Chapter 28 #2
She blinks at me, like she’s surprised I’m doing this, then slides carefully off the counter. “Fine,” she huffs.
Her knees wobble slightly when she lands, but I catch her with a hand at her hip, steadying her. My cock stirs with interest despite having just emptied itself into her completely. “Careful now,” I hear myself whisper.
“We’re long past being careful,” she replies in a hushed voice.
She makes quick work of taking off her remaining clothes, then sinks into the water with a sigh. My jaw locks as I watch her, foam clinging to her skin, my necklace still resting against her throat.
I should walk away, let her bathe alone.
I don’t need to get any more attached than I already am.
But I can’t move. Instead, I crouch at the side of the tub and sweep the wet strands of hair back from her face, my fingers lingering too long.
She tilts her head into my touch without a word, eyes fluttering shut.
She must have decided to let our argument go for now. That’s my girl.
I run my hand through her hair over and over in soothing strokes until she sighs again and opens her eyes.
“Well, what are you waiting for?”
I tilt my head, unsure of what she means.
“Are you just going to sit there watching… or are you going to join me?”
My heart thuds hard. I don’t wait for her to change her mind. I get to my feet and strip quickly. Melani scoots forward, making space for me behind her, and I settle into the water with a slow breath, my stomach tightening when she leans back against my chest.
It feels like a welcome home. Alarm bells go off in the dark spaces at the back of my skull, but I ignore them, letting my palm glide down her arms instead. My cock gradually lengthens and hardens again, but I ignore that too.
We stay like this, bathing in silence, for a while, both of us lost in our own thoughts. My fingers wander absently over her skin, my thumb drifting to her collarbone where I find the pendant and roll it between my fingers.
“You left before I woke up this morning,” she finally breaks the silence.
I stiffen, even though her voice doesn’t sound accusatory, just mildly curious. “Yeah. Something important came up, and I didn’t want to wake you. You needed the sleep.”
“You could have left a note or something.”
I frown. “A note?”
“Anything. Just something to let me know where you’d gone or what you were doing.”
I shake my head. “I’m not the type to explain myself, and I haven’t had to in a very long time.”
“Well, now you do.”
She glances over her shoulder, and without thinking, I grip her chin, holding her still so I can study her expression properly. She looks… sincere. Was she worried when she woke up this morning and I wasn’t there? “Do I, now?”
“It’s fine if you don’t want to.” Her face shutters, and she tries to pull her chin out of my grip, but I don’t let her.
“Hey.” My voice softens. “This is new for me, so excuse me for being a little taken aback.” Her quick glimpse at me is like a punch to the throat. I inhale sharply and release her chin. “I mean… I guess, if I have to leave before you’re awake, I can leave a message or something…”
A small smile curves her lips. The reaction in my chest is disproportionate. Not for the first time, the thought strikes me that I’d do anything she asks. Because I’m beyond fucked when it comes to her.
“Thank you,” she murmurs sweetly, facing forward.
We fall quiet again as I try to decipher what this feeling is.
No, it’s not love. It can’t be. A man like me falling in love?
It’s laughable. Dangerous. Like creating a living, breathing target for my enemies to exploit and destroy.
No, I’m not going to put her through that.
This can’t be love. It’s just temporary madness. An obsession that will fade—
“So, how was your day?”
I blink down at her in surprise, my brows knitting. “You want to talk about my day now?” That sounds… domesticated.
“Why not?” She tilts her head back with a look that borders on coquettish. “I’m actually curious—what does Ivan Petrov spend his days doing?”
My hand finds its way back to her pendant, my thumb rolling it between my fingers again. “Hmm… It’s not for delicate ears like yours.”
What does she picture? Something dramatic, no doubt. She’s seen me kill. She knows exactly what I am. But there’s a difference between pulling a trigger and explaining, in careful detail, how I can make a rat talk by flaying his arm one layer at a time.
Someone like Vasily knows that difference all too well. He was shaking by the time I finished. But maybe her ears aren’t all that delicate. After all, after my little threat, Vasily spilled everything he’d found on her. So he got to keep his arm intact.
What he told me only confirmed what I’d already deduced. Thieving father, desperate mother. She’s stronger than she lets on.
“Just say you don’t want to tell me,” she mutters under her breath.
My mouth tilts up. She really is curious. “My day was fine.” The words feel absurd leaving my mouth, but I say them anyway because I want her happy. “A couple of issues came up, but I handled most of them.” I pause. “How was yours?”
“You know, it’s funny you’d ask that.” She turns in my arms until she’s straddling me, a mischievous light dancing in her eyes.
That’s when I realize I’ve walked right into her carefully constructed trap.
And you know what? I can’t even be mad about it.
My Milani is smart—and it’s hot as fuck.