Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
Ilya
"I’m sorry."
The woman in front of me was breathtakingly beautiful as she sipped her wine on the edge of the sectional and looked at me with her thick, curling lashes.
She was in exactly the same spot as Daisy had been only an hour or so ago, but as women, they couldn’t be more different.
One was everything I should want in a wife.
And the other was Daisy.
Staring out into the city, I frowned. She was down there somewhere in that little black dress that hugged every single curve she had with mouth-watering effect.
I shouldn’t even be thinking about her, but she was all that was on my mind since she had slipped out of her room in that sinfully feminine little black dress and headed towards the elevator.
She wasn’t my prisoner. She was free to come and go as she pleased, but God, I wished she hadn’t gone out. Daisy was always pretty. Tonight she looked good enough to eat, and I had no doubt that the first man who looked at her would do his damnedest to get her out of that dress.
I didn’t have any right to be jealous. She wasn’t my woman. She was my employee, but fuck if the idea of her moaning another man’s name wasn’t killing something inside of me.
No one got to hear those little whimpers but me.
"I’m sorry," I repeated. "What did you say?"
The brunette in front of me smiled, almost like I was a kid in the middle of a daydream. "It’s okay, Ilya. I am a little wistful around you as well." To prove her point, she placed her hand on my knee and let it slide upwards. "I know it’s not the done thing, but—"
I trapped her hand against my thigh before she could bring those painted nails any closer to my cock, which was hard, but not for her.
"I know a few tricks that will help you relax." The tip of her tongue poked out to wet her red lips. I followed the movement like I was meant to but felt nothing.
She thought my distraction and the clearly hard cock outlined in my pants was because of her, and not because of a curvy blonde who had disappeared into the night.
"We could get to know each other better but keep things," she squeezed my thigh, "proper for our wedding night."
Wedding night? The thought made me feel sick, but she was the best choice. The only choice, really. Her father was completely legit but eager to make connections. And what better connections than me?
He was also filthy rich, and his daughter was—well—I let my eyes scan down her body. She was beautiful, docile, and by the looks of it, more than willing.
I didn’t expect my new bride to be a virgin. That particular fantasy had sailed when I took Daisy into my bed. But her father had promised me she was.
I had a feeling her father didn’t know everything his daughter got up to.
"I would never," my voice came out croaky as I lifted her hand to my lips and kissed it, "insult you or your father by asking you to risk your reputation."
Her eyelids fluttered. "You’re such a gentleman, Ilya," she cooed. "I like that about you. I hope you aren’t a gentleman in all ways."
Fuck, she was coming on strong. Her needy little breaths blowing across my face as she leant in. "I’ve heard you like things your way." This time her hand drifted down my chest. Her nails tapping on each button on the way down. "I don’t mind that. I want to learn to please you."
Tearing my eyes from the window to her too-close face, I forced my lips to smile. I knew what those rumors were about me. Just like I knew what Daisy had thought she’d been hearing for the last few weeks.
But they only heard what I wanted them to hear. I needed the world to think I was a monster with some questionable desires, and I needed Daisy to believe I had moved on.
In reality, each prostitute that had come up here in the last four weeks had been paid to sit in my room and moan my name. And they were good at it. Made me wonder how many times they’d had to fake an orgasm.
"I have a feeling you know how to please a man just fine."
She snatched her hand back, her face twisted in anger, and scowled at me.
"What do you mean by that? How dare you?" She jumped up to her feet.
Sighing, I stretched my arm out along the back of the sofa. "Do not act offended," I chuckled. "I don’t care about your past, and your father will never know from me that you’re not the pure little angel he thinks you are."
"You insult me, Ilya Popovitch." Hands on her hips, she glared down at me. "I will leave now."
Taking two steps away, she paused, looking back over her shoulder like she expected me to chase after her.
Clearly, she and her father hadn’t done their homework about me if they thought I was going to do that.
There was only one woman I would ever chase, and she was out in the city.
Probably with some asshole's lips already on hers.
My fists clenched. "I’ll have one of my men drive you home. Good night, Marguerite. Thank you for coming. We will have to do breakfast soon so you can meet my son."
Standing up, I headed towards my son's room without a backward glance. She would leave, so I didn’t need to watch her do it.
I wanted to watch my son sleep for a few minutes to calm myself down and stop me doing something stupid.
Alec had his cheek resting on his little hand. His hair mussed around him, and he looked so much like Daisy that I felt all of my resolve fade away.
Pulling my phone from my pocket, I waited for someone to answer.
"Boss."
"I need a driver to take Marguerite home and," I paused, "I need someone up here to sit with Alexander in case he wakes up. I have to go out."
There was a pause. "Out, Boss?"
"Yes. Did anyone see where Daisy went when she left here?"
There was a pause, and then he recited the name of a bar only two blocks away. "Boss, is something wrong? Do you need one of us to fetch her?"
That was probably a good idea with the mood I was in, but nothing but seeing her was going to put my frayed nerves at ease.
"No, it’s fine."
"Boss, what are you going to do?"
I almost laughed but cut the call before I could. Surely it was pretty clear what I was going to do?
I was going to do something stupid.
The bar was packed when I approached the window. My eyes took in my surroundings, gauging threats where there weren’t any.
Even if someone were to jump out with a gun, I knew my men were somewhere behind me. Even if they weren’t, the mood I was in, anyone who attacked me now would wish they hadn’t.
Another quick sweep of my eyes across the fancy interior, and I spotted her at the bar. Sitting there, glass of wine to her lips, and laughing so hard that her eyes were glittering.
God, she looked amazing when she was so carefree and happy. I’d forgotten that, and these days any smiles she gave to Alec evaporated when I approached.
It was like I wasn’t allowed to be a part of her happiness.
A man leant forward, and I don’t know how I missed him sitting next to her. Leaning forward, he pressed his hand against her knee.
And she didn’t shake him off or tell him to go to hell. She just sat there and laughed at whatever he was saying.
I had been wrong. There was danger here. He was dangerous to me because he was touching her fucking leg. And if he didn’t take his hands off of what was mine in three seconds, I was going to rip that arm clean off his body and beat him to death with it.
"One, two—" I mumbled under my breath, but before I could get to three, he lifted his hand. "Smart man."
She laughed again, and I bristled. I needed to get closer so I could hear what they were saying, but how could I get inside without drawing any attention to myself? I was already drawing wary glances as people looked at me and recognized my face.
Hands deep in my pockets, I turned to the security. "I need to get inside."
They didn’t even look at me. "Then join the line like everyone else." They went back to flirting with the scantily dressed women at the front of their line.
The place wasn’t even that busy. Which meant the whole line thing was just a ruse to chat up pretty girls.
"You don’t understand." I kept my voice calm and even, but inside I was screaming. "My girl's in there." I placed a firm hand on his arm. "And it would be a giant favor to me if you let me go in and retrieve her before she does something dumb."
"Look, I don’t care what your girl is doing in there.
She could be screwing the entire bar. You’re not going in there so—" finally he lifted his eyes to me, and all the blood drained from his face.
"Shit." He elbowed his friend. "It’s you. I didn’t recognize you, sir.
" He was stuttering so much that his words were barely understandable.
"Go right on in and—" He unclipped the unnecessary rope, and I walked through without looking back.
I didn’t need to hear them groveling; what I needed was—
Daisy.
My eyes found her straight away. She hadn’t moved; in fact, she still had her oversized wine glass to her lips. The man next to her had moved, though. Leaning into her, with his pawing hand on her knee, only this time higher. So the tips of his fingers brushed the hem of her little dress.
I was going to—
Leaning forward, he brought the other hand to her cheek. Drawing her face towards him. "You’re so beautiful when you smile, Daisy," he chuckled, and my fists clenched. Daisy? He already had her name? And she was letting him touch her.
"I am one lucky guy."
She tilted her head up to his. Eyes sparkling and lips half open. "Oh, and why is that?"
"Because your asshole ex missed out, and now I get to put that look on your face."
I moved without thinking, roaring like a bull as I pushed people out of the way to get to them.
Clearly, I was the asshole ex who had missed out. He thought I was her past. I would never be Daisy's past.
She was mine.
She would always be mine.
And I wasn’t going to share her with some slick wannabe.
Daisy turned her head a second before I reached her. "Ilya." I saw her lips form my name as she slid off her stool and tried to position her body between me and my prey. "What are you doing here?"
"Ilya Popovitch is your ex?" were the only words out of the man’s throat before I plowed my fist straight into his perfect white veneers.