She quickly stepped away, intent on losing herself in the wedding revellers the way her less-than-brave dancing partner had. Hard hands fell on her, pinning her. He pulled her backward, into the heat of his large body. With her heels, she still barely reached his shoulder. He had to bend into her body to speak in her ear.
“You avoid me all day, but dance with another? Let him touch you when I cannot?” His voice was an incredulous growl. As though he was trying valiantly to tamp down on the fury rising up within him.
She tried to push away, but he turned her in his arms and pulled her against him. She gasped as every inch of her much smaller body moulded against him. Thick arms wrapped around her back and clamped her against the thick muscles of his chest. She moaned low in her throat and closed her eyes as he held her. It felt like heaven and hell all at once.
“Why would you make me watch another man touch you?” he asked angrily.
Laney was surprised. His feelings for her had grown and she didn’t know what to do. She’d done nothing to encourage him. She wanted to shout at him that he was stupid to feel this way, that she would only break his heart. Or put a bullet in it. Whichever came first. Yet her own body felt weak in his arms. She responded to him in a way she couldn’t explain.
“It was Anya,” she finally said. “She said I had to dance, she pushed me at him before I could say no. I didn’t want to ruin the wedding by stabbing a guest, so I danced.”
He nodded his head, his bruising hold loosening a little. He moved with her in a more natural way, though she could tell he didn’t really dance. “That woman is a menace,” he muttered.
Laney nodded feelingly. “The worst.”
He chuckled and his hands smoothed down her back to grasp her waist. She shivered in the circle of his arms. She knew, even in the midst of all those people, that there would be no escape if she chose to run. She was his captive in that moment. He splayed his fingers across her back and she shivered in his hold, both aroused and alarmed to notice that his long fingers touched every part of her back from her ass up. He pulled her in tight against him, pushing the side of her face against his chest.
“You feel this thunder of my heart, yes?” he bent to say in her ear, his deep voice even more thickly accented than usual. “It beats this way for you only.”
The breath caught in her throat. No one spoke to her this way. Not ever. She tried to shove him away, but he refused to let go. He ground his hips against her belly, forcing her once more to feel the power of his lust for her. His cock was like a hot, thick brand against her belly and there was nothing she could do to escape it.
“Let me go!” she growled breathlessly up at him.
“Not in this lifetime, kotenok.”
Laney glanced around desperately to see if anyone was witness to her distressing position on the dance floor. Other couples swayed closely together, creating a barrier between her and escape. She spied Jane and Vladimir Sitnikov and tried to catch Jane’s eye. Jane was pretty badass in her own right and wouldn’t hesitate to call off the Sitnikov guard dog if she thought he was causing trouble for Laney, but the feisty detective was being held prisoner in the arms of her mob boss husband who was not likely to allow her release.
A few couples away from Jane was her younger sister, Lucy Miller, who did not seem to be faring any better than Laney with her own partner, Mack Hudson. The vicious looking bond enforcement agent had a reckless look on his face. The possessive grip he had on the sweet, younger woman confirmed Laney’s earlier suspicion of the pair. Lucy looked worried and was trying to put some distance between herself and the big man, which he was steadily denying her.
Damn these alpha men! Now Laney was going to have to extricate herself from her current situation, go rescue Lucy Miller and try to find a way to leave this wedding reception because her weekly check-in with the Master was in less than fifteen minutes. In a move that took Boris by surprise, Laney slid her hands up his chest and twined her fingers around the back of his neck. He blinked down at her, hope and suspicion warring in his eyes. A smile curved her lips and she flashed him a little teeth before jabbing her thumb into the pressure point just behind his ear.
“Argh!” he grunted involuntarily and flinched, instantly loosening his hold on her, snarling, “Fuck!”
She winced a little, knowing exactly how much that move hurt, then whirled away from him, not wanting to lose her brief opportunity of freedom. He reached out for her and nearly succeeded in recapturing her with his long reach, but Laney was small and fast. She quickly lost herself in between the dancing couples, where his bulk was unable to navigate with such fluid ease.
Laney flew toward Jane, pleased to see that the woman’s sinister husband had left her side for the moment to speak with Italian mafia kingpin Niccolo DeLucca. This was the most mobbed up party Laney had ever attended, and she was Yakuza!
“Jane Sitnikov!” Laney said breathlessly, rushing toward the other woman.
Jane looked up sharply with a frown, sensing Laney’s discomposure. It took a lot to ruffle the normally calm young Asian woman.
“What’s wrong?” she asked shortly, not wasting time on pleasantries. Her hand fell to her hip where her weapon would normally be, then she sighed and rolled her eyes with impatience. Clearly a holster didn’t go with the Gucci dress. Laney sympathized. Dresses were terrible to fight in.
“Lucy Miller needs help.”
Jane’s golden eyes flared with protective fire and she glanced around. Her eyes fell on Mack and Lucy, who were on the edge of the dance floor, though they were no longer pretending to dance. He was pulling Lucy steadily toward an exit door while Lucy half-heartedly resisted him.
“That son-of-a-bitch is getting on my last nerve!” Jane snarled, stalking toward the struggling pair.
Laney followed Jane, glancing around for her own problem male. His massive height and shoulder breadth made him instantly recognizable in the crowd of people. She breathed a sigh of relief at seeing him make his way toward the bride and groom’s table, where Laney’s seat was. Exactly the opposite direction she was going in. Her much shorter height would give her a few extra minutes to disappear.
Without a second thought, Jane stepped between Lucy and Mack, breaking his hold on the young woman’s arm and sending her fist flying into his stomach. Though Jane was small, she was feisty. Her time as a city police detective gave her both guts and skills, which is how she’d met and eventually partnered with Mack Hudson. He barely flinched at her tap to the belly and merely smirked down at her as she took a protective stance in front of her sister.
“You’re a great partner, Hudson,” Jane snarled up at him with narrowed eyes, “but I swear to god, if you touch my baby sister one more time, I will let my husband dismember you. And you know he’s just itching to take you apart on the mere fact of you being male and hanging out with me on a regular basis.”
Laney glanced over at Lucy who looked visibly shaken and was rubbing her wrist where he’d been holding it. Laney knew little to nothing about comforting other people, but she reached out and touched Lucy’s shoulder. The Amish girl surprised her by stepping close to Laney and leaning in, almost as though they were loosely embracing. Laney stiffened and fought the urge to step away. How did she keep ending up in these situations where she was comforting women in trouble? That was how she’d met and befriended Addison Sterling. Perhaps it wasn’t so surprising, considering who her mother had been.
“Boris speaks very highly of you,” Lucy murmured into Laney’s ear while Jane continued to berate Mack.
Laney didn’t know what to say. She nodded and remained silent.
“He thinks you’re his forever,” the young woman continued. “I know you don’t like him as much, and that’s okay. I just wish… with Mack… that he would want me that way. Then maybe we could be together. Instead he’s all twisted. He just wants to use me, to make me dirty, like he is inside, and then… and then he pushes me away. It’s like he doesn’t want me, but he can’t sta
y away from me at the same time.”
Laney looked up at Lucy sharply. The lovely girl, her large sad eyes framed by wavy, brown curls, clenched her fists at her sides. Laney reached over and attempted to pat her arm soothingly. Lucy smiled sadly. Suddenly, her eyes looked much older than her twenty-one years.
“Is there a problem here?” a deep, accented voice asked from behind the women.
Despite years of combat training, a shiver of apprehension slithered through Laney. There was something utterly sinister about Vladimir Sitnikov that invited a person to run in the opposite direction if they had an ounce of self-preservation. She simply did not understand how Jane abided marriage to the man. Actually, she did. Jane Sitnikov was at least as insane as her frightening husband. Deciding there was more than enough batshit crazy people there to help sweet Lucy Miller with her man situation, Laney silently extricated herself and headed for the nearest exit. She had two minutes until check in.
CHAPTER SIX
Laney found the quietest corner she could in a small room down the hall from the ballroom. She suspected it was used for catering services or something, but was currently empty, aside from a table. She stood facing the window and pressed the FaceTime contact with shaking fingers, waiting with breathless anticipation for the Master to answer. He picked up immediately, though is was 6:00 am in Osaka.
“Miss Paul,” his cold voice penetrated her heart.
“Master,” she said just as coldly, letting him see the chill in her ice blue eyes. She hadn’t called him father since the day her mother killed herself eleven years earlier.
“Report,” he demanded.
Anger filled her, but she forced it back, knowing it was a useless emotion against such a man. As she’d done dozens of times, she demanded, “Let me see Jin and I will report.”
His expression did not change, but she imagined a sneer twisting his lips. He held all the cards in this relationship and he knew it. “If you do not report immediately, then you will only see a finger,” he replied calmly.
Laney closed her eyes, heart pounding, head swimming. It was only a threat. It had to be. Even he wouldn’t be so cold-blooded. But she knew better. She’d seen with her own eyes what he was capable of when he’d cut Yuki’s head off in front of her. He’d loved Yuki as though Yuki were his own, yet he’d done it anyway, just to prove a point. He would do the same to Jin if Laney didn’t cooperate.
In a quiet, defeated voice Laney gave him what he wanted. “Boris Grekov remains firmly at the side of Vladimir Sitnikov as both enforcer and brat. They have taken the blood oath. I cannot touch him while he remains under Sitnikov protection. He is a loyal protector and he is skilled in running his employer’s assets. I believe he is also remotely checking in on his own assets, which are being run by his blood brother in Russia.”
“These are things we are aware of, Miss Paul. Is there anything else?”
She flinched at the touch of impatience in his voice and prayed he wouldn’t take it out on Jin in training. It had been nearly seven months since she’d seen Jin, and she didn’t know if Jin could handle the beating. Her heart ached to think of it.
“His… his obsession grows,” Laney admitted quietly, hating herself for giving him the information, but knowing she must do what she could to keep Jin safe. “I have been to his apartment. He lives simply, very much a bachelor.”
“Did you fuck him?” the Master asked sharply.
Laney gasped and ground her teeth. “Of course not!” she answered back just as sharply.
“Do what you must to keep his focus on you,” he instructed, musing. “It was an unforeseen boon that he should take such an interest in our jewel. But remember, the fruit that falls from the tree too easily, may lay rotten and forgotten on the ground. If he walks away from you, access may be more difficult when it is time to sink the knife in. Play your cards carefully, watashi no kodomo.”
My child.
Laney felt disgust rise bitterly up her throat and lowered her eyes so he couldn’t read her mood. Even over the mobile connection and their great distance the Master could easily read her. Like her mother, Laney felt deeply, and this man would take advantage of any perceived weakness.
“We have information,” he continued. “Your target is to be called home soon.”
Laney’s eyes snapped up and she frowned. What did this mean for her mission?
“You are to accompany him. His obsession with you should provide all the excuse you will need to make sure you are at his side when he makes the journey.”
Laney nodded, feeling a spear of hope flare in her chest that she wouldn’t have to say goodbye to the big man. She didn’t want to examine it too closely. After all, she was supposed to eventually kill him. She didn’t understand why the Master was waiting so long, why he was having her spy on and report on Boris instead of following through on her original mission. Unless…
The Master’s next words confirmed her fears. “He will not reach Russia. Understood?”
Laney’s eyes lifted to his. She knew what was at stake. Steeling her heart, she pressed her lips together and nodded. The Master looked pleased with her response.
“May I see Jin?” she asked quietly, hope catching in her voice. He often denied her request, but once in a while would allow her a brief glimpse. Give her something to hold on to when she wondered if it was going to be worth her soul to follow through on her orders.
He was silent for a moment and then he nodded as though granting her a great favour. “You have 30 seconds.”
He handed the phone to someone else and a smiling face filled the screen. Laney’s heart brimmed with joy while tears threatened to overflow the corners of her eyes. Awareness prickled between her shoulder blades, but she ignored it, focusing entirely on the screen.
Holding it up, she grinned and said in rapid Japanese, mindful of her thirty seconds, “Jin, look at you! You are even more gorgeous than I remember, baby. I can’t wait to see you. I love you so much. I’ve missed you so very much. Tell me how much you’ve missed me too, darling?”
A growl came from behind Laney, startling her. She dropped her phone and whirled around. Boris stood towering and angry, filling the small doorway with his bulk and looking as though he wanted to strangle Laney. She stared up at him, confused. How had he found her and why was he looking as though she’d murdered his favourite pet?
“What do you want?” she asked, desperate to get rid of him so she could catch another glimpse of Jin. Their moments together were few and very precious.
“You are hiding in a corner, cooing love phrases at your fiancé and you want to know what I want?” he snarled, stepping inside the room. He slammed the door shut behind him and stalked toward her.
Laney went white and swayed on the spot. Did he understand Japanese? He had never once indicated that he knew her language. He smirked knowingly at her and bent swiftly around, catching her waist in a strong grip as he reached for her phone. She realized too late what he was after. With a cry of anger, she lunged for the device, but he already had it in his massive fist.
“Do I surprise you, baby? Darling?” he sneered, repeating the words in flawless Japanese, shocking her.
She glanced down at the phone between them, heart pounding, praying that the connection was severed. The screen was blank, the phone locked. Her lashes swept down and she sighed in relief. Her secrets were safe.
“Look at me!” he growled, his arm tightening around her waist, crushing her against his massive body.
Her eyes swept back up to his. His hand came down heavily on her shoulder, his fingers curling around the fragile bone. She shivered, knowing he could crush her with very little effort. He was still blazingly furious with her. Had he heard her conversation with the Master? Did he know she was spying on him? Had been sent to follow and kill him?
Much to her relief his next words immediately proved that he’d only heard her speak to Jin.
“Jin is your fiancé, is he not?” Boris demanded. His bearded
face was agonized, his voice furious and guttural with despair as he said, “I could tell from your voice that you love him. Blyad! I thought I’d have chance with you. You haven’t seen him in seven fucking months! You must be the most loyal woman on goddam planet.”
Laney stared up at him helplessly. She didn’t want to hurt him, but she didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t deny the fiction she’d already started and she couldn’t tell him about Jin. She nodded helplessly, which only infuriated him even more. He shook her and pushed her backwards, pinning her against the table.
“Unlock the fucking phone,” he snarled in her face, bringing the phone up between them. “I want to see him. I want to see man capable of melting your icy heart. I want to see what he has that makes you loyal across such distance and time.”
Laney leaned back across the table, trying to escape the intense heat of his large body. As always, the erotic waves of heat rolled off of him and onto her, calling out to her and drawing her in, like a song. She shook her head and pushed his hand away, refusing without words to participate in his crazed ranting.
Boris stared at her for a moment, the fury of her denial glowing in his eyes. For the first time since meeting him, she felt as though she were being confronted with the lethal mob enforcer that ensured Sitnokov’s throne. The muscles of his powerful arms bulged around her much smaller body, reminding her of how fragile she was in comparison. She tried to remember that she was scary in her own right, had many kills as an assassin, but it wasn’t helpful when she thought of how one blow of his fist could crush her skull.
Bound by Blood (Fire & Vice Book 6) Page 5
