s not coming back Chris.”

“I know, Alec. Holy shit, don’t you think I know? Just give me time so I can come to terms with this.” my brother nodded, “and you, Dane?”

“As soon as this handsome guy settles down,” I glanced at Chris, “I’ll immediately follow his example.”

“How did I get this question,” he rubbed his eyes wearily.

“So can you just shut everyone up?” Chris poured himself a drink. I no longer counted what kind of glass it was.

“To have these traditional old men come out against me because my brothers can’t choose their own girls. Really, two grown men can’t choose a woman who just needs to be fucked from time to time. Is it that hard for you?”

“Okay, we get it.”

“That’s nice.”

I went back to my room trying to think about today’s conversation. Fuck it, I didn’t give up on this marriage. But there was some truth in Alexander’s words. It’s really not difficult, just choose a girl and live with her all your life. You don’t even have to keep it in your house. So Mark builds his houses, send her there with security and give her a credit card. Alec will be pleased, the old people will be pleased, I will definitely be satisfied, I’m not sure about the girl. So you will need to choose one that does not dream of love. Which are enough in our environment. It’s a great plan. Fortunately, I still have time not to think about such things. I said that I would get married after Chris, and he would not decide on it soon.

And while I was thinking about it all, big incredibly blue eyes popped up in my mind. Brown hair that went all the way down to her buttocks and porcelain white skin. This cheeky girl got into my mind. Except I didn’t want her there. We both decided that we would never meet again, this is a great decision for us. And if I remember correctly, she had a boyfriend, which means she’s getting married soon. According to her file, which was sent to me by mail, the girl turned eighteen three months ago. And most of the time she was in the company of Peter Walker.

But it has nothing to do with me. The main thing is that this walking trouble stays away from my races. I thought about asking Kat about this girl, since Liv worked for her for a while as an assistant at the foundation. I just stopped myself in time, I don’t need to find out more about her than I already know. We won’t see each other… I’ve told myself that too often. I guess there’s a part of me that still wants to see her again. Enjoy our conversation while sitting on the couch with a pizza box. I don’t remember ever spending time with a girl like that. Except maybe with Kat, but she wasn’t my girlfriend.

And Olivia is not mine. Bold, fearless and incredibly beautiful. Not mine.

I’ve been plowing like hell all week, taking over some of Alexander’s responsibilities. Since I couldn’t entrust everything to Chris, even I couldn’t. He’s my brother, but he’s too unstable right now. I didn’t understand his obsession before, and to be honest, I still don’t. How can you throw your whole life into a hole, drowning in your own damn pity. Well, the girl left you, consider you took the trouble away from yourself. I know he wanted to marry her. He didn’t tell anyone, but I knew. And now he’s ruining his life because it didn’t happen. Stupidly.

I woke up because of the noise and headed for the living room. I haven’t been getting enough sleep lately. I stumbled into the room when I saw that everyone was standing around the sofa on which the girl was lying. Fortunately, at least I pulled on my pants, otherwise I would have flown out in my underpants so the elders would have started to arise again. As if their girls cared about me.

I began to stare intently at the girl, who in turn, among other things, looked at me with great interest.

“Could you get dressed?” Chris’s jaw was tense. It was unusual to see his jealousy.

“This is my house and there’s only one woman living here who I’m not attracted to. Whoa,“I noticed that the girl has a knife wound in her side. At the moment, Katarina was sewing up the girl’s wound, which was not very deep, but clearly noticeable.

“I took my eyes off. There’s nothing to look at other people’s women.” I took one last look at the girl and turned away. It wasn’t enough for Chris to lose his temper.

“Save this shit for later, just tell me what happened. And you,” Alec pointed his finger at me, “tell the guys to go get some food. I want to eat,” we laughed, and I sent the guys a message to bring food for five.

“It’s lucky for you that Rick is too far away to hear you. Chris, tell me already.”

“What’s there to tell. I was in a club and I was attacked in one of the booths. Andy saved my ass, but we lost one soldier.” Losing one of our own, it sucks.

“How could you not notice outsiders, and how the hell did my soldier die” was a good question. Blondie, as Kat called her, crossed her arms over her chest and stared at Chris with a smirk. Her whole posture screamed, “Well, tell me how you messed up.”

“Well, maybe I was distracted by the girl, everything happened when…” the girl frowned “when she was on her knees” at that second I realized that someone would be taken by the balls like that “fucking Andy stop looking at me like that. You left me.”

“You’ll figure out your relationship later.” Alec’s patience was running out. Chris’s phone vibrated.

“This is the name and address of that soldier, we need to inform his family,” since I’m up, I’ll take care of this case myself. The brothers are clearly not up to it now.

“Send it to me, I’ll take care of it.” I waited until Alec gave his permission and left the room. Let them sort it out without me.

If her brother’s girlfriend is here, then he won’t let her go anymore. He’s finally going to get back to normal. I don’t know what his brother will say to him. But what I’m sure of is that Chris doesn’t give a damn about Alec’s words, exactly in this matter. Well, that’s it, my fifth point feels that I will have to get married much earlier than I planned. Damn, this is a setup.

Chris sent me the soldier’s details. When I opened the file, I froze.

Name: Oscar Hill

Father: Brad Hill

Mother: Addison Hill

Sister:…

Fuck it. That’s all I needed. I shouldn’t have gotten involved in this case. I would have forced Chris to go, because this is his man. The devil made me volunteer. Now I have to go...to her.

Sister: Olivia Hill

On the way to Hill’s house, I thought about what I needed to say. I couldn’t tell my parents that their son was to blame for his death. According to the report, everything could have been done if the men had behaved professionally. And Oscar was drunk. It was unforgivable. Chris will naturally deal with this, because these are his people. He relaxed, and his soldiers relaxed, allowing themselves too much. But the family doesn’t need to know for sure. Especially Liv.

I wonder how she will react to my appearance. Has she been thinking about me all this time? Did she see my eyes in a dream, the same way I saw her? For the whole week, I still couldn’t get the girl out of my head. Damn, my thoughts are clearly going to the wrong steppe.

I didn’t expect to meet a girl again, and even so soon. However, it would have been better if we had met for another reason. I usually didn’t care about other people’s feelings, but for some reason I didn’t want the girl to cry. I had no doubt that this would happen. Olivia was strong, but today she finds out that she lost her brother. And this can break even the strongest person.

I drove up to the house where the Hills lived. After taking a few breaths, I got out of the car and went to the door and pressed the bell.

“Dane?” the girl opened the door for me. I immediately noticed her figure. She was wearing a light nightgown that hugged her body, showing all the circles. Well, who opens the door like that? “I mean, Mr. Black,” I wanted to smile, but the situation was not the same, “we agreed on everything.”

“I’m not here because of you, Olivia. I need to talk to your parents.”

Chapter 7

I can’t believe he showed up at my house. He promised. I thought people like him didn’t waste words.

“Olivia, who’s there? Oscar has appeared again.” My father’s voice boomed behind me. Heavy footsteps were heard.

“No, Dad,” apparently I can’t delay this conversation, “this is for you. Mr. Black.”

“Mr. Black?” I stepped aside so that my father could see the man standing on our doorstep. In fact, I also thought it was my brother who came. And I wanted to tell him everything that I think about him. “What brought you to us today?” dad was clearly stunned.

“I need to talk to you,” Dane looked at me, “with all of you,” my father took his hand away in an inviting gesture, “do you mind if I wait in the living room for Mrs. Hill to join us and Olivia,” he said my name so that my face turned red, “get yourself cleaned up.”

I She looked down and gasped. I was wearing a damn pair of pajamas that hugged my body. Because of the cold air, my nipples stood up, looking very defiant. Damn it.

“Olivia, go and change your clothes,” it seemed that my father did not initially pay attention to the way I was. I’ve never been so ashamed.

I rushed upstairs and ran into my room, quickly put on pants and a hoodie. I put my clothes right on top of my pajamas so as not to waste too much time. When I came down, my mom was already downstairs and sitting next to my dad. It took me a few minutes to pull myself together. I know what he’s going to say now and I realize that it looks like my quiet life is about to end.

“I don’t want to be rude,” my father began as soon as I sat down on the chair, “but what is the reason for such a late visit.”

“I came to talk about your son. Oscar” so it’s not about me? I saw that after Dane said my brother’s name, my father tensed and clenched his fists. So what did that idiot do again? I wanted to ask it out loud, but I know it wouldn’t be the best idea. “One of our clubs was attacked tonight. Your son stood up for my brother, but unfortunately he couldn’t protect himself. Oscar is dead.”

What? I couldn’t comprehend what was being said. What do you mean he died? My brother? My older brother? This can’t be happening. This is some kind of mistake. It’s definitely a mistake, my brother is alive, he couldn’t have died.

“Please accept my condolences. Oscar was a loyal soldier, we will pay all the funeral expenses ourselves.”

“There is no need for this. I am able to bury my son myself.” The father’s voice faltered. I looked at my mother, she was pale as death itself, but she did not allow herself to show emotion. She just squeezed her father’s hand with such force that her fingers turned white.

“This is some kind of mistake. Are you sure this is my brother? Maybe you got it wrong.” I started to tremble.

“Olivia, show some respect,” her father said sternly. I wasn’t up to etiquette right now. As he does not understand, “if Mr. Black said that, then there can be no mistake. Go to your room.”

“But Father…” I didn’t even have time to finish.

“I said go to your room,” I abruptly got up, but instead of going upstairs, I went straight to the garage.

I needed to calm down, so I lifted the hood of my car and started messing with it. It’s better than drowning in grief. There were no tears, I was filled with rage. I was angry with myself. The last thing I thought about my brother was that I wanted him to disappear. I wanted him to be punished for everything he did to Mom. But they were just words… just damn words. And now...now he’s really gone. I’ve hated him for the last few days. I wanted to straighten my brain, I thought he would change. But nothing can be changed now.

I felt warm hands on my shoulders. Platinum broke through. Tears sprang from my eyes, and a sob escaped me. My strength left me, and I settled down. If it hadn’t been for the strong hands that grabbed my waist, I would have definitely fallen.

“I’m holding you,” a hoarse voice rang over my head, “don’t hold back. Let out all the emotions.”

I didn’t know why he was here with me now. I don’t know what my father would do if he saw me in a man’s arms and I don’t care right now. It’s only these hugs that keep me sane right now.

“It’s my fault.” My voice was shaking.

“It’s not your fault, girl. You have nothing to do with it at all.” I turned around abruptly.

“You don’t understand. I wanted this “the man frowned” I wanted something to happen to him so that he could pull himself together. And now he’s gone...it‘s my fault.” The man ran his hand over my face, wiping away my tears.

“You’re talking nonsense. We all get angry at our relatives sometimes, it’s a momentary weakness. All you wanted was to be emotional. You didn’t really want to hurt him, so get those thoughts out of your sweet head. Don’t blame yourself for something you can’t be guilty of. Sometimes bad things happen, in our case they happen much more often than we would like.”

“Thank you” for a second our eyes met and it seemed to me that I began to drown in dark waters. It was only now that I realized that the man’s eyes were not black, as I thought, but dark blue. I’ve never seen eyes like that. A fascinating sight. I turn my gaze to the man’s lips. I have a wild desire to find out what they taste like.

“Don’t look like that, girl. Don’t look.”

The very next day, my brother’s funeral was held. Dad arranged everything in the best possible way. I don’t want to think about it, but I had a strong feeling that it was all planned in advance. You can’t do everything overnight. But it doesn’t really matter.

Sitting in the front row with my parents, I couldn’t help but notice how they had aged dramatically. Literally overnight, their whole lives were gone. No matter how hard my father tried to hold on, it was obvious that it was very hard for him. No matter how my brother behaved in recent days, he was still my brother.

I remember when I was fifteen, Oscar was already on duty. Once he took me to a vacant lot and put iron cans there, taught me how to shoot. My brother said that his little sister should be able to protect herself. But this is just a last resort, because he will always be there to protect me. And if even one guy decides to get too close to me, he’ll beat the crap out of him. I laughed about it then. Well, what can happen to me?

It was my brother who, in secret from my father, took me to the racetrack. He paid for courses so that I could learn to ride a motorcycle. Although he shook every time I mounted the iron horse. Oscar said that this is the last time I ride a motorcycle, because he can’t worry about me anymore. And then he brought me back and helped me put on the protection himself.

I felt a touch on my arm. Turning, she met Peter’s soft smile. He didn’t say a word, just held my hand. I was grateful to him for not saying trivial condolences. I’ll hear more of this today. Everyone will say the same thing and none of them will be sincere.

Peter’s parents were also present. Cassie and her family were here too, but we haven’t had a chance to talk yet.

Oscar was buried next to my grandparents. I wanted to be steadfast, but at the moment when the coffin was lowered, I could not contain my emotions. Fortunately, Peter was with me all the time. I felt like a terrible sister, because at that moment I was comparing the hugs of two men.

It was strange that when people started coming to us to express their condolences, Peter never left my side. He was hugging me, holding my elbow. He was probably afraid that I would fall.

“It’s so terrible to bury your child.” One of my aunt’s voices made me shudder. My aunt was disgusting, always meddling in our family’s affairs. She was all fake, fake. Not in terms of appearance, but in behavior. I never understood how it was with my mom’s sister, “it’s good that you have Olivia. The girl is your support and as I see it, she will soon be able to make you happy.”

“Thank you, but now is not the time to talk about such things, Ella” I don’t even want to go into details.

“You’re right, Sister. Forgive me,” well, there’s zero sincerity again. Then there was a series of people I didn’t pay attention to.

“Brad, Addison, we offer our condolences.” I was startled to hear a low male voice. Alexander Black stood in front of us with his wife and brother.

“If you need anything, contact us,” a clear female voice sounded. However, all my attention was focused on another person. I tried to catch his eye, but he wasn’t looking at me. More precisely, he looked, but not at my face, but at my arm, which was wrapped around Peter. I felt very uncomfortable, but I continued to stand in the wrong position.

“Thank you, that’s very generous of you. Will you stay or…”

“Unfortunately, we need to leave.”

“Mrs. Hill, if you don’t mind, I’ll visit you this week.” I didn’t know that Katarina went to visit the wives of ordinary soldiers. My mom was also surprised...confused.

“I’d be glad to have you at my place, Mrs. Black.”

The trio left as quickly as they arrived. I still couldn’t catch the man’s dark gaze. I wanted to thank him for supporting me yesterday. He left too quickly yesterday. And today, he managed to leave before I say a word. I definitely couldn’t say anything to him in front of my parents.

“I’ll go away” after getting out of Peter’s arms, I decided to walk.

I can’t listen to this anymore. Oscar wouldn’t like so many people here. He couldn’t stand half of our relatives. He would have liked it better if it was just his parents and me. Perhaps he would like his friends to be here. The father did not invite any of them. I don’t understand why we have to put on all this show. Instead of a funeral, they staged a real farce.

I stopped at the end of the cemetery, by the trees, and leaned my head against the trunk of a tree. It’s nice and quiet here.

I turned around and saw a young man. He was familiar to me, but I don’t remember where I saw him. Maybe he’s one of his brother’s friends.

“Yes…” I backed up a bit. He obviously wouldn’t attack me, but I still didn’t like the man’s look.

“I’m Scott, Oscar’s partner.” Now it’s clear where I saw him. He sometimes brought his brother home when he was in a bad mood. However, the man never got out of the car. “I need to talk to you and this is very important. Oscar had problems.“I froze in place.

Chapter 8

“What’s the problem?” What else could my brother have gotten us into? Except now it didn’t make any sense. “Oscar is dead. Whatever his problems, the account is clearly closed.” I turned around to leave. I don’t want to go through my older brother’s trash.

“Liv, this is serious,” the man grabbed my hand, but when he saw my furious gaze, he immediately lowered it, “your brother took drugs,” I guess now I should be surprised. That’s just what was expected, “he couldn’t always pay for the goods, so he borrowed.” I frowned.

“Soldiers are forbidden to use goods” everyone knew that. If the Blackies found out, the brother would be punished. It’s harsh. But he is not the only one “there is no one to sell goods to mafia members. There is a strict prohibition.”

That’s right. Oscar bypassed the rule and made an agreement with one of the dealers. You’re right, your brother is dead and he’s not in danger, but the debt hasn’t been paid, which means a money hole. Oscar’s debt goes to his family, and if someone finds out that the Hill family is in debt to the Blacks, and even for drugs…

“We will all be disgraced” Dad may lose his job. Mom will be shunned, and she’s already feeling bad. I will also be marked with a cross “yes, fuck” the man was taken aback when I swore. Naturally, girls never express themselves like that. No one would have thought that I actually speak like a real man, but only on special occasions. Now there is such a case of “and how much do I need?”

“Here” The cattle handed me a leaf folded in half. When I opened it, I was just speechless. I almost lost it.

“Fucked up” I didn’t have any other words right now, “what kind of idiot lends such a sum?”

“Your brother either paid or not. The debt increased, then decreased, plus interest. Well, “I see it here.

“I won’t be able to find that amount.” I remembered the winnings-“can you find this person and arrange a partial refund? In the evening, I can transfer one third of the amount. That’s all I have right now.”

“Okay, I’ll try to negotiate, or scare,” the man shrugged, “I have some savings. I can borrow it for you until you find…” I stopped him.

“No, thanks. Before we were already engaged, “so now I don’t know how to get out of this,” I looked at the paper again, “and what is this address at the bottom?

“Oh, this,” Scott reached into his pocket and took out a bunch of keys, “these are the keys to Oscar’s apartment.”

“Did he have his own apartment?” What else didn’t I know about my brother?

“Removable. Well, where was he supposed to take his own… You know,” he needed to sleep with girls somewhere. It’s clear as day, “I thought you wanted to pick up some things. If not, I can throw everything away.”

“I’ll take a look,” the man handed me the keys, “I’ll need your number to get in touch.”

We exchanged numbers and the Cattle hurriedly left the cemetery. I had to go back to my parents to end this whole farce. In the evening, I took the money, hiding it in my purse. The house was packed with relatives and friends. I had to be smart to leave. I needed to do it openly so that no one would come looking for me.

“Cover for me,” I whispered to Peter. He frowned, but nodded, “Dad,” I took Peter’s hands and went up to my parents, “I’m not feeling very good, among all these people. Peter and I decided to take a walk, don’t you mind?” my father thought.

“Brad, the girl has lost her brother. She really should go for a walk,” said Mr. Douglas, Peter’s father, “my son will be able to provide her protection. You don’t have to worry.”

“Yes, you can walk. Go somewhere quiet, I’ll call you when everyone’s gone.”

“Maybe she should change the situation,” Peter’s mother joined the conversation, “she could stay with us overnight.” The last time I stayed at their house was when I was a child. Later it became impossible, because a young girl cannot be in the house with a man.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. It’s not time yet.” I need to leave faster.

“I think we need to let the kids go,” I smiled at Mr. Douglas. Peter nodded to his father, and then to mine, and took my hands and led me outside.

“What’s going on, Liv?” Pete squeezed my hand. He’s my best friend, but I’ve had time to think about whether I should involve him in my problems. I came to the conclusion that my family’s problems concern only my family.

“I told the truth. I want to be alone, away from…” I waved my hand towards the house “from this. But no one would let me go alone. I thought you could understand me.”

“Of course I understand you. I can keep you company. I don’t think it’s safe to be alone.”

“Peter, what could happen to me? You’re exaggerating everything. I’ll just go to the park or cafe, and then I’ll come home. I need it.” I didn’t think I’d have to persuade him.

“Come on, I’ll take you to the park. And if something happens, you call me right away.”

“You’re the best” I got up on my toes and kissed him on the cheek “you’re my best friend.”

“Yes…” Pete cleared his throat “yes, I am. Get in the car.”

It’s no coincidence that I chose the park. From there, it was a fifteen-minute walk to Oscar’s apartment. I have already sent a message to Scott, and he said that he will come to me within an hour and a half.

I quickly found the right house and went up to the apartment. I had to hold my nose with my hand when I went inside. Oh, my God, that’s a shit. There was half-eaten food and dirty clothes lying around. It was a small studio with only one huge bed out of the furniture. I can’t imagine how Oscar could bring girls here or how it used to be more comfortable here. Before my brother got carried away with illegal drugs.

I carefully sat down on the edge of the bed and gave free rein to my emotions. I don’t understand how my brother could get into all this. And most of all, I don’t understand why none of us did anything about it. We all saw that something was going wrong. We have all seen that Oscar is changing for the worse before our eyes. But no one did anything, we just turned away from him when we needed him most. I was graduating from high school, I had final exams, so most of the time I was just mad at him. I also don’t understand why the parents didn’t do anything. It felt like we just decided not to notice anything.

Now we have to deal with the consequences. I will transfer my winnings, but it will cover only part of the debt. Even if I tell my parents the truth, we won’t have enough money. The father will have to borrow money from others, and this will raise many questions. I’ll have to figure out where to get the remaining funds myself. Unfortunately, I will not be able to participate in the race again. Just a few races and I could close the debt. But I gave my word to Dane that I would no longer participate.

Perhaps it would be possible to come to an agreement with him. I could come to him and ask him to participate in several races. It wasn’t a bad idea, but I had to push it away. Dane would want to know the reason why I needed the money urgently, but he’s Black and if he finds out the truth, many will be punished. Including me, and my family will still be disgraced. This is not the way out.

I should probably get a job. But where is it? I won’t be able to get a regular job, like a waitress. And let’s be honest, I don’t know how to do it. All I know how to do is dig into cars, but they won’t let me anywhere near an auto repair shop. No matter how well I understand it, I’m just a girl. I also know a little bit about organizational issues. Making a schedule, I get along well with people. In simple words, the secretary.

Unfortunately, after Katarina Black took care of her family, the road to the foundation where I worked was closed. Now there are more suitable people working there, who have more work experience. It seems to me that now I’m sitting at a crossroads and I don’t understand what to do next.

I looked at my brother’s house again, I understand that I will not take anything from here. Things that can have at least some value, in a moral sense, are at home. And this is the “bachelor’s den” in which he indulged in debauchery. I shouldn’t have come here.

There was a soft knock on the door, and then Scott entered the apartment.

“Sorry I’m late and unfortunately I don’t have much time. I need to do everything before my shift starts,” I nodded and got up and took an envelope out of my bag.

“You’ve already made arrangements with that one…”

Yes, but you don’t have much time. Maybe two months, no more” I already understood that. I need to come up with something urgently. “If you need help, just tell me.”

“Thank you, Scott. I will keep in mind “this help may come out sideways for me. I’m not a fool, I see the look my brother’s friend is looking at me with. I get these looks too often, “I’ll call you as soon as I have the money.”

“What about the stuff?”

“Just throw it all away. There is hardly anything important here.”

After going out into the fresh air, I decided to return to the park. On the way, I saw a group of motorcycles passing by and I had an idea. It was risky and stupid, but I was going to jump at the slim chance that I would succeed.

Catching a taxi, I headed straight to where I was clearly not welcome. Construction work was underway at the race venue. Fortunately, none of those present knew who I was. Although no, one knew, and that’s exactly what I needed.

“Whatever you’re up to, I say no,” Keith crossed his arms over his chest, “I got it last time. And I’m sorry for your loss.” There was no sincerity in his words. He said what he had to say, so I didn’t focus my attention on it.

“I’m not going to hurt you. I just need to get in touch with Mr. Black. Can you help me with this?” The man squinted.

“Why would you mess with him?” he grinned sharply. So he doesn’t have affairs, you just hope in vain…”

“Are you an idiot?” he could seriously think that I was interested in Dane as a man? Let’s say I’m really interested in him, but only visually. I wouldn’t run after him like a little dog, “I just need to discuss the details of our agreement with him. This is a work question.”

“Do you want to get back into the race?” how annoying he is.

“So will you help me? Do you have his phone number?”

“How can I get the boss’s personal number?” I shrugged, “of course I don’t have it. But…”

“But what?” There was hope in me.

“I know the address of their office. Dane Black spends a lot of time there.”

“Can you give it to me? And no one will know how I know him.” I looked at him pleadingly.

“Here you go again. If I pat you with my eyes, I’m ready for anything. You’re a cruel woman.” He asked for my phone and typed in the address “top floor. Forty minutes later, I was standing in front of the tall office building, preparing to enter there.

I hope I can do it.

Chapter 9

After we attended the funeral, I headed to work. I had a lot of unfinished business that I decided to postpone. Why the hell did I even go there? I wanted to support the girl, like an idiot I decided that she needed me. But it was very stupid of me to think that way. She already had a man who comforted her.

I still shake when I remember how the kid hugged the girl. He looked like he had every right to her. I have to admit that maybe he really had a right to the girl. They’re not married, but it looks like that’s where it’s going.

I need to get back to work, so I tried to put all thoughts of the blue-eyed girl out of my mind. However, she did not want to leave my thoughts in any way.

My phone came to life.

“Yes,” I had absolutely no time to talk.

“Boss, a girl came to you here…”

“Send her away” I just didn’t have enough incomprehensible girls. There was a noise on the phone.

“She says her name is Olivia.” It was like I was hit in the head.

“Skip it” I wonder what the girl needed.

I put down the documents and sat down with my arms crossed over my chest. Her arrival is an unexpected surprise for me. And I haven’t decided yet if I like him. There was a soft knock and after I allowed a girl to enter my office.

Damn, she’s really beautiful. I can’t take my eyes off her beautiful eyes. She clearly feels insecure in my presence, but her gaze is full of determination.

“What brings you, Olivia?” the girl froze on revenge. I wanted to tell her not to shake like that. Too much like a little rabbit, “sit down,” I pointed to the chair opposite my desk.

“I’d like to talk about racing.” The girl sat down on a chair and directed her big eyes at me.

“We have closed this issue. Why start this conversation again?” This situation started to make me angry.

“I remember that I promised not to participate anymore. But I came for another reason” the girl swallowed sharply “I would like to work for you.”

“Us ‘you’, have we switched back to ‘you’? I thought that this stage had already been passed. In response to your request, I can only say one thing: “I saw hope splashing in her eyes. “I don’t have a job for you. And what kind of job could I offer you?” Liv, she obviously gave up.

“I’m pretty good at motorcycles and cars.” Well, just because she thinks she’s pretty good at it doesn’t mean she is. I have enough good mechanics, besides, it’s not a woman’s job. “I also worked as an assistant to Mrs. Black. I was good at it...So I thought…”

“That you can work in the organization of races?” Katarina really said that Olivia was a good assistant. She helped my daughter-in-law a lot. “Knowing your love for the iron beast, I can’t let you race. Besides, you have no experience in this.”

“I understand,” the girl began to get up.

“I didn’t let you go. I can’t let you go to the races, but… ‘I’m definitely going to regret it’ I’ve had a lot of work lately. I need an assistant, but I don’t trust outsiders…”

“Do you trust me?” Olivia bit her lip sharply. She understands that she is on a dangerous path.

“Trust must be earned. However, I am ready to let you prove yourself. If you answer me one question,” the girl’s breathing quickened.

“What kind of job?”

“Why do you need a job?” she wouldn’t come to me just like that.

“I just want to help my family. My father spent almost all his savings to pay for his brother’s funeral.”

“We offered to pay for everything.”

“My father is too proud to accept someone else’s help.” a slight smile appeared on the girl’s face. “like most men, I won’t deny it.“so I decided to go to work. I didn’t go to college, but I’m not going to stay at home and wait for marriage.” beautiful and wayward. He does not go against his father’s ban, but bypasses it. The fox. But there is one point in this whole story that I have not clarified.

“What about your boyfriend? Or is he already a fiance? Won’t he help you?” The girl frowned.

“Which groom? I’m not promised to anyone, and I’ve never had a boyfriend...that is…” she gave me very personal information. Never had a boyfriend? I examined the girl again. Yes, anyone would be willing to crawl after a girl like that. It was strange that none of them had won her over. Maybe she’s lying to me, because everyone around knows that she and Walker’s son are together.

“I was talking about Peter Walker,” the girl laughed.

“Peter is my friend. We’ve been close since we were kids, but we’ve never been a couple. Sometimes they played a role, but they weren’t really close. And I do not know why I am making excuses, because my personal life has nothing to do with the desire to find a job.” funny. He sits and blushes. Maybe she’s telling the truth or believes it’s true. Naive. I saw the way Walker was looking at the girl. How he pressed his slender waist against his body. And I remember his look, he challenged every man who looked at a girl with it. Olivia may consider Walker her friend, but there is no friendship on the guy’s part. Someone will have to open the girl’s eyes, but it will obviously not be me. The girl lowered her face and fiddled with her sweater.

“You’re right. Your personal life has nothing to do with me.” The girl abruptly raised her head. She didn’t like my words, but I liked her reaction. Entertaining “you start work on Monday. I will send you all the necessary information.”

“My number…”

“I have” as well as all the information available on the girl. However, she doesn’t need to know that. I got a message on my phone from my older brother.

“Go home urgently’

“Thank you, Mr. Black,” I frowned, “Dane,” I like the way my name comes out of her mouth. I like the way she looks, the way she talks. I like everything she does, and her body… Right now I’m imagining what I can do with this beautiful body. Damn, how am I supposed to work with her?

As soon as the girl left me, I immediately went home, where a surprise awaited me. It turned out that Chris went against the will of his older brother and married his Spanish girlfriend. In fact, it was expected. He was obsessively chasing after his girlfriend, no wonder that after he caught her, he would tie her to him in every possible way. I would not be surprised if we will soon have a replenishment in the form of small Kris.

Dinner was surprisingly easy. I have three brothers and they all sat with their wives. I liked being alone the most. I was surprised when I suddenly felt lonely in the family circle. And I didn’t like that feeling. After dinner, sitting in the living room, I got a call on my phone. I had to go out to answer.

“Yes.”

“Mr. Black, this is Brad Hill. I didn’t want to bother you, but my daughter admitted that you hired her, “good girl. I’m glad she informed her father right away. I would have contacted him early in the morning anyway.

“It’s true. Your daughter has already worked closely with our family. I needed an assistant and she turned out to be an excellent candidate. Don’t worry, she won’t be directly involved in the business. Olivia will handle my schedule.”

“So she’s just a secretary?” Liv’s father seemed to exhale.

“Naturally, it seemed to me that the girl needed to take her mind off her worries.”

“Thank you, Mr. Black. We are honored that you chose Olivia.” It did not escape me that Brad believed that the idea belonged to me, not his daughter. I am ready to support her legend, because she does it all for her family.

When I returned, an unexpected conversation was waiting for me.

“Why don’t you have a girlfriend?” Andrea turned to me. Chris’s wife.

“Andrea” was heard from all sides. Yes, there is no sense of tact in a girl, as well as in my brother.

“I’m sorry, I’m extremely tactless and curious. It’s just that he’s never been seen with girls, unlike the others. He attended a family-owned club, but he never slept with other girls, so I…” I began to stare at the girl. This is a topic that I do not intend to discuss “and shut up.”

“I have two questions,” Chris began, “you really haven’t slept with ordinary girls and how the hell does my wife know about my brother’s personal life” fortunately, all the attention left me and shifted to Andrea. And when my brother tried to pry details of my personal life out of me again, Andrea quickly took him to their room as an apology.

As soon as everyone left, Alexander asked me to stay. You don’t have to anticipate the future to figure out what he wants to talk to me about.

“I didn’t want this to happen. I’m sorry brother, but…”

“I’ll need to choose a bride soon.”

“Yes. These are the traditions. I let you down…” the brother shook his head, “I thought we had more time. Unfortunately, Chris’s action made its own adjustments.”

“I remember a time when none of us wanted to get married. And now you three are happy with your wives.”

“It’s true. None of us wanted this, but we all understood that sooner or later it would happen” Alec put his hand on my shoulder “I know why you didn’t start a relationship” I instantly tensed up” and I don’t condemn. I rather understand it. It was my fault. Your pain will stay with me forever.”

“It wasn’t your fault. Let’s not bring up this topic” my back instantly lit up, as a reminder of the past “can I choose any girl or do I have to marry the captain’s daughter?”

“The girl should be one of us and belong to a loyal family. And so you can choose any one,” Alec grinned, “fuck all these old people. They think we don’t understand that they just want power. Wait… Do you already have a girlfriend in mind?” maybe.

“No, I just want to have more choice. And I don’t like the people who are being introduced to us.” That’s the real truth. They only introduce us to stupid girls.

“You can take your time. You have a few months. During this time, I hope you can find a decent girl for yourself.”

I think I’ve already found it. I’m not like my brothers, who fell in love at first sight. However, this is the first time I’ve met a girl that I actually want to look at. Why not choose her. I also remember catching her looking at me with interest several times. I asked her not to look at me like that, but she wouldn’t listen. Now she will have to accept the consequences.

Chapter 10

Dad had been glancing at me all morning. I told him last night that I had been offered a job. At first he said that I could forget about work, but after I told him exactly who I would work for, he thought about it. In the evening, he sent me to bed without telling me what he had decided. All morning I sat in silence and waited for Dad to start the conversation himself, but he just looked at me.

“Dad, I can’t do this anymore.”

“And I seemed like such a proper daughter all morning.” He laughed. “I talked to Dane Black last night.“Wow. I did not know that my father could contact Dane directly. “He assured me that it was not easy to choose your candidacy that way. He said that since you have already worked for their family directly, he needs just such a loyal person.”

“Not many people have been so honored, honey.” mom put a mug of coffee in front of me and ran her hand through my hair.

“It’s true” right now Dad didn’t look sullen, but was very proud “you have risen high, daughter, and this is only your merit. I am very proud of you.”

“Does this mean that I can work?” my father laughed.

“Naturally. You will be doing administrative work and at the same time you are at the very top.”

“You overestimate me, Father” this is just a secretary job. Dad makes too much sense of it.

“You underestimate yourself, honey. How many other women can boast that they worked side by side with the Blacks? While my daughter worked with two members of this family. I can say that you are now an enviable bride.”

“Eddie.”

“Mom, I did not know that I would be chosen because of my place of work.”

“Well, what? You’re already eighteen, honey, at that age I already married your father and gave birth to Oscar ‘it gets quiet in the kitchen for a second’ he would be happy for you. It’s a pity that he won’t be at your wedding.”

“Mom, maybe that’s enough. You need to marry someone, and I don’t even have a boyfriend. Not like the groom,” I rolled my eyes.

“It’s good that it’s not. I wouldn’t want some teenager with raging hormones hanging around my girl.”

“You don’t want me to have a boyfriend, but at the same time you want me to get married?” double standards of some kind.

“Your husband will be your support in everything, and the guy will only be able to defame” I wanted to say a lot about this, but dad got a call and he left the kitchen.

“I still don’t understand why it is necessary to choose a husband so early. But what about living for yourself? I haven’t seen anything in this life.” Mom smiled warmly at me.

“That’s the way it is, honey. These are our traditions.

“But the world is changing, Mom. Even the Blacks think that traditions are outdated.”

Actually, I don’t mind getting married. I just don’t understand why there’s such a rush. I could work, then maybe visit some interesting places with my parents, and by the age of twenty-five I would be married. I just graduated from high school and I don’t want to push myself into the framework of married life. Life and parenting are not for me at the moment.

But I think choosing a groom is more stupid than getting married at eighteen. After all, the last word in this matter is not even for me, but for my father. It is my father who will choose the person with whom I will go to bed and spend my whole life. In my opinion, this is completely absurd.

“But we are a traditional family. You know, a lot of girls are promised at an earlier age than you are.

“Am I supposed to be happy now?“I arched an eyebrow.

“I don’t know what the conversation is about, but yes, you should be happy.” The father returned and sat down at the table. His brows were drawn together in a frown.

“Dad, is something wrong?“Mom also frowned.

“No, it’s okay. We’re going to have guests tonight. Walker’s family is coming to dinner.

“Isn’t it too early?” Mom asked.

“Douglas thought the time was right.” I stared at both my parents.

“Maybe you can let me in on your conversation. To be honest, you’re scaring me.

“It’s okay, honey. Douglas promised to visit us with his family, we just thought it would be later. Besides, I don’t have anything ready, I hope you can help me with the cooking.

“Of course, Mom. I’ll be happy to help you.” Now Mom’s confusion is understandable. She’s used to everything being perfect, and now she’s going to have to try hard. “Is Peter coming too?“I like Peter’s parents, but I’m not ready to spend the whole evening listening to our parents’ stories.

“Naturally, Peter will be with his parents,” the parents exchanged glances, “I think you should change your clothes, we’ll need to buy groceries.

“Yes, ma’am,” I finished my coffee in one gulp and hurried upstairs, to my mother’s laughter.

We went shopping and returned home in time to cook dinner. Mom was determined to turn an ordinary dinner into a festive one. I understand that she wants everything to be at the highest level, but in my opinion this is too much.

“Mom, are you sure we need that much food? It feels like Christmas today.

“Olivia, you’re exaggerating. The Walkers have several chefs at home, so I have to compete with them somehow.

“Mom, you don’t need this. Everyone already knows how delicious you cook.” Mom loved cooking, and she did it great. I always prefer her food to the most expensive restaurant.

“I’m a woman, honey. And we always want to be praised. I want to give a decent welcome to our guests.

“Good to hear, Addison.” Mom and I turned around and saw Peter’s father standing in the doorway.

“Douglas, you didn’t tell me you were coming in.” It seemed to me that Mom was getting nervous.

“The door was unlocked” damn, apparently I forgot to lock it “next time, keep an eye on it. I hope you don’t mind if I talk to your daughter?“what did he want to talk to me about? Usually, Mr. Walker and I only exchange a few phrases. I don’t see any reason for him to talk to me alone, either.

“I don’t think that…

“Just a few minutes. Your daughter is safe with me.” Mom nodded slightly at me.

“Let’s go into the living room,” I pointed towards the room, and I walked behind, glancing at my mother.

“Can I offer you tea or coffee?“my parents wouldn’t forgive me if I didn’t show hospitality.

I tried to look relaxed, but I started to tremble a little. I’ve put myself in danger too many times in the last few weeks. I went to illegal races, spent the night with a man, asked for a job. Oh, I’m also hiding the fact that my brother used illegal substances and I’m not telling you that our family has a big debt. If anyone finds out about any of these events, I’m finished.

Most of all, I don’t want to supply Dane. He’s done a lot for me, and I wouldn’t want him to get in trouble because of me. Although I doubt that they will tell him anything, but still. If my father found out that I was with a man, even if there was no intimacy between us, he would be furious and demand an answer from the Black family.

Well done, Olivia. The main thing is to think about it in time. You couldn’t have thought about it first and then agreed to Dane’s proposal. So, if it comes to that, I’m just going to deny everything to the last one.

If it’s about the race, then I’ll be honest. This will be the best option. Most likely I will be punished, but in this case it is better to tell the truth. I’ll just have to keep silent that I’m not the only one who bought the bike.

If Walker asks about the job and everything related to it, I will answer that I cannot disclose information. Yes, that’s it. I will say that all the Black cases have the strictest secrecy, which I cannot disclose, otherwise I will be punished. Everything is perfect.

“Olivia, you know how much your family is dear to me, right?” I nodded slowly, “I owe you an apology.

“You have nothing to apologize for,” now I definitely don’t understand anything.

“I was supposed to keep an eye on you and your brother. However, after the incident on my anniversary, I had to turn all my attention to my son, and I lost sight of you. I know what happened to Oscar.” Fuck. No, well, there’s no other way to say it. It means I’m totally fucked up. “Girl, I know what a burden you’re carrying. I found the person your brother owes money to.” I think my eye started twitching. As soon as everyone finds out about this, my family will drown in dirty gossip. Shame awaits us. “I paid off the debt and removed that dealer. No one will know about this, I swear to you.”

“Why are you doing this?” I have known this man since childhood, but I am not deceived. Everyone has their own benefit, otherwise the man would have told my father everything.

“Olivia, we’re one family,” I frowned, “or we’re going to be one soon. Your father and my son asked me to wait, but I think the time has come.”

“For what?“I don’t like all this.

“It’s time for my son to get married,” so what does that have to do with me? Fortunately, I was smart enough to keep this question to myself. It’s already clear what the conversation is about “he’s in love with you, Olivia. Since your childhood, we knew that you would be together.” I swallowed hard.

“Peter and I are just friends.

“Perhaps you are not aware of your feelings yet. In the morning, my son found out that of all the men, you would have married him.

“And did he learn this from you?“I can’t believe it.

“Yes, you’re right. Peter will propose to you at dinner tonight.

“I understand that I can’t refuse,” that’s the motive.

“Why is that? If you don’t feel anything for my son, you can refuse” really “only in this case I don’t think I can hide the whole truth about Oscar” this is not even a veiled threat, but a direct one “Your mother dreams of organizing your wedding. You don’t want to upset her.”

Of course,” I clenched my jaw so hard that it cramped.

“Over time, you’ll realize that it was the right decision. You don’t have feelings for another man, I understand that you just didn’t want to rush the wedding, but my son needs support.“I’m not in love, but I have feelings for another man. It’s good that they are one-sided. I will never be able to go against my family, they have always supported me. Now it’s my turn.

“I need to go back to my mother to help with dinner.

“Of course, Olivia. A wonderful event awaits us all today.” I tried to smile, but it didn’t work out well.

Well done, Olivia. You think you’re omnipotent? I thought you could handle everything, can you handle it on your own? Congratulations, you screwed up, now you have to accept the consequences. I had to remember that I was just a woman and go to my father with everything. But no, I think I’m cool.

A little, stupid girl.

Chapter 11

“You’re so beautiful.” Mom came into the room when I was finishing my makeup. I was already wearing a light dress, dark green in color, “and why don’t you wear dresses all the time?” I rolled my eyes.

“Mom, tell me honestly.” I decided to find out the truth. “When did you arrange my engagement?” Mom lowered her eyes.

“Douglas told you. It was supposed to be a surprise. Although you gave us a surprise,” I tensed up, and mom smiled, “I’ve been asking you how much you like Peter, and you kept refusing. That’s why you had to hide everything?“it looks like her biggest dream has come true.

“Mom, you didn’t answer the question,” Douglas said that they made that decision when Peter and I were kids.

“You were inseparable as a child. Even then, it seemed to us that you were right for each other. And so over the years you have remained devoted to each other.

“Then why is the engagement only now?“if they’ve already decided everything a long time ago, why did they wait?

“That was Peter’s condition. He said he didn’t want to put you in a box, so he wouldn’t propose to you before he was eighteen,” of course. My best friend has known about this all along.

I still can’t come to my senses after I found out that Peter is in love with me. I really didn’t notice anything. Lovers always behave in a special way. They take care, help in a difficult situation, show tenderness, give gifts...That’s me being an idiot. I had to be so blind. Peter always behaved like this, even when we were teenagers. I couldn’t even think that this was not just a friendly conversation. He was just in love with me as a teenager.

But I never saw him as my man. It’s probably stupid, but I’ve always been waiting for someone to shout “mine” and throw it over his shoulder and carry it to his lair. I wanted a real savage. And that’s the most annoying thing to realize that you found him, but all in vain.

I’ve never been in the company of men, Peter doesn’t count. So naturally, I fell in love with the first person I spent more than five minutes with. And now I have to throw it all away, because I’m getting married to someone else.

Besides, the fact that I have a liking for Dane doesn’t mean that it’s mutual. He is an adult man who is unlikely to want to connect his life with a girl who has just come out of puberty. He’s Black, and there are a lot of women hanging around them all the time. Especially now.

I saw an article in a magazine this morning saying that Christopher Black got married. The photo shows that it was a union based on feelings. I have never seen the middle brother, but I am sure that he, like his other brothers, hides emotions well. But when I was reviewing the photos, he looked at his wife with such tenderness.

It was the first time I felt envy in front of another woman. A tall blonde with a wasp waist and ample breasts. She was very beautiful and looked very confident. The most amazing thing was that in their wedding photo, the girl was wearing black. She’s definitely the one who decides her own fate. I wish I could get to know her better, but I don’t think that’s ever going to happen.

“Honey, what are you thinking about? I’ve been calling you for a few minutes now, “I guess I’m too wrapped up in myself.” It’s time for us to go down.

“I’m ready. Don’t worry, Mom. Dinner will be perfect” perfect for everyone except me. I forced a smile, even though I was slowly dying in my soul.

Mom left first and I had a few more minutes to tune in. Or should I tell it all to go to hell? Just run away from this evening. Leave all questions to adults. Let them sort it out among themselves, but do not interfere with me. But this is only a momentary madness. I’m not a child anymore and I have to solve all the problems myself. My parents just won’t survive another blow, especially after they find out that I stabbed them in the back when I didn’t say anything.

The doorbell rang and I realized that I didn’t have time anymore. I straightened my dress and pulled my hair back.

I was coming down the stairs when our guests were undressing in the hallway. Peter and I locked eyes, and he froze in place with a goofy smile. Now, for the first time, I pay attention to the way he looks at me. With admiration, with lust. But not with love, rather, as a thing that you really want to get. So much for the bright feelings.

“Mr. Hill, may I speak to your daughter in private?“as if he really needs his father’s permission. I really want to shout “stop playing to the audience’. However, I was pinned by Mr. Walker’s gaze, he was saying with his eyes, “don’t do anything stupid.” If I were a man, I would say that I was taken by the balls.

“Yes, Peter. You can go to the living room while we go to the dining room.” Peter nodded and pointed to the door. Just like a gentleman.

As soon as we entered the room and Peter closed the door, I was ready to say what I thought about his behavior. I’ve known him all my life, and he’s never behaved like that. But before I can say anything, I’m being pulled towards a toned body.

It was too sudden, so I just froze. When I came to the realization, I wanted to push him away, but then I changed my mind and very carefully pushed the man’s hands away and took a step back.

“I’m sorry for being harsh, it’s just that I’ve been dreaming about it for so long.

“You hug me all the time.

“But not like that. You weren’t mine before.” I’m not yours now either. And I don’t know if I can become one.

“Peter, let’s stick to ethical standards,” I tried to say it in a playful way, but I don’t know if I succeeded.

“And since when have you been observing the norms of decency?“he winked at me.

“Ever since you started asking my dad for permission to talk to me.” I will not be left in debt.