Chapter 5

She sat in the back seat with Dmitry, and the same two guys who were always with them sat in the front. She came to know them by their first names only—Dennis and Craig.

They were both large, husky men who always wore black. They never spoke one word to her, nor did they bother to look at her.

Arriving at one of the most expensive malls in Chicago, Dennis parked out front. He stayed in the car while she, Dmitry, and Craig went inside.

She looked around, seeing all the beautiful yet costly clothing stores. Craig was made to stand outside when she and Dmitry went inside one of them.

An older woman walked over to them with a big smile.

“Mr. Smirnov, it’s been long since I last saw you. How may I help you today?”

“I want you to take care of my friend personally. She requires everything from dresses, pants, and tops to shoes and lingerie—a whole wardrobe, not just a few things, but everything that looks good on her.”

“I will take care of her. This will take a while. Would you like something to drink while you’re waiting?”

“No thanks, I’ll just wait out here. What she has on now—throw it away and give her a nice dress to wear.”

She felt invisible as she stood there listening to them talk about her. Then, she tried on so many outfits for the next three hours that her head spun.

Not to mention how much everything cost. By the time she was done, there were so many packages, and she was now wearing a beautiful white dress with matching heels.

The softness of the material against her skin felt amazing. The woman helping her was falling over her feet, trying to please her.

Obviously, she was working on commission and would be getting a huge one from this sale.

Dmitry stood when they came out of the back room, smiling at how she looked in the new dress.

“Have all of these things delivered to this address,” he said, handing her his credit card and address.

“Yes, sir. I’ll ring this up and be right back.”

He turned to Danica.

“You look amazing,” he said, lifting a strand of her hair. “You have such beautiful, soft hair. Would you mind getting some highlights put in? I think maybe blonde would suit you.”

“Whatever you want,” she said, feeling a warm sensation race through her when he got close and saw the look of admiration in his eyes.

No man had ever looked at her that way before, and it made her feel sexy.

“Good girl, I know a place I can take you.”

After paying for the clothes, he took her to another mall floor and stopped at a famous place worldwide.

She looked at him.

“I heard you need to book three months in advance to get an appointment here. We should go somewhere else.”

He smiled at her.

“No worries; I can get you in right now.” He led her inside. Again, Craig waited outside the store. “Wait here; I will be right back.”

She watched as he walked over to a young male who seemed a little nervous to see him.

Who he was had her start to wonder what this man did for a living, which appeared to put fear in other people. She knew he was rich, but was he also dangerous?

Within minutes, she was sitting in a chair.

A little later, Dmitry saw she was done and was delighted with the results.

Having her turn around, he admired the work Samuel did on her hair and gave him a huge tip.

“You must be starving. I will take you to lunch.”

A man came over to their table when they were sitting in a posh restaurant and about to order. He was an older man with a hefty build and a little drunk.

“Mr. Smirnov, I was hoping to run into you.”

Dmitry glared at him, his anger clearly showing.

“Kensington, you’re drunk. Whatever you have to say to me can wait until you are sober.”

“You cheated me, and I want my club back.” He glanced over at her before turning back to Dmitry.

“Or we could make a deal—give me your whore, and I’ll call it even.” The man let out a strangled scream when he was grabbed by the throat and pushed back into the following table.

“You dare to disrespect me and the lady I’m with. Give me one reason why I shouldn’t kill you right here, right now,” he growled, tightening his grip on the man’s neck.

Like magic, Craig appeared.

“Boss, you want me to take care of him?”

“No, I’m sure he is sorry and won’t do it again.”

“Mr. Smirnov, I am so sorry. Please forgive me. I’ve had too much to drink, and it will never happen again.”

Dmitry leaned in, whispering in his ear.

“Leave town. If I see you again, I will cut your balls off and shove them down your throat.” He gave the man a light tap on his cheek, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear him.

“That’s okay, my friend. Go home and sleep it off.”

Danica sat in horror as she watched the scene before her. The look on Dmitry’s face and the grip he had on the man’s neck—she felt he would have killed him if there weren’t so many people around.

When he came back and sat down, she kept quiet; she didn’t know what to say that wouldn’t set off his anger.

One thing she knew for sure was he scared the shit out of her, and yet she got a little turned on by his behavior.

“Is something bothering you?” he asked when he noticed she wasn’t eating, pushing her food around with her fork.

She looked up at him.

“That man, I thought you were going to kill him.”

“But I didn’t.”

“Would you have if no one else was around?”

“Do not ask questions about the things you don’t want to know the answer to.” He reached for her hand.

“I scare you, don’t I?”

“Yes. I know nothing about you or what you do.”

“It is good for you to be afraid; you do not need to know anything about me. We have a special arrangement—nothing more. I can assure you that I will not hurt you unless you give me a reason to.”

She lowered her eyes, not wanting to see what was in his eyes.

“What reason would cause you to hurt me?”

“If you betray me,” he said flat-out.

Swallowing hard, she felt a cold chill running through her body; from the tone of his voice, she knew he meant it.

How was she to live with this man until she got pregnant and gave birth to his son?

It dawned on her that he might kill her after she gave birth.

“How do I know you won’t kill me after I complete my side of the commitment?”

“You give me what I want, and I give you my word. You shall not be harmed.”

“What if for some reason I don’t get pregnant—what then?”

“We’ll cross that bridge if we come to it. Now eat.”

“I’m not hungry,” she said, pushing her plate away.

He waved the waiter over, asking for the bill. “I took you shopping and spent a lot of money on you. I brought you to the best place to dine, and you don’t eat. I am doing everything to please you, and you behave like this. I do not even get a thank you for the beautiful clothes you got today. This angers me, and I am beginning to think you are one ungrateful woman.”

“I’m sorry. I do appreciate everything. I’m just scared.”

He leaned closer to her so no one else would hear him speak. “More scared than you were working for Rudy? You have no idea what those men at the club would have done to you—the perverted things they would have forced you into.”

She teared up, knowing fully what she was in for if he hadn’t gotten her away from Rudy. “No, it is better with you.”

He lifted her chin. “The sex, it is good, right?”

She blushed, turning her eyes away from his. “Yes,” she said timidly. “It’s amazing, but I feel weird talking about it.”

“Why?” he asked, smiling at her.

“It just is. It’s not something I feel comfortable talking about.”

“I will tell you something—it’s just the beginning. With you being a virgin, I was taking it easy on you. It will get so much better, and we will continue until you become pregnant and can no longer do it.”

As soon as he paid for their meal, they headed home. Once there, he told her he had some business to take care of, so she went up to their room. She found Bepa putting her things away.

“You didn’t have to do that. I could have.”

“It is my job,” she replied in a snotty tone.

“Bepa, have you worked for Dmitry long?”

“Many years.”

“So you know him well and know what he does for a living. Will you tell me?”

Bepa laughed, but it was not a nice laugh; it was more like evil. “If you don’t know, then you will soon find out. You’ll not hear it from me, and if you’re smart, you will keep your mouth shut and not ask questions—especially to Mr. Smirnov.”

“Why don’t you like me? I know you don’t.”

“You’re right. I do not like you. You don’t belong here and will cause him nothing but trouble. Go back where you come from, be the whore that you are, and destroy someone else.”

“I’m not a whore.”

“You think not? You are here, sleeping in his bed and letting him fuck you. To me, that makes you nothing but a cheap whore,” she said, turning as she walked out of the room.

When the older woman left the room, she sat on the bed. She couldn’t figure out why the woman hated her so much; what had she ever done to her?

Needing to know more about Dmitry, she started snooping, hoping to get some clue about what he was into. But there was nothing—just a locked safe in his closet. His closet was full of expensive suits and other clothes.

Hearing the door to the bedroom opening, she rushed out, fearing what he would do if he found her in his closet. She couldn’t even claim she was looking at her new clothes since she had her huge walk-in closet. But to her relief, one of the help was there to tell her that dinner would be ready in an hour and that Dmitry would be joining her in the dining room.

When she entered, he was waiting in the dining room for her, drinking a glass of his favorite wine. He could tell something was bothering her the moment she sat down, not looking at him. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” she said, reaching for her water and sipping.

“Never lie or keep things from me. Now tell me what is bothering you.” When she didn’t answer, he reached over and took hold of her free hand. “Danica!”

“It’s Bepa.”

“What did she do now?”

“She said I was your whore and that I don’t belong here.”

He felt the blood in his veins boiling. “You must not listen to anything she says. She is a bitter woman and most likely jealous of you.”

“Why would she be jealous of me?”

“Because you are everything she’s not—young and beautiful. I will have another word with her, and if she does not behave, I will get rid of her.”

After finishing their meal, he told her he had to go out and would not be back until late and that she should not wait for him. She hated it when he went out; without him there, she felt more alone than ever. Though plenty of staff roamed around, they were strangers and never spoke to her.

Before bed, she went into his den, where he had several bookcases, and picked out a novel to read.

“What are you doing here?”

Danica dropped the book when she heard Bepa yelling at her. She turned to look at her. “I was just getting something to read until Dmitry comes home. He said it would be all right to come in here; besides, it’s not his office.”

Bepa laughed; again, it was an evil one. “You think he will be home tonight? You are not the only whore he is sleeping with.”

Danica picked up her book, and as she was leaving, she stopped. “You are a nasty woman, and I will not listen to you anymore. Goodnight,” she said, walking away and going upstairs.

She tried to be brave, but the woman’s words hurt. But which hurt the most, the whore part or the part where Bepa said he was out sleeping with someone else?