He had planned on making things right, sitting in his apartment after Nadia’s abrupt departure. In his mind, he had planned over and over again how he would let Sasha know that he was different and would never hurt her again. To his own embarrassment, he had dreamt of her response. The bright smile that she had greeted him with when they were together- he yearned to see it once more. It would remove the memory of her haunted eyes at the hospital, the fierce hatred decorating her features when she had come to his office.
Dmitri simply wanted a new start. And there was going to be no one to stand in his way. His gaze narrowed upon the man she stood with. He looked familiar but Dmitri was too distracted by the look of joy upon Sasha’s face as she spoke to think of why. The man’s identity became even more mysterious however when his brother made an appearance. Halting in his steps, Dmitri watched the camaraderie between the two.
He knew next to nothing about his brother’s personal life and friendships. But it no longer mattered because as the man smiled, it suddenly hit him: Carter James- the man who had been hounding him for a meeting. While it was an unpleasant surprise, it certainly gave him reason to interrupt their conversation. Carter had been the spokesperson for his boss’s company for some time and more than likely came to the event to persuade Dmitri into considering taking them on as a client. Planning to use that knowledge to his advantage, he decided to approach.
When he cleared his throat and greeted them all, he tried desperately to keep his eyes from straying directly to Sasha. He knew as soon as he got the opportunity to look at her with their physical proximity, he would have a hard time looking away. After both Dominic and Carter returned his greeting, as was socially expected, he had to finally look upon her.
What he didn’t expect to find was the blank stare she met him with. Expressionless, she nodded her head with a mumbled, “Hello.”
It was the last thing he expected. Anger, maybe even unmitigated disgust, but not…nothing. For a minute, Dmitri was speechless. He continued to stare at her longer than was acceptable when Carter took his attention once more.
“My name is Carter James. I’m not sure if you remember but-”
“I know who you are and who you work for. I also know why you’re here,” he interrupted, upset at the intrusion.
Carter’s brow lifted at the harshness behind Dmitri’s tone but easily brushed it off. “Well, if that’s the case, I can only assume there is a specific reason for why you approached.”
Pulling his gaze away once again from Sasha, Dmitri nodded distractedly. She refused to meet his stare, her attention instead resting upon Carter. And that not only infuriated him more but, he realized, that fury was fueled by jealousy.
‘It’s because she’s mine,’ he thought to himself.
“We should schedule a meeting sometime. I would like to consider your proposal a little more.”
Needless to say, Carter was clearly shocked by the invitation. Dmitri passed over his card with his cell phone information. “Now that we’ve got business out of the way, how have you been Carter?”
It took him a moment to respond but finally he said, “Fine, thank you. This here is Sasha Harmon.”
Deciding to play his cards close at hand, Dmitri shot his brother a warning glance before bowing his head slightly to greet Sasha more properly. He knew his face showed nothing of his true intentions, but when he reached out for her hand and pecked the back of her palm softly with his lips, his muscles tensed with the need to pull her to his chest. He felt mildly satisfied at her stiffness. Maybe she wasn’t as unmoved as her expression would have him to believe.
The Sasha before him had definitely changed. Two years ago, it was as if she hadn’t even known the concept of a poker face; her eyes had always given her away. But the guilty part of him knew he had been part of the reason for the transformation. The last time she had been vulnerable before him had resulted in a debacle. And so, he couldn’t fault her hardened exterior in his presence.
‘All in due time,’ he assured himself.
“It is nice to meet you Ms. Harmon. I’m Dmitri Durand as I’m sure you’ve heard.”
Practically shoving her hand from his grasp, Sasha replied stiffly, “It is nice to meet you too. And yes, I have heard some things.”
“All of them good I hope,” he chuckled falsely for Carter’s benefit, anticipating her cold silence in response.
Dominic interrupted the tense glare developing between his brother and Sasha by saying, “Well, Sasha was just about to leave when you came. So…”
Carter immediately jumped in. Turning to her, he asked, “Are you sure? If you would prefer to just go somewhere else, I’d be happy to do so.”
She smiled at his kindness. “Thank you, Carter. Truly, I’ve had a great time. I just think the day is catching up to me and I wouldn’t be such good company half-asleep from exhaustion. You shouldn’t have to cut your night short.”
He opened his mouth to protest but she gently placed her hand on his arm. “It’s okay. I really enjoyed myself.” While her statement was sincere, Sasha couldn’t deny to herself that part of her insistence had been for Dmitri’s benefit as well. She noticed his jaw tick at her announcement and felt morbidly satisfied by his response.
“Well, let me at least walk you to your car.” Carter insisted.
“No, you stay here. I’ll be fine. The parking lot is directly in front of the valet.” Seeing that he was about to protest once more, Sasha merely gave him a peck on the cheek. His shock silenced him and so she turned to the other two men, her gaze mostly resting upon Dominic. “It was nice seeing you again, Dominic.” With a cold nod to Dmitri, she walked away, her chin held parallel to the floor.
Dominic merely muttered, “Women,” as if the single word aptly described the situation.
Carter frowned. “I should follow her. Make sure she gets to her car safely.”
Seeing the look that crossed his brother’s face, Dominic jumped in before an altercation occurred. “I’m sure she will be fine. I’ve known Sasha for a while. She’s stronger than she looks.”
Carter raised a brow at his remark. “Just how long have you known her? And in what context?”
“No worries, friend.” He patted Carter on the shoulder in a casual manner. “You’ll receive no competition for her affections from me.”
When Carter removed his gaze from Dominic to include Dmitri in conversation he was left speechless at the man’s silent absence. Looking around, his frown deepened. “Where the hell did your brother go?”
Dominic knew it best to not answer truthfully. He knew exactly his brother’s intention. But the question was whether Sasha was willing to meet him halfway. Running into her the night before had been a brush of good luck that Dominic had planned on taking advantage of. After several conversations with Nadia, he had made it his mission to try to get them back together. Or to at least give his brother the opportunity to make peace with what he had destroyed.
“Probably off doing business again,” he evaded.
“Hmm…well I’m a bit surprised he remembered me. I mean, I’m sure I’m one of hundreds of people he meets a week.”
Dominic shrugged, “Lasting impressions and all that…”
“So, you dated Sasha’s friend Dina before she moved to Italy then?”
“Yup. Definitely not my greatest moment- a woman choosing her career over me. Sort of bruises the ego a bit.” He let out an exaggerated sigh.
Carter chuckled. “It serves you right, arrogant prick!”
Sasha opened the door and jumped as it was pushed closed once more. She immediately recognized the hand that lay upon the car window and could feel the warmth emanating from his body as he stood directly behind her. What she didn’t expect was him leaning down until his lips lay a hair’s breadth away from her ear.
“Talk to me,” he whispered. “Please.”
She sucked in a deep breath. The cold exterior she had been putting on display was in complete contrast to her inner tur
moil. A part of her knew she hadn’t been ready for this interaction yet. She had hoped to never see him again and had grown comfortable with the illusion. Two years, apparently, were hard to keep hold of the same intensity of anger when constantly battling feelings of a first love. Or at least whatever it was that had made her throat clog up at the sight of him.
But she forced herself to remember. She couldn’t sit down and allow herself to be abused the way she had been before. And so, even as Dmitri’s arms began to wrap around her waist, she simultaneously took a step to the side and brought her elbow down straight into his exposed gut. He released a rush of air on her cheek, his arms releasing her to nurse the physical wound.
“What the hell, Sasha!” he gasped.
She turned to him and said coldly, “You’re a piece of work, you know that? Who the hell do you think you are following me out to my car and forcing yourself onto me? It’s been two years! As far as you are concerned, we don’t know each other. And you have no right to speak or touch me.”
Still rubbing his bruised stomach, Dmitri took a step back. There was tense silence between them before he finally said, “You’re right, I’m sorry. I got ahead of myself.”
She brushed off his apology. “Just leave me alone, Dmitri. Tonight was a fluke. Tomorrow, we’ll go back to our own lives as if we had never met. As it was supposed to be.” Again, she reached out for the door handle but paused when he spoke once more.
“I didn’t come here to stalk you or force myself onto you, Sasha. I’ve thought about this moment for so long. Seeing you again. But I never thought it would come so soon. And I honestly didn’t know how to react other than to hold you. Just, don’t run away. Tonight wasn’t a fluke. At least, it wasn’t to me.”
“What the hell are you talking about? After everything that happened, everything that was said, what could you possibly want from me?”
Dmitri let out a dry chuckle. “Isn’t it obvious? I made a mistake.”
Sasha approached him with her finger pointed directly at him. “No! Taking a wrong fucking turn is a mistake! What you did was intentional! And now that you’re alone, you want to come crawling back to the one person that actually cared about you!” She balled her hands into fists and took in a deep breath. It was back- the anger and hurt. “Fuck you, Dmitri. Stay out of my life.”
“I can’t! It’s been years and I still can’t stop thinking about you.” He pulled his hands through his hair, mussing the perfect locks in frustration. It was a rare occurrence for him to be so desperately searching for the right words to say to a woman. “You may not believe it, but I’m not the same person I was then. I can admit to having wronged you in the worst way. I completely understand why you want to push me away but you forget- I know you, Sasha.”
Dmitri stepped closer to her, his hand reaching out slowly until his fingertips skimmed the softness of her cheeks. “You may be putting on this façade of being unmoved but I can see right through it. Remember? I saw you at your most vulnerable, when you would scream my name as you came beneath me. I’ve known parts of you you’ve never exposed to anyone else before.”
His heart raced as she did nothing to remove his hand upon her cheek. Softly, he caressed the plump fullness beneath his palm. His thumbs gradually skimmed closer to her lips.
“You say you’ve changed.” At his nod, she continued, “Did you ever think that maybe I’ve done the same?” She didn’t give him a chance to answer. “No, you probably didn’t. You see, as much as you claim to know me, I know you. You’re arrogant, Dmitri. And self-centered. You brush over how much you hurt me with a half-assed apology and assume that I’ll be that same girl that would have done anything to keep you. Well, as much as you say you’ve changed, so have I. And I can tell you here and now, I’m not the girl you know anymore.”
When she attempted to push his hand away, he halted her movement by holding onto her wrist. “Give me a chance to show you, Sasha. Just give me one more chance.”
“Why? You wouldn’t show me anything different.”
His eyes widened slightly in stark realization. Releasing her hand, he took a step back. “I did this to you…” Her eyes narrowed at his words but before she could speak, he continued as if he had been speaking to himself, “Maybe you’re right. So what if you are different- if you’re no longer the innocent and warm-hearted girl you used to be. If that’s the case, it doesn’t change anything. Let me get to know you as you are now. And you do the same. Don’t we owe each other at least that?”
Sasha scoffed. “I don’t owe you anything.”
“No, you don’t,” he agreed. “But you once said that you loved me. And I may have never earned that love but that didn’t change you. It’s because you were and you still are a loving human being, Sasha,” he said desperately, recalling Teagan’s words at her graduation. “No circumstance ever changed that. And I know that no matter how hurt you may have been after everything, you are still willing to give that love to someone. You can bottle up that desire as much as you want but it’s still there. It’s a permanent fixture within you. It was why I was so drawn to you to begin with. I’m not assuming anything with this but just give me a chance to earn it once more. Truly earn it.”
Sasha was speechless as she stood in the increasingly cold night air. But the shivers that ran down her spine were not a result of the dry wind. What he said had hit too close to home. It was exactly what Carter had said- her heart’s truest desire. Another opportunity was staring her right in the face, his gaze intense and anxious as he waited for her response. But was she willing to take the chance once more?
“I-I…can’t, Dmitri. Not again. I’m tired…” her throat clogged with built-up emotions. “I’m tired of trying. You may not know it but you made me realize something. I should have learned my lesson the first time with my mother…and then the different families. Some people just aren’t meant for it. It’s eluded me so many times you’d think I’d have realized that sooner.” She laughed dryly. “I was naïve and stupid. So don’t feel guilty anymore. You’ve said your apologies; you’re done. You don’t owe me anything else. And I won’t hold you to it any longer.”
She turned to her car and opened the door. Throwing her purse into the passenger seat she turned to him with a sad smile. “You know, I don’t think about it much anymore. The whole love and family bit. Accepting the inevitable was a true turning point for me, and I’ve never been happier.”
But even as she finally drove away, they both didn’t believe her parting words.
The next day, Sasha was awoken by the sound of knocking at her bedroom door. Groaning in distaste at being awakened so early on a Sunday, she almost crawled from the bed before opening the door a crack. Her eyes still adjusting to the light of day, she rubbed them self-consciously.
“What?” she practically barked.
“Dang, girl! What the hell happened to you last night? You look horrendous.”
Sasha rolled her eyes at Teagan. “You don’t look so great yourself after a night out.”
Her friend shrugged. “True. Well, I came to wake you up. Dinner with Jaelynn and Faye was moved to brunch. Apparently, Faye has better things to do with her time on a Sunday night, instead of hanging out with a friend she hasn’t seen in months!”
At the mention of their names, Sasha’s day immediately went from bad to worse. She was close to telling Teagan to tell them both to shove it but only barely kept her cool. Instead of the string of curse words she itched to scream out, she gruffly responded,
“I’ll be ready in thirty.”
In exactly one hour, Teagan and Sasha were seated at a cozy little bistro where they waited for the other two to arrive. Sasha felt a sense of déjà vu at the scenery. With the events of last night still at the forefront of her mind, any mention of a restaurant made her think of the first time she met Dmitri. Needless to say, her sleep had been anything but peaceful at his surprise appearance and their conversation in the parking lot.
After coming home
, she had been too much of an emotional wreck to do anything but fall straight into bed and try to drown her sorrows in the comfort of her bedspread and multitude of pillows. Unfortunately, the pillows ended up being her worst enemy as the warmth they provided made her dream of Dmitri. The way they rested against her back had felt oddly similar to the nights she had spent in his condo with his large form spooned against her smaller stature. Thus causing her to awaken to even more unwanted remembrances.
“How was your date?” Teagan asked as they waited.
“It went really well, actually.”
When she provided no more information, Teagan’s interest was piqued. “You didn’t like him, did you?”
“What makes you think that?”
Her friend rolled her eyes and took a drink of the glass of water on the table. “Because you practically gush with unwanted details when a date goes well. Or at least that’s what you used to do with you-know-who.”
Sasha shook her head, causing her locks to flow softly against her neck and shoulders. “First off, I don’t ‘gush’. Secondly, if you don’t feel up to speaking his name, don’t mention him at all. This isn’t Harry Potter.”
“Well someone surely woke up on the wrong side of the bed. What’s up with you, girl?”
Sasha deemed it best not to answer. And, thankfully, just as Teagan was opening her mouth to push for more details, they were interrupted. Her eyes automatically narrowed at the sight of both women as they pranced to the table. Faye wore a short yellow and white dress with heels that could warn people of her approach from half a mile away with the noise it made when meeting the concrete floor. In stark contrast, Jaelynn was dress conservatively in black slacks and a blue sweater.
“Teagan!” Faye squealed with her approach. They hugged each other in greeting while Jaelynn smiled in Sasha’ direction.
Sasha: The Awakening (The Wallflower Series Book 2) Page 4
