Chapter 8 Roman
ROMAN
There’s something about being here in the off hours that feels almost tragically sad.
When I walk in, the air is still and there’s that faint smell of perfume under stale beer all around me, as it always seems to be.
I’ve been wondering if there’s a way to clean it out.
I know Ember makes sure that the place is always cleaned from floor to pole every night before closing.
I’m only here now because, somehow, I left my wallet in my office. I’ve got a full day ahead of me so after dropping Sasha off, the plan is just to run in and get my wallet and leave.
The odd thing I think about is how Ember is here somewhere. Probably in her office. I saw her little blue car from the road. I know she’s an overachiever, but I rarely see her here during the morning hours, if at all. Hope everything is all right.
I walk through the main room and past the chairs stacked on tables.
She’s probably in her office so I doubt she’ll even notice I was here and gone.
I make my way to the employee entrance and into the back hallway.
As I pass her office, I see the door is closed.
Strange. She keeps it open when she’s here.
Through the back and up the stairs effortlessly. I pick up her floral fruity scent as soon I reach my door. Is she… in my office?
I open the door and see her sitting on the arm of the couch, looking at me expectantly. She’s wearing a tank top and tight yoga pants, her hair pulled back into a ponytail. She looks like she’s just come from working out.
“Ms. Lorenzo,” I say. “What are you doing here?”
“We need to talk,” she says.
Uh-oh. In my entire history with women and relationships, those words have never meant anything good. I walk all the way in and close the door behind me. “I just stopped by to grab my wallet. So, if there’s something you want to talk about, we should do that during business—”
“I’m quitting.”
I freeze and stare are her. She’s not joking. Her hands are clasped in her lap and she’s got a look of slight panic in her eyes. “What are you talking about? We had a deal.”
“I know, and I intended on honoring it… but something’s come up and I just need to quit.”
“What’s come up?” A flare of anger rises toward me as I approach her. “If it’s another job, I’ll match whatever salary they’re offering—”
“It’s not another job, it’s just that this was a bad idea.” She pauses and her eyes take on a doe-like appearance. Innocent and wanting. “I can’t stay here any longer.”
“The hell you can’t.”
She rolls her eyes. “Don’t be that way. I mean, it’s all just business—”
“Do you have any understanding of who the fuck you are dealing with, little girl?” I growl at her. “There is no backing out of a deal with me. No one backs out of a deal they make with me.”
She stares uncertainly, then she stands up slowly. “Mr. Orlov, I’m not a part of your world. I don’t have to adhere to your rules—”
“You don’t make deals with Bratva and renege on them,” I say, getting even closer to her. She holds her chin up to me defiantly, her eyes dancing. “Lesser people than you have paid a hefty price for doing just that.”
“You know, the whole fucking world doesn’t revolve around you, Roman Orlov,” she says in a low, almost conspiratory tone. “If I want to walk out of here, I’ll fucking do it and you can’t keep me here—”
I grab her by the back of the neck before I’m even conscious of doing it. I pull her close to me, holding her still as she grabs my wrist, panic rising in her eyes.
“You’re not going anywhere.” I growl at her. “Not unless I say so. I am the reason this club is still standing. I am the one keeping money in your pocket.”
She stares up at me. We’re almost nose to nose. Her warm breath brushes my face. “Let me go,” she whispers.
“You are staying, Ember. That was our deal and you’re going to stick to it.”
I push her away. She stumbles back, tumbles over the arm of the couch, and lands on her back.
Her legs spread automatically, showing me the triangle between her legs.
I can almost trace out the lines of her lips through the tight fabric.
She looks up at me from the couch, her icy blue stare becoming determined.
“You want me to stay?” she says in a breathless, yet even tone. “Make me.”
The air has shifted between us. She stares up at me, daring me to make a move. I’ve got raging hard-on right now. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted a woman more than I do right now.
“Don’t tempt me,” I tell her, and I mean it. She’s got no idea where this could lead if she keeps this up.
She regards me for a few seconds. Then she sits up and clears her throat. She smooths back the strands of her hair that have come loose from the ponytail. “I’m leaving, Roman,” she says. “If you don’t want me to go, I suggest you figure out how to keep me here.”
She stands and starts to walk around me. My arm comes out automatically, wrapping itself around her waist. She stops, and we’re side by side, eye to eye with her looking up at me.
Her lips are pink and moist with anticipation and her eyes darken as she focuses on my mouth. “You do not want this, Ember,” I say to her in a low growl.
Her hand moves to my crotch, rubbing my cock through my jeans. “You do, though,” she says softly. “You declared your rules, Bratva King. Are you not man enough to enforce them?”
I smile down at her. A woman who’s used to being in control is very, very intriguing. “I didn’t give you permission to touch me.”
Her eyes change slightly, but she pulls her hand away. I grab her wrist, holding it in place. “Do you really want me to enforce my will on you, Ember? If we start this, you don’t get to be the one in control.”
I know this look. To the untrained eye it might read as apprehension. Perhaps even fear. But that’s not what this is.
I’m getting her hot. She blinks and says, “You’re the boss… aren’t you?”
“Yeah. That means you have to do whatever I tell you. You’re just a little girl to me. Sweet, fragile… Perfect.”
She smiles a little and says, “Does that make you my daddy?”
“If you like. Either way, what I say, goes.”
She swallows hard again and answers, “All right.”
I release her and wrap my arms around her waist, moving my hands down to her ass and squeezing.
She’s not wearing any panties. “I like it when you buck against me,” I tell her, “but I’m not a fan of disobedience.
” I hook my thumbs into the elastic waistband of her yoga pants and pull them down over her ass. “You’ll have to answer for that first.”
Her breath is hot and shaky in my face, her eyes tracing the corners of my mouth. “I want to kiss you.”
I slap her bare ass. She jumps and bites her lip, holding back a whimper.
“No,” I say. “Nothing happens here until I say. Understand?”
She nods and I slap her again. Her eyes roll up momentarily and she moans a little behind her closed mouth.
“I need to hear you,” I say. “Do you understand me?”
She stops biting her lip and it trembles a little. “Yes.”
“Yes… sir.” I slap her ass again. “Say it.”
Her eyes darken and the corners of her lips turn up. I tighten my grip around her waist, pressing her against me. “You like being disobedient?”
With my free hand, I slap her ass over and over again.
She grips onto my shirt, her nails digging into me through the fabric.
She takes each hit well, holding in her moans as the sound of my hand slapping her ass fills the room.
After I’m sure her left ass cheek is as red as fire, I rub my hand over her raw skin. She shudders under my touch.
“Yes… what?”
Breathlessly, she looks up at me, her eyes almost grateful. “Yes, sir.”
I like how that sounds on her lips. “I want to hear you, Ember,” I tell her. “Don’t you dare hold back.”
“I won’t…” She pauses, and I raise my hand. “Sir.”
“I should give you a whack for that,” I tell her, even though she’s pleased me with how she toys with me. I release her. “Take off your clothes.”
Without hesitation, she pulls her yoga pants all the way off, kicking them across the room. Her smooth, creamy thighs and hips call to me. And the pale triangle of hair between her legs… I’m almost feral for her.
When she pulls her top off, I stop her, grabbing her arms and pinning them above her head as I push her against the nearest wall.
The tank top’s path has stopped at the top half of her face, covering her eyes.
Her soft lips gasp as I press her wrists against the wall above her, holding her there, blind and exposed.
No bra, either. Her perky breasts bounce slightly as she struggles a little.
Tan lines trace out a bikini top and reveal her naturally creamy white skin over her rose-toned nipples.
Her skin smells sweet and tart, the flavor of old sweat mixed with the remnants of perfume she wears every day. I’m salivating.
I lean in, kissing the hollow of her throat, biting into part of her shoulder.
As I drag my tongue down the center of her chest, her breath catches.
Her salty, sweet skin makes me hungry for her as I squeeze one of her breasts, rubbing her nipple between my fingers as I let my tongue flick the other.
She’s breathing hard and I can feel her pushing against my hold on her. I stop and push her back into the wall. “You want these pretty little tits sucked, don’t you? Don’t you?”
“Yes,” she whispers.
I bite her nipple and her gasp is loud with surprise. “Yes, sir.”
She swallows. Her silent resistance is like music. I lick her nipple, then bite her again. A shaky moan floats out of her.
“Yes… sir,” I say again. “Say it, Ember.”
“Yes, sir,” she says in a small voice.
“That’s my girl.” I suck her nipples, delighting in how they harden against my tongue. She starts to squirm and soft moans float out of her. I take them between my teeth and bite down slowly. Her moans grow and she swears.
“R–Roman,” she says breathlessly. “They’re sensitive… wait… fuck…”