Chapter 22
Cara
“Dmitri…”
I push my fingers into his soft hair as he kisses his way down my stomach, his large hands caressing my bare thighs. Heat washes over me, burning hotter and hotter with every light touch of his lips.
“Stop teasing me. You’re driving me crazy,” I breathe out as I tilt my head back in bliss, my body feeling so sensitive to the touch.
His touch.
“Not as crazy as you drive me,” Dmitri assures me as he looks up at me. The next second, his face is buried between my thighs, making my back arch off my bed.
I tighten my grip on his hair as he tastes me, his tongue moving with slow, deliberate strokes. I writhe beneath him as he holds my thighs open, moans spilling from me. The pleasure ramps up with every stroke of his tongue, heat and pressure gathering low in my stomach.
Primed to explode.
“Don’t stop,” I beg him as I get closer and closer to the edge. I’m desperate for release.
His fingers tighten on my thighs as he gives me exactly what I need.
Every muscle in my body tightens as the pleasure starts to crest, the air leaving my lungs. I go to arch my back…but I jolt awake in bed instead, the hazy warmth of the dream fading away into the back of my mind.
“What the hell?” I gasp as I catch my breath, my clothes sticking to me, sweat glistening on my skin.
Teasing Dmitri is torturing me. Now I’m having sex dreams about him?
I bury my face in my hands as I flop back down onto my pillow, my skin still feeling warm and tingly from the intensity of the dream. I’ve felt attracted to him for a while now, but ever since we kissed, that desire has been on overdrive.
I want to kiss him again, to go further. I want to feel his body against mine, his weight pressing down on me.
My heartbeat quickens at the thought as my thighs slowly rub together under the sheets. As badly as I want all those things, I can’t have them. Not until I know that he’s going to cancel the engagement permanently.
I’m getting so damn close to ruining the alliance.
Honestly, I should immediately hit the road once that happens, but maybe I’ll spend one night with him before going. Just to see if he’s as good as the dream version.
I lower my hands and look at the bedroom window of my small temporary apartment. My hopeful thoughts suddenly wane when I realize that it looks brighter than normal when I usually wake up in the morning. My jaw drops when I check my phone on the nightstand.
I never set my alarm! I’m already thirty minutes late for work!
“Oh, shit,” I say as I scramble out of bed and to the bathroom. I tear off my pajamas and stumble into the shower, my heart racing in panic.
I’ve never been late for work, and I really don’t need to be slacking on my job while I’m also keeping him at arm’s length. That’s a recipe for disaster, and if he gets annoyed enough, he might just fire me and ruin my whole plan.
I dry off at the speed of light and deal with my damp hair before I throw on a black sheath dress and matching heels. I’m out of the door in the next two minutes, rushing to get from my apartment to the office building.
I’m a little more than an hour late by the time that I rush out of the elevator, and I feel like a frazzled mess. “Morning.”
Karly looks up at me, her eyes widening. “Maybe you should wait before going in there.”
I shake my head as I stride past her. “I know he’s probably mad that I’m late, but I’ll make up for the time by working an extra hour tonight.”
I hurry to the double doors, fixing my mostly dried hair on the way. Muffled voices sound inside, but I don’t stop to listen to them. Instead, I quietly open the doors and Annika’s voice fills the entire office floor.
“You want to put off setting a date? You can’t be serious!”
My jaw drops as I stare at Annika and Dmitri as they face each other in a heated argument. What the hell did I just walk into?
“This is for the best,” Dmitri assures her. “You want me to do a million things for this wedding, and I’ve been slammed at work. It’s better if we wait a few more weeks before deciding on a date.”
“A few weeks! You’re ruining everything!
” Annika shrieks at him as she stomps her foot on the ground like a child.
Her face has grown nearly as red as her Prada handbag which she’s waving around erratically.
When she switches to shouting at him in Russian, I have no clue what insults she’s heaping on Dmitri.
Adrenaline fires through me as I remain frozen in place, watching their argument unfold without even knowing that I’m here yet. If things escalate, Dmitri might just cancel the whole thing.
I can’t believe he’s refusing to set the date, basically postponing the wedding.
Did something happen?
Or is this because of one little kiss with me yesterday?
“Annika, calm down!” Dmitri snaps at her. “It’s not like we’ve even sent out invitations. We just need to wait a little longer than you anticipated so we have time to get our shit together.”
“Get our shit together? I’m together! You’re not!” Annika bites out as she points her finger at him, her fingernail as sharp as a dagger. “This isn’t fair! You don’t want to marry me!”
“We’re still going to get married,” Dmitri tells her, but even I can hear the doubt in his voice.
“This is unacceptable! My father will be furious!” Annika shouts at him before swiping at his cup of pens, making it hit the floor with a loud clang as all his pens scatter across the floor. She then looks up and spots me in the doorway, fire filling her eyes. “What do you want, whore?”
Whore? I just thought she was calling me a bitch in Russian. Whore is much worse, especially after Dmitri offered to pay me to have sex with him and a part of me wanted to accept.
I quietly grit my teeth when I fully step into the office, keeping myself from saying anything that’ll make me look bad. I have to be the cool, collected woman who doesn’t lose her head.
Before I can respond, the doors open wide behind me as Gabe and Isaak rush into the room.
“Everything okay, sir? Karly reported hearing a loud noise,” Gabe says, his eyes scanning the room for any sign of danger.
Dmitri waves his men off. “Everything is fine. Annika was just leaving.”
Damn. That’s one brutal dismissal.
“It’s not fine! You’re crushing my heart, you asshole! I can’t believe you’re blowing off our wedding!” Annika snaps at him. She then covers her face with her hands, and I swear that her sniffling is fake.
“You’re postponing the wedding?” Isaak questions Dmitri.
Surprise fills me as I glance at Isaak. I’m shocked he has the nerve to question his boss’s actions like that.
“I’m going to speak with my father,” Annika hisses at Dmitri before storming away from him, shooting me a death glare on the way out.
“Sir, I don’t think that’s wise,” Isaak tells Dmitri as Gabe shuts the door.
Dmitri narrows his eyes at Isaak. “Frankly, I don’t give a shit what you think on the matter, Isaak. It’s none of your goddamn business.”
“It’s Ivanov business, which means it’s my business too,” Isaak replies. “I’ve worked for the family for years now. This marriage is necessary for you, for us. Why are you putting it off?”
Dmitri’s jaw clenches as his eyes dart over to Gabe. “Do you feel the same way as him, Gabe?”
Gabe lowers his eyes at first, but then he looks Dmitri in the eyes and nods. “The arrangement is essential for the family, right? One that has to happen sooner or later for…our expansion?” His eyes shift momentarily toward me, as if he’s censoring his words because I’m in the room.
An expansion? Does he mean Pakhan?
I remain silent, not wanting to piss Dmitri off even more.
“Well, I’m glad you two are suddenly so opinionated about family politics that don’t concern you,” Dmitri bites out before pointing at the door. “Go do your jobs and leave me to do mine.”
Isaak and Gabe exchange disappointed looks with each other, but they don’t argue with Dmitri. They turn and walk around me to leave the office. And just like that, Dmitri and I are alone again.
That has been dangerous lately.
“You postponed the wedding?” I ask him, breaking the silence.
Dmitri sighs and sits on the edge of his desk, dragging his fingers through his hair. “I just refused to set a date yet. I’m not fucking ready for this.”
Who would be?
As much as I need him to fail for my family’s sake, I do still feel some sympathy for him. I couldn’t imagine being in his situation, and I know that he’s doing everything that he can to postpone the inevitable and lessen the blow of a whole life with someone like Annika.
I can’t picture him ever being happy with her. He should save himself, but he needs to be brave enough to do so.
I guess that’s rich coming from me as I’m doing my father’s bidding just to get his approval and avoid the same fate of an arranged marriage. It seems like we’re both at the mercy of our families.
“I’m sorry you’re so…conflicted,” I say in a quiet voice as I move closer to him. Too close.
Dmitri lifts his eyes to mine and then rests his hands on my waist, looking defeated. Maybe even a little broken. “I’m not the least bit conflicted about how much I want you, milaya.”
“I know,” I say, letting him keep his hands on my waist. Having him hold me feels too good to make him let go just yet.
Dmitri coaxes me closer, one hand sliding up toward the back of my neck. “Let me have you. I need this.”
No one has ever needed me.
My heart pounds wildly as I gaze into his eyes, seeing the promise of euphoria in their deep blue depths. He’ll be even better than the dream version of himself. I can already tell just from the way he looks at me.
“No,” I tell him, forcing myself to speak the single word.
“There’s no wedding date on the horizon. We have more time,” Dmitri replies as his hand rests on the back of my neck. He tries to coax me forward to draw my mouth to his, but I slip away from him before our lips can touch.
“That’s not enough for me. The wedding is still happening, eventually. You’re still engaged to another woman,” I say with a firm shake of my head, putting my foot down for both of us.
Dmitri sighs heavily and asks, “What will be enough for you?”
“I shouldn’t have to say it,” I reply in an even voice. He already knows, and I’m not going to spell it out.
Dmitri rubs his temples, squeezing his eyes shut. “This morning has already been hell, and I haven’t even gotten any work done.”
“I’ll go grab us coffee. I’m sorry I was so late,” I tell him.
I turn to leave his office just as Dmitri says, “When you didn’t come in, I thought you quit. I panicked.”
He postponed his wedding not just because of our kiss, but because he thought he had lost me for good?
I walk away from him without responding because if I look at him again, I’ll give in.
The more we’re around each other, the harder it is for me to abide by my plan. Honestly, sometimes I forget the plan even exists.
Sometimes, I just feel like a woman who can’t get the thought of her gorgeous boss out of her head.
That would be easier than this war we’re playing.
And far less dangerous.