Touching Rune

by S. E. Smith

  Dimitri walked over to where Rune stood and pulled her into his arms. He tilted her head so she was forced to look at him. A low moan was pulled from him as he leaned forward and kissed her with a barely restrained passion.

  “You do not ever have to apologize for taking too long,” he muttered as he kissed the corner of her mouth. “I would wait forever for you,” he replied pulling back to look down at her with an intense expression.

  “I love you, Dimitri,” she whispered. “I will never forget what you and Sergei have given me.”

  “I will make sure you don’t,” he said tenderly. He grimaced when he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and saw the name on it. “Sergei is not so patient, I’m afraid. He never has been,” he chuckled. “He said to get our asses downstairs now! I think he is afraid I will be making love to you without him.”

  Rune giggled when Dimitri bent forward and nibbled on her neck. “I would hate for him to feel left out,” she said breathlessly when Dimitri moved his hand to cover her breast.

  “Personally, I think it is his own damn fault for always being in such a hurry,” Dimitri muttered before he growled out in frustration with the cell phone buzzed again. His expression darkened when he saw the message across it.

  “What is it?” Rune asked, peeking down at the small device.

  U better get down here! If I have to wait so do u!

  “What does that mean?” Rune asked looking up at Dimitri who was grinning.

  “He is horny. How are you feeling?” Dimitri asked looking at her side.

  “Creative,” Rune responded with a mischievous smile.

  She is feeling creative! Dimitri typed out quickly. A moment later he held his phone out to Rune so she would see the response.

  Что ебать являются два из вы ждете? What the fuck are you two waiting for then? Came Sergei’s impatient answer.

  “Let’s go,” Dimitri said brushing another heated kiss across Rune’s lips. “I can think of a few creative things I would like to try.”

  A shiver of delight rushed through Rune. She had spent a long time last night thinking. She could let the past go and focus on her future. She might not have long but she was going to fill every moment she could with the two men who had made her feel more alive in a little over a week than she had in over a century.

  *.*.*

  They rode down the elevator in each other’s arms. Rune was breathless and trembling with need by the time the doors opened. Dimitri’s hair was messed up, his tie was gone and the top three buttons of his shirt were undone from Rune’s frantic hands searching to touch him. She hastily shoved his tie into her handbag and stepped out of the elevator.

  “At least when you kiss me I forget…” Rune’s voice faded as she stared at Sergei.

  He was locked in a passionate embrace with the tall elegant looking woman from the images in her handbag. Rune’s eyes narrowed dangerously even as Dimitri muttered a heated curse under his breath. Rune gripped her handbag against her good side and stepped toward the two figures.

  She could tell as she got closer that Sergei was not the one doing the embracing. He had his hands on the thin arms while the woman had her hands wrapped around the back of his head. Several photographers were taking pictures of them. Rune stopped next to the woman and tapped her on the shoulder.

  The blonde’s head slowly turned to stare at Rune with a look of triumph in her eyes. Rune raised her eyebrow and returned the look with a steady one of her own. She waited until the blonde slowly turned to face her with a toss of her colored hair.

  “Yes,” Eloise Ferguson said with a fake smile.

  “He is mine,” Rune stated calmly.

  “I beg your pardon,” Eloise said turning so that the photographers could get her good side.

  Rune tilted her head and smiled back. She had met a few women like this one during her time. She made sure that Eloise could see that she was not one to be brushed aside.

  “He does not want you,” Rune said with distaste. She was determined not to show the other woman her fear that Sergei thought of her as a momentary distraction. “Take yourself away. Sergei, are you ready?” She ignored the way Sergei’s eyebrow rose as she turned and walked out the doors.

  “Bossy little thing, isn’t she?” Dimitri grinned as he walked by Sergei.

  Sergei nodded before he looked distastefully down at the perfectly manicured hand that had reached out and grabbed his arm. His cold gaze moved up to Eloise before he raised his hand and two of his bodyguards stepped forward. He brushed the wrinkle from his jacket sleeve.

  “Do not ever try anything like that again,” he said quietly. “I could destroy your career with a snap of my fingers. I am not one to be used, Eloise.”

  Eloise paled before she smiled nervously. “Sergei, I love you. Please, just give me another chance. We had something special.”

  “No,” he replied coldly. “You were a convenient distraction for a short period of time. Make sure she does not come near me again,” he informed the two bodyguards standing protectively nearby. “And take care of the photographs.”

  Both men nodded as he turned away. Eloise’s furious scream echoed in the empty corridor leading to the underground parking garage. Sergei made a note to have Pierre make sure that Eloise Ferguson never had another ‘photo’ opportunity with him again.

  *.*.*

  “Rune, малютка,” Sergei groaned as he looked at Rune’s stubborn face. “She means nothing to me.”

  Rune raised her eyebrow and pulled out the paper in her handbag and handed it to him. She waited, watching as his face darkened in distaste and anger. When he looked up at her, she looked pointedly at him.

  “I will not be any man’s rebound,” she told him quietly as she sank back against the seat in the limousine. “If she is the one you love, do not use me as a substitute.”

  Dimitri didn’t bother trying to hide his grin. He looked at Sergei with twinkling eyes. He slid his fingers between Rune’s slender ones and pulled her against his side.

  “I would never use you as a substitute,” Sergei growled. “She was simply a distraction. I broke it off with her several weeks ago.”

  Rune nodded to the paper crumbled in his hand. “That is not what that says,” she said with a wave of her hand. “You were to hand-fast with her! She was expecting your babe.”

  “She was not,” Sergei bit out in frustration. He ran his hand down his face. “She made it up in an effort to trick me into marrying her. I was never in love with her.”

  “Just like you do not love me? Am I also ‘simply a distraction’?” Rune asked angrily. “I told you once before, I am no man’s whore. I will not be used as a ‘distraction’ then cast aside. I am not some impressionable flit of a girl who feels faint because you deem to flutter your eyelashes at me.”

  “You are not… I don’t expect…,” Sergei sputtered in outrage. “I do not flutter my eyelashes!” He finally snapped out.

  Rune sniffed and turned her head to look out the window. They were pulling up to the gate of the executive airport where they had flown in. She had nothing else to say about the matter. She let him know her feelings. He could make his choice if he wanted her or that other twit but he was not going to have both.

  “Rune,” Sergei started to say as the limousine pulled up to the jet.

  Rune turned to look at him as the driver opened the door. “You also will not kiss me until you have brushed your teeth!” She said under her breath. “I will not allow your lips to touch mine as long as she is still on them.”

  Sergei’s mouth dropped open as Rune scooted over and smiled up at the driver as he offered his hand to help her up. Dimitri’s chuckle filled the interior of the vehicle as he slid out behind her followed by Sergei. They both watched as Rune walked over and climbed the steps to the jet.

  “She is everything that we asked for,” Dimitri said in Russian. “You were the one who wanted smart. She is very smart.”

  “Yes,”
Sergei said sourly. “And you were the one who wanted stubborn!”

  “Ah,” Dimitri said with a grin. “But you added passionate. Life with her will never be boring.”

  Sergei sighed as he watched her disappear inside. She was everything they had asked for. Pain filled him at the thought of losing her. He knew he cared about her more than any other woman he had ever met. He wasn’t sure if what he felt was love. If he had to guess, he would have to say if he wasn’t in love with Rune, he was fast falling into it.

  Chapter 20

  They were almost half way through the almost thirty hour return trip to Moscow. Both Sergei and Dimitri had worked on several different issues, held additional meetings with their Singapore and Munich staff while Rune had watched movies and read. It was late in the evening when they sat down to a delicious dinner of steak, seafood and fresh steamed vegetables. Rune decided there were several things that she really loved about this century besides Sergei and Dimitri. Some of them were the food, the wall glass that showed pictures, the comfort of travel, and her personal favorite, the bathroom.

  “I think I’ll go take a shower and lay down for a while,” Rune murmured, setting down her wine glass.

  “Are you in pain?” Sergei asked, searching her face. “Did you take your pain medication?”

  Rune glanced at him and shook her head. “My side is not hurting,” she replied. “I do not like to take the medication. It makes my head feel funny,” she added, standing up.

  “You can take an over-the-counter one,” Dimitri suggested. “They are not as strong and will not cause you to have the same reaction.”

  Rune smiled tenderly down at Dimitri. “I am fine. I am not hurting,” she reassured him before brushing a light kiss over his lips. “Finish your wine. I know you both have a lot of work to do. I am just a little tired and will rest for a bit.”

  “Rune,” Sergei said, rising out of his seat and walking over to her when she turned to leave.

  She turned back and looked at him with a closed expression. She had meant what she said earlier. She would not accept being his rebound. She may not be able to claim him for long term but she could for the few days she had left.

  “I meant what I said, Sergei,” she said quietly looking up at him. “I will not be used or play second to any woman.”

  Sergei threaded his fingers through her long hair and pulled her closer. He stared intently down into her brown eyes. He felt like he could easily drown in the dark pools of emotion held within them.

  “You are such a beautiful woman,” he said softly. “You have a strength that I admire. Your compassion for others is endless. You could have turned your back on those who have needed you but you fought for those less fortunate with no thought of the toll it would take on you,” he whispered, taking a step closer to her and cupping her chin with his left hand. “I could never use you and you are far too vibrant to ever play second to any other female.”

  Rune stared up at him with a skeptical look on her face. “You aren’t just saying this to get on my good side, are you?” She asked suspiciously.

  Dimitri chuckled and rose from his seat. He moved to stand behind her. Bending, he brushed a light kiss along her neck before he looked over her shoulder at Sergei .

  “She has been watching far too much television,” Dimitri whispered. “Go get your shower. We will be in shortly.”

  “You will?” Rune asked with a raised eyebrow, staring intently at Sergei. “Or both of you will?”

  “Both,” Sergei said roughly, pulling her closer. “I meant what I told you before, Rune. We have claimed you.”

  Rune placed her fingers against his lips when he bent to kiss her. “Just remember, you aren’t the only one doing the claiming. And I meant what I said. You will not kiss me until you have brushed that ‘nasty-ass’ woman’s mouth from your own,” she stated before she turned and walked out of the small dining area.

  Sergei’s eyes flashed with desire and humor as he watched Rune toss her hair defiantly over her shoulder. A slow smile curled the corner of his mouth as he watched her. Fire ran through him as he thought of taking her from behind. He wanted her.

  “That look will get you into trouble, my friend,” Dimitri said, looking at Sergei.

  “She said she was feeling creative,” Sergei murmured under his breath.

  Dimitri’s eyes flashed hotly at the dark tone in Sergei’s voice. His friend was looking for a fight. A passionate, no holds-bar passion-filled fight. Rune had awoken the sleeping dragon inside Sergei.

  “You love her,” Dimitri stated with a knowing gleam in his eyes.

  “Yes,” Sergei replied. “Yes, I love her. I don’t care what she believes. I will not let her go. She said all she wanted was to be loved and to have a family.”

  “We will give her both,” Dimitri replied with satisfaction.

  “Да, мы дадим ей то и другое,” Yes, we will give her both. Sergei replied. “Starting now.”

  *.*.*

  Rune leaned her head against the wall of the shower and closed her eyes as the hot water pour over her. She had covered her head in a shower cap to keep her hair dry and she had a waterproof bandage on her side to cover her wound. Judy had slipped a couple into her bag before she was discharged when she asked how she was to take a shower without getting her stitches wet.

  “Are you alright?” Sergei asked huskily.

  Rune opened her eyes and stared at him. “What are you doing in here? I thought you had meetings or such to do,” she replied.

  “Someone said I needed to brush my teeth,” Sergei responded with a glimmer of amusement in his eyes. “I thought I’d better take care of that if the only woman I want was going to let me kiss her again.”

  “Am I?” Rune asked softly, studying his face intently. “The only woman you want?”

  “Yes,” Sergei replied, holding her gaze with his own so that she could see the truth in them.

  Rune stared at him for several long moments before a satisfied smile curled her lips. She reached out her damp fingers and ran it along the scar running under his eye down to his lips. She tenderly caressed his lips with her thumb.

  “I love you, Sergei,” she whispered. “Never have I felt the emotions that I feel for you and for Dimitri. You have the power to break my heart. I am not sure I like that.”

  “Rune,” he whispered. “Finish your shower. I swear I am having a larger one installed so the next time we travel Dimitri and I can join you.”

  Rune smiled sadly. “I would like that,” she said, knowing she wouldn’t be around to enjoy it.

  She turned off the shower and reached for a towel. She found Sergei had beaten her to it. He gently dried her face and neck before he moved down the rest of her. She watched him in the mirror as he knelt down in front of her. She briefly closed her eyes as a sharp pain of need rushed through her.

  “Turn around and I’ll dry your back,” he said in a low husky voice filled with need.

  Rune turned so she was facing the closed shower door. She raised her arms up as he moved up her body and gripped the top of the glass door. Her breath fogged the glass as he continued to dry her.

  “Sergei,” she moaned softly.

  “You saved my life,” he murmured as he carefully dried around the bandage on her side. He pressed his lips along the edge of it. “If you had not pushed me to the side, the bullet would have killed me.”

  “You don’t know that,” she said quietly.

  “Yes, I do. Pierre found it embedded the side of the limousine,” Sergei replied as he carefully dried her back. He pulled the damp shower cap from her hair and tossed it next to the sink behind him. “It was in the report he sent to us.”

  Rune turned to look up into his eyes. “I don’t want you to come to me because you feel gratitude, Sergei. I want you to come to me because I am the woman you want.”

  “You are the woman I care about,” Sergei whispered, brushing her hair back before letting his hand slide down her arm. “W
hat I feel for you has nothing to do with gratitude.”

  “Brush your teeth, Sergei,” Rune whispered reaching up and brushing a kiss along his jaw. “I will be waiting for you in the other room.”

  Rune took the towel out of his hand and wrapped it around her. She paused at the door to smile back at him. Something had changed in him. She wasn’t sure what it was but something was different. She turned back to walk into the bedroom. It was hard to believe they were on a metal flying machine and not back at their home in Moscow. If it had not been for the vibration she could have believed they were on the ground.

  She pulled the towel from around her and draped it across the chair. She was leaning over the bed to pull the covers back when she felt a warm hand slide up over the curve of her ass. A smile pulled at her lips.

  “Dimitri,” she said before looking over her shoulder at the smooth broad chest. “You took a shower?”

  Dimitri ran his hand back and forth over the smooth skin. “There is a smaller guest cabin next to this one.”

  Rune moaned as he ran his hand around her to cup her right breast. The slight roughness of the callouses felt good as he moved his hand across her skin. She bowed her head as he pulled her back against his body.

  “How are you feeling?” Dimitri asked quietly. “We will just hold you if you are too tired or hurting.”

  “I’m hurting,” Rune replied with a teasing smile. “But it has nothing to do with being shot. I hurt for you and Sergei.” The smile died as her eyes darkened. “I was so frightened I would lose one or both of you.”

  “Rune,” Dimitri moaned as he pulled her around and into his arms. “When I saw the blood on you… never do I want to experience that type of fear again.”

  Rune stood pressed against him, her bare breasts crushed against his smooth chest. He was wearing only a pair of black sweatpants that hung low on his hips. Her hands moved down until she could slip her fingers under the waistband and run her short nails along the cheeks of his ass.