“Hannah,” Nikolai started, as he took her face in his hands to console her.
“As I said,” I cut in. “There is no need for any dramatic gestures. I have no doubt Yuri will come for all of us.” I caught Katya’s gaze with my own, making certain she understood, no matter what was happening between us, I would always protect her. “And when he does, he is mine.”
I marched over to where Katya was standing, still pouting. I wrapped her ponytail around my fist and pulled her head back. “I have to go. You are to stay here until I return. When I do, we’ll continue what we started earlier in the evening, kotyonok,” I murmured, hoping she knew I was referring to our sexual encounter, and not our argument. I had no desire to return to that conversation.
Her expression softened; those red pouty lips were begging for my attention. I crushed them beneath my own, imprinting myself on her as my tongue sought access to every recess of her mouth. Her tongue tentatively reached out and rubbed against mine and I had to force myself to throttle back my instinct to drag her my bedroom.
When I heard her soft moan and her nails started to dig into my chest in escalating desire, I pulled back, feeling a jolt of satisfaction as her sensual, dreamy expression.
It didn’t make leaving any easier, but I gave her hard kiss on the mouth and walked out.
Chapter 16
Katya
I was still standing by the window, slightly dazed by Drago’s hypnotic kisses, when he got on the elevator in order to meet Maxim. As I came out of my stupor, I wanted to stamp my foot and tell him to come back and finish talking to me, to scream at him for his insensitivity. I knew I was being irrational and childish, but it was so hard to remember to be reasonable when walking into his apartment triggered an avalanche of feelings.
The pain, rejection, and bitterness I had been harboring for over two years sprang to the surface like a geyser spewing in every direction.
“Okay, what the hell is going on with you and Drago?” Anya asked, cutting into my internal monologue of self-pity.
I pulled away from the window and threw myself, admittedly a bit melodramatically, onto his incredibly comfortable, suede brown, L-shaped sectional couch. I kicked off my shoes and pulled a pillow to my chest in an attempt to soothe my aggravation. “It’s such a long story.”
Anya threw herself down on the other side of the sofa. “Well, it’s not like we don’t have time,” she replied dryly.
I leaned my head back and took a deep breath. I glanced over at Nikolai and Hannah, who were still standing by the elevator quietly talking. By the look of it, Nikolai was apologizing for offering himself up as bait to Yuri. He was attempting to cajole and charm Hannah out of her distress, stroking his hands up and down her arms and down her back. By the look of her exasperated grin, it was working.
Nikolai started to press her back against the elevator, kissing her neck, his hand sliding down to her backside, but she grabbed his wandering hand and pulled him towards the couch. His disgruntled expression softening when she sat him in the corner of the couch and settled herself on his lap.
“Well?” Anya prompted, pulling my attention back to her. “I mean, I just assumed Drago had you so heavily protected because of Yuri and as a favor to Ivan.”
Hannah perked up at the mention of my brother, Ivan. “Where is Ivan these days?”
Hannah’s sister, Emmy, had grown incredibly attached to Ivan in the short time they spent together after he saved her from Yuri. Hannah was convinced that Emmy still had a crush on Ivan, although she hadn’t brought it up in a while.
“Moscow, with Mikhail and his people. Is Emmy still hung up on him?” I asked with no judgment. Trauma created strong bonds.
Hannah shook her head. “I don’t know…maybe?” Hannah’s brow creased in evident concern. “She’s in her senior year—she should be having fun. But all she does is go to school and play her harp. She worries me.” Nikolai rubbed her back consolingly, and she shot him a grateful smile over her shoulder. “Does Ivan ever mention her?”
I shook my head. “I barely speak to Ivan myself, although we might hear from him soon considering what’s going on with Yuri. Ivan’s been through…a lot because of Yuri.”
I could only speculate about what happened to Ivan when he was gone the year and a half before Drago took over. I knew it had something to do with Yuri, but Ivan wouldn’t talk about it.
Hannah nodded; her brow still puckered in worry for her sister.
“So, what exactly is the deal with you and Drago, Katya?” Anya repeated. “I’ve never seen him do any of the shit he’s done tonight?”
“It’s kind of a long story. It feels like I met him a million years ago, but it’s only been about four. My father, he used to entertain some really creepy people at our house, doing business for Yuri. I guess, to his credit, he typically made sure I was either gone or out of the way when it was going on.” I shrugged, having a hard time imagining my father giving me even that small courtesy.
“One night, I’d gone to a friend’s house for a sleepover, but she ended up getting sick, so her parents dropped me back home. I didn’t think anything of it and just went inside the house. My dad was sitting in our living room having drinks with a Turkish businessman, Bedri Demer.” I shuddered as I said his name, remembering the twisted, lecherous expression on his face. “I went in to tell my dad I was home, but as soon as I saw the other guy, how he looked at me, I tried to get out of the room as fast as possible. But Bedri insisted I stay, that it made business more conducive to stare at a pretty girl. My father, being the terrible parent, and person, that he was just nodded his head and made me stay in the room.”
“Oh, no,” Anya whispered, lifting her hand to cover her mouth.
“So, I sat there for like an hour while they spoke in rapid Russian I couldn’t understand, trying to ignore this middle-aged creep licking his lips and staring at me. He said something to my father and nodded in my direction. I think he was asking to take me or borrow me, or something like that, and back then, I thought my dad was being, well, a dad. He said no and then barked at me to go upstairs, so I practically flew out of there. I didn’t know at the time that Yuri had already paid my father for me. Dad knew it would be a death sentence if he let Bedri take me.” My eyes welled up at the sting of my father’s betrayal, and I took some deep breaths to get it under control.
A glance at everyone’s solemn, compassionate expressions and nearly had me crying again. I knew they all wanted to console me over my father’s horrifying betrayal, but didn’t want to upset me further, so they patiently waited for me to continue.
“A couple of days later, I got out of school and was waiting for one of my father’s men to pick me up, like they usually did. They sometimes sent Drago, although I don’t think it was one of his preferred tasks.” I half grinned at the childish crush I’d had on him even then. “So, when a limo stopped in front of me, I just assumed it was someone my dad had sent. I realized my mistake immediately when I opened the door, but it was too late. Bedri grabbed my hand and pulled me in. The doors locked, and we took off. Fortunately, they had sent Drago that day.”
“What happened then?” Anya squeaked, sitting on the edge of the couch in a heightened state of anticipation.
“Well, Bedri thought he had gotten away with kidnapping me, so he was getting ready to make his move… if you know what I mean?” By the look of collective revulsion, they knew what I meant. “So, he reached for me and I fought him off, which was surprisingly successful for a few minutes. I was raised in the mob, so I was taught some rudimentary self-defense. We fought for a few minutes, but I just wasn’t a match for a full-grown man. He finally got me pinned, but the car started to swerve, and I got loose again. He screamed at his driver, and they started yelling back and forth at each other, but it was in Turkish, so I had no idea what was going on.”
“Drago,” Anya whispered.
I nodded. “Yeah, it was Drago—he was swerving in front of the car to force it to the
side of the road while shooting at the tires. He saw me get into the limo and knew something was wrong. He phoned into Yuri to explain what he was doing. Yuri went crazy and demanded that Drago get me back, which made Yuri look like a hell of a nice guy at the time,” I said sarcastically.
“By this time, we were being jerked all over the back seat. Bedri and the driver were screaming back and forth at each other until the driver was driven off the road into a small ditch.” I rubbed my forehead, feeling the small scar I had at my hairline that served as a reminder of my abduction.
“The doors were still locked, so I was kicking the window trying to get out when I heard a gunshot. I looked down at myself, thinking for sure Bedri had shot me and I was too panicked to feel it, but he was barely conscious after the crash. Then I heard the doors unlock, but before I could move, the door was wrenched open and I was pulled out by Drago. He had shot the driver and unlocked the doors,” I explained.
“Then what?” Anya asked.
“Well, he pulled me behind him, pointed his gun at Bedri, and shot him in the head.”
“Oh my god, Katya! What the hell? How is it that I never knew this? Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Anya blurted out question after question.
I looked over at Hannah and Nikolai. Nikolai had most likely heard some version of this story, but Hannah’s eyes were wide with shock and horror. She knew I’d been kidnapped before, but I’d never shared the details.
“I don’t think I’ve ever told that whole story to anyone before. Well, I told it to Drago after he shot Bedri.” I remembered holding on to him, pelting him with my rapid-fire explanation of what had happened. Feeling like if I could keep talking, keep touching him, I would feel safe. “I told him about getting picked up and thinking it was one of my dad’s guys and how he attacked me in the backseat and how grateful I was to him.” I blushed after uttering the last part.
“Why is your face turning red? Oh, god, what did you do?” Anya asked.
I bit my lip in discomfort. “I-I kissed him,” I blurted. Anya and Hannah gasped, but Nikolai gave a shout of laughter.
I shook my head. “God, you should have seen him. He looked mortified. Here I was, this kid, trying to kiss him. I was also hysterical and crying, so I think he didn’t want to upset me any more than I already was. He looked so uncomfortable. I would have laughed if I hadn’t been so traumatized and infatuated.”
“What did he do?” Hannah asked, taking over for Anya.
A small smile crossed my lips. “This whole story is a painful, terrifying memory for me, but I will say, when I look back, Drago’s response was…sweet. Awkward and uncomfortable, but sweet. He gave me the tightest hug while gently rubbing and patting my back. He was probably holding me tightly, so I wouldn’t try to kiss him again, but to teenage me, it was heaven. He kept calling me kotyonok.”
“Kitten,” whispered Anya.
I nodded. “So, needless to say, you can imagine how I felt about Drago after he saved my life and rescued me from Bedri.”
Anya and Hannah both nodded emphatically. “How do you not have a crush on a guy like that?” Hannah asked breathlessly, causing Nikolai to scowl and pinch her lightly on the waist. She squealed and giggled but gave him a conciliatory kiss on the cheek.
“Seriously,” Anya echoed. “I just realized I’ve never really been in the same room with the two of you at the same time. How long have you guys been dating? When did that even happen?” Anya asked in bafflement.
“Yeah, well, that’s another long, much more embarrassing story.”
Anya clapped her hands. “Oh, I love embarrassing stories! Well, other people’s embarrassing stories.”
I rolled my eyes. “All you need to know is, I made my move after my high school graduation and he did not reciprocate.”
Three puzzled faces stared back at me. “Um, Katya, we saw you guys at the club tonight. Drago was reciprocating plenty,” Anya deadpanned.
Hannah nodded. “Yeah, when did you get together?”
I blushed. “Um, tonight?”
“Tonight?” Hannah asked in shock. “That was the first time you guys have ever…” she moved her hand in a circling gesture. “Hooked up?”
“Wait, you made a move on him after your high school graduation? Right before we became roommates?” Anya interjected.
I nodded. God, this was getting embarrassing and confusing. I’d spent the two years repressing the events of that night, and now I had three curious faces staring back at me, eager to hear all the humiliating details.
“Okay, yes, Drago stayed with me after the whole thing with Yuri my senior year. I had suspected he had feelings for me—”
“Suspected? Are you fucking blind?” Nikolai scoffed. Hannah rewarded him with an elbow to the gut. I smiled at her appreciatively.
“Well, it isn’t so easy to jump to that conclusion when you’re the one putting yourself out there,” I replied defensively. “And I did put myself out there, after graduation, and he turned me down and moved out. I thought he wanted to be with me, but when he rejected me like that, I thought I was being a dopey teenager, misreading signs, seeing what I wanted to see.”
Anya shook her head, still looking stunned. “He would ask about you from time to time. How you were doing, how school was going for you, stuff like that.” Anya covered her mouth. “Oh my god, he even asked me if you were dating once. I didn’t think anything of it because I figured he was looking out for you for Ivan and was just checking in.”
I sat up straight. “He asked if I was dating someone? When?”
“Does it even matter anymore? You’re clearly together now,” Nikolai interjected.
A chorus of Hannah, Anya, and I replied, “Yes!”
Nikolai put his hands up in mock defense and shook his head as if lamenting getting roped into what was turning into straight-up girl talk.
I pinned Anya down again. “When did that happen?”
“Last year. Remember that guy from your statistics class that used to come over? Ron, Roger, what was his name?”
“Oh, Rob? He was only helping me. Statistics was the worst.”
“Yes! Rob, that’s it. Rob was coming over a lot to help you out, and it was around that time that Drago asked me if you were dating anyone. That was the only time I thought his questions were weird because they were less about how you were doing and more about…who you were doing,” Anya said, wiggling her eyebrows.
I shook my head as Anya chuckled uproariously at her own wordplay. “Is that the only time he asked about me dating anyone?”
“Yep.”
“How did he even know Rob was coming over to our house? Did you tell him?”
“No way. I didn’t think Drago would give a shit about who was at our house helping you with your homework.”
“Well, he couldn’t have heard it from Will and Boris. Rob always came after they’d gone home.”
Anya’s eyes widened. “Oh, my god, I just remembered something. Remember that one time you and Rob studied in your room? There was a block party going on, and the living room was noisy, so you went into your bedroom, so you could focus.”
“Oh, yeah, I remember.”
“Well, that’s when Drago asked me about who you were dating. It was the day after that. I remembered because he worded his questions really weirdly. Like, if you are spending time alone with any men, something like that. It made me think, well, technically, yes, but I knew you and Rob were just studying.”
A flare of suspicion started to percolate in my chest. “So, he specifically asked if I had been alone with someone the night after I had been alone in my room with a guy?”
Anya nodded her head slowly, obviously coming to some of the same conclusions I was. “Whoa.”
“What? What does all that mean?” Hannah asked, confused.
“Drago must have installed a camera or bug, or something in our house. Probably just in the living areas, which is why he didn’t know what had happened in Katya’s bedroom,” Anya answered,
saying what I had been thinking.
“What? That’s crazy!” Hannah replied, utterly outraged. “That is insane, right?” She nudged Nikolai, but he shook his head.
“Not really.”
“He put surveillance equipment in her house and was monitoring her guests. Don’t you consider that a little over the top, and kind of, well…sorry, Katya, but a little creepy?”
Once again, Nikolai shook his head. “Not at all.”
Hannah squawked in outrage, “Nikolai!”
Nikolai’s big shoulders shrugged. “What? I would probably do the same. If I couldn’t be with you, keep tabs on you, I would find other ways to do it.”
Hannah lightly punched Nikolai in the stomach at his theoretical invasion of her privacy. “But…but…what about her privacy?”
Nikolai reached up and rubbed his thumb along her cheekbone, then rubbed her bottom lip, the look in his eyes a combination of intense love and intense possession.
“Hannah, you mean everything to me. If for whatever reason—I don’t know, because I don’t know Drago’s mind—I couldn’t be beside you, couldn’t protect you, keep you safe, I would do everything in my power to make sure I knew everything that was happening in your life. I would give you guards. I would have you live with someone I could trust to protect you, but not try to fuck you,” he said, nodding his head in Anya’s direction. He then turned his gaze to me. “And I would install whatever equipment was necessary to make sure nobody was getting too close to what was mine.”
Hannah collapsed against Nikolai’s shoulder, swooning slightly at his impassioned speech, as I sat back and pondered this unexpected development, my head reeling with the implications of Drago’s behavior. It echoed what he had said to me earlier in the car.
“He might not have been able to claim Katya, but he obviously considered her his, whether he realized it or not,” Nikolai stated with certainty.
Drago (Dangerous Love Book 3) Page 6
