I pulled back suddenly, wondering what all of this meant. “Wait, what–”
Drago wrapped his fist around my ponytail, his other hand resting on the skin of my upper chest, his thumb once again rubbing across the skin of my collar bone.
“I am done trying to hold back, Katya,” he uttered, his grey gaze flying almost manically across my features. “I know I didn’t give you much of an opportunity to live your life, but it was the best I could do under the circumstances. I have kept myself from you, from touching you—consuming you—but I’m through with that. You have a decision to make. A decision that’s probably not fair that I force you to make now when you don’t know what you’re getting into, and when you don’t really know all that I am,” he rumbled out in a low voice, his accent more pronounced than usual. His serious, slate-grey eyes met mine in a steady gaze. “Do you want to be mine, Katya?”
My mouth gaped in shock, unable to believe the words I had ached to hear, actually leaving his mouth. Tears sprung to my eyes, and my breathing stuttered, and I was afraid I might pass out with astonishment and delight.
As he continued to pin me with his intense stare, I realized he was still waiting for my answer. I opened my mouth to respond, but adrenaline had my vocal cords paralyzed, so I simply nodded my head.
His body relaxed, and with a look of grim satisfaction, he slammed his mouth back down on mine.
Chapter 13
Drago
I heard Katya’s soft squeak as I took her mouth over and over again. I had let the beast out of the cage, and he wasn’t going to stop. Blood pounded in my cock as she squirmed against me, pulling me closer, accepting my claim.
This was the most reckless thing I’d done in years—maybe ever. Out in the open, completely distracted, consumed with the woman in front of me, I was vulnerable to any number of attacks, but at that moment, I didn’t give a fuck.
I had accepted that I wanted—needed—this woman, and that was all my mind and body could process. That understanding had me pulling Katya’s legs up around my waist and grinding my hard dick between her legs. She groaned deeply and slammed her hips against me, seeking pressure, seeking release. Her heated response sent blood roaring through my veins.
My hand drifted up to one sweetly curved breast to her nipple, running my thumb against the hardened peak. I pinched softly at first, then continued with progressive intensity, testing her responses, while still kissing her hungrily. Katya responded by clawing my back and kissing me with equal ferocity.
I had to stop. I wasn’t going to fuck her for the first time in a club. More specifically, the bathroom of a club, which is exactly where I would be heading if I didn’t put an end to this right now. However, pulling away from her soft body, her hot mouth, her sweet moans was proving to be a challenge.
I felt a hand on my shoulder and pivoted immediately to stand in front of Katya, fist raised and cursing my lack of discipline. Fortunately, I only found Nikolai, his hands up in surrender.
“Whoa, shit, Drago. I just got a text from Max. Something’s going on. Check your messages.”
Jesus Christ, I had lost all sense with this girl. I reached in my pocket and grabbed my phone to read Maxim’s messages, and what I saw sent a bolt of alarm ripping through me. He had followed the Alfonsi kid and had watched him meet up with Andrei Orlov.
Andrei Orlov, who was last seen in the company of Yuri Ivanov. Where there was Orlov, Yuri had to be nearby. If Yuri was nearby, Katya was vulnerable.
“Fuck. We’ve got to go.” Looking back at Katya’s swollen mouth and dazed expression, frustration and anger roared through me. I didn’t want to pull my attention away from her, but the situation was urgent.
I’d had a feeling Yuri was making his way back here, but now I knew it.
My mind was quickly shifting gears, developing our immediate course of action.
“Nikolai, gather everyone and go to my apartment. It’s the safest place. I’m going to meet up with Max and take care of some other business that needs to be dealt with.”
“Drago, what’s going on?” Katya asked, grabbing my arm to pull me around to face her.
I blew out a breath, not sure how much to tell her. I didn’t want her to panic, but she needed to be aware of what was going on—to some extent.
I was in an unsettling position. I’d never had this dilemma before. Any person I was remotely close to was already in the organization, and my subordinate, so I never felt a responsibility to tell them anything that wasn’t directly relevant to their role. Navigating another person’s emotions was so foreign it had me shrugging my shoulders to ease the discomfort.
“We think Yuri might be in Chicago,” I said, deciding to be direct.
I heard a series of gasps and turned my head to see Hannah and Anya standing next to Nikolai, but the feel of Katya’s grip tightening on my arm like a vice quickly brought my attention back to her. I took a step toward her, crowding her body with my own, cradling her jaw in my hand, rubbing my thumb across her soft bottom lip. Watching her golden-green eyes wild with anxiety and fear was like a knife to the gut.
“Katya, take a deep breath. Look at me,” I commanded, pausing until she was finally able to focus her gaze. “He will never have the opportunity to get near you. I would never allow this. Do you understand?”
She swallowed and bit the lip under my thumb but nodded her head slowly.
“Do you trust me to take care of you?” I asked, pulling the abused lip from her teeth.
She nodded again. “Yes, I trust you, Drago,” she whispered, and although there were hundreds of people in that club, in that moment, it just felt like we were the only ones there. I leaned down and gave her a hard, deep kiss on the mouth, took her hand, and turned to Nikolai.
“Let’s go.”
Chapter 14
Katya
I sat in Drago’s car as we zipped down State Street towards his apartment in the South Loop, still dazed. I’d always had this fear in the back of mind, this awareness that Yuri was still out there. After so much time had passed, he had become more like the boogie man—a mythical demon, built up in my imagination and greatly feared, but unlikely to appear. Well, it looked like the boogie man was back.
Drago shot me a look, and what he saw must have concerned him because he grabbed my hand to rest it on his hard thigh. “You okay, kotyonok?” he rumbled out softly.
My head whipped around to stare at his hard profile, my heart nearly bursting upon hearing the use of the pet name he had given me long ago, but rarely had an opportunity to use. It meant kitten in Russian.
I gripped his hand. “Yes, I guess…I don’t know. It’s surreal to think of Yuri back in our lives. That day feels like a million years ago. I can’t imagine seeing him again.” Goosebumps rose on my skin as I pictured that confrontation, a shiver of dread and disgust washing over me.
“You won’t ever have to deal with him, see him even. Yuri is as good as dead and coming back to Chicago only sped up the timeline. It was stupid and reckless of him to return, but not surprising. Even at his best moments, Yuri wasn’t exactly known for his superior decision-making skills.”
I grinned at Drago’s unexpected use of humor. I gasped theatrically. “Did you just make a joke?”
Drago shot me a half-grin. “It happens periodically.”
I widened my eyes in mock surprise. “I find that hard to believe.”
He shrugged and smirked at my playful response. “I guess you’ll have to wait and see.”
“So, you’ve been a secret comedian this whole time?”
He turned and shot me a deadpan look. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
I smiled at him, finding it difficult to contain my giddiness. I was enjoying this banter with Drago, this flirting. We had never been able to truly explore our chemistry, and it was fun to feel so free, even if the timing was a bit peculiar given the other stressors surrounding us.
“How far would you go?” I asked seductively, lowering my voice.
Drago stopped at a red light and turned to me, his gray eyes molten with heat, obviously reading the shift in the conversation. He leaned toward me, gripping my jaw with his rough fingertips. “All the way.”
I stared at his carnal expression and found myself blurting out the question that had been rattling around my mind since we were at the club. “Why now?”
I didn’t mean to switch the conversation in such a heavy direction, but I was curious about what had changed for him. Why was he willing to do this now?
He pulled back, looking thoughtful, but the light turned green, so he released my chin and moved the car forward. I shot an annoyed frown at the green light, as a thousand thoughts flew around my mind imagining how he would have answered my question. I figured he would take advantage of the reprieve and was preparing myself to have my curiosity left unsatisfied.
I was still pondering when Drago pulled into his underground garage, parked in a numbered space, and turned the car off. He paused for a moment before turning to me and sliding his hand behind my neck, pulling me toward him.
“Because, kotyonok, I have stopped denying what exists between us. I have tried to allow you the freedom you deserve to the extent that I could provide it, but I am no longer interested in holding you at arm’s length. In fact, I doubt I will ever allow you to be very far from me. I hope you know what you are getting into, Katya, because I don’t intend to ever let you go.”
My heart galloped in my chest as he pulled me to him, palming the back of my head and kissing me in a way that demonstrated every bit of his ownership. I felt dizzy with joy and lust, unable to believe this was actually happening. This was my greatest fantasy realized—Drago wanting me, kissing me, claiming me.
I leaned into his kiss, his hand moving up my ribcage, drifting over the exposed skin of my chest. He pulled back, his eyes watching his hand play on my flesh, his knuckle drifting down from my skin to rub through the fabric to my rapidly hardening nipple, making me gasp.
His eyes darted to mine, taking in my reaction to his touch, then he suddenly curled his fingers into the neckline of my strapless top and pulling down sharply, exposing my breasts. As I sat there holding my breath, my hands jolted from their resting place to cover my newly exposed flesh.
“No, kotyonok,” he admonished softly, staring intently into my eyes and slowly removing my hands. “This is now mine. Mine to look at, mine to touch, mine to enjoy. You are perfect. There is no need to hide.”
I was hypnotized by the low, deep cadence of his accented words, and put up no resistance as he moved my arms to the side, allowing him access to my body. Once again, his knuckles rubbed over the hard tip of my right breast as we both watched, enraptured by the contrast of his darker hand against my pale naked flesh, his rough knuckles against my soft skin.
Drago pulled my mouth to his, his kisses rough and deep, as he started tugging and pulling my nipple, creating sensations I had never experienced, had never even known existed.
Drago raised both hands to cradle my face, his kisses ferocious and consuming as he kissed from my mouth to my cheek, briefly nipping and sucking my neck before sliding his left arm around my waist and lifting my left breast to his rampaging mouth. My head tipped back, and the heat of his swirling tongue had me moaning in ecstasy.
I gasped in shocked delight when I felt his teeth lightly biting, his other hand moving to tug and twist my other nipple in an onslaught of sensation. I was nearly overwhelmed with feeling, my hips twisting in the seat, seeking some type of relief.
Drago lifted himself from my breast and pulled my top back into place. “We don’t have time for this, Katya,” he rasped. “But you tend to make me forget my intentions.” He pulled me to him, giving me a hard kiss. “Let’s go inside.”
I sat in the passenger seat trying to compose myself after our rampant exchange. Drago opened my door, probably because I was just sitting there, not moving. I finally got out and ended up staring at him half in wonderment and half in disbelief at how this evening had unfolded.
Drago’s gray eyes narrowed. “You okay, kotyonok?”
His concern shook off my stupor, and I grinned. “That’s the second time you’ve asked me that on this car ride alone.”
He pulled my hips to his, resting his forehead on mine. “I’m always going to make sure you’re okay. Get used to it.”
I grinned with stunned delight, as he grabbed my hand and pulled me to the elevators.
Chapter 15
Drago
Katya and I stood in the elevator, which led directly to the inside of my apartment. I discretely adjusted my hard-on, lecturing myself to stay focused and not allow myself to be distracted. I had never lost sight of my purpose in the organization, had never been anything but one hundred percent dedicated to each task set before me.
To have my attention so preoccupied not only with Katya’s safety and well-being, but images of throwing her down and fucking her within an inch of her life was an uncomfortable realization. The elevator opened into my apartment, and I quickly marched inside followed by Katya walking slowly behind me.
I glanced at her inquiringly, not understanding her hesitation as she scanned my apartment with a disturbed expression.
“I’ve never been here before,” she whispered, her expression sad and troubled.
Comprehension crashed into me, and I was suddenly very aware of why she was reacting this way. The fact that she’d never been here hurt her. This was the apartment I had bought after moving out of her house when she graduated. After our altercation. An incident that clearly still caused Katya quite a bit of pain if her expression was any indication.
I sighed deeply, a headache starting to jab at my temples. “Katya, I know that night still upsets you, but, I’m sorry, we don’t have time to get into that right now. We will discuss it when this situation with Yuri is resolved,” I said firmly, shutting down this potential argument before it could start. There was no time to get into this, and I had no desire to have an emotionally overwrought female on my hands.
Katya put her hands on her hips, her brow pinched in apparent aggravation. “We had time to make out in the car, we had time for you to feel me up, but we don’t have time for us to discuss something I’m upset about?”
Irritation pulse under my skin—I was unused to being challenged. If this had been anyone else, a simple look would have shut down this entire conversation. “I understand you’re frustrated, but there isn’t time, Katya,” I repeated, considering the matter temporarily closed.
“I say there is time. You’re the boss, you set the schedule,” she rebutted combatively, her features set in disapproving lines, her arms crossed in mutinously.
Jesus Christ. I stopped short of rolling my eyes at her stubbornness. I had the more rationale position in this argument, the most easily defended, but Katya did not look as though she would be receptive to me pointing this out. I also felt defensive and misunderstood. Didn’t she realize I made the choice to move out for her benefit?
“Katya! I have a situation that requires direct attention. Nikolai and the girls will be here any minute, and I have to meet with Maxim to get more information about what is happening with Yuri. There’s no time to dissect your feelings about my apartment,” I snapped.
Katya’s mouth dropped open and her face flushed with indignant shock. Guilt crept into the periphery of my consciousness as tears welled up in her eyes. I was way out of my depth and deeply uncomfortable. Once again, I found myself shrugging my suddenly tense shoulders, feeling as though I was wearing a suit that was two sizes too small.
I needed to get away from her and get my head straight. I was used to my word being the law, not negotiating, not compromising, and not managing someone else’s emotions.
I opened my mouth to attempt to reason with her but was interrupted by Nikolai, Hannah, and Anya exiting the elevator. I didn’t know whether to be aggravated or relieved.
Katya moved away from the elevator and toward the floor to c
eiling windows. Frustration sat like a lump in my throat as I stared at the smooth skin of her back, now stiff with anger.
“Drago, what’s the plan?” Nikolai asked tentatively, evidently reading the tension in the room. Anya walked over to Katya’s side.
“Are you okay?” Anya asked softly, echoing what I’d asked Katya in the car. Anger and agitation roared through me. There was no time for this shit. I couldn’t focus on Katya when I had a crew of men prepared to raid the warehouse on the South Side at my command.
Katya nodded her head, but still refused to turn around. They might have assumed her mood was due to Yuri if I hadn’t been grinding my teeth into powder as I stared holes into her back.
Anya looked at me like I was a stranger, no doubt jarred by the extent of my uncharacteristic responses to Katya. I had to get control over it. I could not look weak to the people I commanded.
“I’m going to meet up with Maxim. All of you will stay here under the protection of my men. I’ll send up Will and Boris and station a few others downstairs. There are some other issues I’m dealing with, aside from Yuri, that I have to take care of tonight.” Katya’s head swung around when I said that, her brow puckering, but I didn’t have the capacity to figure out what was causing her unhappy expression.
Nikolai gave me a direct look. “Do you need me–”
I held up my hand. “No, Nikolai,” I interrupted. “I don’t need you to try and find Yuri. I’m certain he’ll be coming to us.”
Hannah angrily turned on Nikolai, her dark hair flying, and grabbed his forearm. Her black brows furrowed over stormy violet eyes. “Find Yuri? Why would you even suggest such a thing?”
“Hannah, he knows I betrayed him. The way he used to talk about loyalty…he isn’t going to let that go. Why not use that to our advantage while drawing his attention away from Katya?”
“But…you…” Hannah opened and closed her mouth several times, her gaze darting back and forth between Nikolai and Katya, clearly wanting to disagree with him. Her shoulders abruptly slumped as she begrudgingly understood the logic in his actions.
Drago (Dangerous Love Book 3) Page 5
