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16. A deal with the devil

Walter grabbed the contract and a pen from the pen stand and slammed them in front of his wife. "Sign it!"

"Walt, I -"

"Sign it right now or else the next thing you sign will be divorce papers," he spoke in a low but furious voice.

Louise paled, grabbed the pen with her trembling hands, and signed it quickly. I grabbed the contract and put it back in the bag. "You will get a copy of the contract in the mail. And if I find out that you didn't follow through with every single one of the terms, I will make you regret it."

With that, I walked out.

'I love you, Ajax.'

Her words kept echoing in my ears like a terrible song that was stuck in my head. I was sure that that sentence was going star in my nightmares soon enough.

I walked back towards Katerina's suite. I needed to talk to her. I wanted to bash Ajax's head in. I wanted to figure out where Katerina's heart and mind were. And I had to make sure that I was in them. Because if I wasn't...

"Dimitri!"

I turned around and there she stood. She had changed out of her dress into a pair of tights, a sports bra, and an unzipped hoodie. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her face was makeup-free.

There was no way I could give up on this woman. Not when she lights up the room just by walking in it. I couldn't give up on her. Not when she was my last chance at happiness. Yes, I was selfish like that. Being so miserable for so long had made me selfish for love and happiness. I was not going to stop until I had everything I wanted. This time around, I would make sure that I got it.

The night we met, I told her that I wasn't going to lose her. And I wasn't. Even if it meant that I had to come up with a scheme to break her and Ajax up. There was no way he would make her as happy as I could. He wasn't her soulmate. I was. I already belonged to her. It was time to make her mine.

She smiled, looking painfully happy, and slowly walked toward me. "I was looking for you. How did it go?"

'I love you, Ajax.'

"I got her to sign a contract. She's going to hand over the firm and all the rights to you. She's not going to bother you anymore."

Her smile widened and she wrapped her hands around me in a hug. "Oh, my God. That's great! Thank you!"

Being in her arms felt good but I couldn't fully enjoy it because I could smell him on her.

'I love you, Ajax.'

"Don't thank me just yet, Princess," I murmured in her ear, my voice grim. "The contract is enforceable when it is signed by both parties. You don't have the contract yet."

She backed away and her eyebrows furrowed a little. "Where's the contract?" she asked. "How did you convince her to sign it by the way?"

"I have my ways," I replied. "And I have the contract. You will get it once I have what I want."

"And what is it that you want?" she asked in a low, seductive tone, sidling up against me, her front brushing mine, her face tilting up, her lips close to mine. Happiness was radiating from her. It was both intoxicating and suffocating. I wanted to be the one who made her this happy. My mood soured further.

I brushed my thumb against her lips, wiping him off her lips. She was letting me touch her like this. Only a little after she told a guy that she loved him. Had I heard her right? I had. It had hurt too damn much for it to be anything else.

"Nothing yet. I'll ask when I want something." If I asked for something that she didn't like right now, she could back out of the deal. Or worse, assume that I was holding the contract over her head and blackmailing her. I was smarter than that. I had to play the long game, take advantage of the overly happy mood Ajax had put her in, and strike when the time was right.