We were never really going to be safe again, and I was coming to terms with that. Even after we managed to deal with Natalia and her family, there would always be someone else lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right time to strike.
That’s just how these things worked, and I was prepared to deal with it every step of the way, no matter what my family had to say about it. It was my life, and I was finally in a position to start making decisions for myself.
I was just glad that Stephan always gave me options, that he always let me decide how I wanted to move forward without forcing anything on me.
I knew that there was some bad blood between his family and my own, but I didn’t want to be afraid anymore that things weren’t going to work out the way I wanted them to. I had to believe that I could convince my family to stand by my side, to let Stephan be a part of my life because he was the only one that was protecting me from all of this.
My family had done nothing in all my years to ever warn me that something like this could happen, and I learned what I could from listening in on their conversations and snooping whenever they weren’t looking.
Stephan showed me the way, he guided me through and left the ball in my court when it came to me debating whether I wanted to become a criminal like him or leave the lifestyle for good. I was smart enough to realize that no matter how much distance I put between me and the crime, it would always follow me.
There would always be people out there that saw me as leverage, and I wanted to call my own shots. I was just glad that Stephan remained by my side, that he didn’t force me out because he wanted to protect me from the danger, even though I was sure there was a part of him that wanted to.
Stephan pulled up to a gas station, and we both retrieved the bags from the backseat, locking them in the trunk for safe-keeping. He pulled me in, pushing me up against the car, and pressed his lips into mine. He ignited a fire inside of me, and I knew we were pressed for time, but I didn’t care.
I wanted to feel him, I wanted to kiss every inch of his body again, the way we did the very first time. He ran his hands through my hair, caressing my cheek while he kissed me hard, and I felt him pull away for a moment, leading me into the back of the gas station near the bathroom, my body exploding with the kind of sexual tension that needed to be let out immediately.
We got inside, locking the door behind us, while he pushed me up against the door, lifting my legs up to his torso while I wrapped them around him, and it wasn’t long before I was off the ground. I kissed him fiercely, feeling his tongue toy with mine while I pulled my hair back out of my face so I could see him in all his glory.
I wanted to feel every inch of his body press up against mine, and I needed him inside me to quench the thirst that had welled up inside me.
His eyes lowered to my breasts, lifting up my shirt ever so slightly so he could take my nipple into his mouth. He sucked on it lightly before we both slipped out of our jeans, and he began pulling my panties aside so he could slip his hard dick inside of me.
We didn’t care that we had somewhere to be, we didn’t care that we had just snagged thousands of dollars sitting in the trunk of his car because all that mattered at that moment was that we were there together.
We had to enjoy these moments because we were chasing danger every time we stepped foot back out into the real world. We had targets on our backs, and everything could change in just a split second if we weren’t careful.
Stephan trailed kisses down my neck, biting at me lightly, while his dick slid inside my wet pussy. It was throbbing, waiting for him, and the moment he entered, I let out a moan. He didn’t hesitate this time, he didn’t bother to slow his motions to start, he drove his dick deep up inside me, making every sensation feel different than the last. I was exploding with pleasure, and we were both doused with sweat, the heat rising in the both of us while I felt him slide in and out of me, his hands on my hips, guiding me into him.
I felt the cool metal of the door my back was pressed up against brush up on my exposed skin while he fucked me. My eyes began to roll back, feeling every inch of him thrust harder inside me until I couldn’t hold the orgasm in anymore.
“I’m going to cum, baby,” I whispered.
“Yes, you fucking will,” he said, picking up the pace, ramming his dick harder, faster, until the orgasm erupted through me. I was shaking, but he held me steady, keeping me upright while he filled me up. I felt his warmth trickle down my leg, just as he glanced up at me, leaning to kiss me softly on my forehead. He felt incredible, and I never wanted to lose that feeling. I felt so free with him, I felt like I was capable of just about anything.
It felt sostrange to be standing at my front door again. It felt like I hadn’t been home in ages, and to think it wasn’t that long ago that I was a naive girl, hoping to start the rest of my life somewhere far away from what my parents chose to do as a living. Though, now everything was different. I remembered for a moment how scared I felt the minute I learned that my home was broken into, that there were men making demands, waving their guns around.
I thought back to seeing Adrian’s body bleeding out on my kitchen floor, and how scared I was after that experience, but now I’d truly hardened up to anything of that nature. Now, it felt normal to see those things happening in my everyday life, and in just a short amount of time, I’d become a completely different person.
I took a deep breath, clutching the ends of my worn clothes, trying to keep a straight face because I could only imagine how my parents were going to react the moment they opened the door to find me standing next to Stephan Volkov. They had absolutely no idea of any of the things that I’d been through, of stealing cars, protecting billion-dollar paintings, and getting kidnapped. In their minds, I had a pretty simple last few days, getting ready to open up my gallery and live out my dreams of collecting art, but none of that seemed to interest me anymore.
I had a different perspective, I was ready to dive headfirst into truly building up a life from the ground up, standing by Stephan’s side. He reached for my hand, and our fingers interlocked as I rang the doorbell, hoping that this wasn’t going to turn into a complete disaster.
I could tell that he was afraid, that he hadn’t prepared for what he was going to do if they tried to force him out of the house. I knew my father well enough to know that he was going to pull out all of the stops, trying to tell me that I was ruining my life by pursuing a Volkov, but I was prepared to talk him down from the ridiculous threats he was going to make.
I didn’t care if he was going to throw me out onto the streets, or if he’d start to believe that I disgraced his family by getting involved with a crime family that he didn’t approve of. I knew where my heart was, and I knew that I had fallen in love with Stephan. There was nothing that anyone could say that would change my mind.
I rang the doorbell again, waiting for the door to swing open, but it never did. I looked down at my wristwatch to see that it was much later than I’d expected, and my parents should’ve been home by now. I looked over into the driveway to see their car right there, and it didn’t take long before I started to put the pieces together.
My heart sank into my stomach at the thought of something bad happening to my parents, especially because I’d come looking for their support, and they had no idea what they were up against. I turned the door handle and it opened with ease. Stephan stared back at me, reaching for the gun in his holster.
“No, this can’t be happening. They just got back into town, they have no idea what’s going on! I was ready to fight with them about them possibly having a problem with you. There’s no way that Natalia’s family could’ve gotten to them so quickly. I don’t know if I can go in there, Stephan. I’m too scared of what I might see,” I said to him, and he reached down to squeeze my hand tightly.
“I’m going to go in first, and you’re going to follow, okay? Everything is going to be okay, Annika. Don’t worry,” he said, and I knew he was just trying to talk me down from the fear that was welling up inside of me, but it wasn’t doing much to keep me calm.
I’d seen so many terrible things over such a short amount of time, I knew that if something had indeed happened to my parents, there was no telling what I’d be walking into. Stephan opened up the front door slowly, taking the first step in, and I followed right behind him. We both walked into the living room, and before I could catch my breath before I could slow the pounding of my heart, I saw both of my parents tied up, beaten, with duct tape over their mouths, their eyes widening when they caught sight of me.
“Mother! Father!” I screamed, rushing to them, but I didn’t get very far. I felt a sharp pain on the back of my head, and everything faded to black.
