“See? You can’t help yourself.”
I don’t know if he’s being funny or just plain cocky. It pisses me off that I don’t know anything about him, and that’s what frustrates me the most. The only thing I’ll ever know is the illusion he’s putting forth at the moment. His face “du jour,” so to speak.
Frustrated, I move around to Sammy’s other side, inserting him between us in the hopes of keeping Dimitri from touching me. I’m fine as long as I don’t speak to him. Or look at him. Or touch him.
Dimitri leads the way, with Ana following close behind him. I wrap my hand around Sammy’s arm because I need something to hold on to, and Dimitri is off limits.
Before we even climb the brick steps leading to the front door, it opens. An attractive older woman stands there waiting to greet us. I look back over my shoulder. The driver follows behind us. At the moment, it feels very much like I’ve been transferred from a hellhole to a very pricey, high-class prison suite.
The woman is all smiles as she speaks to Dimitri in Russian. Ana steps up and includes herself in the conversation. I don’t understand a word being said, and it’s pissing me off. Why doesn’t he tell her to speak in English the way he did with Ana? Maybe this is his way of returning my cold shoulder? Laughing, the woman leads the way into the house.
My mouth opens and my chin slams against the stunning marble tile beneath my feet. The grand entrance is at least two stories high, full of windows and decorative drapery. Intricate crown molding frames the room. Instead of a chest of drawers in the foyer, a tall armoire stands in the center of the large entranceway. Beside it is a full-length, free-standing mirror, the frame of which has been exquisitely carved.
The staircase has a landing, at which point you can continue up by taking the steps on the right side or the left, both ending at opposite ends of what looks from here like an open sitting area. I feel out of place even standing in this house. Looking back at the solid wood doors, I notice two very tall vases on either side of them holding fresh flowers. I don’t know how long Dimitri plans on keeping me here, but I don’t feel like I should even be walking into this place.
“Inna, please show Ana and Sammy to their rooms.”
“Da,” the older woman says before leading the way.
“Kiera?” Sammy asks, looking between Dimitri and me.
“Stay.” I use my eyes to beg him not to leave me alone.
“Give us a minute. Please,” Dimitri asks, ignoring me. “You know I won’t hurt her.”
Sammy looks between us, and I can’t believe he’s even considering leaving me with Dimitri. “If you need me—”
“She’ll be fine,” Dimitri snaps, then softens his tone. “I promise.”
With a long sigh and a reluctant look on his face, my brother turns and heads up the stairs.
Tears of anger sting my eyes. Another betrayal. I thought at least I could count on Sammy. I didn’t think he’d turn out to have such a traitorous heart. I turn toward the front doors, searching for the courage to walk through them and never come back.
Fuck the consequences.
I need to leave this place. Leave Dimitri.
I take a step, but that’s as far as I get before I feel his solid arms wrap around my waist and pull me against his rock hard chest.
“You’re not leaving,” he whispers in my ear before nibbling on my lobe. His warm breath tickles me, causing goose bumps to form on the surface of my skin.
“I don’t belong here.”
“Of course you do. I bought this house for you.”
“Me?”
“Well, the four of us really. All four of our names are on the deed.” His arms tighten around me at the same time his words tighten around my heart, giving it a good, long squeeze. A wave of warmth surges through my body.
I know I should push his arms off me and free myself from his embrace, but I can’t. Not because of his strength. I’m somewhat convinced that if I fight to get away from him, he’ll comply and let me go. I don’t do any of the things I should simply because I don’t want to. My head tells me to run from him, but my heart, my wayward heart, aches for him.
Dimitri turns me around in his arms and locks his eyes on mine. He runs his fingers through my hair, and I’m a jumbled mess of contradictions. I tremble with both fear and desire as I stare at him. I’m afraid to let my guard down and trust him, but I want to stay in his arms and borrow his warmth and strength.
“On paper, we’re married. You and I, and Sammy and Ana. You also have your own checking account with twenty thousand dollars in it.”
“I can’t take your money. I won’t be paid for sex and—”
“I don’t expect you to be my personal sex slave. The house, the account, they aren’t much, but it’s my way of trying to give back to you and Sammy a little piece of what’s been stolen from you.”
My stupid heart races. I hate that I have no control of my body when he holds me close. I’m sure he can feel my heart pounding fast and hard against him. I recognize his desire in the way his fingers linger on my skin and in the hunger in his eyes as they crawl over me, soaking me in. Both make me tingle inside and out.
“I’ll give you time, Kiera. I promise. The house is big enough that you can have your space and avoid me. But this is your home.”
“You keep saying that. What does that even mean? Home is more than a building. It’s where your heart and memories are.”
He strokes my cheek with his knuckles. His touch is so soft and gentle, I can’t believe this is the same person that butchered those men. I remind myself that he did it for me. Their intentions were anything but pure, and if he hadn’t found the strength to fight them after being shot and beaten, I might be the one dead.
I want to hate him because I think I should. That I’m supposed to. But no matter how hard I try, I don’t. Dimitri is my hero.
“Come.” His hand slips into mine. “Let me show you to your room. Yes?”
I hesitate a moment before nodding my head and walking up the steps beside him.
*
“We need to get a few things straight,” Dimitri says, leading me up the set of steps deviating to the right and down that hall. “You’re not my prisoner. But for the time being, I’m still concerned for your safety. If you leave here, it’s either with me or Max until Sammy’s stronger.”
“Max?”
“Our driver. He’ll protect you if need be.”
“We have a driver? I mean, he wasn’t hired just for the day to bring us here?”
“No. He works for us.”
Funny, I have no idea who “us” refers to, and I’m afraid to find out.
“Just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I need a male chaperone everywhere I go.”
“It’s not because you’re a woman, Kukla.” He stops in front of a door and uses those large brown eyes of his to make a point. “It’s because I want to make sure you’re safe, and right now I don’t know if anyone in the organization is going to try and get revenge for Yuri and the other guys I killed. With us gone, there is no doubt who did it, and I went through hell to save your life, I’m damn sure not willing to gamble with it.”
Dimitri opens the door in front of us. The room is large and majestic and broken into two parts. The main section holds a bed and furniture while the other part offers a sitting area set off on the side. Both areas of the room have their own vaulted ceiling with recessed lighting. The sitting area is furnished with a recliner and loveseat facing a fireplace and a fully stocked ceiling-to-floor bookcase on the wall behind them.
Everything in here is beautiful. The king-sized bed is high off the floor and encased in sheer curtains. It’s like my dream bed when I was a little girl, only I never lost the dream. I used to believe beds like this were magic and made only for real princesses.
Music boxes and trinkets line the dresser of drawers against the wall opposite the bed. They’re mine from my room back home. I recognize one with a dancing ballerina on top. My mother bought it for me for m
y fifth birthday. I’ve always treasured it, but it’s not the one calling out to me.
I pick up a musical snow globe with floating glitter and a unicorn in the middle. There’s the tiniest chink in the thick glass in the exact spot where it should be. It’s my favorite. It was a gift from Dante before he left.
“You remember?” I ask.
“Everything,” he answers with his chest heaving. “Every minute we spent together. Every conversation we ever had. Then and now.”
My eyes well up with tears. I can’t look at him because it hurts too much. “I’m sorry, Dimitri. This is just…I don’t know what I’m feeling.”
His pointer finger rests on my lips, quieting me. “I understand.”
But the disappointment in his eyes says something else. He drops his eyes to the floor, and it’s breaking my heart. Why the hell can’t I just throw my arms around him and let all the pain and betrayal go?
He leads me to a large walk-in closet that’s half the size of my college dorm. “You have a whole new wardrobe. I only took a few of your old clothes to hold us over until we got here, but all the important things you treasure, Sammy and I made sure to have here waiting for you.”
“You thought of everything, didn’t you?”
He shrugs. “I did my best.” He stuffs his hands into his pockets. “Oh, I almost forgot.”
He takes my hand in his, and it fits perfectly. I don’t want to ever let go, but he does, and slips something on the ring finger of my left hand. It’s a diamond ring. My breath is caught, trapped in my throat. The diamond is big and beautiful. It’s surrounded with what looks like wispy vines similar to his tattoos, adorned with small diamond chips above and below it. It’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen. I’m speechless.
“One more.” he says, slipping another ring on to rest above what I assume is an engagement ring. It looks like a plain band. So much for giving me time and space.
“Dimitri?” My hand trembles in his. Is he asking? “Is this real?”
“I assume you’re asking about the diamond. Yes. It’s two carats. You don’t need to worry about the sentiment though. These don’t come with strings or expectations. They’re only props. From this moment on, you’re my wife, for all intents and purposes. I guess you can call these a necessary evil.”
I’m surprised at how fast and hard my heart sinks and hope is snuffed out. I didn’t even consider it until this moment, and the idea of being forever tied to him, well…it exhilarates me. Even in this tumultuous state. Crazy as it is, it’s sort of the one thing that would make me okay with everything that happened leading up to this. As if it would prove we were destined to be together, but that wasn’t even what he meant, and the disappointment crushes me.
“That door,” he points to a closed door in the room, “leads to the master bath. Our rooms both connect to it. If you need me, or if you just want to talk, my door will always be open.” He checks his phone. “Dinner will be served in the dining room in two hours, and I’ll give you a tour of the rest of the house. I look forward to seeing you there.” He turns to leave.
“Dimitri, wait.” I’m panicked. I don’t want him out of my sight.
He stops and stares at me, waiting for something to come out of my open mouth, but I sigh and close it instead. The words won’t leave me. He’s right. I do need time. I just hope it’s not so much that he gives up on me totally.
“I don’t even know your last name.” It’s the only thing I can think of.
“My name is Dimitri Nombrasnya. The name on our marriage certificate is Dante Sterling. That would make you Kiera Collington Sterling.”
“Oh. Thanks.”
“Of course.” His lips curve up in the corners, and for a brief moment, I recognize the look of playful mischief in his eyes. Is it possible he knows what’s in my heart? What I can’t find the courage to say?
“Kiera, there’s one last thing you should know.”
I wait with bated breath to hear what he has to say.
“I’m never giving up on you.”
Chapter 14
“I’m never giving up on you.”
I replay those words over and over as water spills down over my head. Each drop rolls down the length of my body as I stand under the showerhead and welcome the punishing stream of scalding hot water. Steam fills the room, making it difficult to see outside the clear shower door.
I finished soaping up and washing my hair ten minutes ago, but I can’t pull myself away from the water. I’m not sure if it’s cleansing my body or my spirit, but the water rushing over every inch of my skin is renewing.
Nombrasnya. The name is familiar. I’ve heard it on the news for sure. He said his grandfather is still very politically connected. Now I understand why he wasn’t killed as a child and why they even gave him the chance to look after me. They wanted him to prove he wasn’t trustworthy. Then they could do as they pleased with both of us.
After toweling off, I reach for the plush robe hanging just outside the shower and wrap myself up in it. The rich material is soft and cushy against my skin. I snuggle against the material, getting lost in it. I take a few minutes to towel off and blow dry my hair.
The bathroom is fully stocked with toiletries, with everything I can think of and then some. I feel like I’m visiting a 5 star hotel rather than getting acquainted with my new home. Not my home, I remind myself. Dimitri’s home. No matter how many of my things he decorates the room with, I don’t belong here. And I can’t help but feel that if I agree to the house, the money, all of it, I’m betraying my parents and somehow cheapening their lives, making them about material things instead of the amazing people they were.
A minute ago I felt rejuvenated, like I could take on the world. A veil of exhaustion has settled back over me. A few minutes with my eyes closed will do me a world of good. Besides, I don’t have anything pressing I need to worry about, just dinner. A few minutes, that’s all I need. I lie on my bed, tighten my bathrobe around me, and close my eyes.
I can’t breathe. My face is wet, my throat dry and raw. A sharp, shrill scream pierces the air, and I bolt upright in my bed. It’s me, I’m screaming and crying. Hands grip the top of my arms, and I thrash to break free.
“No. No!” I scream.
“Kiera, look at me!”
Dimitri’s sitting on the side of the bed in nothing but a pair of boxers. He lets go of me and now he’s pulling back, holding his hands up, as if in surrender.
“What…what are you doing here?” I look around the darkened room shaking in fear, adrenaline shooting through my veins. “What time is it?”
“About three in the morning.”
“Three? How? I just wanted to close my eyes for a minute.”
“I didn’t mean to intrude. I was in the bathroom, and it sounded like something was wrong so I came to check up on you.” His eyes drift from mine, down to my body and back up.
“Oh,” Remembering that I have nothing on beneath my robe, I adjust myself on the bed and pull the robe closed tighter, embarrassed that in my panic, I may have just flashed him. “I guess I had a bad dream.” I say, wiping the back of my neck.
“If you’re okay, I’ll just go back to my room.” He stands, but doesn’t move. I feel the heat of his stare burning through the terrycloth material around me. It’s heating me up, scorching my exposed skin.
“Good night,” I say in a voice just louder than a whisper.
“Good night.” He takes two steps away before I call out to him.
“Wait!”
He stops and turns. His brown eyes stare back at me.
“I’m sorry I missed dinner. I didn’t mean to,” I babble, not wanting to be alone and too distracted by the way the moonlight bounces off the ripped muscles of his bare chest to say anything coherent. It can’t hurt to look. Stare. Whatever the hell I’m doing to him with my eyes. “I wanted to be there, but I fell into such a deep sleep.”
His lips curl up and he looks relieved as he takes a step to
ward my bed. “It’s fine. I thought you were avoiding me.”
“No,” I choke out.
“Are you okay?” he asks, narrowing his eyes at me while taking another step closer and sitting back down on the bed.
I reach out and grasp his hand. Holy hell, I want to feel this strong, warm hand touching me. “I’m not okay. Not at all. I’m an overly emotional wreck.” Tears stream down my cheek. “I’m scared of everything. Of how I feel. Of how I think I’m supposed to feel. And all I really want is to be next to you.”
“Ah, Slatkaya,” he says, wiping my cheeks with the padding of his thumbs. Even this simple touch has me reeling, craving more. “Don’t cry.”
“Dimitri. Can you stay? And hold me? Please?”
Pathetic left the building, and I’ve just reached the threshold three levels below pathetic.
He scrubs his free hand over his face. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”
I turn away so he can’t see the deep crack his words etched into my heart. He doesn’t allow me to keep an ounce of pride. He takes hold of my chin and turns my face back so that he can get a good look. His eyes, those all-seeing eyes, pierce mine and hold me in place, paralyzed.
“If I’m lying in bed with you, breathing you in, pressed up against you,” he says each phrase slowly, letting the image form in my mind. “I don’t know that I’ll have enough control to leave it at that.”
I pull my bottom lip between my teeth before gathering enough courage to speak, a habit I picked up from Dimitri. I reach out and trace my fingers lightly around the bandaged area of his right shoulder, barely touching him, wondering if he feels the tingling, the zing of my touch the way I feel it with his.
“Then don’t.”
“I understand.” He nods and stands again. Misunderstanding. Ready to leave. I don’t let go. Instead I pull him back to me.
“Don’t. Leave it at that.” I release his hand and untie the belt on my robe, making sure my message comes across loud and clear.
Dimitri’s mouth opens, and his eyes take on a dreamy is-this-really-happening look as they drop to my bare breasts and below.
My Russian Nightmare Page 12
