Truthfully, I knew Cori wasn’t the kind of man who would come to my rescue, but I knew he was with a man who would. Dmitri. I hoped they were still together, and thank goodness they were.
Replaying that through my mind didn’t lead me to answers. Instead, I had more questions. Lots of them. Then I remembered that Dmitri said he might know who it could be. Who? Why? Did he have past enemies looking for someone to hold over him? Was I a warning?
The question faded into my dreams. Sometime later—hours, maybe minutes—a nightmare ripped me awake. One where a clothed figure shot me in my head while I was asleep. I’d jumped up thinking that I was awake, but then I was back inside that damn car. I shot upright, screaming, shaking, chest tight, breath clawing out in broken gasps. I touched my head, my face, my chest. Was I alive? Desperate cries erupted as I struggled to figure out fact from fiction. The door burst open, and Dmitri crossed the room in three strides and then knelt beside the bed.
“Hey. Hey.” His hands hovered before settling on my shoulders. “You’re okay. You’re safe. Talk to me.”
It was the kindness in his voice that undid me. More tears spilled before I could stop them.
“I can’t.” My throat closed. “I saw the car again... I heard metal… I thought I was going to die!”
He pulled me into him without hesitation. Strong arms wrapped around my back, guiding my head to his chest. I sobbed into his shirt, inhaling his scent to ground me back into reality. His hand cupped the back of my head, thumb stroking slow, soothing circles.
“Breathe,” he murmured. “I’ve got you.”
I hated how much I melted into him. How safe he made me feel. How terrified I was of that feeling. But my body had alreadydecided for me because I leaned into his warmth, gripping the front of his shirt with shaking fingers.
“You’re trembling,” he said softly.
“So are you.”
He paused. “Yeah,” he admitted, voice rough, “because someone tried to take you from me.”
I swallowed a sob. “You barely know me,” I whispered.
“You think seven years in a cell stopped me from remembering every fucking detail about you?”
My breath stilled. He pulled back just enough to see my face. His thumb brushed a tear off my cheek.
“Don’t cry alone,” he said.
“I’m not.”
He gave a slow nod—like my admission carved something open in him. His gaze dropped to my mouth. And I knew. Iknewwhat was about to happen. I wanted him to. Crazy as it was, I parted my lips, inviting him to kiss me. Yearning for another sip of the brutal man holding me. His lips had been the softest part of him that I’d experienced until today, and for all this time, I guess I craved more of it. Now that he was right here, I couldn’t think of a single reason not to. I nearly died today, and suddenly, I didn’t want to keep denying myself things that I wanted.
“I shouldn’t,” he said, voice torn. “You’re scared. You’re hurt. You should be resting.”
“Then don’t,” I whispered.
His hand slid to the back of my neck, guiding me forward with heartbreaking care. The first brush of his lips was soft like I remembered. Tentative. Shaking. What could he possibly be afraid of?
The second was not. The second was a claim—deep, heated, hungry—the kind of kiss that made the nightmare fade and the world go quiet. The kind that made you want more of what was beginning. It made you say, fuck it and dive right into theswirling current of Dmitri. I kissed him back. I should have pulled away. I should have told him this was a mistake. Instead, my fingers curled into his collar and pulled him closer.
His breath hitched against my mouth—like he hadn’t expected me to want him too. He kissed me harder, deeper, a low sound breaking from his chest as if he’d waited seven years for this exact moment. I knew that was a lie, Dmitri was a woman’s man. He could have whomever he wanted and had never been shy about that. There was no way that I was anything special to him. And that’s why I shouldn’t be doing this.
When he finally dragged his mouth from mine, his forehead pressed to mine, our breaths tangled.
“Natasha…” His voice was wrecked. “Tell me to stop.”
I couldn’t. I didn’t. However, my thoughts were getting louder, and I realized this wasn’t smart. I didn’t want to be another notch on his belt.
“You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this.” He sighed. “I think I fell in love with you when I was fifteen.” He chuckled. “Now, that I have you all alone, I can’t fucking remember the long list of things that I’ve wanted to do to you. Right now, I can only think about kissing every inch of your body. Fucking corny, right? But I need to know that you’re real and not another fucking fantasy I created. Smelling every inch of you so that I can know that you’re alive and well. I crave the sound of your cries while my face settles between your thighs to sample you for the first time. Fuck, princess... I need you so damn bad.”
I whispered my truth to him, already shivering as I thought about him carrying out every action he mentioned. “Don’t go.”
And that was the moment he came completely undone. I saw it in his eyes. Dmitri’s controlled demeanor slipped, and I’d been the reason why.
Little ole me.
