All We Ever Needed

by D. A. Young

  “Enough!!!”

  The room fell silent as Kat jumped to her feet. “No one is going anywhere they aren’t requested! I don’t need a white-horse defense or anyone to fight on my behalf!”

  “Katya—”

  “I said no!” Kat shouted, biting the inside of her cheek as silence descended. She glared at Darby. “I came to you in confidence and trusted you to keep it! Not have everyone in the family dissecting my business! I appreciate the concern. However, I am not a child to be patted on the head and told where to sit while the grownups discuss my life like I’m some damn community project!”

  “Breakin’ your trust was the last thing I wanted to do, Kat. I can only hope that you’ll forgive me in time,” Darby spoke quietly and with great earnest, his heart splitting for the pain Kat was in. He was sick with remorse over his decision but didn’t regret it.

  “Now knowing how easily Ma’s death could have been prevented, there is no line I won’t cross for family! Someone targeted you with a specific motive. To intentionally hurt you or Holt or the both of you. This was ruthless and malicious and who knows if they’re even done?! What if this is just the start?”

  She crossed her arms over her chest and surveyed them all angrily. “You think I don’t know that?! Of course, I do! Except, there’s a clear line between right and wrong and surprise! You’re not on the right side!” Kat threw her arms wide open. “It’s the way y’all go on about it for me! I haven’t been able to get a word in edgewise, and I’m sick of being smothered!” Kat grabbed her phone and shoved it in her purse and slung it over her shoulder.

  Darby tried to reach for her. She spun out of his grasp, and shocked by her rejection, he dropped his arm.

  Backing up toward the door, still furious, Kat’s eyes were the windows to her wounded heart, and she made no effort to conceal the havoc wreaked. “I love you guys, and D, we’ll get through this no doubt. For now, I just need space from the madness.”

  “Katerina!” Vivienne moved to go after her, and her husband held her back, his arms encircling her from behind.

  She ignored her mother and left, draining the energy from the room in the process.

  “Leave her be.”

  “My daughter just lost her entire shit, Alexei! Don’t ask me to stand by idly while she’s in pain!” Vivienne raged, struggling against him while her inner lioness went berserk. “Release me!”

  “She’s our daughter and I will not, my love.”

  His stern countenance had them all flabbergasted. This was Kat they were discussing, was it not? When it came to the baby of the family, they’d always taken the no-holds-barred-protective approach. Especially Alexei. When it came to his daughter, he was more than slightly psychotic.

  “What are we missin’ here, Lex?” Jack demanded, thunder rumbling in his voice. “Why would we not help if we can?!”

  “Believe me, Yakov. I’m aware that it is not easy for any of us to stand by when it comes to Katya. However, I’ve taken your mother’s recent words to heart. We will give her the time and space she has requested and monitor from a respectable distance,” he finished with a grim finality that brooked no room for disobedience.

  Cruz cleared his throat and offered a wave when they stared at him with chagrin, obviously forgetting he was there.

  “Sorry about that, Merada,” Alexei apologized. “Accompany me to my study, and I’ll fill you in on Brammer’s progress.”

  “Of course,” Cruz agreed. “Forgive me for intruding, but enlighten me, please. What the hell did I miss?”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Concentrate.

  Shaking her body loose, Kat focused on Tuck.

  His smirk was cocky as shit, but his eyes were grave with worry for her well-being. “You ready?”

  Her response was a clipped, “Let’s go!”

  “You sure?” he taunted. “‘Cause you look shook.”

  “Babe!” Autumn warned from her seat outside the ring.

  With narrowed eyes, Kat smashed her gloves together. “Yeah, I’m real shook, you fuckin’ pussy.”

  “She sounds good to go, love,” Tuck told Autumn. “Come on and get some then, girly.”

  He laughed at her growl, knowing how much she hated that nickname.

  Kat advanced with hungry aggression, bobbing and weaving. Left jab. Right power punch. Left uppercut.

  “Holton is the best lover I’ve ever had.”

  The woman’s dulcet Swedish accent popped into her head, giving Kat an instant migraine. She went harder and landed more than an occasional kick, too, while Tuck did his best to parry and land a couple of hits of his own. Now that Kat had heard the voice, images from the video accompanied it.

  Holt fucking her, his magnificent ass on full display and her contorted expression of pleasure underneath him.

  Her giving him a blow job and Holt’s hands in her hair, guiding her head up and down.

  His fingers in her sex, and the sounds she made as she came.

  “Switch up, Romankov!” Tuck barked, attempting to draw Kat back in.

  Everything during their trysts had been spoken in Swedish. Except for the commentary now playing in her head. That was done in English, with malicious calculation, for Kat’s benefit.

  “He’s in a class of his own. That kind of skill can’t be taught. I always feel like a virgin with Holt. Mmm. That’s how good it is.”

  Tears stung her eyes, and Tuck managed to catch her in the ribs. The wind rushed out of Kat at the unexpected pain. Focus, idiot! She shook her head, trying to slip back into her zone.

  “You awake in there, girly?”

  She answered with a right jab, left power punch, right uppercut, and left hook, catching him in the mouth. “I’m so fucking woke right now. Trust and believe that shit. You gonna stand there and look pretty, or are we gonna dance?” Kat grunted, circling him.

  “Low blow!” Autumn scolded her.

  “She’s fine, baby.” Tuck lowered his fists and studied their best friend.

  Kat was a woman possessed with accomplishing her mission. She was hurting. The pain was coming off her in waves so strong, she could hardly keep her head above water. Kat was a tight ball of tension and needed an outlet for the ferocity sweltering within.

  “You know you can always just call him, right?”

  “If you could tell his American piece one thing, what would it be?”

  The woman looked directly at the camera, speaking intentionally to Kat, challenging her. “I would tell her that she is only temporary. Holton always comes back to me. How could he not when I’m the one who taught him everything he knows.”

  Her nude lips curved into a smile that contradicted the spite in her eyes, and her hands swept the curtain of her long dark brown hair behind her neck gracefully. Her hand drifted to the locket nestled in her cleavage and caressed it. She was older and very sensual and knew it, confident in her appeal to the opposite sex.

  “I’m the one who took his virginity when he was fifteen, and he’s returned to me every year that he’s in Sweden. He set me up in this place, and I’ve occasionally visited him in Nashville. He was mine first and always will be mine. Like Prince Harry, Holton has been bitten by the Meghan Markle bug. It doesn’t worry me. Most illnesses have to run their course. Holton will come back to me, and the carousel will continue to spin.”

  “This isn’t the time, Tuck!” she gritted out. “Gloves up! No measures given.”

  Kat didn’t give him a chance to speak. She swung and it was on. Tuck showed no leniency, forcing her to call on every single bit of training that he and Darby had ever drilled into her. Kat welcomed the fight. Their size difference didn’t matter. It was an equal playing field. Author Mark Twain had summed it up best.

  “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

  Immediately after watching the video, Kat had calmly researched flights to Sweden while Tuck continued with his facial recognition search. The fucking cowardly c
unt hadn’t even bothered to introduce herself. Like Dixie, she’d presumed that she was important enough to be considered a fucking factor in Kat and Holt’s relationship. Silly ho. She was gonna catch these hands, and Kat wasn’t going to be quick about it, either, because she had no fucks to give but enough ends to beat a case and a bitch’s ass. Her hot little finger was just about to hit pay on the airline ticket when Kat closed the tab and put the phone up.

  She walked into Autumn and Tuck’s guest bathroom and promptly threw up. Kat was so disgusted and pissed that she’d allowed herself to be taken so far out of character, she wanted to put her fist through the mirror. Before she dealt with that trick, Holt needed a good ass-chewing for putting her in this fucking position in the first place.

  “Kat!”

  That asshole! He’d blindsided her again. Tuck hadn’t been able to do the search because the security password automatically reset every six months. Darby was the only one who had access to it before distributing it to his second-in-command. As it was a personal issue regarding Kat, he’d demanded to be involved. He’d been furious and planned to call Holt. She’d told him not to and to keep this quiet until she made a choice. Kat slept in Tuck and Autumn’s guest room last night. Cue second ambush this morning that frayed her nerves.

  “Kat, stop!”

  The lack of respect was going to stop. She was fucking done.

  “Katerina, stop it!!!”

  Kat glanced up, confused by Autumn’s shouting.

  “She’s fine, honey. I’m alright,” Tuck answered.

  From beneath her.

  She glanced down to find him in a protective huddle peering at her from between his gloves. Meanwhile, hers were off. She didn’t know how or when, but her knuckles were bruised and starting to swell. Kat wasn’t even aware she was crying until the drops hit Tuck’s gloves and slid off to hit his face. She rolled off him. Then Autumn was in the ring with them, pulling Kat into her arms while her husband went to grab the first aid kit.

  ***

  Thirty-six hours of not seeing Kat’s face or hearing her voice had Holt feeling like he was about to come out of his skin. She was avoiding him. He’d replayed their last conversation repeatedly, searching for any clues or inflections in her voice that he might have missed. None. Holt was certain of it. Why was she shutting him out? He could literally hear the door between them slamming. No, not shutting. Kat was dead-bolting that bitch.

  He’d instructed Blaise to fill Cruz in when he arrived at the airport, and Holt was now on his way back to his hotel to shower and get cleaned up. His phone rang, and Holt breathed a sigh of relief at Kat’s picture. The knot in his stomach unraveled a little.

  “Darlin’, why haven’t you been takin’ my calls?” he growled. “I’ve been goin’ out of my mind with worry! Tell me you’re okay. I need to know because if you aren’t, I’ll be on the next plane home, Kat.”

  Her laugh was hollow and listening to it, Holt felt their connection shifting like tectonic plates.

  “I’m far from okay. Now that I’ve answered your question, you’ll answer mine. Who is Geneva Blom to you?”

  She’d knocked him on his ass with that sledgehammer of a question. Holt’s mind was racing. How did she know about Geneva? “She’s no one. Where’d you hear that name from?”

  “No one?” Kat laughed again and the brittle rawness of it scraped his heart. The pressure at the base of Holt’s neck increased. “Don’t patronize me! Surely, you can do better than that. You certainly don’t fuck her like she’s no one. There’s tons of video footage on your skillful techniques that you apply quite masterfully. Your stamina is admirable, by the way.”

  “What?!”

  “I didn’t stutter, Holton! You fuck her like the two of you have been fucking for years.” Her voice was serpent-like, smooth and swift, searching for an opportunity to deposit her venomous words. “You fuck like she’s the one who took your virginity. Was she lying about that?”

  Geneva had videotaped them.

  Volcanic rage erupted within Holt. It was unlike anything he’d ever felt, and he struggled to contain it and not give it an outlet. The need to grab his axe and lash out at anyone and anything was overwhelming. The cab driver, staring nervously into his savage face, would be the first to go.

  “How do you know about her?” Holt couldn’t even say her name. Betrayal turned the air toxic. He found it hard to breathe as Kat’s disgust, hurt, and anger percolated into his skin, poisoning his system and making him nauseous.

  “Someone thoughtfully compiled a video montage of you and Ms. Blom’s finest sexcapades over the years and sent it to me. At first, I thought about giving this bitch a pass. How could she agree to something so sick and twisted? Turns out the joke was on ‘Gullible Kat’ again! Surprise! Ms. Blom is clearly not a fan of women supporting women because there’s an interview included that basically informs me that I have big Louboutins to fill if I’m ever going to reach her level of rocking your world.”

  “Kat, when I say she’s no one, I mean it!” Holt seethed. “I ended things with her last year before comin’ home. I didn’t even know what your answer would be to the possibility of ‘us’, yet I knew, either way, my relationship with her couldn’t continue. We were just prolonging the inevitable. I wasn’t going to be able to satisfy her with what she wanted most. I haven’t talked to her since.”

  “Oh, stop being so modest. Trust me; she was more than satisfied with you,” Kat snarked, hating that she couldn’t shake the explicit images and details of them. “I’ll email you a copy of the video. Do you think I should send her roses to thank her for my orgasms? You’re just the gift that keeps on giving, aren’t you?”

  Holt bent forward, elbows on his knees as he loosened his tie. His body was sweating, going hot and cold. “That’s not funny, Katerina!”

  “Sadly, it’s not, Holton. While I knew you weren’t a virgin, I didn’t need to know all the details or the hows and whys of your familiarity. My entire family knows! I was completely humiliated! I kept no secrets from you, but you can’t say the same.”

  “Hold up! Baby, the last thing I’d ever want to do is hurt you or allow anyone else to. I will get to the bottom of this bullshit. Those responsible will be held accountable by my version of justice, but this isn’t my fault!” Holt snapped.

  “I understand that. For the record, if I wanted her handled, I would have personally handled her ass and wouldn’t have said shit about it. I wouldn’t bring it to you or my family! I’m bringing this shit to you because, it would have been nice to not be blindsided again, Holton! Don’t try to diminish her either. This woman played a pivotal role in your life, your sexual life at that, and you should have disclosed that at the beginning of our relationship. Lately, every time I turn around, I’m seeing or hearing about your exes. I’ve got Dixie’s thirsty ass with a death wish, your surprise ex-fiancé, and now this ho!”

  “Kat, this relationship wasn’t exactly one I was proud of. It’s better that I explain it in person.” The cab arrived at the hotel and barely rolled to a stop before Holt threw some kronor at the driver and exited. “Keep the change!”

  Holt entered the hotel and barely managed to get on the crowded elevator, remaining silent.

  “Holt? Are you there? Can you hear me?”

  “I’m here.” His growl startled the alarmed group in the elevator. One look at his face and they tried to crowd together and away from him. As well they should, given his murderous rage. Holt focused on the lit numbers until they reached his floor, and he bolted out. “I was in a crowded elevator, Katerina.”

  She sighed in his ear, and Holt leaned against the wall outside his room and tugged on his beard, frustrated that this conversation wasn’t happening in person.

  “Kat, I’m sorry this happened. I will handle it! I’m just askin’ you for a little time. Let me figure things out here, and I’ll be back, and we can talk face to face.”

  The strained silence wrapped around Holt’s heart like barbed
wire. His hands curled into his fists and his phone cracked under the force. On her end, Kat leaned her head back against her car seat and closed her eyes. Her throat swelled, tightening with unexpressed emotions. Tears slid from beneath her lids as sorrow filled her, the perfect companion to her heartache.

  “Holton,” her voice gentled and that was even worse to Holt. He detected the hitch Kat was trying to conceal, and his stomach churned. “I’m so in love you that I don’t even know how to deal with it. I’m terrified because I think you will always be it for me! I want to marry you and have a life together with babies. Life is happening right now as we speak. I’m not hitting the pause button on it again. But…I am going to hit it on us. I think the physical time apart should be a mental one as well.”

  His fury crackled, electrifying the phone line, threatening to consume her when he lashed back. “Don’t do this, Katerina! I never asked you to hit pause on anythin’! All I asked was for you to give us a chance!”

  “And I want to! Except, it feels like we’re doing a warped Cha-Cha with all the back and forth. Those images aren’t going to go away overnight and neither are any of your issues surrounding your family. You’re trying to navigate two different worlds, but now, they’ve collided. What happens after we get married?” Kat cried her frustration, pounding on her steering wheel.

  “Will you continue to keep me hidden away? I’ll have no communication with that side of your family except for your parents? What about our children? In this day and age, you don’t think it’s ridiculous that we’d avoid an entire country because of five people? People don’t even quit vacationing if a terrorist threat has been issued!”

  “We’ll cross those bridges when we get there,” Holt ground out. He stopped pacing long enough to stare at the wall in front of him, trying not to give over to his volatile emotions. He could not lose Katerina. The thought of it made him desperate in ways he couldn’t comprehend. Not after waiting so long for her.

  “No, we’ll get it all worked out beforehand,” Kat rebutted firmly, certain more than ever, that she was doing the right thing for them. “How can you even think that way given our parents’ history? I won’t jeopardize our relationship like that. I need space, Holt. Not only from you but also from my family. I’m not a baby and refused to be coddled like Ruby and Baby Jack! Even D.J. gets more respect than me! Respect me enough to back off.”