It was beautifully done, and Alex had cried on more than one occasion after watching it.
“Is it?” he asked, not looking at her.
The lights dimmed, the screen going dark before the picture changed and the movie started.
As the opening credits started, Luka lifted up the armrest between them, stretching out further. For a while, as the movie went on, she’d thought he’d done it to get more comfortable, but he surprised her as he reached over, curling his hand around her thigh, the veins and tendons on the back of it standing out as he tightened his grip. Alex glanced over at him, a knowing smile curving her lips, but his expression never wavered.
With the slightest of strength, he gave her leg a slight pull, not as wide as he was sitting, but enough that when his fingers began to drift over her leg, causing goosebumps to rise in their wake, he could slip beneath her dress and around the curve of her inner thigh unhindered.
She raised her hand, intending to grab hold of his wrist and force his hand where she wanted, but he spoke up, his voice clear though he only spoke loud enough for her to hear.
“Hands down.”
He hadn’t even looked at her as he issued that command and she couldn’t help but squeeze her thighs together at the rough timbre of his voice.
He took his sweet time, making her wait for what he planned. He couldn’t have known that she didn’t wear panties, not when she knew this would ultimately happen between them, but she hadn’t expected it in here of all places.
Now, she was the one who wanted to watch him, to see his reaction to what she thought would be a surprise. When his fingers brushed against her, just the slightest of touches, his lips quirked up into a smile for just a moment, and she watched them move, the ‘fuck,’ barely audible with the loudness of the movie.
Luka sought her out, carefully, his thumb slipping over delicate places that made her shiver all over, and as she squirmed, she gasped suddenly as he pushed two fingers inside her.
He didn’t touch her anywhere else, just the slow, steady thrust of his fingers, but it was as if she could feel him everywhere.
Her eyes drifted closed as her head fell back against the seat. She shouldn’t have been as close as she was, not when he’d barely touched her, but it was as if he was trying to coax the orgasm out of her and knew just what spots to hit. As if he could sense the impending release, he finally turned in her direction.
She opened her eyes, meeting his gaze, and the hunger she saw there made her clench around his fingers. Pressing deeper, he held them there, hooking his fingers up and over a spot no other guy had touched.
And she broke.
Cupping the nape of her neck, he dragged her across the seat, smashing his lips against her lips just as the cry spilled from her. They were only lucky that the fireworks crashing on the screen were loud enough to drown her out. As his fingers came to a slow stop, gently bringing her back down, she finally managed to open her eyes again after squeezing them shut, gazing into his blue depths, lost there for a moment.
With the look he was giving her, she didn’t think she was getting any sleep tonight.
31
____
Teach Me
Luka tossed the bag over his shoulder as he gestured with a tilt of his head for her to follow him into the building. If there was one thing she was learning about him, it was that he liked his surprises. Walking up two flights of stairs, they traveled down a short hallway, and she didn’t need the confirmation from him to know where they were. She could practically smell the polish on the floors used to keep them polished and smooth. No matter the studio, that smell never changed.
He had given her not a single indication as to where he was taking her, just told her to get up and get dressed. His only specification was that she wore sweats.
Now they were here.
Pulling a key from his pocket, he unlocked the door they stopped in front of, holding it open so she could go in ahead of him. Her eyes took in everything in and about that room, from the large windows on one side to a mirrored wall on the other where a barre was anchored into the wall. On the other side of the room, a sleek, black piano was set up, away from where any dancer would need to practice, but close enough that the music would echo.
“You rented this place?” Alex asked in wonder, turning back to face him, her heart swelling at the thought. Did she really need another reminder of how great he was?
“An audition is coming up, right? You need the practice, now you don’t have an excuse. For the next six weeks, this place is yours. But I only have a few hours before I have shit to do. So”—he clapped his hands, heading over to the piano—“let’s get started.”
“Like now?” she asked.
“No time like the present.”
“Luka…”
He looked up at her expectantly, waving her on when she stopped speaking. “You can’t be shy. You do this for a living.”
“But I’ve never danced in front of you.”
“First time for everything. Now, stop stalling and let’s get on with it.”
Deciding that she wasn’t going to be able to talk him out of it, Alex stripped out of her sweats, digging through her bag for her leg warmers and pointe shoes. She stretched, relishing in the familiar tightness of her muscles.
As she went through the motions, she forgot Luka was even there, taking her time as she prepared her pointe shoes, a rigorous process that started with her tearing out the lining and finishing by sewing new ribbons onto the sides of the shoes. Pulling them on, a smile bloomed and just as they always had before she’d turned her back on them. They filled her with a sense of accomplishment unlike anything else in the world.
Up and down she went, balancing herself, getting back into the rhythm of things. Carefully, she lifted her leg into the air, using the mirrored wall to balance herself. It wasn’t easy by any means—it had been ages since she’d last done this—but after a short time, she was finally flat against the mirror and she felt a flush of triumph.
Luka cleared his throat, speaking up from his side of the room. “You’ve been holding out on me.”
She smiled but ignored him, finishing her warm up.
Drifting back in her thoughts, she heard the familiar counts of her instructors from long ago, going through the motions of what she would be doing if she were back in practice at a company.
But with each misstep and stumble, she grew a bit more discouraged. She tried not to let it show, still moving as best she could, but the steps weren’t coming to her as easily as she had hoped, and now she was wondering if with the six weeks she had to prepare before the actual class started, would it be enough.
“All right, you’re freaking out and that won’t work. Get your shit together.”
Alex laughed without humor, pushing her hair back out of her face as her frustration mounted. At one point, she could have completed these spins in her sleep, but now she was struggling to even do one without falling.
“That’s not helping, Luka.”
“Calm down.”
“Luka!—”
“Seriously,” he said getting to his feet, walking over to her bag and digging around inside, pulling her phone out. His fingers flew over the screen, and before she knew, soft music was playing, but vastly different from the classical music he had been playing before.
“Should I even ask how you know my password?” she asked dryly, joining him by the piano.
Without looking up, he explained, “You changed it, actually. It was your brother’s birthday first, now it’s 1122.” His smile was slow and easy. “Didn’t know I meant that much to you.”
Swallowing, Alex was suddenly glad that he wasn’t looking at her. “What does that say about you that you remember what that date means?”
Now, he did look at her with the conviction of a man meant to be taken seriously. “It was never a question whether I cared about you, Alex. I always have. It was whether or not I wanted to risk pursuing you.”
; “And now? Is it still worth the risk after…everything?”
“Now more than ever.”
She tucked a strand behind her ear as she turned away. It was probably beyond obvious what that simple statement meant to her and she didn’t need to voice it for him to know.
Clearing her throat, she changed the subject. “Why this song?”
“You play it the most,” he said setting the phone down on top of the piano, spinning around on the bench so that he could better face her, his elbows on his knees. “The objective isn’t for you to turn into a spinning top today but to start getting your groove back. As I said, there’s no one here but you and me. Act like it.”
But despite that advice—and she had been trying to follow it since they entered this room—she still didn’t feel like herself. More importantly, it felt like she was forcing every move she made, and while she wasn’t one-hundred percent positive of this, her reflection, the few glimpses she had caught, had confirmed that.
“Will you…will you dance with me?”
There was no hesitation.
He offered his hand, palm up, and as she took it, he pulled her in, carefully spinning her, and when her back was to his chest, Luka began to move them around the room.
Even as she moved to the tips of her toes, she barely reached his chin, and with this height advantage, it was easier for her to stay up this way, letting him lead when he became so inclined.
But she soon realized that Luka wasn’t really dancing at all, but just moving side to side, occasionally spinning her as he had done before. Without really trying, he was letting her use him as a distraction from her doubts, and while just enjoying herself with him, she was finally doing what she couldn’t earlier.
She could feel the flush in her cheeks, the heat growing hotter, as she noticed that he had yet to take his eyes off her. “What?”
“You’re beautiful.”
She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, glancing away from him, but he gently turned her face back, forcing her to look at him.
“Thank you.”
“I mean it.” As he was prone to do nowadays, he pulled her closer by the nape of her neck, kissing her forehead.
Alex didn’t feel small when he did this, not anymore. She felt cherished and important.
“Even when your feet turn to shit once you get back into this after a few years, you’ll still be beautiful to me.”
Laughing, she shoved him away.
“You’re such an asshole.”
He reclaimed his seat, stretching his legs out to cross them at the ankles. “Just finish your practice.”
32
____
Permission
“Luka, I think your dog is a bit of a pervert,” Alex said with a laugh, feeling him smile against the curve of her neck as they both listened to Loki’s panting.
If he hadn’t been trained so well, Alex worried that he might have jumped on the bed with them, and nothing was more awkward than having a dog lick her while she was straddling Luka.
“Yeah, I got it.”
Hooking an arm around her waist, he rolled them over, pushing to his feet as he headed for the door, ushering Loki out of it before closing it soundly. He grabbed hold of her ankle, pulling her down the bed before laying between her legs, his head resting on her belly, his hair tickling her skin.
She played with the ends of it, watching the golden strands slip between her fingers, using the pads of her fingers to massage his scalp. He relaxed under her touch for a time, at least until she drifted to the back of his head. The hand on her waist tensed, releasing slowly when she stopped.
She didn’t know what had caused the reaction. From what she could feel, there were no scars there, but like other things with him, maybe it was psychological.
Since he had taken her to the studio he’d rented, she’d gone back time and again, growing more comfortable with each hour that she spent in there. She was nowhere near where she needed to be for the audition, but she was close.
And it was all thanks to Luka.
He hadn’t completely healed her. She wasn’t totally mended just because he was so deeply involved in her life now, but he helped remind her that she was somebody.
Now she was remembering what it was really like to be happy.
Luka leaned over the side of the bed, the screen of his phone lighting up as he pressed a button. He barely glanced back at her as he said, “Got a job.”
Alex frowned, watching as he got dressed. “It’s midnight.” But even as she said that, she knew it didn’t mean anything. He could be called in at three in the morning and he would have to show up.
____
Dragging in a lungful of nicotine and tobacco, Luka stretched out in the driver’s seat of his Wrangler, streams of smoke drifting out the window into the night air as he exhaled. This went unnoticed by the man a few blocks away, parking his Harley. No, he was too busy with the woman who was nearly falling off the bike, as she was visibly intoxicated.
Luka had followed them for a little more than an hour, stalking his prey unnoticed as he had been trained to do. He’d been eager to get this started but had known that patience was the key.
He had made Snow a promise after all, and he didn’t want to ruin it by acting irrationally.
Snow might have forgotten that threat and moved on, considering the girl he was leading back to his clubhouse, but Luka never forgot. He didn’t care that Alex was finally healing, that the last thing on her mind was Snow…No, he wanted to make him pay, not for the drugs, but for what he had done while she had been too out of it to consent.
And with the changes within the Bratva, he couldn’t just go up and shoot him in the face. The Angels would more than likely want retaliation for the death. Luka had thought about telling Mishca the truth about why he had acted out the day he’d went to make the drop, except he didn’t need him turning his frustration to Alex which would have only made the situation worse.
So he did the next best thing.
____
“What the fuck do you want?” Klaus asked as he drew his shirt off, going for one of the rags on the ground next to him.
Klaus was one of the last people that Luka ever wanted to willingly seek out, but he was in a delicate situation that only he could help with, and while they might not have been the friendliest toward each other, this might have been something that he was willing to help with.
“I need a favor.” Luka knew exactly how that sounded as soon as the words left his mouth—especially with the way Klaus was now looking at him—but he couldn’t take them back now. And even if he could, he wouldn’t.
And not to mention the way Klaus had acted at the Christmas party a few weeks ago.
“You’re not in a position to be asking me for anything, Ahmeti.”
Luka visibly flinched at the name. Years had passed since he’d last been called that, and even during those days, he was still called by his first name. Ahmeti had been his father, the cruel bastard who had taken everything from him. If there was one thing he hated, then it was the reminder that he was a product of his father.
Klaus turned, heading around the side of his car as he swiped the towel over it, drying off the droplets of water that remained. As he moved, Luka got a good look at the jagged, raised scars that lined his back, another reminder as to why approaching Klaus was a gamble. There were days when they had a mutual understanding, but other days, very much like this one, Luka was just another reminder as to what had brought Klaus this low.
Unlike Luka who had covered his marks with vivid tattoos to the point that you couldn’t see them—only feel them if you were to touch them—Klaus wore his for everyone to see.
“It’s not about me,” Luka said carefully.
Glancing back at him, Klaus shook his head. “Alex, then? Didn’t the Russian tell you to stay away from her?”
Ignoring his question, Luka asked one of his own. “Are you going to help or not?”
Tossing t
he rag down, Klaus leaned against his car, focusing the intensity of his gaze on him. “What can I do?”
“In about an hour, there’s a meeting scheduled with the Angels MC. I need you there.”
“To pretend to be the Russian?” A sudden smile bloomed on his lips. “This should be fun but leave that piece of shit here,” he said with a gesture to Luka’s Jeep. “We’re taking my car.”
Luka momentarily blinked in surprise, not having actually expected Klaus to agree. It had been wishful thinking on his part because, for once, he had thought before he acted. Either way, Snow was going to die. There was no changing that.
Klaus headed into his motel room and changed clothes. Unlike his twin who mostly had a closet full of suits, Klaus wore jeans and a plain black shirt, but he still managed to look put together.
The ride to the meeting was uneventful, and by the time they reached their destination, Luka was a bit antsy.
“Anything I should know?”
“The one you want is Snow.”
Nodding, Klaus looked out toward the men who were waiting for them. “And before I condemn him to your ass, tell me. What the fuck did he do to you?”
“Like I said, it has nothing to do with me. Alex…” He thought back to the night he had found her, the way her eyes had been glassy and she could barely sit up… No, this had never been about him at all.
Once, he had told her he would keep her safe, no matter what. And that was before…whatever it was they had now. He’d made that promise because he cared about her. There were some men who would have thought they’d done their job by just getting her out of that situation, but Luka…Luka had to make sure that the situation never presented itself again.
Luka told Klaus a very condensed version of the events that had taken place that night, then telling him what he had done after, but nothing more than the first night he’d kept Alex at his place.
Hidden Monsters (Volkov Bratva Book 4) Page 24
