After Alexey left Alena in the room, he felt his body was still burning. The heat left by her hands and lips, her broken moans directed at him, was not physical. It was the fire of memories, scorching every cell of his masculine essence. He hated Alina, wanted revenge for the past humiliation and pain, but when she was melting in his arms, he momentarily fell into that bright, searing world where there was no betrayal. The world where they were happy.
The light streaming through the stained glass of their apartment... Alina laughs, throwing back her head, and he, consumed by love, kisses the dimple on her collarbone. "Forever," she had whispered then, and that promise seemed harder than a diamond. And now? Now she was helpless, looking to him for salvation, and his own flesh cried out, demanding to take back what was once rightfully his.
Neither the coolness of a business call nor the fury with which he ordered an investigation helped him. He couldn't get distracted. The sultriness of happy memories and frantic desire choked him.
The party at the villa was in full swing, but Alexey craved complete solitude. He turned the corner of the villa towards the pool, where the complete darkness and silence seemed like the only escape from himself. He stripped off his clothes with such haste as if they were burning him. He needed to cool down not his body, but his flesh, to suppress that wild, uncontrollable call that was tearing out from within. He dove into the ice-cold water, and the chill pierced him, slightly calming his mind and body.
At that moment, wandering in the garden after a humiliating quarrel with Volodya, Eva noticed him. Like a predator, she froze in the shadow of a huge cypress, not hiding her pleasure, watching Alexey expose his powerful, muscular body, illuminated only by the moonlight. Eva decided that this moment of weakness was her perfect chance.
With a quick, graceful walk, she approached the edge of the pool. Instead of pretending, Eva, with aggressive determination, pushed off and jumped into the water right in her evening dress.
— I need to cool down, Alexey. Her soaked dress clung to her body, making it incredibly revealing. — And you seem to need it too. You're burning up. I can feel it.
Alexey, as if oblivious to her, continued swimming towards the opposite side.
— You're wasting my time, Eva, — his voice was dry and firm. — I won't fall for this cheap theater.
Eva did not give up. She quickly caught up with him and boldly embraced his torso with her arms, pressing her entire body against him so he could feel every curve of her figure.
— Don't pretend. You're on fire. You're at your limit. You don't need ice water, you need me, — she whispered, trying to kiss his shoulder. — Forget that nobody. I have what you're looking for. I won't beg you, like that pale moth.
He sharply stopped her hands caressing his body, his eyes flashed with steel. He was about to push her away, but then a lazy, cynical voice sounded from above, from the second-floor balcony.
— How clichéd, — Karina said, leaning on the railing, and genuine boredom was in her voice. — Eva, your acting school is twenty years behind. I thought our Alexey deserved more original ways to seduce than a wet cat in a pool.
Eva recoiled, hissing with rage.
— And now, the rules, — Karina descended to the pool, elegantly stepping on the wet marble. — The rules you know by heart. Participants are forbidden to enter into relationships with anyone other than their partner. Violation means immediate elimination. I give you ten seconds to get out and go to bed. Otherwise, I will personally notify the camera crew and ensure your pass back to the real world.
Eva, seething with fury, had to climb out of the water, leaving a wet trail of disdain behind her. She had to leave. The perfect moment was so easily ruined.
When Alexey got out to get dressed, Karina approached closer and tossed him a towel.
— Don't interfere in my affairs, — he said, irritably wiping his powerful body. — I would have handled it myself.
Karina raised an eyebrow, her gaze as sharp as a razor.
— I doubt it. You're barely controlling yourself, Alexey. It's dangerous for our reputation. I just drove away all the trash from you, fiancé. So to speak, protecting my future investment.
— I never acknowledged you as my fiancée, Karina. It was only my mother's whim. — His voice was full of cold fury.
— Oh, calm down, — Karina changed her tone to soothing, but her gaze remained piercing. — Explain to me. You are not one to go for swims in the middle of a party. What the hell happened? You are ice, Alexey. Did something knock you off balance?
He sharply pulled on his shirt.
— It's none of your business.
Alexey turned and quickly left. Karina watched him go with an understanding, almost triumphant smirk. For the first time, she saw him so vulnerable.
— And the show is getting hot, — Karina pronounced it like a verdict.
The next morning, Alina woke up with a sharp pain in her temples. The first thing she saw was a crumpled, messy sheet and a torn blouse thrown on the floor. Realizing she was naked in Maxim's arms, she was filled with icy horror. Her body ached, and her memory was a void.
— What happened?!— her voice cracked into a half-scream. She sharply pushed him away, covering herself with her hands.
Maxim, feigning false calm, pulled her back, kissing her shoulder.
— Hey, quiet, sweetheart. You don't remember? You attacked me yourself.
— You saw I wasn't in my right mind! — she yelled, trying to get away. A feeling of disgust was rising.
— Yes, I saw! But how could I leave you when you wanted me so much, when you were tearing my shirt off? We are engaged, Alina! Sooner or later it had to happen. You just gave your desire freedom. In the state I found you in, it's better me than someone else. — He spoke with a persistent, possessive intonation, without a hint of regret.
— What do you mean by the word "someone else"?
He sat up, leaning on the pillows, and began his interrogation.
— Think. What were you drinking?
— Wine. In the hall.
— And who gave it to you? Do you remember?
Alina tensed, trying to break through the fog.
— It seems... Alexey poured me wine. I drank it as a sign of reconciliation with Eva.
Maxim instantly seized the hint, his eyes sparkling with triumph.
— See! You shouldn't be outraged that we made love, but by who drugged you. I left, and who do you think found you? Alexey. You know, he brought you here. If I hadn't shown up in time, you would have woken up not with your fiancé, but with God knows who. Why did he allow himself such a thing? Everyone notices that he treats you strangely. You owe me an answer. I deserve to know the truth.
Maxim's lie hit the bullseye. Without realizing it, Alina easily and without a doubt believed his deception.
— Maybe he did it... — she whispered, and it was already a half-confession.
Maxim demanded an explanation of why Alexey would drug her. Alina sighed heavily. Maxim had done so much for her; he deserved to know the truth. It was time to confess.
— Five years ago... we were together. With Alexey. I left him. I left without explaining why. And maybe he's angry. He wants to humiliate me and take revenge.
Maxim pretended to be indifferent to the past. He squeezed her hands.
— Now I understand why he acts like a complete scoundrel. What's important is that you are with me now. You can rely on me. I will never hurt you. And we can leave this awful show right now.
— No! You know I need this win! — she cut him off. — I need the whole sum!
— Good, — he took her hands, his eyes burning with passion and victory. — Then we'll stick together. You must completely avoid that scumbag. From now on, you are only mine.
Alina couldn't stand his touches anymore. The feeling of filth from being in such a state that she slept with him and remembered nothing was unbearable. She wanted to wash off the night. She quickly wrapped herself in a sheet and headed for the bathroom.
— Where are you going? — Maxim grabbed the sheet and sharply pulled it off. Alina cried out, trying to cover herself with her hands.
— What are you doing?!
— I've seen everything, Alina, — there was neither tenderness nor shame in his eyes, only demand. — You are beautiful, — Maxim said lustfully, admiring her body, — And you don't have to hide anything from me anymore. Go.
He let go of the sheet. She, bent over in shame, rushed into the bathroom and slammed the door. Once in the shower, she felt uneasy. Self-disgust made her instantly turn on the ice-cold water. She grabbed a washcloth, lathered it thickly, and began scrubbing her skin until it was red. Even though Maxim was her fiancé, she felt a sticky, invisible dirt on her that she had to wash off at any cost.
While Alina was in the shower, furiously scrubbing off the traces of the previous night, Maxim nonchalantly picked up Alina's torn silk blouse, brought it to his face, and greedily inhaled the scent of her perfume and skin. Now she was truly his. A self-satisfied, predatory smile touched his lips. He liked this feeling of complete possession.
He walked over to the window, glancing briefly at the bathroom door, and took out his phone. Quickly dialing a number, he commanded in a harsh, emotionless voice:
— Do what I told you to in ten minutes.
Maxim ended the call just as a persistent knock sounded at the door. It was Alexey. He came to see how Alina was feeling and if she needed anything. When the door was opened by a half-naked Maxim, Alexey was in a daze for a few seconds. Maxim's pose and smirk screamed of triumph and ownership.
— Oh, Lesha, you're bad timing, — Maxim leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb. — I've just finished a very passionate night with my fiancée. Or did you come to check how well you prepared her for me?
Alexey, seeing the rumpled bed and Alina's torn blouse over his shoulder, seemed to explode. His eyes flared with animal, uncontrolled rage.
— What the hell are you doing here?!
Maxim took a step aside, with a majestic gesture giving him a view of the scattered things on the floor.
— And what do you think I might be doing with my future wife? I have a ring and official status. And you? You are just an annoying memory. You saw her condition when you dragged her here, didn't you?
— I saw she was drugged. But I didn't do it.
— It doesn't matter whether you did it or not. What matters is that you didn't take advantage, and I did. And Alina enjoyed everything very much. You should have seen how she cried out in pleasure.
— Scumbag!— Alexey, losing all control, rushed forward, pressing Maxim against the wall with such force that the marble slab trembled. — You took advantage of a helpless woman!
Maxim didn't even flinch. He smiled contemptuously into Alexey's face, enjoying his fury.
— I took advantage of my fiancée. I'm not some random passerby who left her drunk in a room, like you. I'm her protection. Or do you think I haven't slept with her before? And yesterday she chose me again, not you. She chose a future with me, not a past with you.
Alexey released Maxim and punched the wall next to his head with force. He seemed ready to kill but held back.
— I'll tell Alina who you are! I'll pull her out from under you! I'll tell her that it was I, at your request, who set up this show to let her win your money!
A triumphant, cold smile blossomed on Maxim's face, finally proclaiming victory.
— You'll tell her? Wonderful. And what then? She'll look at you and see someone who lied to her, manipulated her, and used her need in his dirty, lustful games. Do you want her to know that all her hope is your and my lie? We are both in the same boat, Alexey. Both liars. But the difference, my dear, is that I, unlike you, am sleeping with her now. And now she is with me. She chose me now. We both lose from the truth. Give up. Leave Alina alone. You'll never get her. You already missed your chance. She left you herself.
Alexey stood, breathing heavily. Maxim's words, icy and undeniable, hit the target precisely. He had cornered himself with his own nobility, which had turned into deception. His rage shattered against the opponent's icy strategy. He silently, like a beaten animal, turned and left, not granting Maxim a farewell glance.
A minute later, Alina emerged from the shower, wrapped in a towel. Her face was pale, and her eyes were swollen from tears and water.
— I heard voices. Did someone come? — she could barely hear herself.
— No, sweetheart. You imagined it, — Maxim approached to kiss her. He was the ideal, caring fiancé.
At that moment, her personal nightmare returned. Alina's phone rang. An unidentified number flashed on the screen — a cold omen. It was "them." The gangster on the other end growled through the static:
— The due date for the money is approaching. I remind you, if you don't hand over the whole sum immediately, we will destroy your mother, and then we'll get to you. You know how we do it.
Alina, white as a sheet, squeezed the phone until her knuckles turned white.
— The money will be there. I promise.
Maxim hugged her, comforting her, his voice dripping with fake concern:
— Shh, shh. Now we absolutely must get even closer, Alina. Show everyone that we are a genuine, loving couple. Our victory and wedding are your only way out.
He gently kissed her forehead.
— I'll go back to my room. Show rules, you remember. But I'll wait for you at breakfast. And remember, from now on, you must avoid Alexey. That scumbag shouldn't get in our way.
Maxim left, leaving Alina alone in the room. He quickly walked to the farthest, darkest end of the corridor. There, he took out his phone, quickly glanced around, and dialed a number.
— Boss, — the same husky voice that had just threatened Alina answered the phone. It was that same gangster. — I did what you asked.
— Yes, I know, — Maxim answered coldly.
— What should I do next?
— I need you to constantly terrorize her mother. Don't kill her. I need her to end up in the hospital. You need to drive that old woman to a state where Alina will have no choice but to rely only on me. We have little time. Execute.
Maxim ended the call. A calm, predatory smile was on his face.
— Alina, you'll never escape me.