Her Russian Billionaire (BWWM Alpha Male Romance) (2 page)

Tasha walked away, her waist lighter without the apron and her neck cold from the loss. What had been a bad day was quickly turning into one that she was not able to recover from. She hoped that her mother didn’t see it from up in heaven, and she hoped that she would somehow find the necklace.

“Miss, I must insist.”

The Russian man had gotten into his car and pulled up next to her. The shiny black car was foreign and looked like it would be fun to drive. It was probably worth more than she would see in her whole lifetime. Guys like that were not in those types of neighborhoods without being up to no good. Tasha was convinced that he must be doing something out here in the streets.

“My name is Tasha and I guess I don’t really have a choice. I didn’t realize that chivalry was mandatory when offered.”

He didn’t seem to notice her tone. Bending across the seat, he pushed the door open and smiled at her. She was taken with his grin again and felt her heart skip a beat. He really was quite handsome and she still remembered the way that he had tossed the two men like they were nothing. While she was reluctant to get in at first, she figured he had saved her and there was not much else she could do but reward him accordingly.

“I'm Demitri Ostvolv. It is nice to meet you.”

His name was a mouthful and she shook his hand, smiling. He had the calloused hands of a worker, though he was obviously quite well off, even for big city standards. The difference between them was starker as she directed him to her apartment.

“Would you like me to walk you up?”

“No, Demitri, you have done enough. Thank you again.”

“Are you sure there is nothing else that I can help you with?”

She paused with his words. It was not hard to know what he meant and by the way he looked at her, she was almost tempted to haul him upstairs. Then the fact that her son was up there with the babysitter made her pause. Tasha had forgotten herself for a moment. She could never put her son into such an awkward position with a man she was not committed with, and a man like that would never be interested in a woman like her. That much she knew. It was bad enough she was from the wrong side of the tracks, there was no way that he would even be hitting on her if he knew she had a kid too.

Tasha leaned forward and kissed the man on the cheek. She could feel the stubble on her lips and a small shock of electricity with the touch. Opening the door, she waved goodbye to him and though she knew she would probably never see him again, Tasha knew that she would never forget the man that had saved her and infuriated her, all within moments.

Chapter 3

“Sorry I’m late, baby.”

Jonell ran up to his mother and gave her a big hug. Tasha eyed Maya, asking her why he was up. She shrugged and started to gather her things.

“Sorry, Tosh. He took a late nap and he woke up a bit ago. I figured that he would settle back down after you got home. You know how much he misses you.”

She played with the curls on his head and hugged him again. He was still not used to her working at night. After she had two days off, it was like the struggle began again. “Thanks, Maya. I don’t know what I would do without you. Let me grab some cash out of the bedroom.”

“Bad night?”

“Well it was okay, but then I got mugged by a couple of guys. They took my apron and my necklace.” Her hand went to her neck, still missing the constant weight of the small crab. It was her horoscope sign and her mother had always called her crabby.

Maya’s eyes widened and she rushed to her. “Are you okay?!”

“Yes, really it's fine. Some guy saved me and then insisted on driving me home.”

“Insisted?”

“Yeah, he wasn’t from around here. Nice accent, really cute.”

“So did you get his number?”

Tasha snorted loudly, as the idea was preposterous. She hadn’t dated since her break-up last year with her fiancé. Never thinking she would be a single mom, Tasha had learned that dating was pretty much impossible with a little one. There was no room for dating and love for her at that time. She kept telling herself when Jonell got a little older maybe she would throw herself back into the dating pool.

“I didn’t and I'm sure I will never see him again. He was nice though. If it was a few years before I met Jake, I just may have given him my number.”

Maya sighed. “You know, it’s not like you’re an old spinster, this isn’t the 1900’s. You’re thirty, which is the new twenty. You have to get out there and start dating again. If you find someone good, it would be good for both you and Jonell. Believe it or not Jonell could use a good male role model for when he's grown.”

The young girl left, kissing Jonell on the head and telling him she would see him the next day. She knew that the girl was right, though she hated to admit it. It had been too long and she was becoming too comfortable with being single. It was just hard to trust anyone after Jake and it was even harder to find the time. She hugged her toddler and then started walking back into the bedroom to put him back to sleep. Lying down with him, she too was soon dreaming, of the Russian man who had saved her, Demitri.

***

Demitri wrote down the address that he had dropped off the girl at. He made a few calls and came up with all public information and some private information about Tasha. Having the kind of connections he had, getting all of that information was a breeze. He knew within an hour how much she made, where she worked and the date of her son’s birth. He also got all of her college transcripts and her class schedule. There was an attached picture from her driver’s license and he smiled down at her. Demitri was not one to be interested often, but he found himself wanting to see her again.

The next night he met with his friend at Smokey’s and his eyes looked for Tasha. She did not come in till later and Demitri took in her beauty from afar. Her skin was the color of milk chocolate and her eyes were a light brown with tiny flecks of gold. There was something so no-nonsense about her that he really liked, but it was her curvy body that had made him look twice. Tasha was captivating and he found himself wanting to know more about her. More than he could learn from a report.

“I see you have your eyes on the bartender. She is beautiful. Very different than we find at home, yes?”

Demitri agreed but unlike Rusco, he had come to prefer American women and their independent ways. He liked the idea of a woman that doesn’t have to be pampered and tended to all the time, one that had her own goals and desires.

“I do and yes, I like different. I never had luck with Russian women. So what is it we are here for?”

“We need to talk about the business. But I will warn you to stay away from that one.”

Demitri took a drink of the clear liquid in his glass and gave him a puzzled look. He was not there to discuss Tasha and he certainly wasn’t going to stay away from her. “Yes, what is it?”

“Well since you are taking over, I think there are some things you need to know. While you were away, things have changed. Your dad got sick and your uncle took over. He did things that you are not going to approve of, hell half of what we have going right now you are not going to want to know about.”

Demitri did not like where it was going. The family business had changed and while it had always been good under his father, the profits jumped dramatically under his uncle’s lead. So much so that Demitri was debating if he was even going to take over. He had thought about leaving his uncle Lanzo in charge, so the news was troubling.

“What, we make vodka. How bad can it be?”

“We have not made a bottle of vodka all year, my friend.”

Demitri felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. The sales had been outrageous for the past six months, so if they weren’t selling vodka as they had for thirty years, what was the Ostvolv family selling?

“So what is it he has gotten into?”

“Drugs.”

Demitri’s stomach flipped and his heart pounded in his chest. He was gone to finish graduate school and he could not believe that Lanzo had made so many changes. Drugs would never stand and the very idea that the family name was being run into the ground made him livid.

“What kind of drugs? Where are they getting it? I want names, people who are in it and those who are with my family still. It sounds like too many people have been looking to the side. Tell me why, Rusco, are you just now telling me?”

Rusco looked down at his glass as if the answer would present itself. He had been waiting for the question, knowing that Demitri was never able to let anything go. He was too direct not to ask, Rusco asked himself the very same question.

“I made a promise to your father that I would make sure the business didn’t interfere with your school and it didn’t. So you are home now. It is time for you to know.”

Demitri was not so enthused with the answer, but he could see where he was coming from. He, too, had made deathbed promises that he had to keep. He had to get married and settle down. His father had been adamant that the one thing he would change was the way his love life had gone. Demitri had followed in his footsteps. Having more girlfriends than one and never staying for very long. At almost forty, he wondered if it was too late for him. If that part of his life would not happen. His mind went to Tasha and his loins felt alive enough for the job.

“This is not what I wanted to hear. Give me the list and tomorrow we will start cutting off the tumor.”

The two men clinked glasses and he was thankful to have his father’s advisor with him. He knew more about the business than anyone else. “And figure out what we need to get started again. I want to know how bad Lanzo fucked it up. I don’t blame you for not telling me, but I wish you would have. Father would have never stood for selling drugs.”

“You haven’t heard the worst part.” Demitri closed his eyes. He could not see how it could get worse, but it seemed like it was going to.

“Tell me.”

“A young guy died from our product last night. It was mixed wrong.”

The words ‘our product’ ran through his head. That was more than just a fuck up. That could be the end game. That left Demitri wide open for lawsuits and his father’s business in danger of a liability suit. Not to mention the fact that if the feds found out he could be put away for the rest of his life. “Yes, it seems that it can get worse.”

He wasn’t talking to anyone in particular and he took another large mouthful of drink. Demitri made a gesture towards the bartender and he watched as the young blonde brought them both another round. He had hoped for Tasha, but he tipped the girl and went back to his conversation.

“Well, all we can do is hope that it doesn’t get traced back to the family. I don’t know how two years can change so much. I would have come home. You were right about that much anyways. I would have dropped out and came home. Here I am thinking about how big our business has grown, but not on the back of drugs. What the hell kind of drugs are killing people? It’s not crack is it?”

Rusco shook his head. “They call it dust. I’m not sure what is in it, but it is a synthetic blend that is really hot right now.”

“Have you tried it, Rusco?”

The older man snorted and tipped his glass. “All I need is good vodka. That is why I took the job from your father all those years before. He promised me as much of it as I could drink and he has always kept his word.”

Demitri chuckled. The two had been much more to each other than their working relationship. They had been best friends ever since they had met and Demitri had grown up with him as a second father. He could never be mad at him for too long, but he wanted to know more about what his business was involved in, especially if there was going to be litigation or law enforcement involved. Demitri and the company had enough assets to make any wrongful death lawyer salivate with the idea of a lawsuit. He would probably be pushed to settle and the idea grated his teeth.

“Why did you say to stay away from her, Rusco?”

The man grinned. “I tell you all of this and you can only think of her?” He shook his head. “You must have it bad.”

Demitri did and even as they talked about some pleasanter things that had changed since he left, his eyes followed the woman behind the bar. Every time Tasha smiled, it was like a little part of him was being wrapped around her. He just had to convince her that she felt the same way and Demitri had a feeling it was going to be harder than he thought.

Chapter 4

“You know he has been looking this way pretty hard. Isn’t he the one that saved you the other day?”