God Of Crimson : A Mafia Deal Sealed in Sin

The Battle Begins

NIKOLAI RUSSO

Nikolai hated this. The whole pomp and circumstance of marriage negotiations—what a joke. He had killed men in cold blood, taken over territories with nothing but his name, and now here he was, doing something as banal as marriage prep. All for power.

He leaned back in his chair, rolling his eyes at his father's voice booming over the speakerphone. "You should at least talk to her, Nikolai."

"I don't need to talk to her, Father. This isn't a wedding; it's a merger." He had never even spoken to Nikita Volkov, and that was just fine with him. The less emotional investment, the better.

His father sighed on the other end. "She's a fighter, you know. Word is, she could take down half your men in a boxing ring."

Nikolai chuckled. "Cute. Maybe I'll let her try, for fun."

The door to his office opened without a knock, and Luca, his best friend and right-hand man, sauntered in, a smirk plastered on his face. "Let me guess, wedding talk?" Luca teased, plopping himself down on the couch.

"I swear, if one more person tells me to 'talk' to her, I might actually lose my mind," Nikolai muttered, rubbing his temple in frustration.

Luca raised an eyebrow. "You realize you're marrying her, right? Talking is kind of part of that deal."

Nikolai rolled his eyes. "We don't need to talk. I'll say a few words at the altar, she'll say hers, we'll sign the papers, and then we can both get back to what we do best—killing people who annoy us."

Luca laughed, throwing his head back. "Yeah, because that's definitely how marriages work, bro. Have fun with that plan."

"Do you know what the problem is, Luca?" Nikolai stood and walked over to the window, looking out over the city skyline. "She's not like the others. The women who usually throw themselves at me, they know what they're getting into. They know their place. This one? She thinks she's going to fight me. And that... interests me."

Luca snorted. "Oh, you're so screwed."

Nikolai raised an eyebrow. "Screwed? I'm Nikolai Russo, no one screws me."

**********************************

NIKITA VOLKOV

"Are you kidding me?" Nikita practically yelled, her hands on her hips as she stood in front of her parents. "He couldn't even be bothered to meet me in person?"

Her father, the always calm and composed Dimitri Volkov, didn't even flinch. "You'll meet him soon enough, Nikita. The marriage is what's important, not the theatrics."

Nikita narrowed her eyes. "Theatrics? Oh, you mean basic human decency? Yeah, I can see why that would be asking too much from someone like Nikolai Russo."

Her mother gave her a warning look, but Nikita wasn't about to back down. "You expect me to marry some arrogant prick who thinks he's too good to even meet me before the wedding?"

Dimitri sighed, rubbing his forehead. "It's not about him thinking he's better than you—"

"Oh, trust me, it is," Nikita interrupted, throwing her hands in the air. "I'm sure he's sitting in his fancy penthouse right now, thinking, 'Wow, I really don't need to meet this girl. She's just a little footnote in my grand mafia empire.'" She mimicked an exaggerated deep voice, pretending to be Nikolai, before rolling her eyes dramatically.

Her mother couldn't help but let out a small chuckle, though she quickly tried to cover it up with a cough.

Dimitri frowned, clearly not amused. "This is about strengthening the families, Nikita. Not your personal feelings."

"Oh, don't worry, Dad. My personal feelings are safely locked away," she said with a sarcastic smile. "I'll marry the tattooed mafia king and then punch him in the face during the first dance. Sounds like a plan."

Her father groaned, standing up and walking out of the room, clearly done with the conversation. Her mother lingered for a moment, offering Nikita a sympathetic look. "It's not going to be easy, but you're strong, Nikita. You can handle him."

Nikita sighed. "Strong or not, I'm not playing nice with someone who doesn't even have the decency to show up."

**********************************

NIKITA VOLKOV

Two days later, Nikolai's phone buzzed while he was finishing off the remains of an American mafia boss in a warehouse outside the city. He wiped his bloodied hands on a rag, feeling the thrill of his success still coursing through his veins.

Finally, some peace.

That was until Luca, ever the bearer of bad news, handed him his phone with a grin. "Your bride-to-be's got something to say."

Nikolai glanced at the message on the screen, his eyebrow lifting. It was from Nikita, short and to the point: 'Don't think for a second you can get away with avoiding me forever. I'll see you soon, Russo. Try not to choke on your arrogance before then.'

Nikolai laughed out loud. "Oh, this is going to be fun."

**********************************

NIKITA VOLKOV

Later that day, Nikita sat in her favorite café, punching numbers into her phone to ignore the fact that she was about to be married off to a man who probably referred to women as "accessories." She thought about texting Nikolai again, something equally snarky, but decided against it. She'd save her words for when they met in person. If he even shows up.

Her phone buzzed, and she half expected it to be him responding with something infuriating. But no. Instead, it was her best friend, Katya, with a message that made Nikita laugh out loud: Please tell me you're planning on punching this dude at the altar.

Nikita replied: Oh, no, the punching will happen way before the altar.

Katya: Classic Nikita.

The two laughed about the absurdity of it all, and for a moment, Nikita felt a little lighter. Maybe she could handle this after all. Maybe, just maybe, marrying Nikolai Russo didn't mean the end of the world.

And if he thought he could out-arrogance her?

Well, he was in for one hell of a surprise.

**********************************

NIKOLAI RUSSO

As Nikolai sat in his office later that night, Luca burst through the door, waving his phone in Nikolai's face. "Have you seen what she posted on her social media?"

Nikolai glanced at the phone and saw a picture of Nikita, gloves on, in a boxing stance, with the caption: When life hands you a cocky mafia prince, you punch first and ask questions later.

He chuckled darkly. "Oh, she has no idea what she's getting into."

Luca grinned. "Neither do you."

Nikolai took a sip of his whiskey, his mind racing with thoughts of their upcoming confrontation. This marriage was going to be more entertaining than he'd thought. A smirk spread across his lips as he leaned back in his chair.

"Let the games begin."

**********************************
END OF CHAPTER 3
In Chapter 3, we amp up the tension with some comedic banter and snarky exchanges between Nikita and Nikolai, setting the stage for their fiery first meeting. The clash of their strong personalities is already heating up, and the chemistry between them is undeniable, even though they haven't met face to face yet.