Page 28 of Always Meant To Be

Trying to breathe through the nausea and dizziness, I slowly crawl toward the main entrance.

A waiter runs past me, stomping on my hand, making me cry. He flinches but keeps on running, and I sob as the pain tears through my body as I crawl out the shattered door.

Vomit builds, and I fall to my side, weakness taking over.

“Miss?” a bystander gasps in shock and quickly bends down, lifting me bridal style. I cry out, and the man winces as he shouts, “I need some help here!”

That’s the last thing I hear, before the world fades away.

Eight

Romeo

I sighas I take in my wife sitting at the other end of the room, gently running her finger along the rim of her glass, her cheek on her fist, looking bored out of her mind. Not once since we arrived has she looked my way, but I can’t fucking blame her. I’ve had Liliya hanging off my fucking arm since I arrived, shoving my wife to the side.

“Liliya, will you get yourself together and stop fawning over your sister’s husband!” Anastasia snaps. I raise a brow at my mother-in-law, and she shakes her head. “Don’t look at me that way, Romeo. The way she’s acting is an embarrassment to the Russo name. She practically knocked her own sister out of the way to throw herself at her brother-in-law. It’s pathetic, just like her ensuring a seat wasn’t available next to you for her own damn sister.”

I clear my throat to stop my chuckle, especially when I’m the one who ensured my wife didn’t have a seat next to me.

Liliya sneers, “I’m sitting right here, Mama, and he was supposed to be mine first!”

Anastasia raises her perfectly manicured brow as she lifts her wine and reminds her daughter, “Yes, he was, but you decided to be two hours late for a meeting with him, then proceeded to screw the barista, but just so you know,doch…” Liliya flinches at the way her mother calls her daughter in Russian with disdain, “Elena walked into the café after you, and he only had eyes for her. Yes, he was promised you, but you were never his choice, and right now, we all know his arm around you protectively is to save you from a bullet so he doesn’t lose his wife if you die.”

Liliya’s face reddens, and I roll my eyes, looking toward my wife, only to see her talking to Agy, Anatasia’s sister, who’s the biggest bitch in the room. Her husband turned out to be a traitor and sold Mikhail's warehouse information to local gangs. Mikhail tortured him, and the woman has been shunned, making her bitter.

Rumor has it that she was involved, but Anastasia begged Mikhail to spare her.

That’s the problem when you love your wife. They make you weak, but they also make you strong. His sparing Agy was a weak moment.

Liliya growls, making me look her way as she sneers, “Since when did you stand by Elena, Mama? Last time I checked, you spent years whipping her with a belt.”

Fury fills me as Liliya freezes, instantly regretting her words, and Anastasia looks at my wife in pain.

Mikhail finally steps forward and snaps at his daughter, “How long did you know about your sisters’ beatings, Liliya?”

Anastasia flinches, and I open my mouth, ready to tell Liliya to handle her problems from now on, ready to move on with my wife, when a loud crash echoes around us, a bullet hitting the table in front of us. Screams fill the room as I dive myself over a screaming Liliya, knocking us both to the ground as another bullet whizzes past us, and she screams louder.

“Find the fucking shooter!” Mikhail shouts over the screams, and I look around, keeping my body over a wailing Liliya.

I see an arm come round the doorway to the kitchen, a black pistol in hand, and I growl, grabbing my piece.

I aim my gun and wait. As soon as the masked person leans around the door, I take aim and shoot, hitting the fucker in the head, and I shout, “One shooter down!”

I look around again, all the obvious hiding spots where the shooters will be, when I notice another, but he soon falls, blood dripping down his neck.

“How many more shooters?” Maxim shouts, everyone quieting except Liliya, who’s screaming in my fucking ear, making it difficult to concentrate.

I snap, “Shut up, Liliya,” causing her to suck in a breath, and everything goes quiet, and my eyes take in the carnage, before looking at Maxim, and I state, “I think it’s clear.”

He nods, his glare going to his cousin underneath me, knowing this is her doing, both our wives caught in the crossfire.

Liliya starts to wail again, making me roll my eyes, so I get off her, then help her up, and go to move to the back of the room to make sure El is alright.

I had Maxim sit at the back of the room on purpose when Miguel informed us of his wife hired mercenaries. He wasn’t sure how many she hired this time, only that they were striking today.

It’s why we had to fucking be here for this shit show.

Who in the fuck wants to celebrate their birthday a month fucking early, and then fucking brags about it to everyone?