by Lacey Legend
Kendra glanced at Cliff her lips pressed together. “I guess if you insist. I don’t want him to be in any danger.”
“Since they’ve probably connected the two of us, I don’t think it’s safe here,” Sacha said. He’d feel better with Kendra out of the city. He could helicopter back and forth for work.
“Have you talked to Viktor?” Kendra said.
“I will. I know Viktor. He’ll do it for me.”
“If you insist.”
He reached across the table, squeezing her hand. “I insist Kendra. I said I’d protect you and I’m not going to stop doing that because it was more difficult.”
She looked at their hands then nodded. “Okay. When will we go?”
“First thing in the morning. I can have my driver take Cliff to Viktor’s place in the city. They’ll make sure to take him to their house.”
“You have it all figured out.”
“I usually do. I’m a detail kind of guy,” Sacha said.
“Thank you again. You’ve done more than anyone else would. More than anyone has ever done for me. I don’t know how I will ever repay you.”
“There is no need to repay me.”
Chapter8
Kendra kissed Cliff goodbye. Alia had insisted her driver would get the little boy and she would come with him. Kendra hugged the pregnant woman. She really did glow. “Thank you for taking him.”
“It’s not a problem. I look forward to spending time with him,” Alia said. “Sacha said that he’s a sweet kid.”
Alia held out her hand to Cliff, who took it. He skipped alongside her to the car parked in the underground garage. Kendra had a wistful moment. Cliff wasn’t her child, but she’d raised him just like a mother. She would miss him, but he was in good hands. She was sure of that. Sacha wouldn’t put Cliff or her in any danger. Not on purpose for sure. Still, she’d been with Cliff since he was born. She fulfilled the role of a mother and now she was feeling like she shouldn’t abandon him.
He didn’t seem too upset to be going with Alia. She waved again before she climbed into the limousine. This family single-handedly kept the limousine companies in business.
Sacha put a hand on her arm. “He’ll be fine.”
“I know that rationally. I’m just a little unnerved by all of this.”
He nodded. “You packed?”
“I have some last minute items to put in.”
He entered the elevator with her. He studied her as the car went to the top. She finished her packing then rolled her suitcase to the front door.
“The helicopter is here,” Sacha said.
“We aren’t driving?”
“No. We’re flying,” he said.
Kendra had never been in a plane let alone a helicopter. They took the elevator to the roof. Sure enough. There it was. Its rotors were still and a pilot sat in the front. He climbed out then shook hands with Sacha. He helped her climb in. When she was strapped in, he handed her headphones. “It’ll be loud otherwise and we can talk.”
She nodded then put them on. She helped Sacha with is because his arm was in a sling. He felt better when it was immobilized. He refused to take any pain medication. He didn’t like how it made him feel.
The helicopter took off and butterflies chose to occupy Kendra’s tummy. Sacha held her hand. She must not have looked good. “Look outside,” Sacha said.
She did and the view was breathtaking. She smiled. She wasn’t afraid anymore, but she didn’t know which way to look at all. There were so many sights. Then they were out of the city and the hills and trees looked so green. “It’s beautiful,” she said.
She turned to Sacha who was smiling. “I’m glad you’re enjoying it.”
“I’m a city girl, born and bred, Sacha. I hope I can hack it in the wilderness.”
“We’ll be in a house, not a tent. Running water and indoor plumbing.”
She laughed. “Okay, but I’ve never spent much time outside the city.”
“You’ll enjoy it. You won’t have to stay inside at all. You’ll be free to get fresh air.”
“Cliff probably would have loved it.”
“Yes, but if he’s with you, he’s in danger. Viktor had a nice house in the suburbs with a yard and woods. Cliff will be in heaven,” Sacha said.
Kendra was still second-guessing her decision to go along with Sacha’s plan. She should be taking care of Cliff. He was her responsibility.
“He’s in good hands, Kendra. I promise. I wouldn’t have put his life in danger. Not for anything.”
“You like Cliff don’t you?”
“He’s growing on me,” Sacha said. “There it is.” He pointed for her and she saw a house rising out of the forest. Not a castle, but could have been.
“Wow. How many acres do you own?”
“About a hundred and sixty-five. Not a big plot for up here.”
“A hundred and sixty-five?” She couldn’t wrap her head around that much land.
The helicopter landed on the front lawn, a flat expanse of green. All around the house were woods. More trees than Kendra had probably ever seen. And she’d spent some time in Central Park. Sacha climbed out then gave her his good arm to hold onto. She was so busy looking at the house that she almost tripped out of the chopper.
“Careful, Kendra.”
She laughed, but stopped to stare at the house. It had a porch than ran the length of the house. Five dormers stuck out of the second floor. “It’s amazing, Sacha.”
He grinned at her. “I haven’t been in here in months. I wish I was here under better circumstances.”
“Where else do you have houses?”
The pilot took their suitcases out of the helicopter. Kendra grabbed hers while Sacha took his.
“I have an apartment in Paris. One in Moscow and a house in the Hollywood Hills.”
“Do you get to see them often?”
“No. Maybe I’ll take you to all of them sometime.”
He was talking about the future. As if they really had one. She was temporarily in his life. She knew this, but she could dream about Paris and Moscow. It wasn’t a bad dream at all.
“Will the helicopter stay here?”
“Yes, he’ll put it on a trailer. There’s a hanger, but he’ll have to tow it there and the pilot will stay in the apartment there. He’ll be available if I need him. I usually give him my schedule ahead of time, but he knows that I might need him other times too.”
“So he’s always on call?”
“He gets paid well for always being on call, Kendra.”
Sacha’s looked at her with heavy-lidded eyes, as if she shouldn’t ask more. She wouldn’t. Not her problem. Sacha opened the front door. Inside the foyer was two stories tall. A living room sat to the right, as did the rest of the house. A staircase was right in front of her.
“Just leave the suitcases there. Let me show you around down here, and then I’ll show you to our bedroom.”
***
Sacha wanted to go to the bedroom first. It had been a few days since they’d been in the sack, and he was itching to get at least his good hand on a naked Kendra. The logistics would be interesting, but he’d bet they could work it out.
“This is the great room. The fireplace is propane. No need to chop wood.” He led her through the room to the kitchen.
“Oh, my goodness,” Kendra said.
He loved this kitchen. “I can make some really great meals in this room.”
He watched her as she looked at everything in the house. He liked her reaction. He’d never brought a woman here. He’d never seen it through someone else’s eyes. The smile didn’t leave her face. Finally, they reached the bedroom. It was at the back of the house and had a large window looking out into the woods.
“What a view.”
“Yes it is.”
She spun back to him. He was looking at her.
“You need to freshen up?” he said.
She walked to him, then kissed him. “I’m good.” She stepped back to look at him. Her
gaze fell onto the sling on his arm.
“We can work around this Kendra. I just need your help undressing.”
“I think I can do that.” Her fingers danced across his chest as she unbuttoned his shirt. She was taking her own sweet time.
“I don’t care if you rip it off.”
She stepped away from him. “I’m not going to hurt your arm. If you aren’t nice to me I’ll undress in front of you and leave you here to try to take your own pants off, with a hard on.”
She crossed her arms. Damn her. She’d been helping him with his clothing for the last two days. She knew he couldn’t do it himself.
“Fine, but I’d think you would be eager since it’s been a few days.”
She cocked her eyebrow. “I could go a few more days.”
“Stop. You’re killing me.”
She laughed, then pushed his shirt off of his shoulder with the care someone would give crystal. He didn’t care about the pain. His dick hurt from lack of use more than his shoulder hurt from the bullet that had grazed him. The shirt landed on the floor. She unbuttoned his pants then slid them and his boxers down his legs. He used his good arm to brace himself on the wall to remove his legs. Now he was naked and Kendra was kneeling in front of him.
Oh. God.
She put her hand on his erection.
“That might explode.”
Then she licked around the tip and Sacha slammed his hand on the wall. “Kendra.”
She laughed then stepped away to get undressed. His breath came out ragged as he fought not to lose it. “Go lay down on the bed,” she said.
Her voice was a little husky. He did as she said. She crawled on top of him, her breast right by his face.
“I can only touch with one hand. I’m sad.”
“At least you can touch.”
“True.”
“Then touch them,” she said.
So he did. First bringing one nipple to a peak. Then the other. Kendra groaned then kissed him. Her nipples brushed against his chest and he wanted to flip her over. He tried, but she shook her head.
“Oh, no. I’m doing all the work tonight.”
Her hand traveled down his torso to grip his dick.
“Oh, Kendra. It is going to go off if you’re not careful.”
“Condom?”
“In the drawer,” he rasped out.
She rolled one onto him the poised her body over his hard dick. She smiled then slid herself down onto him. She was warm and wet and moving over him.
“Holy shit.”
She felt good. He’d missed her. Missed being like this with her. His shoulder ached, but he didn’t care. He lifted his middle to meet her every stroke. Her hands were braced on his chest. Kendra was his, even if only for a short time. She was his, body and maybe soul. Her body reacted to his as if they’d known each other for years. He didn’t want the connection to stop, but he could see the tension in her face. She was close and he wasn’t too far behind.
She threw back her head as her pussy clenched around him. He groaned as he went over the edge. “Aargh.”
It hurt and felt great at the same time. He might have pulled some stitches, but he wasn’t ready to look at his shoulder yet. Kendra slumped over him, leaning on his good shoulder.
“I need to get rid of the condom.”
She slid off of him. He sat up and disposed of the condom. Damn things were a nuisance. He lay back down. Kendra rested her head on his good shoulder.
“I missed you,” he said.
“You missed sex.”
“I missed sex with you. It’s damn good sex and I like having it with you,” Sacha said.
She kissed his neck. “If you insist.”
He played with her hair as they lay there.
“You need food?” she said. “Do we need to shop?”
“Place is all stocked up. You can make almost anything you want.”
“Nice.”
She sat up then put her clothes on. “Don’t put clothes on for me.”
She laughed. “I can’t walk around naked.”
“Why not? I like the view.”
“I’m sure you do, but I’m just not comfortable.”
“Okay, but don’t wear too much since I can’t take them off.”
She giggled. “Oh? We’re doing it again?”
He sat up. “We do have a quota and we’re behind.”
“That’s because someone got themselves shot.”
“Saving your ass.”
She sat down on the bed next to him. “I never thanked you for saving my life.”
He brushed a hair out of her face. “You’re welcome. There should be some sweat pants in the drawer. Help me get them on.”
She did and he followed her to the kitchen. “I’m in the mood for chicken.”
“I’ll eat whatever you put in front of me.”
Chapter9
Kendra’s phone rang two days later when Sacha was back in Manhattan to get some work done. The ring didn’t sound right. The screen told her it was Alia, something must be wrong with Cliff.
She answered it even though she was out hiking. “Hello.”
“Kendra, it’s Alia.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong with Cliff. I’m having some pains and we can’t get ahold of Viktor’s mother to take Cliff. I don’t want to leave him with just anyone, but I need to meet my doctor at the hospital.”
“Have you tried Sacha?”
“He isn’t answering, which is odd,” Alia said. “It goes right to voicemail. Either his phone is dead or he’s in a dead zone.”
Damn. “Okay, I’ll see if I can get a ride to Manhattan. I think the helicopter pilot has come back here.”
“Okay.” Alia told her what hospital they’d be at. “I’ll send a driver to get you from the airport. Cliff will be with us.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Kendra set off in the direction of the hangar. The chopper was sitting on the lawn, so she just had to figure out where he was. His name was Chuck. That much she knew. She wondered what instruction Sacha had left him with. He must have told him to come back in case Kendra needed him. She wouldn’t have thought she would, but she had to bring Cliff back here.
The pilot was in the hangar, having a cup of coffee. Smelled good.
“Hey, Chuck, I need a ride to Manhattan.”
For a moment, she was struck with the oddity of the situation. Just weeks ago, she was hoping her car would last. Now she was hopping a ride on a helicopter like it was something she did every day. How much would she miss this world? She hadn’t ever expected to be a part of it. Had never aspired to it. Her goal had been to do work that fulfilled her and to do it while paying her bills. Might be tough to go back to living hand to mouth but she had no choice for sure.
“Uh, I think Mr. Kozlov will need me soon,” Chuck said.
Kendra cocked her head. “Why didn’t you stay in Manhattan then?”
“I need to get something from here.”
“Then drop me off in Manhattan then you’ll be there for Mr. Kozlov,” she said.
“He gave me orders that you weren’t to leave here.”
“I doubt I’m a prisoner. I have to go get my brother. It’s important.”
Chuck frowned. His gaze darted all over the room as if he couldn’t look her in the eye. “It’ll take me fifteen minutes to get the chopper ready.”
“I’ll be waiting,” she said.
She returned to the house, grabbed her purse then met the pilot at the chopper. She climbed on board when he gave the okay. He seemed to be taking a lot of time to get the thing started and off the ground. She had to get to Cliff. Hopefully he wouldn’t be too scared in the hospital. Her heart raced. She didn’t like that Cliff might be afraid. All of this had been enough of a disruption in his life.
She longed for her life to be back to normal. She bet Cliff did also. At least his nanny had given him some stability and now she was gone. Kend
ra needed to have him closer to her. She was his constant.
Finally, the chopper took off. As the aircraft began to move away, she thought she saw a car coming up the road. Check then, the driveway, but then it disappeared under the trees. Was it Sacha? She wouldn’t be able to hear him if she called him now and if he was driving he wouldn’t text back. The trip to Manhattan didn’t take long, but it seemed long to Kendra. The pilot dropped her off at the building where Sacha lived. In the garage a car awaited, which whisked her off to the address Alia had given her.
She arrived at the hospital an hour later, despite midday Manhattan traffic. She found Viktor, but no Cliff. Viktor was pacing.
“I can’t find Cliff.”
The paging system overhead clicked in. “Code Adam. Code Adam.”
Kendra hoped he’d just wandered to the bathroom, but her heart was in her throat. Where was he last?”
“I left him here in the hallway. The doctor is examining Alia. I figured he’d be okay out here. It isn’t a busy place,” Viktor said. “I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault. He should have been with me.”
“I’m a little new at this kid thing.”
“I’ll go look in the cafeteria. You look in the bathrooms.”
Kendra raced down to the other end of the hospital. Maybe Cliff got hungry. He didn’t have money on him, she was sure, but who knew how a five year old thought. Kendra’s phone rang.
“They found him. He’s at the security office,” Viktor said.
Overhead, she heard an announcement. “Cancel Code Adam. Cancel Code Adam.”
She hurried to the security office. There, Cliff was sitting on a chair, eating an ice cream cone. Cliff smiled up at her with ice cream on his face. “Kendra.”
She sat next to him, wanting to hug him, but also not wanting to get ice cream on herself. “You okay?”
The head of security sat behind his desk. “He had wandered off and when we found him he was screaming at a man who was trying to leave the hospital with him.”
Was it random or had it been someone connected with Lopez? “You caught the man?”
The man frowned. “He escaped before we could talk to him, but Cliff is safe and sound.”
“I’ll take him with me. You need to see some identification?”
