by Alexa Land
“I know guns, I’ve been around them my whole life, and I know he’s right about the fire power. It’s loaded, of course. And I hold it up and sight down the barrel, just getting a feel for it. And I happen to be pointing it straight at my uncle Gregor.” He paused and took a deep breath, then said, “And I thought, God, it would be so easy. A moment’s work. I could pull the trigger. I could end him, right here, right now and all my problems would be solved. The room’s full of nothing but gangsters, not one of them would turn me in. Hell, they might even thank me, since everyone hates that son of a bitch.”
He continued quietly, “Time stops, everything goes silent. I’m looking at my uncle, and he’s staring back at me. And he knows exactly what I’m thinking. He’s just watching me, totally immobile, waiting to see what I do. And God help me, I think, just give me a reason. One smirk, one sneer, as if he hasn’t given me enough reasons already by threatening my family.”
Dmitri took a deep breath. “But then, I see his hand. It’s resting on the table top, holding a cigarette. And it’s shaking. It’s actually shaking! My uncle, he’s like a machine, so cold, so emotionless. But right then, in that moment, he’s scared. He really thinks I’m about to kill him. And seeing his fear, even just that little tell, it reminds me he’s human. And I can’t do it. I can’t kill him.
“But God, Jamie, I came so fucking close. And to see that darkness in myself – it absolutely sickened and terrified me.”
“You’re not dark, Dmitri.”
“I’m not?”
“No. You didn’t do it,” I said.
“But I wanted to.”
“Doesn’t matter.”
He tilted his head up and met my gaze. “It doesn’t?”
“No. All that matters is the fact that you didn’t pull the trigger.”
He put his head back on my chest, and was quiet for a while. And then he whispered, “I really don’t want to be a criminal, Jamie. I’ve never wanted that.”
“I know. So we’re going to get you out of the mafia, away from that life,” I told him, and Dmitri nodded and held on tight.
Chapter Thirteen
Dmitri was already awake when I opened my eyes the next morning. He was watching me intently, his face inches from mine. He smiled when I awoke, but there was something in his eyes, in his expression that made him seem fragile somehow, unsure of something.
“You ok, baby?” I asked.
He nodded and broke my gaze. “Just have a lot on my mind.”
“Want to shower together?”
He looked up at me and said, “Yes. But will you fuck me first?” That fragility was still there, the uncertainty, and I touched his cheek gently.
“Dmitri, are you sure you’re ok?”
His blue eyes searched my face as he said softly, “I just really need to know I belong to you. Will you tie me down? Please?”
“Is that a good idea? You already seem kind of vulnerable this morning.”
“Please, Jamie.” He slid into my arms and kissed me, and it was a kiss full of hunger, full of need and desire.
My entire body responded to him, and I slid my hands down his back to his ass as I kissed him. He pushed his hardening cock against mine and rubbed against me, and I whispered, “Oh crap. I don’t have my handcuffs with me.”
He grinned a little. “I’m sure we can improvise.” He swung out of bed and jogged to his walk-in closet, returning a moment later with a handful of neckties. “It’s kind of clichéd, but it’ll do the job,” he said, still grinning.
I picked up a black silk tie and looked at him closely. But when I opened my mouth to ask if he really was ok and if this was a good idea, he put a finger on my lips and said, “Yes, I’m fine, and yes, we should do this.” He put his wrists together and held out his hands to me, then said, “Make sure it’s tight. You don’t want me to escape.” His eyes sparkled as he said that, his lips curved up in a sexy smile.
With a grin of my own, I wound the tie around his wrists as he laced his fingers together, then cinched them with a knot. “Too tight?” I asked.
“It could be a lot tighter.”
“Are you trying to get it to leave marks again?” The marks from the handcuffs had completely faded out.
He smiled at me. “Maybe. And like I said, I don’t want to be able to escape.”
I pulled the knot just a little tighter and said, “Will you be trying to escape?”
“God no.”
“Ok then.” I tugged on the tie, hoisting his arms up over his head as I pulled him onto his back on the mattress, then climbed on top of him and kissed him, my tongue tasting his willing mouth. I ran my free hand down the length of his body, pausing to cup his balls and squeeze them gently before taking hold of his cock and stroking it base to tip. He moaned against my lips and I gripped him harder and parted his legs with my thigh.
After a few minutes of this, I rolled off him to get the lube and a condom, and while I did that, he contemplated his solid, padded headboard. “Hmm,” he said. “Now how’s that gonna work?” He swung off the bed – quite gracefully for a man with his hands tied together – and looked around the room, then shot me a perfectly wicked smile. “Feel like trying something new, Jamie?”
I grinned at him and said, “Babe, you’re buck naked and the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I’d agree to absolutely anything if it means getting to fuck you in the very near future.”
“Ok. Then grab the rest of those ties and follow me.”
We ended up bending him over and tying him face-down to his mahogany dresser, ankles bound to the legs of the big piece of furniture. I stepped back to admire my handiwork. Dmitri was incredibly turned on and tantalizingly held in place by the bindings, breathing rapidly as he begged, “Fuck me, Jamie. Take me. Please.”
My cock was throbbing, and I stood behind him and rubbed it against his ass, running it between his cheeks and moaning appreciatively. I coated my fingers with lube and pushed two inside him. “Oh God yes,” he gasped as I worked him open. “Take me. Fuck me. Please.”
I applied a condom and lube, then pushed the tip of my cock against his tight opening. A harder push and I was in him. He was in the perfect position, and I started thrusting into his body, taking hold of his hips for leverage. He was incredibly turned on, crying out and then mumbling words of encouragement, urging me to take him harder.
I pumped into him deeper, faster, and still he begged for more. He kept up a litany of, “Please Jamie, take me as hard as you can. You won’t hurt me, I promise. Please baby, fuck me hard.” In increments I did as he asked, fucking him harder and harder until my body was slamming into his, the big heavy dresser creaking and rocking under us as he chanted, “Yes, yes, yes!”
I was yelling his name as I came, grasping his hips to anchor him to me, thrusting wildly into him as I shook with waves of blindingly intense pleasure. And then he was yelling, too, shooting his load onto the side of the dresser as I fucked him almost violently.
Finally when it was over I dropped to my knees, exhausted, and pulled off the condom. I leaned against his body for a moment, then kissed the gorgeous ass that I rested against and fumbled with the ties around his ankles. When his feet were untied I forced myself up and quickly unbound his hands, and immediately he sunk to his knees.
I gathered him into my arms and cradled him as I said softly, “You ok, baby?”
He tilted his head up to look at me, and what I saw in his face made me catch my breath. Dmitri stared at me with raw adoration, almost awe. And he said with a sweet smile, “I’m far, far better than ok, Jamie.”
“I was afraid I’d been too rough with you.”
“There’s no such thing as too rough with me. That was perfect. I love you so much.”
I brushed his hair back from his face and looked at him closely. He was relaxed, content. Happy. “I love you, too.”
We eventually got up from the floor and took a leisurely shower, washing each other tenderly. Then we dressed in
t-shirts and sweats (mine borrowed from Dmitri), and wandered downstairs hand-in-hand.
And we both stopped short when we walked into Dmitri’s kitchen, frozen in shock.
Assembled in the kitchen were Catherine, Jess, and six other women I didn’t recognize. It was a sea of big hair and big earrings, lip gloss and eyeliner. They were seated along the breakfast bar or leaning against the counters, chatting over coffee and bagels, and all of them stopped what they were doing and turned to us when we came into the kitchen. “Good morning, sunshines,” Catherine said cheerfully as Dmitri gripped my hand tighter.
“What’s going on?” I asked, glancing at my boyfriend. He looked stunned.
Jess said, “Hey guys. I’m here as discussed.”
Catherine said, “Last night, I texted Dmitri’s sister Ani – ” a cute blonde waved at me from across the kitchen, “– who in turn texted the rest of Dmitri’s sisters. They all came to help.”
“With what?” I asked, feeling like I’d missed something.
“With your and Dmitri’s situation. Hi Jamie, I’m Lena, the oldest of Dmitri’s sisters. Well, by seventeen minutes, anyway.” A woman stepped forward and shook my hand, jingling the collection of gold bangles on her wrist. She had blue eyes and thick black hair cascading almost to her waist in waves, and her resemblance to Dmitri was unmistakable. “And this is my partner, Marley.” A tall, elegant African American woman that looked like she’d just stepped off a runway shook my hand.
“Sorry to catch you both off guard,” Marley said with a grin. “We all assumed Catherine told you we were coming, but apparently that wasn’t the case.”
“When was I supposed to tell them?” Catherine exclaimed. “They’ve been having sex nonstop since last night!”
“Oh God,” Dmitri whispered, a deep blush creeping up from his collar. He gripped my hand tighter still.
Lena grinned at us, then said, “So, since my brother is too shell-shocked to make the introductions,” she gestured around the room, “that’s my twin, Darya. And those two are Nat and Irina, also twins. And that’s Ani, the baby of the family.”
“Please,” Ani said, rolling her eyes. Then she added, “It’s nice to meet you, Jamie.”
“Same here,” I murmured as Jess came up to us and handed both Dmitri and me a cup of coffee. She was obviously amused by this scenario, but was trying hard to keep a straight face as she patted my arm sympathetically. Then I said, “So, I’m sorry – what situation, exactly, are you helping with?” I was both startled and under-caffeinated right now, so my brain functions weren’t quite online.
“You know,” Jess said. “You love Dmitri. He loves you. You two want to be together, but his asshole uncle is trying to get Dmitri to marry his cousin.” She shuddered, then turned to Catherine and said, “No offense, but that’s super gross.”
“None taken,” Catherine said cheerfully.
Jess continued, for the benefit of everyone else in the room, “Dmitri thinks he has to go through with this sham marriage, or else his family– ” she waved her hand around the room, “will be in danger from the shithead uncle. So we’re all here to figure out what needs to happen to get the shithead out of the picture, so you and Dmitri can be together.”
Nat or Irina chimed in, “And we’re pissed, Dmitri, because you never bothered to tell us that Uncle Gregor has been strong-arming you.”
Lena said, “It’s because Gregor wants to secure his position in the family, right? That’s why he wants you to marry his daughter.” Dmitri nodded.
The other twin (who wasn’t identical to her sister, but I hadn’t gotten their names straight to begin with) said, “We all knew the marriage to Catherine was a sham, of course, but we figured you two were going along with it willingly in exchange for the house, the cars, the club. We didn’t know there were threats being made to get you to cooperate.”
“I want to hear this from Dmitri,” Ani said, turning to her brother. “Is it true? Is the engagement really because you’re trying to protect us? Because you thought Gregor would go after one of us if you didn’t cooperate with him?”
“Yes,” he said quietly.
“Dmitri, do you think we’d let you sacrifice yourself for us?” Irina/Nat asked. “If we’d had any idea what this engagement was really about, if you’d ever bothered to tell us, we’d have put an end to this shit long ago.”
Lena said, “We’re all grateful that you took care of us when we were kids, D. It was really tough when Mom and Dad died, and you took on a lot at nineteen, quitting Stanford and looking after all of us, and Cat too. But we’re all adults now, sweetie. We don’t need you to keep making sacrifices for us. And we really don’t need you to protect us from Gregor or from any of the other families. We can protect ourselves.”
“How?” Dmitri asked. “You know the kind of people we’re dealing with. You think they’d hesitate to harm you, or Marley, or your kids?”
Lena reached into her leopard-print handbag on the counter and pulled out a .22, gesturing with it as she said, “I’d never let any harm come to my family. I can defend my wife and kids.”
“Christ, Lena, put that away.” Dmitri looked horrified.
She returned the gun to her purse and then daintily combed her hair back with her red fingernails. “I know that’s not really a solution, but it should show you we do think about our own safety. We’ve all grown up with the constant threat of kidnapping, and power plays or retaliation from the other families. So if Gregor poses a risk, then we’ll do something about it. We’ll hire security. I’ll do that for all of us today, just so Dmitri has less to worry about. I know the best body guard firm in the city.”
“I’m not sure if that’s a solution,” Dmitri said. “Almost any body guard for hire could potentially be bought off. They wouldn’t necessarily protect you.”
“Well, Christ, Dmitri, we have to do something,” Lena grumbled. The sisters launched into a debate about the pros and cons of hiring security, and I took the opportunity to turn to Dmitri, putting my arm around his shoulders. “Hey,” I said softly, and kissed his cheek.
He slid his arm around my waist and whispered, “I’m so sorry.”
“What are you apologizing for?” I asked, running my hand around the back of his neck and resting my forehead against his.
“Everything. All of this. Endangering you. Bombarding you with all of my sisters at once. Just, God, everything.” He set his coffee mug aside and took my face between his hands.
I set my cup down too and kissed him gently. “You have no reason to apologize, baby.”
“God, they’re cute together,” one of Dmitri’s sisters said, and I glanced up to find we had the attention of everyone in the room.
Dmitri blushed and turned his back to his sisters as I said, “You might as well go with the body guard idea. It can’t hurt. And in the mean time, I’ll go to my department and get a search warrant issued. Hopefully we can find some evidence and get Sokolov put away.”
“Or we could just shoot him,” Darya said. When everyone in the room turned to stare at her, she exclaimed, “Kidding!” Then she added, “And like all of you weren’t thinking it, too.”
Note to self: keep an eye on Darya at all times.
Dmitri leaned against the kitchen counter, chewing his lower lip. After a moment, he said, “You can’t get a search warrant, Jamie.”
“Why not?”
“Because Gregor has a couple cops on his payroll,” he said, not meeting my eyes. “As soon as the paperwork is initiated for a search warrant, he’ll get a call. If there’s any evidence lying around, he’ll make sure it’s long gone before the police show up at his door.”
“Which cops? Do you know their names?” I demanded, disgusted by the idea of dirty cops on my force.
“I don’t.”
“How deep does it go?” I asked. “How involved are they in organized crime?”
“They’re not that involved, as far as I know. They just keep their ears open and tip Gregor o
ff when needed. Oh, and remember me telling you I have a database with the name of every cop in the city in it? They provided my uncle with that list, and he forwarded it to me.” Dmitri studied the wood floor.
“Damn,” I muttered. I’d have to talk to Dmitri about this in depth when we were alone. For now though, I said, “Ok, so if we can’t tip Sokolov off with a search warrant, where does that leave us?”
Several sisters started talking at once, and Dmitri interrupted by saying, “I can try to get evidence on him. If I bring it to the police myself, you wouldn’t need a warrant.”
