Chapter 29 ZAKHAR
ZAKHAR
I arrive home feeling like I've been chasing ghosts.
Three days. Three days of following leads that go nowhere. Three days of shaking down informants who know nothing. Three days of surveillance on locations that yield no results.
Eryan Nis is a phantom. No one knows who he is. No one's seen him. No one can give me anything concrete beyond rumors and speculation.
And meanwhile, our businesses are bleeding. Our security guard is still in the hospital. Our enemies are circling like sharks who've smelled blood in the water.
The frustration sits in my chest like a stone. Heavy. Sharp-edged. Impossible to dislodge.
I'm exhausted. Not just tired. Exhausted down to my bones, in a way that makes every movement require conscious effort.
The house is quiet when I enter. Dark except for a few security lights. Maksim is probably still at the office, pursuing his own lines of investigation. Alexei could be anywhere.
And then I realize what I'm really feeling beneath the exhaustion and frustration.
I miss Victoria.
The thought surfaces with startling clarity. Not just desire, though that's certainly present. But actual missing. The particular ache of wanting someone's presence and not having it.
I've spent three days away from her. Three days of brief encounters in hallways, distracted greetings when I'm coming or going, stolen moments that feel inadequate compared to what I actually want.
Her.
I move through the house without conscious thought. My feet carry me toward her room because that's where my body wants to be. Where I need to be.
Her door is slightly ajar. Light spills into the hallway.
I approach quietly. Years of training making my footsteps silent even when I'm not trying to be stealthy.
Then I see them.
Victoria is on the bed, straddling Alexei's hips. Her hair falls over her shoulders like dark water. Alexei's hands are on her waist, sliding up her ribs toward her breasts.
They're kissing. Deep. Passionate. The kind of kiss that's a prelude to more.
I freeze in the doorway.
And wait for jealousy. Wait for possessiveness. Wait for some territorial instinct to flare up and demand exclusivity.
It doesn't come.
Instead, arousal slams into me with devastating force. Desire tightening low in my belly, making my cock hard in seconds.
They're beautiful together. Alexei's tanned skin against her lighter tone. His hands on her body. The way she moves against him. The sounds they're making.
I want to be part of it. Want to touch her. Want to worship her the way she deserves. Want to show her without words what I'm terrified to say out loud.
The wanting is so strong I groan involuntarily.
Then she turns her head. Sees me standing in the doorway.
Our eyes meet.
For a heartbeat, no one moves. No one breathes.
Then she reaches for the hem of her shirt. Pulls it over her head. Lets it fall to the floor.
"Join us," she says.
And in that moment, with her looking at me like that, with my brother beneath her and her body offered with such fierce certainty, I realize the truth I've been avoiding.
I'm in love with her.
Not just wanting her. Not just desiring her. In love with this fierce, complicated woman who somehow sees past the soldier to the man underneath.
I don't waste time with words. Can't trust my voice not to break if I try to speak.
Instead, I strip off my clothes with efficient movements. Shirt. Pants. Everything hitting the floor until I'm naked and moving toward her.
When I'm naked, I cross to the bed. Pull Victoria to standing, needing to undress her properly. Needing to touch every inch of skin as it's revealed.
Beside us, Alexei strips too. His movements quick and eager.
My hands find the clasp of Victoria's bra. Undo it with fingers that are steadier than they should be given how hard my heart is pounding. Slide the straps down her shoulders. Let the fabric fall away.
"You're perfect," I tell her, voice rough. "So fucking perfect it hurts to look at you."
I hook my thumbs in her pants and underwear. Drag them down her legs, kneeling as I do. Press a kiss to her hip. Her thigh. Her knee.
When she's completely naked, standing between me and Alexei with the lamp light painting her skin gold, I take a moment just to look. To memorize this. The curve of her breasts. The dip of her waist. The flare of her hips. Every detail burning itself into my memory.
"On the bed," I say. "All fours. Face Alexei."
She moves to comply, and the sight of her positioning herself, trusting me with her body, makes pressure build in my chest.
Alexei kneels in front of her. His cock hard and ready. His eyes dark with want.
I move behind her. Grab a handful of her hair. Not hard enough to hurt, just enough pressure to guide her attention.
"Show him," I murmur against her ear. "Show Alexei how good you can take him."
She lowers her head and takes him into her mouth.
Alexei's groan is immediate. His hands find her hair, gentler than mine, guiding but not forcing.
I kneel behind her. Run my hands over her ass, appreciating the perfect curve of it. Spread her open so I can see everything.
Then I lean forward and put my mouth on her.
She tastes like arousal and need. I flatten my tongue against her, licking from clit to entrance in one long stroke.
I work her with my tongue. Circling her clit. Dipping inside. Building pressure and rhythm until her hips start moving, seeking more.
Then I spear my tongue inside her, penetrating her with it, and she goes wild.
The moan that escapes her vibrates around Alexei. He curses. His hips flex forward.
I keep going. Tongue fucking her while my thumb finds her clit. Giving her sensations from multiple directions until she's shaking.
"That's it, solntse," I praise between strokes. "Take it. Take everything we give you."
When she's trembling, when I can feel her getting close, I pull back. Position myself behind her. Guide my cock to her entrance.
Then I push inside.
She's tight. Wet. Perfect. The sensation of being inside her makes my vision blur for a second.
"Fuck," I breathe. "You feel incredible."
I start to move. Deep thrusts that make her rock forward onto Alexei. Creating a rhythm where she's caught between us, filled and used and worshipped all at once.
"She takes us both so well," Alexei says, reaching down to pinch her nipples. "Doesn't she, brother?"
"So well," I agree, voice strained. "Made for us."
We move together. Alexei in her mouth. Me in her pussy. Both of us pushing her higher with every thrust and stroke and touch.
When she comes, I feel it. The way her body clenches around me. The way her moans turn desperate. The way she surrenders completely to the pleasure we're giving her.
Her body goes limp with satisfaction. We ease her down onto the bed, all three of us adjusting positions.
She ends up between us, her back to me, her front to Alexei. All of us on our sides, facing each other in a line.
I pull her top leg over my hip. Position myself at her entrance from behind. Push inside while Alexei captures her mouth in a kiss.
The angle is different. Deeper. More intimate somehow with all three of us tangled together like this.
I move slowly. Savoring every sensation. Every small sound she makes. Every flutter of her body around mine.
Alexei's mouth moves to her breasts. Sucking. Biting. His hand slides between her legs, finding her clit, working it in time with my thrusts.
"Come for us again," I murmur against her neck. "Let us feel it."
She does. Her body arching. Her breathing ragged. Clenching around me so tight I can't hold back my own release.
I come with my face buried in her hair, her scent surrounding me, her body milking every last drop from mine.
When I pull out, gasping, Alexei looks at her with a question in his eyes.
"Ready for more?" he asks.
She nods. No hesitation. Just trust and want.
Still on our sides, Alexei positions himself. Pushes inside her from the front while I'm still pressed against her back.
I trail my hands down her back. Appreciating the curve of her spine. The way her skin is flushed and damp with sweat.
The position gives me access. An idea forms. Dirty. Intense.
I spread her ass. Lean down. Put my tongue against her there.
She jolts. Gasps.
"Fuck," Alexei breathes. "Do that again. Whatever you just did made her squeeze me like a vise."
I do it again. Circling her with my tongue. Pressing against the tight ring of muscle. Not penetrating, just teasing. Just showing her what it could feel like if she wanted more.
She comes with a cry, and Alexei follows immediately after, buried deep inside her.
We collapse into a tangle of limbs. Victoria half on top of Alexei, half on top of me. All of us gasping. All of us spent.
She makes a motion to move.
I slap her ass lightly. Not hard. Just enough to get her attention.
"Stay," I say. Command and plea wrapped together. "Just stay."
She settles back down. Her weight warm and solid against me. Her breathing gradually evening out.
And I hold her. Finally stop running from ghosts and fear and the truth I've been avoiding.
This is where I belong. With her. With this imperfect, complicated, beautiful thing we're building together.
I'm not going anywhere. And neither is she.