Page 10 of Tangled Roses

He turns and strides through another set of doors into a laundry room.

“You will wash and iron your clothes after every use.”

He turns on his heel and heads back into the kitchen and I scurry after him as if he’s the Pied Piper.

“There is a library, a cinema room and a gym. The indoor pool is at your disposal, but you must keep the area clean and tidy. You may use the adjacent showering facilities where you will find everything you need so you don’t drop chlorinated water onto the floors of the main house.”

It appears that Arman Romanov is a clean freak. OCD to the extreme and I nod, not really intending on following this scary man’s instructions. It appears that I’m going to be here alone anyway, so I will do what the fuck I like, and that involves swearing out loud at every opportunity.

We head upstairs and he shows me back to the bedroom I woke up in and opens a door to a magnificent bathroom that takes my breath away. It is so beautiful, with a huge chandelier in the center of the ceiling and a freestanding tub under it that would fit a football team in.

A massive walk-in shower spans the length of one of the walls and a huge television screen is set above a beautiful marble fireplace. I could actually live in this room, forget the rest and I vow to make this the first activity of my incarceration.

He leads me to a large walk-in closet where many items of clothing hang with no creases in sight. They are all grouped by color and it amuses me to notice this is the only color in this whole frigging tomb.

Luka turns and stares at me with a blank expression and says roughly, “There is a phone in every room that connects to mine. If you need anything, call me day or night. The doors and windows are locked and the alarm will be activated when I leave. There are men stationed around the perimeter, but you will not see them.”

He moves toward the door. “If the unthinkable happens, and the assassin enters the house, press the panic button that you will find in every room beside the door. That will lock the room down and ensure nobody can get in. It is bomb proof, bullet proof and tamper proof. Call me on the phone and I will take care of it from there.”

I’m stunned. I can’t even form words because who the hell are these people? One room in this place is bigger than the joke I call my apartment and yet bomb proofing every room! What the actual hell?

He turns and says over his shoulder.

“You won’t see me unless you call, or Mr. Romanov decides to visit. Good evening, Miss Adams.”

I say nothing as he leaves because my jaw has hit the floor because I must have been right when I woke up – I am in heaven, after all.

CHAPTER 6

ARMAN

We leave the Hamptons by helicopter, and I congratulate Luka on his choice.

This particular property is not associated with our family, even though we own it. It was bought through one of our property companies and is hired out for corporate events. My family has many businesses and there are various companies set up with no ties to our family. Wisteria House is one of them and the records show it is currently being rented by the Fairfax family from Los Angeles.

They are a fictitious family with the necessary paperwork showing they exist but not their physical presence. This is one of our hideouts and is therefore the perfect place to protect Miss Adams.

Luka soon joins me and we head back to my family’s apartment building near Central Park. There is no conversation and I take the time to check my messages, noting one from my brother Titus, asking me to call him.

There are several more concerning our businesses, and none of them fill me with any confidence. Travis was right to be concerned. It appears that nobody trusts us anymore and I’m guessing it’s because Titus, the new head of the Romanov empire, prefers to remain in Moscow and is therefore an unknown entity.

As soon as we touch down, Luka follows me to my penthouse and as I toss my jacket on the chair, I head straight for the vodka.

I pour two shots and handing him one, say irritably, “I need an escort from Burning Roses.”

He raises his eyes and I groan.

“Travis has arranged an invitation to one of their fuck parties and unless I throw myself into their club, we lose all our contacts.”

Luka laughs softly. “Have a good evening.”

I drain the glass and snap, “Make sure the woman is fuckable, at least.”

His amused grin doesn’t help my mood and as he leaves, I reach for the phone to call my brother.

“Arman.”

His strong voice holds all the familiarity of home and I say quickly, “How’s mama?”