Chapter 12 - Jaroslav
She melts against me, her eyes shining brightly.
“Do you understand me?” I ask
She nods, a subtle tilt of her head, her eyes wide with mystery and wonder.
“Good. Now, be a good girl and stop worrying about women talking to me when they couldn’t hold my attention, no matter how hard they tried.”
Her eyes flicker. She looks confused but pleased. I smile, moving her to my side as we walk back into the center of the party.
Things shift between us. She’s not as flirtatious as she was when we arrived, but she is standing closer to me, cozy against me, allowing me to claim her as my own in front of everyone watching.
It feels more genuine, more intimate between us.
She rests her hand on my chest as she stands at my side while I talk to men from my alliances.
She is perfect, and too beautiful for words.
I’m not even paying attention to the conversations. Only to her.
And she is driving me wild with desire.
All night, I’ve been reminding myself of how well she played me in front of her brothers at the meeting. She was so convincing that even I believed it. I wanted it so badly that it was my weakness.
Throughout the night, I’ve fallen into the same trap. I believe it. I believe the show she’s putting on, I believe she’s falling for me. I believe it because I want it more than I want anything else in existence.
By the time we leave the party, I’m riddled with tension. Conflict is raging inside me.
We stayed late because I was reluctant to break the spell, dreading the moment we climbed into the back of the limousine and she moved away from me and returned her walls to their usual place between us.
However, sitting in the back of the limo, she’s still right against me. The heat from our bodies mingles, and her subtle perfume teases me. My arm is draped over the back of her chair, and her legs are crossed toward my body.
“The dress was a good choice, even though I had to spend all night fighting off other men,” I joke.
“Oh yes, I saw you battling them; they were like vultures. It must have been terrible for you,” she says with sarcasm. I don’t think she noticed how many men were drooling over her, wishing that they were me.
“Well, I realized that I didn’t mind them looking, because I was the one who was holding you. And besides, they all think I’m going home with you to peel that dress off and enjoy what’s hidden beneath it.”
My heart beats faster as I envision doing exactly that. The dress would slip from her body, falling from her like water, spilling around her feet. She would be wearing nothing underneath. I already know she’s wearing nothing because I had my hands all over her.
She giggles, and if there were enough light in the back of the car, I’m sure I would see her cheeks turn rose pink.
I lean over and lift her diamond pendant in my fingers, letting them brush against her skin as I do so. “You wear this as if it were made for you. Any jewel is lucky to be against your body,” I whisper.
She takes in a sharp breath and leans a little closer to me. The tension between us becomes electrified. We’re still flirting, even though there is no one to put on a show for. She hasn’t pushed me away; she hasn’t ended the show.
She reaches over and traces her fingers over the matching diamond brooch. “You bought it for yourself,” she whispers with a soft smile on her lips. “It looks really good on you.”
“Do you know what else would look good on me?” A devilish grin spreads over my face.
Valery bites her lower lip and turns her gaze down, unable to look into my eyes. When she answers me, it’s exactly what I want to hear and confirms that this is no longer a game. She isn’t playing me, she isn’t putting on a mask…she isn’t pretending anymore.
“Me?” she whispers, her eyes finding mine. My heart slams against my chest.
“You,” I agree, my voice a dark whisper of overwhelming emotions.
We’re almost home; otherwise, I would have dragged her onto my lap then and there.
I sit rigid, fighting the urge as the driver parks outside the entrance of our mansion.
Pushing the door open, I climb out and hold my hand to her to lift her from the car. Her fingers brush against my palm, bolting lightning through me.
Her lashes are lowered as she glances at me, her gaze intense.
This is real.
I lead her into the house, and as soon as the door closes behind us, I turn to face her, reaching out to pull her into my arms.
This kiss is for no one other than us.
My heart beats hard against my ribs as our mouths lock and our tongues dance. Her hands rush over my body, exploring me, each touch fueling the already dangerous need.
I run my hands over her back and cup them over her ass, wanting to lift her and wrap her legs around my waist.
My phone rings in my back pocket, and an annoyed growl rumbles through me. I pause, tugging it free, turning it off, and tossing it away.
Valery looks up at me, her beautiful eyes pulling me in.
I wrap my hand around the back of her head and return my lips to where they belong, on hers.
She moans sweetly against my mouth, and I move again to lift her into my arms.
A loud knock at the door interrupts us, and I growl again, angrier.
Stepping away from her, I cock my head to the side and warn her, “Don’t move.”
She nods, breathing heavily.
I tug the door open and glare daggers at the man standing there. My head of security. “Sir, I’m sorry to interrupt. Your brother just called, he said he couldn’t get through to you.”
“I’m not available right now,” I snap.
“Sir, he says it’s urgent. Georgy was attacked on his way home from tonight’s event.”
“What?” I stammer in shock. “Is he ok?”
“I don’t know. Zakhar hung up on me before I could ask anything else. He just demanded that I get you to call him.”
“For fuck sake,” I snap.
I slam the door and turn to Valery. She looks horrified. “Go,” she says immediately. “Go and help your brothers.”
My face distorts into a grimace. The last thing I want to do is leave her now.
Not when things were going so perfectly.
For all I know, this might be my only chance.
She might change her mind tomorrow. She might be riding on the high of change and the party.
But it’s my family. And my family means the world to me.
Of course, I will go and help my brothers.
Of course, I wouldn’t choose desire over them when they need me.
What I have with Valery is more important than just one night of passion anyway.
I will have this moment again. Things between us are changing.
“I’m so sorry,” I murmur, touching her cheek. She smiles and tilts her face into my hand.
“Don’t be sorry. Family first.”
Stepping back, I want to tell her she’s wrong in some ways, that she means more to me than anything and anyone else. That if she were in trouble, I’d always go to her first, no matter who else needed me. But now isn’t the time. And she isn’t in trouble. She’s safe in our home.
“Go to bed, get some rest. I don’t know how long I’ll be.”
***
It’s hours later when I return home. Georgy’s car was run off the road by a rival mafia.
It wasn’t related to business specifically, but a personal argument between him and one of the brothers of that family.
They thought he was flirting with the man’s sister, but he insists the situation was read wrong.
The girl spoke to him at a club; she flirted with him, but he knew who she was and rejected her.
He thinks the real issue is that he suggested that she was beneath him and not worth his time or attention when her brother confronted him about it the same night.
They rolled his car and threatened him, but no real harm came to him, and he was left angry and shaken, but ok.
We discussed retaliation, but having calmed down, Georgy said it wasn’t worth it, and that no response was more powerful than letting them think their pathetic maneuver affected him in any way.
Apparently, he stood his ground during the attack and didn’t back down, and they eventually fled, scared to do more, knowing it would cost them their lives.
He even laughed and decided he’d send them an invoice for his wrecked car.
I had a few drinks with my brothers, just staying as a show of support, until Georgy kicked us all out and told us he needed sleep.
He handled the situation well, better than I might have. I would’ve wanted to kill them. To tear them limb from limb for wasting my time.
It’s this incident on top of the continuous, smaller attacks against our operations.
They are all beginning to wear me down. The constant chaos has my hackles up.
I want one week to go by without something going wrong, but it seems that we’re being target from every angle by someone intent on draining our energy.
Carrying myself upstairs to my bedroom, my body is heavy with exhaustion.
It’s been a long night, and all I want to do is pull Valery into my arms and hold her.
But as I stand next to our bed, looking down at her peacefully, sleeping form curled into a tiny ball beneath the blankets, I know I won’t just hold her.
I will take her. I will devour her. I will claim every inch of her, and in doing so, I will break the promise I made not to kiss her first.
The champagne would have worn off by now. The show we put on for the event is over. The rules she made are back in place, and I refuse to break them.
With my mouth pulled tight, I drag my eyes off her beautiful face and turn my back on our bed. There is no chance in hell I would be able to control myself if I climbed beneath the blankets with her.
Quietly, I find a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt in my closet and carry them out of the room.
In the library, I strip out of my suit, tossing it over the back of a chair, and slip into the comfortable clothes.
Lying down on the full-length sofa, I stretch my legs out and fold my arms behind my head.
Tonight was magical. It was a dream come true. It didn’t end the way I wanted it to, but it had potential unrestrained.
I fall asleep with a smile on my face because things are changing. I am winning her over.
***
“Jaroslav?” Her voice enters my dreams, my name on her perfect lips.
“Jaroslav, why are you sleeping in here?” Her question pulls me awake, and I squint against the bright morning light spilling in through the library window.
“Morning,” I say, my voice husky with sleep.
“Why are you sleeping in here? Why didn’t you come to bed?” she asks again.
I sigh and sit up, rubbing my hands over my face. I could lie to her, but I’m past that point. I’m past the point of shielding her from my obsession. I want her. She has to see it already. I’ve made it clear enough.
“I couldn’t, little raven. I wanted you too badly, and I didn’t trust myself to be able to keep my distance from you.
If I came to bed and lay next to you last night, I would have broken the promise I made not to kiss you first. I wouldn’t have been able to stop myself from… from claiming you fully.”
“But…” she stammers, frowning, “you did kiss me first last night.”
“That was in front of the public gaze. It was not part of our rule. This would have been us…alone. No one to put on a show for.” I turn so that I’m sitting on the sofa and stretch my neck backward, rolling out the kinks of sleep.
She tilts her head to the side and presses her hands into her hips, eyeing me suspiciously. She looks cute in the oversized t-shirt that I recognize as my own. Is she wearing anything underneath?
“What?” I grumble, needing a coffee, tearing my eyes off her. I need her in my arms, but since I can’t have that, I’ll settle for a double espresso., The sofa was comfortable enough, but I’m a few hours short of a good night’s rest.
“You wanted me too badly and didn’t trust yourself?” she asks, making it clear she doesn’t believe me.
“Yes, little raven. I chose to respect your wishes and not break my promise.”
“You would not have been able to keep your hands off me?”
She looks so perplexed that it makes me laugh.
“Correct,” I say, standing up.
Valery scoffs and shakes her head. “Whatever,” she huffs. “It’s too early for your bullshit, and I need a cup of coffee.” She spins on her heels, turning her back on me. She genuinely doesn’t believe me. This bothers me.