Chapter 48
Ivan
Meeting Vanya
Alek had just closed the door when she sighed and snuggled into me.
She must have been exhausted, because she fell right back to sleep.
I was going to have to leave this warmth.
The arrangements weren’t going to make themselves, and with my limited ability to leave the compound with her, I had to improvise.
The idea came to me out of nowhere, and my heart felt increasingly lighter. I slipped out from under her and made my way to the shower. After changing, I set about making plans for the day.
Seeing her peacefully sleeping still warmed my heart. Her hair was strewn across the pillow, and her naked back called to me. Kissing it to wake her, I listened as she moaned.
“Time to get your lazy bones up.” I slapped her ass soundly.
She squealed and then mumbled, “Are you really going to spend the day with me?”
“I am. And the first thing I need you to do is shower.”
“Can you join me?” she asked seductively. Her insatiable appetite was so cute.
“I’ve already showered. Next time, for sure. But the sooner you get up and get in there, the sooner we can start our day.”
She stretched and sighed. “I guess, but showering with you would be so fun. Are you sure?”
“Go,” I growled, before kissing her forehead.
I’d tried to come up with something meaningful yet creative for our time together.
I wanted to connect with her on a deeper level, to share my heart with her as I’d never done with another.
I hoped she would be receptive to it. The water from the shower started, and Renee entered with our breakfast.
“Thank you, I’ve got it from here.”
“Very well,” she replied before closing the door.
Carefully, I arranged the bouquet of flowers I’d picked for her earlier. Nik was the one with the singing voice, so serenading her was off the table, but presenting her with a bouquet was easy. I picked the yellow ones, remembering what she’d said last night.
My mother’s garden had an array of flowers to choose from, so I picked several roses and interspersed them with the buttery hues of some alstroemerias. Her favorite color was purple, so I’d picked some iris blooms to add to it.
I was in her closet picking out a dress I wanted to see her in when Kinsley’s voice rang out, and my head snapped up.
A lump formed in my throat as I froze. The haunting melody reached in and grabbed my heart and squeezed.
The significance of the song she was now singing hit hard.
It was the one we’d danced to back in Portland at the gala.
The purity of her voice as it rose and the heartfelt weight it carried drew me in.
I grabbed the dress, rushed over to the bathroom, and hung it up. She stood beneath the warm shower spray; I was transfixed by her. Her silhouette behind the steamed glass was a blur, but I knew every inch of her, so visualizing was easy. As her rendition ended, she turned the water off.
She must have sensed my presence, because she didn’t startle when she opened the door to see me standing there.
Instead, she smiled and stepped out onto the bath mat.
I handed her a towel, my fingers grazing hers.
The electricity that ran through me hung in the air.
I had to remind myself that today wasn’t about exploring our sexual relationship, but about drawing closer to her and finding some healing.
“Do you want to dry me off, Blade?”
“Not really, because if I touch you right now, your breakfast will be too cold to eat. Nik’s not the only one who wants you to eat more.”
“He’s just the one most vocal about it. I’m liable to get pudgy, you know, if I keep this up.”
“Highly unlikely. From what I hear, you burn way more in a single session with your dance partner than you can possibly eat.”
“That’s a bit of an exaggeration. But wait until you see us dance. By the way, he lets me stand on his head.”
“Are you trying to make me jealous? What am I going to do with you?”
“Kiss me, dry me off, bend me over the counter right here. Have your way with me.”
I shook my head, unable to tear my gaze from her as she wrapped the towel around her back and moved it sensually. Our eyes met, and a flicker of anticipation stared back. She wasn’t going to make this easy.
With a quick nod toward the dress, I lowered my voice. “Get dressed and comb your hair. No makeup. Something special awaits you.”
Her eyebrows darted up, a look of curiosity transforming her face as her lips curled into a questioning smile. “Yes, my beloved Sir.”
My heart pounded for this little slip of a girl. A mixture of excitement and anxiety ran through me. In the deepest parts of my soul, I knew this was the right thing to do, a beginning to my attempts to make amends for the way I treated her.
Unable to leave or take my eyes off her, I stared as she went about putting lotion on her gorgeous body. She was doing everything in her power to tempt me, and I fought back every urge a man could have to keep my feet planted in the same spot.
Once she was ready, she sauntered over to me.
The lavender sundress looked stunning, caressing her every curve.
I pulled a blindfold from my pocket, and she gave me a suggestive look before presenting herself to me.
Her eyes lowered first, then her breathing picked up, and the rise and fall of her chest had me groaning.
The dress had a plunging neckline, and her breasts were calling my name.
Softly, I tied the blindfold around her head, kissing her cheeks before taking her hand and leading her to the table. Once she was seated and her plate of pancakes was placed before her, as well as the flowers, I removed the eye covering. She squealed and leaped up, wrapping her arms around me.
“They’re so pretty.”
“I picked them myself. The yellow roses, with their soft, vibrant petals remind me of how radiant, warm, and happy you always are.” I tucked a piece of errant hair behind her ear.
“The alstroemerias are a reflection of your gentle nature, and they glow just like you are right now.” Tears filled her eyes as I spoke.
“And the purple iris blooms just spoke to me. I know it’s your favorite color.
And with their velvety deep hue, it felt symbolic of the depths of my feelings for you.
When you look at them every day, I want you to be reminded of me.
These speak of hope, forgiveness, and love. I hope you like them.”
She dissolved into tears, which I was expecting and prepared for. Rocking her in my arms, I waited for her to get it all out.
“I had Chef make you pancakes. You made them several times a week in Seattle, so I figured it was safe.” I pulled back from her and pushed her over to her chair.
“Sit with me,” she said, taking her seat and waving to the other.
I took it but didn’t make myself a plate. Instead, I studied her as she poured the syrup and began cutting small bites. In the playful way that screamed Kinsley, she fed me a few bites. She swayed in her seat as she happily ate. Once she was done, I gave her my hand and pulled her into my arms.
Hugging her to my body and hearing her sigh contentedly warmed me inside. I leaned back and held up the blindfold again. She gulped but allowed me to tie it. Leading her down the hall and toward the stairs was comical.
In typical Kinsley fashion, she kept asking me a hundred questions, all of which I ignored.
Once we reached the library, a burst of nervous energy ran through me.
I realized how much I wanted this to go right.
Nothing had ever been as important to me as this moment with her, and I took a deep breath to steady myself.
I led her deep into the room and got her settled on the leather couch.
Her posture was ramrod straight, and it was as if she felt everything I was struggling with inside.
I took several more measured breaths to stem my desire to flee and forget all about the plan.
Right on cue, my mother entered. Her face was soft and melancholy.
In her hands, she held all of her carefully preserved memory books and photo albums of our family.
Inside each one were writings and pictures.
All the intimate hopes, prayers, and mementos a mother held in her heart for her children.
They were filled to the brim with what our lives were like before tragedy had almost torn us apart.
Her hands trembled as she handed them off.
Tears filled her eyes, which caused my own to follow.
When I explained the reasoning on why I wanted to share them with Kinsley, she cried in my arms. Admitting to my mother the hurt and pain I’d caused the woman sitting on the couch hadn’t been easy.
After her initial shock, her entire demeanor toward Kinsley changed.
It helped they’d bonded the night before.
My mother nodded and slipped from the library.
I returned to Kinsley’s side and laid out the albums on the coffee table in front of her. I picked up the first one; it was Alek’s. It seemed fitting that we start at the beginning. I laid it in her lap, and her hands immediately touched it, trying to figure out what it was.
“Little love, I want to share my world with you in a way I’ve never done before. Can you close your eyes for me?” I whispered before carefully untying her blindfold.
Her eyes were squeezed closed, and her heart thumped hard in her chest. I kissed her eyelids.
“Good girl. Now open them and take a journey with me.” Thick black lashes fluttered open, and her striking gray blues met mine before falling to the book in her lap.