“So I’ll take the stress off of you and we can have a great time in bed.”
“Right.”
“Okay. I’m in.”
He cocked an eyebrow at her. “You said that readily.”
“I’m having the best sex I’ve had, maybe ever and there are no strings. I can tell you anything because there’s no emotion involved. I’m sure there will be things I need a date for so you can return the favor.”
He smiled. “Yes, I can and I will. This needs to be mutually beneficial to both of us.”
She nodded. “Right.”
“Are we good Kendra? Is this behind us?”
“Yes.”
He studied her for a minute, but her gaze didn’t waver. He wanted her back in his bed. Tonight. “Can we worry about the paperwork in the morning? It’s late.”
“Yes.”
She smiled as if relieved. He took ahold of her hand. “Then let’s go back to my room.”
He led her back to his bedroom. He took her in his arms. He whispered dirty things to her as he undressed her. She was naked in front of him, aroused, he was pretty sure. He wasn’t far behind.
He knelt and took her breasts one by one into his mouth. She arched into him, digging her fingers into his hair. Her moan spurred him on. She tasted of peaches and a promise of dirty things to come. He nudged her onto the bed, her legs over the edge. He settled himself between those legs, her pussy in full view. She’d trimmed a little. Just enough. He licked. She groaned, her body jolting at his touch. He used his thumbs to separate her fold then licked and sucked until her body squirmed. Then she let out a mewling sound then her body went stiff. Her fingers fisted into the covers.
“Aaaah.”
He leaned back on his haunches proud of his job. If he could have high-fived someone he would have. That never got old. Sex was better for him if his partner was enjoying it. He rolled a condom onto himself as the spasms subsided on Kendra. He then rested her legs onto his chest, her feet either side of his head. The bed was just the right height to do this. He’d put the bed on a platform just to be able to do this. He entered her. She gasped. He could get in deeper at this angle and hit all of the right spots.
He began rhythm and her body reacted instantly. Her moans made it difficult to keep control of himself. He must want to pound into her harder. And then he knew she was gone. Her vagina clenched around him and he went over the edge with her. Damn. He couldn’t see and he wasn’t sure if he was still moving. And then he was done. His breath came out in pants and he didn’t think he could stand any longer. He got rid of the condom then lay next to her. She opened her eyes slightly.
“You may kill me,” she said. “That last orgasm just kept going.”
He smiled, and then kissed her nose. “My pleasure.”
She snugged up against him. “Let’s get under the covers before we fall asleep.”
Under the covers, she laid her head on his chest. He played with her hair. Her breathing became steady and he knew she was asleep. He liked the feeling of her next to him. This arrangement was going to be amazing. He had no idea what would cause it to end, unless one of them did bring emotion into it. Sacha doubted that he would be the one. Love was for others, for Viktor his brother. Sacha preferred to be alone and now with Kendra here he didn’t have to go trawling in the bars for a one night stand.
Everything was clear between them and he could help her in the meantime. What a relief not to have to go to a bar or lie to his mother about bringing someone to a function or a family dinner. Would Kendra be willing to do that? Keep up the charade in front of others.
He also had to tell her that he’d proved that the building he owned was not historical, but he’d chosen to keep the outside the same and rework the inside. That was a conversation for another day. He settled further into the pillow. Kendra stirred, but didn’t wake up. At least Cliff hadn’t asked about them. The little boy seemed to take it all in stride. He was a good kid and Sacha wanted to stay in touch with him when this was all over. He could probably use a male role model.
That settled, Sacha feel asleep.
*
Kendra woke alone again but knew that Sacha wasn’t far. He usually made breakfast for Cliff and let her sleep. She thought about last night and their revised agreement. The day was looking brighter, as was her future. Even if it was only pretend, she could tell people who asked that she had a boyfriend. She wandered out after her shower and sure enough Sacha was with Cliff. But they weren’t in the kitchen. No, there were dirty dishes in there. Instead, Cliff and Sacha were in the living room in front of the television, playing a video game.
Kendra hadn’t realized Sacha had a gaming system. She began to do the dishes.
“Hey, Kendra. Look what Mr. Kozlov brought home,” Cliff said.
She walked into the living room. The game itself looked innocuous but why did a five-year-old need to play video games?
“Good morning,” Sacha said.
“What are you guys doing?”
Sacha was still in his pajamas. She’d never seen him leave his bedroom like that.
“We’re playing Alphabet Warriors,” Cliff said. His smile was huge.
“Okay.”
“I brought home a game system last night. I figured Cliff and I could play it once in a while,”
He looked at her as if he were asking permission. Kind of cute to see a captain of industry, a man who made a lot of money, looking at her to see if she was okay with it. She appreciated the illusion of a boundary with Cliff. “Okay.”
“Sit,” Sacha said. “You can play the winner. The kid’s pretty good.”
Kendra sat on the edge of the couch. “Nice.”
Sacha lost. “Put it on single player. I need to show Kendra something.”
“I think we need to put a time limit on game play,” Kendra said.
“Aw, Kendra,” Cliff said.
“Hey, what Kendra says, goes.” He pulled his phone out of his pajama pockets, which made her wonder where he got the pajamas from. She’d never seen him wear any.
“We need a timer,” Kendra said.
“I’ll use my phone for now,” Sacha said. “Half an hour okay?”
Kendra nodded. He punched in the timer on his phone. “No argument, buddy. When that goes off, you’re done.”
“Okay, Mr. Kozlov.”
Cliff went back to his game. Sacha bounced off the couch. “I have something I want to show you.”
She followed him to the dining room. Architect plans were laid out on the flat surface.
“What’s this?”
“I decided to keep the façade of the building I own. It fits into the neighborhood well.”
She looked at him then at the plans. “The building isn’t historical. You can do what you want.”
“I know, but this way the neighborhood will look better. The sleek building I wanted to build wouldn’t work.”
She eyed the plans, liking them a lot. “Why?”
Sacha shrugged. “Seemed a better, long-term business plan. This way my neighbors won’t hate me either. Less messy, too, maybe.”
She laughed. “I doubt it will be less messy by much, but these plans are great. Are you getting excited?”
“I am. I can start sooner on the renovation. I have the permit applications in so hopefully those will come through soon.”
She smiled at him. He was a sweet guy. That’s why she could trust him with her body. This arrangement was going to work out great for them.
“What’s on your agenda today?” Sacha said.
“Can you go to my mailbox and empty it? Then I can concentrate on paperwork today when the nanny comes.”
“Sounds good. Then I need to head into the office for a few hours. I have a few changes for the architect to make. I’m having lunch with my brother then I should be home before dinner.”
“You don’t have to tell me your whole day. I don’t need to know.”
“I figure my comings and goings affect you s
o my schedule is an open book,” Sacha said.
Very considerate. “Thank you. I do appreciate it all that you’re doing for Cliff and me,” Kendra said. She really didn’t know what would happen to them if Sacha hadn’t been there and if he wasn’t such a generous man. They’d be in trouble. Or dead. Who would take care of her mother? Kendra shuddered at the thoughts in her head.
“Take a closer look at these plans. What do you think of them?” Sacha said.
“What do I think of them? You’re asking the wrong person. I don’t go to clubs.”
“Still. I’d like another set of eyes on them before I give any changes to the architect,” Sacha said.
He tapped the blueprints. It took a moment of her to orient herself. “So there’s the front door. This is the first floor, I guess.”
“Yes. This is the actual nightclub part. Upstairs will be offices. And my apartment.” He pointed to an elevator shaft. “This is a separate entrance for the offices.” He slid his finger over to another spot marked elevator. “This is my elevator up to my apartment. There are stairs also in case of a fire.”
“Are you looking for flow?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, the bar is up front. Don’t you want people to have to walk through the whole club to get to the bar? That way the patrons get to see the whole place. Kind of like supermarkets have the milk at the furthest point in the store.”
Sacha rubbed his chin. Was he actually thinking over her idea?
“How about halfway back. I don’t want anyone to have to walk through the dance floor.”
“Okay.” She pointed to a spot in the middle of the room. “A rectangular bar here. Then no one has to navigate the dance floor to get to the bathroom. Or the crowd overflow from the bar.”
Sacha hummed for a moment. “Yes, I like it. Wonder why the architect didn’t think of that.”
“Maybe he was going for form over function.”
***
Sacha came home from a long day. He’d met with the architect and the man was not happy about the changes that Kendra had suggested. The man clearly didn’t like his work questioned. Sacha had to fire him from the project, which meant he had to spend the afternoon searching for a new one. Viktor, his brother, had given him a few suggestions. Finally, one had been available. A younger man who was hungry for business. Sacha wasn’t averse to helping someone out in the business that was new. In fact he liked them better because they were more willing to hustle for business.
He had new plans for the first floor that he wanted to show Kendra. He liked that she hadn’t been shy on giving him her opinion. The architect had incorporated her design changes. He’d give Sacha the rest of the building designs in a week or so but that would be fine. Sacha would have to resubmit the permit applications. He would still be closer to completion than if he had to tear down the building. Kendra’s group had done him a favor by blocking the demolition.
Sacha entered his apartment and knew instantly Cliff was asleep. The place had a lot more noise when the boy was awake. Sacha didn’t mind, nor did he mind when the boy went to bed. Sacha hadn’t realized how late it was.
He found Kendra elbow deep in paperwork for her race. “I’m sorry.”
She looked up at him. “For what?”
“For not being here when I said I would be.”
“It’s okay. The nanny gave Cliff dinner then put him to bed. She just left a half an hour ago. I’ve been working on these registrations since not long after you left.”
“You hungry?”
“Yes, I was just thinking about getting up to find some leftovers.”
He took off his tie. “No need. I’ll cook.”
“I’m sorry. You’ve worked all day,” she said.
He shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I find it relaxing.”
“Okay.”
She went back to her paperwork. He changed into jeans and a shirt then padded barefoot out to the kitchen. He perused the refrigerator and decided on a course of action. But first, he wanted wine. He had a nice Malbec on hand so he opened that and took a glass of it to Kendra. She looked ragged. She smiled when he set it in front of her.
“Maybe you should quit for tonight,” he said.
She looked around. “I guess I could. I might not be so productive anymore.”
“Come join me in the kitchen.”
Sacha led her back to the kitchen where he began to chop items for a ragout.
“You’re very patient,” Kendra said.
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve invaded your home with a child. I’ve taken over your dining room table.”
“Kendra, Cliff is fine. I like kids.” Should he tell her about his own? What would it matter? “Years ago, I was in a relationship with a woman. We weren’t in love, in lust most likely. We had a child that she gave up for adoption. I was young and insecure and stupid. I’m looking for him now. Having Cliff here reminded me why I’m looking for him.”
“I can’t ever see you as insecure.”
He laughed. “That’s what you got out of what I said? You aren’t shocked that I had a child?”
She shrugged. “My mother had a baby with a man she can’t remember.”
“You have any idea who Cliff’s father is?”
“No, it was a one night stand and I doubt he even stayed that long.”
He could hear the bitterness in her voice. How could a man take advantage of a woman? He never understood that. He wanted his partners to be his equal.
“She wasn’t lucid enough to remember at that point?”
“She had her moments, but I think she chose to forget him. I think it was as mutual as it could have been in her condition. Might have been the mailman or the UPS guy,” Kendra said. “She couldn’t give me enough information to begin looking and at the time I just had to get her through the pregnancy. That’s where all of my energy went.”
“Understandable.”
What a nightmare for her but, from what he could see, she didn’t hold any resentment toward her mother or Cliff. What a brave soul. He had to admire her.
A half an hour later, he served up dinner with a flourish.
“Looks, great. Thanks.”
She ate with gusto and that was enough thanks for Sacha. “I could help with whatever you’re doing in there.”
She waved a hand. “It can wait until tomorrow. I’m tired.”
“Okay, but I don’t mind.”
She yawned. “No, I want to be fresher.”
He cleared away her plate.
“I’ll do dishes,” she said.
“I’m thinking about hiring a maid. I’m not usually here this much and I don’t think you should have to clean,” Sacha said.
“I don’t mind.”
“I do. You still work even if you don’t go there. Since you can’t go there.”
“The dishes still need to be done tonight. I don’t like to go to bed with them dirty.”
“Okay, but I made a fine mess and I’m going to help you clean it up.” She looked around the kitchen. He knew what she saw and the weariness in her eyes spoke to him. “You do the dishes. I’ll do the rest.”
“Deal.”
She filled the sink with water. He wasn’t going to ask for sex tonight. She looked far too tired. He’d bet this whole situation was wearing on her. He’d give her the night off. Might result in a cold shower for him, but he’d live.
Finally the kitchen was cleaned. Kendra wiped her hands on a towel.
“Good night Kendra.”
She gave him an odd look. “Good night, Sacha.”
He left her standing there a puzzled look on her face.
Chapter7
The deadline for registering for the race that would benefit several Alzheimer’s organizations had passed and now it was time to get to some real work. This meant planning the rest of the event down to who would play the music. Kendra’s staff of volunteers had been working on it in her absence, but some contracts
had to be signed and she was the only one who could do that. Besides, she wanted to touch base with her people and give them a pep talk.
She approached Sacha one morning before he went to work.
They’d been getting along well, but she really had to go meet with her staff. There was no way around it. They were flagging and she had to get the motivated again. She couldn’t do that remotely.
“Hey,” Sacha said. He stood in the hallway, looking in the mirror and tying his tie. It was striped with the colors blue and green. It brought out his eyes.
“Hi, I need a favor. Well, I need you to help me with logistics.”
He finished up his tied then turned to her. He always gave her his full attention. They were only bedmates. She wondered what he’d be like if they were in love.
“Go ahead.”
Cliff was singing to the nanny in another room. Sacha smiled and she assumed that her brother amused him.
“I need to have meeting with my staff. I don’t want to have it here, but I need to see them in person. So how do I go about doing that and still be safe?”
She watched him swallow. He had a sexy throat, long and lean and tanned. How did it get so tanned when he worked all of the time?
“I can get you a bodyguard. Might take me a few days. Or I can see if I can borrow one of Viktor’s bouncers.”
“He has bouncers?”
“His is a private club. He wants to make sure his clientele feels safe. I’ll have some also to discourage the underage crowd. I don’t need that kind of trouble,” Sacha said. “How soon do you want to have this meeting?”
“I’d hoped for today.”
Sacha frowned. He pulled out his phone. “Let me look at my schedule.”
“You don’t need to be there.”
He waved at her dismissively. “I can’t be there today. Let me call Viktor. Hopefully he’s up. Can you put it off until this afternoon?”
Kendra’s heart leapt. She was going to get to go out and see her staff. It would be nice to be around people. An extrovert at heart, she was missing being around co-workers. “Yes. I’ll let them know that we have a potential meeting this afternoon. Thank you Sacha.”
“No problem.” He smiled down at her. “You’re easy to please.”
Her Russian Billionaires - The Complete Billionaire Romance Collection Page 27
