Page 45 of Untamed Beast
Yuri’s mouth drops open and he backs away.
“Jeez, kid, that sounded like it hurt. She’s your wife, after all.”
“In name only,” I growl. “We haven’t touched each other.”
I do not like the way Yuri’s eyebrows raise at that, as if he’s surprised. As if he would have any shot with Natalia, regardless of whether she and I are fucking or not.
“I think we’re going too hard. You’re gonna hurt yourself.”
That’s the point.
“It’s fine,” I growl, gesturing for him to get back up, even as my hand starts to throb. “You’re not getting out of this that easily.”
There might be a fracture in one of my fingers, but that’s not enough to stop me when I’m in this state. The Ivanov Center did have its advantages, and the number of psycho Bratva enforcers chomping at the bit to join a fight club was one of them. When there’s not a helluva lot of other entertainment going, there’s nothing better than watching a fight with no rules.
“We’re going again.”
I drop my gloves to the ground and wave him towards me, signaling that he should do the same.
“Hope you’re ready to take my wife’s name out of your mouth.”
I always fight better when my blood is pumping with anger, and it definitely is right now.
Yuri pauses for a minute, assessing how serious I am. He lets out a chuckle as he strips his gloves off.
“Really got under your skin, huh? Well, enter at your own risk.”
This time it’s bloody and wordless. Flesh meeting knuckles meeting flesh in a relentless rhythm. Something clicks inside me during this fight, a new level of determination slowly unlocking.
I twist his arm behind his back until I feel the tension starting to strain and Yuri taps out. I keep the painful hold for another few seconds before I release him.
Then, as I help him up, I deck him in the face for good measure.
“Get the message? You don’t ever talk about my wife in that way again, you giant motherfucker.”
I double over from the exertion, but the ache spreading through my muscles is good. It’s clearing my head already.
“I thought she was a spoiled brat?” Yuri splutters as he grabs a towel for his busted nose.We’re both struggling to suck in air after that bout, but at least I’m not inhaling my own blood.
I hate that this motherfucker knows me well enough to call out my contradictions.
“She’s my spoiled brat.”
14
NATALIA
I’m not doing anything wrong.
At least, I don’t think so. Aleksandr has said I’m free to come and go.Still, I can’t imagine he’ll be thrilled with my evening plans.
I got curious about where he disappeared to late at night, so I asked around with some guys at work. Not Yuri, because I still don’t trust him to keep a secret from Aleksandr.I charmed a burly security expert called Grigor into telling me about it…by promising him that I’d put in a good word with Aleksandr for a promotion to his team. As if he’d listen to my recommendations about his work.
“You wouldn’t like it. They beat the shit out of each other. Blood and everything,” Grigor said.
Turns out, there’s a fight club at the docks once a week.That does explain the way Aleksandr is always sporting new bruises.
I nodded my head in agreement. “Soundsawful.” Secretly,I memorized the time and location he told me — one of the empty warehouses down the other end of the port.
