A Stranger In Moscow: A Russian Billionaire Romance (International Alphas Book 7)

by Lacey Legend

  Olivia was used to this routine, but when she heard Vera was interested in Ruslan, her heart sunk a bit. She looked over at Ruslan, dancing alone. He looked up and made eye contact with Olivia, immediately smiling. He motioned for her to join him, but Vera saw first and mistook the gesture for herself. She ran towards Ruslan and started grinding all over him. Olivia looked over and saw Nikolai, who was already dancing with another girl. She stayed where she was and danced alone, trying to hide the fact that she kind of wanted to cry, or at least push Vera off Ruslan. She distanced herself from the couple and tried to tune out her thoughts and dance to the music.

  Why would she be upset that Ruslan was dancing with Vera? Just moments ago, she was slapping his hand away, and the night before he had caused her to fear for her life. Any other time, this man would totally disgust Olivia, but something about him made it hard for her to tune him out. He towered over her and had the muscles of a body builder, but still, something about his presence comforted Olivia. Though they hadn’t talked much and had been through even more intense scenarios, she still felt like she could trust him.

  She had to snap into reality. Ruslan was in his late thirties, though he didn’t look like it. Though he wasn’t much older than Olivia, he was definitely far from Vera’s age. The thought of him showing interest in his partner’s young daughter slightly creeped Olivia out. She wouldn’t want to be with a man like that, right? What did he see in Vera?

  Then she thought about what he saw in her. What did she have to offer? A loner from the Midwest with no family and hardly any friends. She was small with dark features while Vera looked like she stepped out of a magazine. Her heart kept sinking deeper and deeper as she pictured the two together, but she had to remind herself over and over again that the idea of being with Ruslan was ridiculous anyways, right?

  Olivia decided she needed to leave right then and there and didn’t care who else left with her. She wanted to get as far away from Ruslan and Vera as possible. Surely, she could find a cab that would take her back to the cabin, right?

  Just as she started to walk down the stairs, she felt a strong grip on her elbow once again. This time, instead of being intimidated by Nikolai, she was being dragged back to the dance floor by Ruslan.

  “Where are you going?” he asked. Olivia quickly looked around and realized she couldn’t see Vera. Ruslan must have ditched her on the dance floor. Olivia shrugged and followed Ruslan back to dance.

  At first, they just danced next to each other. Olivia had no idea what the song was singing, as she assumed it was being sung in Russian. Still, she loved the tempo and the way it flowed through her arms and down through her legs. Ruslan was a pretty good dancer, but Olivia had some moves herself.

  Eventually, the song got a bit slower and more intense, so dancing separate from each other felt a little strange. Ruslan grabbed Olivia’s hands and jokingly danced around the floor with her. He got more serious and pulled her in close, pressing her stomach into his. She was about as high as his chest, but for her, that was the perfect spot. He held her close and swayed to the beat. For a moment, Olivia forgot that they were in the club at all.

  She turned around and Ruslan held her close from behind, grinding and swaying to the song, holding Olivia’s hips the entire time. She closed her eyes and leaned into him, swaying along as well. She felt like she could spend hours on the dance floor and was much happier that she had decided to come out instead of ditching them to go home and read at the cabin.

  Just as she thought Ruslan might lean down and kiss her, she felt the third sharp grip on her elbow that night. It was Vera, and she looked like she had just gotten run over by a bus.

  “I’m sick. We need to go,” she cried. Olivia reluctantly led her downstairs while Ruslan rounded up the rest of the crew to head home.

  Chapter5

  Any other morning, waking up as hungover as Olivia was, she would have spent the day in bed. Instead, she remembered that she was still in fact working and needed to wake up before the rest of the family to get breakfast ready and make sure Margot didn’t need any help.

  For some reason, when she drank heavily the night before, it was always hard for her to sleep. She couldn’t stop thinking about the way she felt when she swayed with Ruslan at the club. She was happy that Vera ran to throw up instead of dancing with Ruslan, but still worried about what she might do in the future to try and dig her claws into Rus.

  When Olivia walked into the kitchen, she realized Margot was already up.

  “I’m sorry, did you get up okay?” Olivia asked.

  “Of course, don’t be sorry. You two must have been out late last night?” Margot asked.

  “Yeah. I’m sorry if you needed me, but Vera was having so much fun and I wanted to make sure she was okay,” Olivia responded. She would have stayed out as late as she did even if Vera didn’t need any help, but she still wanted to remind Margot that she was doing her best to be a good employee while they were enjoying their night out.

  “I’m sure she had fun too?” Margot asked.

  “Oh yeah, she always does,” Olivia responded. She had gone out to party with Vera before, but this was certainly the hardest they ever drank. She had to drink a lot to keep up with Ruslan and his crew. Although it was an intense night, Olivia was still glad that she had gone out.

  She made Margot eggs and toast before asking about the rest of the family.

  “Should I wake up Joseph?” Olivia asked.

  “Oh, no, he left early this morning. He had some meetings to get to and will probably be out the rest of the day,” Margot said sipping her coffee. Olivia felt bad for her that she would be alone again. There was only about a week they had left in Russia, and who knew how long exactly Margot had left in her life.

  Of course, she was given so many months to live, but Olivia had seen time and time again that that sentence could get cut in half or even less. It was tragic, but a reality the family would have to face if they were going to make the most of Margot’s time left on Earth. Even if she did live past the expectancy, that didn’t mean her mind would be there. It was obvious the cancer was rapidly spreading through her body and it would only be so long until it took what was left of her brain.

  “I’ll see if Vera wants to get up,” Olivia said. She didn’t mind spending the day alone with Margot. They would play cards or checkers and enjoyed checking out the local stations of the different countries where they had traveled. Still, Olivia thought about how lucky Vera was that she still gets to have her mom around and how if Olivia were her, she would never leave her mother’s side.

  She took a tray of eggs, toast, and coffee to Vera’s door and knocked hard. “Vera, are you going to get up?” she yelled. There wasn’t a response. “Vera?”

  “Come in,” she said with a raspy voice. Vera had spent the hour after they got home throwing up and eventually fell asleep in the bathroom. Olivia moved her to her bed and suspected she wouldn’t be getting out of it anytime soon.

  Olivia walked in and saw Vera in a pile of blankets on the bed. “Just leave the food, I might throw up again,” she responded. “Don’t come knocking again. If I need something I’ll come and get it.”

  Olivia set the food down and left. She wondered how Vera could go from hanging out with Olivia and sharing drugs at a club, to treating her like the help, tossing around orders. Though she felt she needed to protect Vera sometimes, she also reveled in the idea of Vera throwing up in bed all day.

  When she returned to the kitchen, Margot was doing dishes.

  “Oh Margot, don’t do those! Please!” Olivia responded, taking the sponge from her hand. Margot was gripping a plate tight and backed away from the sink. She looked at Olivia, incredibly confused and almost scared, then let go of the plate, sending it shattering to the floor. Margot gasped and grabbed her face.

  “It’s okay, Margot, don’t move.” There was glass shattered everywhere and Margot wasn’t wearing any shoes or socks. Olivia stepped over the broken plate pieces and
led Margot to the living room. It was clear that something going on in her head took Margot away for a second. “Are you okay?” Olivia asked.

  “I don’t know what happened. I’m sorry,” Margot responded.

  “Don’t be sorry. Just don’t try to do too much. You need rest,” Olivia replied.

  “Rest? What for? So I can get better? I’m not getting any better.”

  Olivia was a nurse and was certainly used to dealing with these difficult and challenging scenarios, but still, when it came to Margot talking about death, she didn’t know what to say. Olivia was pretty good at separating her work life from her personal life, but every once in a while, the two would mesh and she would get confused. Working in a hospital, she had to treat the patients as patients. She respected them as if they were family, but when it came to losing someone, she had to remind herself that was part of the job description.

  “How about some tea? Coffee can make your brain work too hard sometimes,” Olivia responded warmly, trying her best to change the subject.

  “I don’t know why I even bother. Why did I come here? I don’t want to be in Russia. I don’t want to be anywhere, though. Nobody cares what’s going to happen to me.”

  Olivia didn’t know how to react. Of course, her family cared, but they didn’t fully realize the situation, at least that’s what Olivia thought. “I care, Margot. I’m not going anywhere. How about a game of checkers?” Olivia asked. Margot nodded and leaned back on the couch and stared into space. She could have really used someone there to help her and Margot through the situation, but Margot wasn’t interested in hiring a therapist or hospice worker to help her accept her fate.

  As she cleaned up the broken pieces of glass on the floor, Olivia thought about what Margot had said. She didn’t know why she even bothered either. She didn’t have someone back home waiting for her and didn’t have the family that Margot had. What was her purpose? What was she there for? Why did she do anything? She remembered how she felt the night of the robbery. Why didn’t she run for her life? She just sat in that chair and waited for help. This might have been the right thing to do, but was Olivia just telling herself that?

  ****

  The cabin was quiet except for the sound of Margot breathing heavily. She had fallen asleep on the couch after dinner while watching the news. Joseph still hadn’t returned home, and Vera stayed holed up in her room all day. Olivia and Margot had played several games of checkers, made lunch and dinner, and watched TV all day.

  It was certainly an uneventful day, but something that Olivia had been used to. That was how most of her days traveling with the Touhy family went, aside from several nights out with Vera and the robbery, of course.

  She hadn’t heard much noise coming from Vera’s room all day, but she followed her wishes and left her alone in her room. Just as she started to drift off herself, the front cabin door opened.

  “Hello! Sorry I’m home so late!” Joseph said beaming. Margot startled awake once she realized Joseph was home.

  “Hi honey. Nice of you to finally join us,” Margot replied sleepily.

  “I’m so sorry, gorgeous, some of my meetings just ran a little late. Where’s our lovely daughter?” he asked.

  “Nursing a hangover,” Olivia responded. “There’s leftovers in the fridge if you’re hungry.” It was getting close to Margot’s bedtime, but Olivia assumed Joseph hadn’t eaten yet.

  “No, I’m fine, I went out with some colleagues,” he replied.

  “I don’t feel so hot. I think I might just head to bed,” Margot stated.

  “Do you want help? I could run you a bath?” Olivia asked.

  “No, Joseph, will you come to bed with me?” Margot asked.

  “There’s no place I’d rather be!” he said happily. He seemed in extra high spirits, but Olivia couldn’t figure out why. Joseph led his wife upstairs and shut their bedroom door. They had gone to bed early many nights. Margot was almost always tired, and Joseph loved his sleep as well.

  Olivia channel-surfed for a bit before deciding that bed was probably the place for her to be as well. She walked into her room, passed Vera’s, still not hearing a peep. She’d probably feel better in the morning. Olivia wasn’t tired just yet but didn’t have much else to do. Though she didn’t mind quiet days in, she couldn’t help but miss how much fun she had the night before out with Ruslan and his crew. She switched into a T-shirt and was just in her underwear when she looked out the window and realized someone might be there.

  There wasn’t much of a view out of her bedroom window, though she could make out some trees and other dark figures. Still, she thought for sure that she had seen the silhouette of a man standing in front of her window. Instead of remaining frozen this time, Olivia decided to be brave and not fear whatever might be out there.

  She walked up to her window and opened it wide, peeking her head out. There was no screen, so she immediately felt the bitter cold smack her in the face. Her room was situated at the opposite end of the bedroom right below Margot and Joseph’s. She could hear them upstairs when they were in the master bedroom, but other than that, there wasn’t much noise she could hear the rest of the time.

  “Who’s out there?” she said sternly. It was quiet for a moment until she heard the trees rustle, Ruslan emerging from them. She thought for a second, she might be dreaming, but the sting of the chilly air reminded her that wasn’t the case.

  “What are you doing here?” Olivia asked. Two nights ago, she’d be terrified by the sight of this large man, but now she was a bit thrilled he was outside her bedroom window.

  “I need help. Can I come in?” he asked. Olivia realized quickly that he was holding his arm in pain. It was dark, so she couldn’t see what was wrong, but she figured if he was asking her for help, he must really need someone.

  “Yeah, be quiet, they just went to bed.”

  “Has Joseph been here?” he asked.

  “No, he just got home less than twenty minutes ago. What’s wrong?” she asked, helping him climb in the window. It was about the height of his waist, so he didn’t have much difficulty climbing in. If Olivia had tried, she would have needed some serious upper body strength.

  “I was attacked. The knife I told you about? It’s gone. Someone had broken in and waited for me to get home. They attacked me from behind, but I was able to fight them off. I didn’t get a good look, but it didn’t look like Joseph,” he replied.

  “Well, if you didn’t get a good look, how do you know?” Olivia asked.

  “I don’t. I just don’t want it to be Joseph. Can you help me, I think I need stitches?” he said, revealing a deep cut across his forearm. Olivia had seen much worse, but outside of the hospital, it still hurt to see such a gaping hole in such a strong arm.

  “You need to get to the hospital.”

  “I can’t. They’ll ask what happened. I don’t want anyone to know that I was attacked. This needs to stay just between me and you. You don’t know what could happen.”

  “I don’t do stitches. I’m not authorized.” Olivia wasn’t lying. Normally, a doctor would step in to do the stitches. Although she wasn’t an expert, she knew that’s what he needed. “We have to get you to the hospital.”

  “I can’t! Please, you have to do something!” She had seen doctors give stitches dozens of times and had learned how in nursing school should she ever need to do it in an emergency. This seemed like an emergency.

  “I’ll do what I can. Wait here.” Olivia’s nursing mode immediately took over and she knew that she had to help Ruslan. She quietly opened the door and sneaked out of her room, hoping to go unnoticed. She slipped into the bathroom and grabbed some bandages. She was searching for rubbing alcohol to sanitize the wounds but didn’t have enough. Luckily, they had a stocked bar in the kitchen she could steal something from. When she made her way into the kitchen, she was frozen at the sight of Vera.

  “Oh, hi, I thought you were in bed,” Olivia said to Vera who was digging into leftovers from dinner
.

  “I’ve been sleeping all day and finally feel up to eating, can you believe it?” She laughed.

  “Well I’m glad you’re feeling better. I’m just going to have a little night cap. It helps me sleep after a day of being hungover,” Olivia responded. She walked over to the dining room and grabbed a large bottle of whiskey.

  “Girl, you’re crazy! Don’t drink in front of me! I’ll for sure puke again,” Vera responded.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll go in my room. Goodnight!” Olivia said, running back towards her room. Vera was easily convinced of everything.

  Once back in her room, she pulled out a needle and thread she had stashed away in her luggage. She had gotten used to sewing up her own clothes throughout college. If she liked a shirt, instead of throwing it away when it got torn, she’d just sew it up. The needle was much larger than the ones doctors used, but it would have to do.

  “This is going to hurt pretty bad. I don’t have anything to numb the pain,” Olivia explained. Ruslan reached for the bottle of whiskey, taking a big swig. “Actually, you shouldn’t drink much, it makes your blood thinner. You could bleed out.”

  “Yes nurse,” Ruslan teased. “I think I can handle it.”

  Olivia poured what she had left of the rubbing alcohol onto Ruslan’s wounds. He pulled away a bit, but Olivia could tell he was doing his best to seem brave. The thing she was worried about most was going deep or improperly stitching it up. If she didn’t clean the area enough and trapped foreign material inside, he could get an infection.

  “Are you sure about this?” she asked while she disinfected the needle and thread. Ruslan shook his head. She made the first stitch and he seemed to handle it well. He wouldn’t need many, but if Olivia didn’t stitch up the wound, she feared what could happen to his arm. His long, strong, beautiful arm. She got a little distracted being so close to him. It was an intimate moment, but she needed to focus on what she was doing so as to not make a mistake. He could have used another stitch. Or maybe she did one too many. Either way, she had managed to properly close the wound.