Chapter 27 Cosmetics, Among Other Things
Cosmetics, Among Other Things
Anika
Leaves swirled around Anika’s feet as she trekked up the sidewalk to the front door of her house.
Levi’s car idled behind her, and she could feel his ever present gaze lingering.
Despite everything, she turned and waved, hoping her face conveyed the happiness and simmering desire he wanted to see from her.
It was apparent he’d been sent to look after her by Mikko, their messages incriminating, but somewhere along the way, Levi started to obey his own rules. It was to be expected; the inability to to stay on track an attribute she associated with Romanov Real Estate.
After waving back, he rolled his tinted window up, but his smug grin was already seared into her mind. She shuddered and hoped he’d think it was from the chill in the air. As soon as her front door opened, he pulled away from the curb, only the hazy cloud from his exhaust remaining.
Closing the heavy wood door behind her, Anika leaned against it, suddenly exhausted.
Upholding her controlled exterior conveying enjoyment in the presence of Levi had taken everything out of her.
Fatigue wove itself into her bones, her true emotions bubbling to the surface.
She never had a moment to herself these days, always on the run with work, dates with Levi, tracking down Mikko and his organization.
It was never ending, and after it all, Anika wanted to lay down on the ground.
Kicking her shoes off at the door, she hung her cardigan up on the coat rack before walking up the first few steps up to her room. The old treads creaked beneath her weight, the sound familiar like an old blanket or sweater.
Fingertips trailing along the banister, she pulled herself up, ready to shower and plop into bed and sleep. But when she reached the top of the stairs, she froze in her tracks.
Her bedroom door was cracked. Moonlight shone through, its source coming from the windows in her room beyond.
I didn’t leave my door like that.
Her near photographic memory had served many purposes, but this one might save her life.
Ding.
Her phone buzzed in her hand. Apprehensively she looked down, dreading the name she’d find across her screen. There were only two choices and she was tired of both men right now.
Mikko: Sent an image
Mikko: To give you something to think about while you’re with him
Opening the picture, she found a darkened silhouette of Mikko.
He was leaning against the door frame leading into her bathroom, his one arm outstretched above his head to grip the frame.
It wasn’t hard for him since his height only left a few inches between the top of the door and his head.
The waistband of his pants hung low, enticing her eyes to follow the contours of his stomach lower…
Her mouth dried up.
Were those tattoos?
Droplets of water dotted his skin from what she could see—she shamelessly zoomed in—but the backlighting of her bathroom made it hard to discern the details.
Saving the picture into a digital folder, Anika opened the editing tools along the bottom.
She dialed up the brightness on the photo to watch in real time as Mikko’s face cleared…
along with the defined planes of his chest and torso.
And the tattoos inked there.
The floral blackout sleeves were ones she’d seen before, but she had no idea they covered his entire arms. The head of an inked snake rested along the space where his neck met his shoulder. Vines swirled below his neckline where a collared shirt would sit along with four little letters.
CTRL.
Anika’s brow quirked. She remembered seeing that tattoo peeking above his collar at Bubblegum.
His hair was messy and wet, an indication of what she’d find in her bedroom and bathroom mere steps away: a wet towel and floor.
A dagger tattoo carved across his sternum, the blade narrowing to a point a couple inches above his navel.
Closing out of the image, she returned her attention to her bedroom. He was long gone by now, unable to corner her after a stunt like this. She was sure of it. Still, she silently walked forward, her stance loose but alert. Using her foot, she pushed the door open, eyes scanning the room.
Before her, all was calm. The clothes she’d left on the floor remained as is, the curtains pushed aside to let the night in along with stars.
Rumpled sheets littered her bed, just as she’d left it.
Spinning, she kicked the door shut, checking behind it in case someone lurked there instead.
She was met with nothing, which was both a relief and an annoyance.
Something in the air felt different, the scent skewed—not the way she remembered it. Stepping farther into the room, her eyes scanned the shadows for something that didn’t belong.
She caught sight of a folded silhouette of something atop the chair in the corner of her room.
Is that what I think it is…
Sure enough, with her eyes continuously scanning, she walked over and unfolded her missing scarf.
She wasn’t sure if Mikko returning it was a gentlemanly thing to do or a scare tactic.
Probably both since the man couldn’t seem to make up his mind.
As she inspected it in the lowlight, his scent wafted off the fabric—leather and patchouli.
And her fingers encountered multiple crusty spots.
Scoffing, Anika dropped it on the floor. “Classy.”
Walking toward her bathroom took an eon, the floor stretching out before her, and the air grew thicker with each step. As soon as she stepped over the threshold, humidity assaulted her skin. It seemed like someone had helped themselves to her soaps. Recently.
And it was easy to figure out who it was when he’d sent her a billboard sized “look at me” picture.
Angrily flicking the light switch on, she instantly spotted the haze covering the mirror, the telltale water droplets splattered over her floor, and the damp spot on her towel hanging on a hook nearby.
That little shit.
She went to step closer, the shower curtain closed, leaving a blind spot in her exploration, but a glimmer in the basin of her sink had her stopping.
It was all over her cosmetics too.
Shower forgotten, Anika leaned closer, inspecting the mess left for her to find, and without a doubt she knew what it was.
Cum.
Fire lit beneath her skin.
Mikko had come into her house—pun intended—showered in her bathroom, and then proceeded to jerk off in front of her mirror and onto her things.
That was probably the only way he could finish—by staring at himself in the mirror.
Anika’s teeth clenched, her sense of privacy thoroughly invaded.
How many times had he broken in to prove that he could?
How many times had he taunted her because she got under his skin?
Too many but she’d played timid, silent, and enduring of his stupidity.
But enough was enough.
While it had been her intent to draw him in, it didn’t mean she had to just take it.
Certain Mikko was long gone, Anika looked back at the mess before her. Tucked neatly near the faucet of her sink was a note, stuck there courtesy of the viscous liquid.
Since you think I pump my cock at night…
–M
She was going to strangle him.
With purpose, she walked back through her bedroom, down the stairs, and wound up in her kitchen looking for an airtight container. After perusing the cluttered stacks of them in her cupboard, she settled on the smallest one she could find before heading back up to the scene in her bathroom.
Using q-tips and surgeon steady hands, Anika gathered up a small sample of his semen and sealed it off.
“You stupid fuck,” she muttered to herself.
Satisfied with what she had, she set it aside and rummaged through her cleaning supplies. A cleaner with enzymes known to break down body fluids and a scrub brush should do the trick.
After scouring the basin for ten minutes straight, she was satisfied her bathroom was clean once more. All the toiletries and makeup brushes he’d ruined were in the trash, a list of what she’d lost cataloged in her phone.
Either he or Levi would be purchasing replacement items for her.
Scalding hot water reddening her skin and multiple pumps of soap finished off her cleaning routine. Wiping her hands on her pants, her towel also diseased, Anika slipped her phone from her pants pocket, needing a distraction.
Before she could consider not doing this, she typed out a quick text to Levi.
Since you make big money and all…wanna spoil me this weekend? I need some new makeup to look pretty for you :Anika
His answer came back almost instantly.
Levi: For once, I’m not the one arranging the date?
Levi: Consider it done, beautiful
Anika huffed and merely shucked her clothes off and fell into bed.