by Imani King
Thania
She usually did not go home with men on a first date. It just wasn’t her style. But Vlad was different, and Thania didn’t want the night to end yet. So she had accepted Vlad’s invitation, and after that it became a bit of a blur.
Vlad took charge and escorted her to ladies’ room so she could clean up a bit. When she was finished, he had been waiting in the hallway, tapping away on his phone, looking so dashing in his tuxedo that her stomach twisted.
When he had looked up at her and smiled, her heart had twisted.
I’m in trouble.
But still, she went with him, knowing that every moment she spent near him, her feelings for him would increase. It was the strangest sensation—she had never felt this drawn to a man before, as if an invisible rope linked them. It was chemistry. How else could she explain her extreme attraction to him?
Vlad had gathered up her wrap from the coat check, and had arranged for his car to be brought out front. He had insisted that she stay inside until the car arrived, telling her that he was concerned she would be cold. She thought it was a little heavy handed, but sweet nonetheless. She knew that his intention was only to make her more comfortable after their encounter with Irina.
Don’t think about it—do not let her in to ruin the rest of your night with Vlad.
He had paid the parking attendant and held the door to the passenger side for Thania himself, making sure that she managed the dress and her heels, which was no small feat considering his car was a Porsche 911. The tiniest, but most luxurious car she had ever been inside.
Once Vlad had settled in behind the wheel, it had felt as if they were in a cocoon together. He had been right there, his arm grazing hers as he had shifted gears. It wasn’t even his skin touching her, it was his dress shirt; but even so, the feeling of the soft brushed cotton against her skin had sent tingles racing up her arm.
The car’s leather passenger seat had molded itself to her body, leaving her to feel so relaxed that she had almost fallen asleep on the twenty minute ride to his home.
Thania knew that going to his home might mean something would happen between her and Vlad that night. Normally, she would never do something like that, but her reactions to Vlad had been anything but normal up to that point. Why put an artificial barrier between them? She had decided to enjoy his company, and to just follow her feelings on the subject. Besides, she had known without question that Vlad would be a perfect gentleman.
Well, hopefully not a ‘perfect’ gentleman.
They had finally reached his home, after not speaking much during the drive. But it had been a comfortable silence, as if they had known each other for years, and she hadn’t felt the need to force conversation.
Vlad had pulled up a long driveway and parked in the circular drive outside of an enormous white house. A mansion, really, with so many gabled windows and at least a couple of wings, that she could not make them all out in the dark.
This isn’t awkward at all.
Suddenly, she felt a bit out of place, when up until that moment she had been completely comfortable. Obviously, she had known that Vlad had money. He ran one of the most exclusive jewelry businesses in the world, attended galas on a semi regular basis, drove a Porsche, and he even looked rich, in the way that only a person born into wealth could achieve. But this—his house—had been a bit much for her to absorb. She stood staring at the gigantic home for at least a full minute, all the while clutching the open passenger door.
“Thania? Are you alright?”
She turned toward Vlad, who stood next to her, an expression of concern on his beautiful face. And the memory of how he had defended her from Irina had made her defenses crumble faster than they had come up in the first place.
What did it matter how much money he had? I can’t judge him for having money. That’s as bad as judging someone for not having it.
So, she took his outstretched hand, and they walked up the wide stone steps into the house. It was lit up like it was Christmas morning inside, with what appeared to be every light switched on. She noticed that there was a direct view from the front door, all the way to the back of the house and out the floor-to-ceiling back windows, and she caught a hint of the rolling hills just beyond.
The view must be spectacular in the morning. Maybe I’ll find out.
Vlad offered to get some clothes for her to change into, since her gown was covered in sticky, warm scotch. Luckily, none of what Irina had tossed on the gown had hit Thania’s skin, but even so, she’d been wanting to get out of the dress the entire ride to Vlad’s home.
She followed him down one of the hallways that stretched off the enormous foyer like the spokes on a wheel. He stopped outside of a room with double doors and pushed one open before gesturing her inside with his hand.
It was his bedroom, and she found herself momentarily unable to move. It was rich, with deep, masculine colors on the walls, floor, and the bed itself. But still, it felt open and inviting, like Vlad himself.
Most significantly, it smelled like him. That was what made her stop before entering his bedroom. It was as if Vlad’s unique and sexy scent was multiplied by one hundred, and she was already practically a puddle when she smelled his scent from him alone.
He walked over to one of his dressers, opening and closing them while she looked all around the bedroom suite. He cleared his throat and she swung her head toward him, only to find herself caught snooping with her eyes. She laughed and so did he, before he handed her a pile of soft clothing.
“I think this might be more comfortable for you to wear than your dress,” he said as he gazed at her dreamily.
She found that she was unable to tear her eyes away from him to look down at the clothes, so she thanked him, and he closed the door behind him as he left her alone.
After a few moments of simply standing there, she looked down and saw that he had given her a pair of his own sweatpants and a huge t-shirt to wear. They were both so soft that when she finally pulled them on, she breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn’t been aware until that moment how uncomfortable the ruined dress had been to wear.
The only problem with his choice of clothing was that she wasn’t wearing a bra. So with the t-shirt being so big on her, it fell off one-shoulder no matter how she adjusted it, and her breasts were now untethered and right there. She reasoned that there wasn’t much she could do to change it, and she was so much more comfortable that she couldn’t bare the thought of stepping back into the stained gown.
When she walked back down the hallway slowly—in order to make sure that she found her way to the center of the spoke—she saw Vlad stop and stare at her. She looked down—she had been forced to roll the waist of his sweatpants down and the legs up—and she wasn’t sure what he was thinking. But the look in his eyes was slightly predatory, especially when he noticed the t-shirt, and what was happening underneath it. He cleared his throat and quickly turned away, then invited her to get comfortable.
So that was how she found herself in his living room now, with Vlad in the kitchen, while she quite blatantly checked out his home. Or what she could see of it, anyway.
Vlad was truly unlike any other man she had dated, or even met before. She wasn’t used to such kindness from men. Not to mean that she had allowed herself to be mistreated, of course, but the level of caring Vlad showed toward her tonight was eye-opening. He had made sure that she was comfortable the entire evening, that her drink was always filled, that her food was warm and plentiful, and that she was enjoying herself by introducing her around. He seemed proud to have her on his arm, and she had to admit that it was a nice feeling to be there.
There were some people there that might have said she didn’t belong—that she had not achieved the level of success necessary to be at such an event. But Vlad, and the people he had chosen to introduce her to—all highly respected in their fields—apparently thought she was a wonderful addition to the guest list.
She had to admit, it felt really nic
e to be doted on. That wasn’t a particularly popular opinion, when women were working so hard to advance up the ranks of business, and be viewed as equals. But she truly believed that Vlad did view her as an equal; his wonderful treatment of her, and his respect for her as a businesswoman, were not mutually exclusive.
“Please, get comfortable,” he had told her before he’d disappeared into the kitchen.
Wearing his extremely soft and luxurious clothes, getting ‘comfortable’ was not a problem. So she padded barefoot around his large living room, and admired his modern art collection.
This is truly amazing.
He had quite an eclectic collection. She was not an expert by any means, but she recognized a few pieces by some up and coming artists. He had an original painting by Sebastian Lloyd Rees on his wall, directly next to a few professionally framed crayon drawings, obviously from a child’s hand. The colorful drawings all had a similar note written on them: ‘To Uncle Vlad, I miss you! Love, Tati’. Her heart melted a little bit more.
All I need is a puppy to come bounding into the room right now, and I’m a complete goner.
“Those are from my niece, Tatyana,” Vlad said from across the room, causing her to turn and look at him.
He had taken off his tuxedo jacket and cummerbund, and rolled up the sleeves of his white dress shirt. His tie had been loosened as well, and if it was possible, he looked even more gorgeous to her than he had at the gala.
“I see that,” she replied with a smile, turning back to the drawings again.
“Where does she live?”
“She’s in St. Petersburg, Russia, with my brother, Viktor and his wife, Eugenia. She’s my favorite of all of my nieces,” he admitted with a smile as he placed the small tray he was carrying on to the coffee table in front of the fireplace.
“How many nieces do you have?” she asked as she walked closer to him and sat down on the plush couch in front of the coffee table.
He hesitated as he crouched down in front of the fireplace to put wood, kindling, and some newspaper, in order to start a blaze.
“Only one,” he said with a wry smile, and she laughed.
“How often do you see your family?” she asked while they both watched his fire start to burn, and quickly settle into a cozy blaze.
“I get back to Russia a minimum of six times per year,” he replied as he sat down next to her.
The couch was so plush, and she’d tucked her feet under her, that his weight caused her to sway toward him. She reached out and put her hand on his arm to stop from completely falling into his lap, and just like that, the intense sexual awareness of each other was back. Not that it had ever really gone away, but now, as she clutched his muscular bicep and stared into those green eyes, it was almost impossible to pull back. She did pull back, however, since she didn’t want to come off as too aggressive.
He’s from another culture. Maybe he’ll think less of me if he knew what I’m thinking.
So she sat back, and he visibly relaxed. The comfortable silences of before had been replaced by awkward, stilted moments.
“Six times a year? That’s wonderful,” she said, hoping to ease the stiffness between them, even by just a small amount.
“Yes, and my family comes here, as well. So, all in all, we see each other fairly frequently. But out of everyone in my family, Tati actually is my favorite,” he said, his smile so wide that the power of his dimples was released on her.
Oh God, he’s got dimples.
“What about you?” he asked as he offered her a glass of red wine from the tray in front of them.
She took it and sipped, the expensive goblet feeling heavy in her hand. “I only get to Russia every six or seven years,” she joked, and he laughed.
He leaned back into the couch, his weight messing with her center of gravity again. He reached out, and his hand landed on her naked shoulder to steady her, but this time he didn’t remove it.
“I meant, what about your family? Tell me about them.”
His gritty voice, his damned framed children’s drawings, and his fingers, which were now gently exploring the top of her shoulder, all combined to make answering him right then almost impossible. She took another fortifying sip of the delicious wine.
“Well, let’s see. I grew up in New York City, and my parents still live there. I see them only a few times a year, but we speak often. I have just one sibling, my brother, Darren. He’s finishing up a degree in photography at the Art Institute of Chicago in a few months.”
He listened intently while she spoke, but he never stopped touching her shoulder. In fact, his fingers were starting to slowly creep down her arm. Tingles shot down to her hand, and she almost felt like shaking it to wake it up from falling asleep—the feeling was the same and just as intense. But she stayed right where she was.
“The Art Institute? That is quite a good program, I hear,” Vlad said, looking impressed.
“Yes, well my parents are both doctors. So, when I announced I was going into fashion design, and a couple of years later, Darren began studying at the Art Institute, I think they were a bit dismayed.”
“But, why?” Vlad asked, genuinely perplexed.
“Because they were worried that the two of us would end up being starving artists,” Thania said with a laugh, and Vlad’s eyes crinkled up at the corners, causing her breath to catch.
“I guess they don’t have to worry about that with you anymore, do they?” he responded, seeming not to notice her quickened breathing.
“No, I guess not,” she admitted softly, trying desperately not to embarrass herself by allowing her attraction to him to show.
He was still caressing her arm, and it felt so good that her panties were already wet, but he seemed as unaffected as a statue.
“Are you permanently in America?” she asked, partly to fill the silence, but mostly because she needed to know the answer.
“Yes and no,” he replied, and she raised an eyebrow at him, causing him to laugh again. “I know, it’s vague. The truth is, I’m not sure. I will be here for the next couple of years establishing our expansion into the U.S. market. But after that is completed, and the U.S. stores are stable, I will most likely head back to Russia.”
His eyes looked wary now, while at the same time her heart sank. He would be leaving at some point, even if in the distant future, so no matter what happened between them, it wouldn’t be life changing.
Even though it already feels that way.
She responded appropriately, but later she could not remember what she’d said. They continued to chat and drink wine in front of the fire, while another part of her mind was absorbing what he had told her, and what it meant.
At least he was being honest and upfront, she thought. He wasn’t trying to lead her on by giving her hope of a long-term relationship. It was clear to her from what he’d said, that he wasn’t looking for a commitment, or even a simple relationship with her. Added to that, the fact that he had just recently ended things with Irina, it was no wonder he didn’t want anything serious.
She actually appreciated his honesty, because it made things so much simpler for her. She knew exactly where she stood with him, and any decisions she made about tonight would be free of any hope or longing on her part. She could choose to be with him tonight, without wondering what it might mean for their future—because there wouldn’t be one.
He seemed to be watching her even more warily now, no doubt wondering what she was thinking. She smiled at him and leaned her head down so that her cheek brushed the back of his hand on her shoulder. He stopped moving and just watched her, passion and lust combining like an inferno in his eyes.
She lifted her hand and slipped it behind his neck, and his skin was taut and hot, but silky to her touch. She raised her head and he closed his eyes, as her fingers gently caressed his nape.
Her name escaped his lips on a sigh, “Thania.” He opened his eyes, and she was right there, only inches away. His breath hit her face like the s
team from a shower, laced with the scent of mint, red wine, and Vlad himself.
She was trembling now and hoping that he would take over at some point. She figured she had made it pretty clear by then what she wanted. It didn’t matter that there was no future between them—if all she could ever have was one night with him, she would take it.
He finally leaned forward the two inches necessary to kiss her, and she moaned deep in her throat at the feeling of his plump lips against her own. He used his strong arms to lift her up and place her on his lap sideways, never breaking the kiss. She ran her hands up and over his shoulders, feeling his muscles twitch and flex at her touch. Her own body was humming from the contact with him, and she couldn’t even imagine how amazing having sex with him would be.
He gently pushed his tongue between her lips, and suddenly, she felt nothing else but his mouth on hers. Her legs, her arms, her fingers, they were all numb, as his soft tongue swept through her mouth. He savored her lips as if she were a delicious piece of candy, licking every corner and sucking on her tongue softly. It was the most sensual, erotic kiss she had ever received, and it seemed to affect him deeply as well, judging by the very hard erection pressing against her thighs where she sat on him. Just by that kiss, everything was crystal clear to her.
I don’t care about tomorrow. I’ll take him now, for tonight, and that will be enough.
6
Vlad
He had been holding back all night from touching her, but he simply could not do that any longer. When he saw her in his sweatpants and t-shirt, her body practically swallowed up by the material, he thought she was even sexier than she was in her gown. If that was even possible.
Then, he noticed that she wore no bra under the t-shirt and he’d had to turn away quickly, to avoid her seeing his rigid cock. He stood in the kitchen, gathering the wine and the goblets, and telling himself to get control.
He couldn’t just take what he wanted from her—which was her naked and writhing underneath him, while she moaned his name—he had to wait for the right time. And he realized that just because she had agreed to come to his home with him, it did not necessarily mean that she wanted to sleep with him. It was important to him that she not feel pressured; if they slept together, he wanted her to have zero regrets about it in the morning.
