reason. Not only because of the FBI file on him, but also because of his relationship to Violet. He was Vi’s friend’s brother. Malik and Raisa were the children of a Russian gun dealer, Petya Leskov. Although, I was sure Violet had no idea about that any more than she’d known Jada’s father was the head of the Kyōdaina.
“You are the transportation guy,” Malik said, his Russian accent barely showing through his Cambridge education. Ken’Ichi frowned at the reference, but I just grinned.
“Not just the transportation guy, but the record-breaking transportation guy. You wanna buy a boat? We got four left in the current build cycle,” I threw out to Leskov, knowing it would piss off Ken’Ichi.
“If Mori Enterprises delivers as promised, we won’t need ships ourselves,” he said.
Ken’Ichi cleared his throat. “Gentlemen. It’s a party. There is no reason to discuss business tonight.”
Malik sniffed. His nose had all the telltale signs of drug use. Just fucking great. Guns, drugs, and deals going down. What a wonderful combination.
“That is the entire reason I am here, Matsuda-san,” Malik said, using the polite formality I refused Ken’Ichi.
I rubbed my hands together like I was excited. “Not only did we deliver, we completely pulled the wool over big brother’s eyes with the entire world watching. Just think what can be done without the GPS trackers and the media,” I told the Russian, and Ken’Ichi shot me a glare.
Malik Leskov seemed amused by my lack of acquiescence to Ken’Ichi. He smirked behind his champagne glass as he sipped.
“Enough,” Ken’Ichi bit out a warning to me before turning back to Leskov. “Shall I have Hosa-san show your men where they can wait?”
I turned slightly and saw Saito-san had emerged from the shadows to stand behind me. The fact that I hadn’t felt him there raised my hackles. My mind was torn between too many different things, including the way Violet’s body was bending and turning in a tantalizing way. I had to focus, or the night would go off the rails, and everything we’d been working for would be lost.
“Of course,” Leskov said with a careless wave of a graceful hand in the direction of his men. They turned and disappeared into the crowd with Saito-san.
I said a silent prayer that the wire I wore had alerted Malone and the crew to follow Saito-san and the goons out of the house.
“Now, Matsuda-san,” Malik said, nodding his head toward Jada as she shimmied to the music. “I suppose congratulations are in order. But good luck taming that wild she-dragon. Such a great loss to our community.”
The insinuation was clear. A jab about Malik and Jada that I wasn’t sure I believed. Malik wasn’t Jada’s type, but it still landed the blow he’d intended at Ken’Ichi whose fists clenched reflexively. With a scowl directed at Malik and me, he turned on his heel and walked away.
If Jada wasn’t his boss’s daughter, if she wasn’t tied to the head of the Kyōdaina like a royal princess to a king, there was no way Ken’Ichi would even be looking twice at Jada. He wanted a bride that mirrored his sister’s subservience: humility and silence. In his mind, Jada would only bring him shame.
Malik chuckled at Ken’Ichi’s departing back. “So uptight, these Japanese businessmen. They do not know how to let go. He will ruin her.” He turned to take me in. “You, on the other hand, look exactly like you know how to let go.”
There was an offer insinuated in his words, and I was grateful to not have to reject him as the song ended and Violet and Jada joined us. I pulled Violet up against me, kissing the top of her head, relief filling me not only because I could protect her when she was there, but also because my body seemed to always be waiting for her to return to me. I’d just been really good at pushing it aside for five years.
“Malik,” Jada said, air-kissing both sides of the man’s cheeks. “I was surprised to see you were coming. I thought you were persona non grata in the U.S. these days.”
He slid a hand along her shoulder, down her arm, and picked up her gloved hand, landing a kiss on the knuckles. The diamond Ken’Ichi had given her was hidden beneath black silk but left its mark as the fabric barely stretched over it.
“When the rumors began that Jada Mori was tying the knot, I couldn’t believe them. I had to see for myself. But