By this point, we had somehow moved closer, each of us caught up in our argument. He smiled at me, his eyes softening in the dim light of the theater. “You just admitted you want to watch another movie with me. See? We’re a regular married couple, after all.”
“Not even close,” I said. “And I’ll never admit it. It was a slip. Just like you’d never admit how much you enjoyed that beautiful classic.”
He shrugged. “I enjoyed it. See how easy it is not to lie to yourself?”
“I never lie to anyone, especially not myself.” That untruth was instantly called out by an eye roll. He leaned closer, and I laughed. In the presence of Gavril Bocharov, I actually laughed without a trace of sarcasm. “Admit you want to read the book now,” I said, a smile lingering on my face.
This was odd and unprecedented, but I was having fun. It had been a while, and no matter the company, it felt good.
“Not even a little bit,” he said. “Why should I when I know what happens?” He tapped my nose. “That is how you tell the truth.”
“Fine,” I admitted on a long sigh. “Maybe we can watch another movie someday. But I warn you, I’ll get you to read something.”
His eyes flickered down to my mouth. “I’ll enjoy watching you try.” His eyes darted further down, taking me in, dressed in pajamas like a child. “I enjoy watching you, period,” he said.
Heat flooded my face, and suddenly, my lips, which he was currently focused on again, were too dry.Don’t lick them, do not lick them.
I licked them. His big hand swept my hair behind my shoulder, his warm palm curling softly around the side of my neck. In a smooth swoop, his mouth was on mine. Hot and firm, commanding and seeking. His tongue swiped between my lips, and my mouth fell open like a baby bird, eager for sustenance. When his fingers slid behind my neck to tangle in my hair, a sigh melted out of me, and at the same time, I melted closer to him.
It was all too much, and I still found my hand seeking his chest, solid under his crisp dress shirt. During the movie,he removed his tie and undid a couple more buttons, and as his mouth took me away somewhere else, I slipped my fingers underneath his shirt to press against his smooth, hot skin. He began to ease me backwards, into the pillows, the hand that wasn’t gripping my hair traveling up my side to feel my own skin. The tips of his thumbs brushed across my nipples. I gasped and pressed harder against him.
Too much. Thoughts raced in my head, screaming for me to snap out of it. This was Gavril Bocharov. One friendly movie night didn’t erase the fact that he wanted the people I cared about most destroyed and dead. I simply could not let myself get swept away and give in, even if I never felt so lightheaded and giddy before.
Just one more second. His tongue was in my mouth, claiming territory like it was already his. With a groan, he yanked me closer, flush against his very hard body.
Too much. I went stiff in his arms. He stopped kissing me, pulling away to search my eyes for some answer. I closed them and stayed still. Now I would see him turn into a monster. Fear crept up my limbs, replacing the warm, heady glow of his touch. He moved further away, and I opened my eyes, holding in a gasp.
He did look awfully close to erupting, his eyes darker than the deepest forests in Moscow. Standing up, he held out his hand to me. I stayed where I was, silent and unmoving.
With a low growl, he reached down to pull me up by the hand. “Come with me,” he demanded. I stumbled along beside him as we left the theater, and he almost had to drag me as we made our way up the stairs. There was a war waging inside me. Could I submit to this man who made me his wife? Or would I die fighting?
The terrible thing was I wasn’t sure I would fight, and not solely because I didn’t want to die. All I could do was keep up with him as he marched me upstairs and down the hall.
To my room. Not his? He opened the door and nudged me inside ahead of him. I trembled as he gave me a long look, waiting for his hands to be on me again, his lips to take mine. His gaze almost burned, and I closed my eyes.
The click of the door made them fly open again. It was shut, and Gavril was gone, without another word. Without another kiss.
I should have been grateful I stood there alone, but somehow, I wasn’t.
Chapter 14 - Gavril
Lilia was going to be a problem. An even bigger one than I already knew. There almost wasn’t enough strength in me to march her upstairs and leave her alone in her room. Not just the passion that exploded between us, but the simple fun we had after the movie. And that interminably long series wasn’t half bad, either. Maybe I would do something shocking like read the damn book.
That kiss, though. It drove me wild, beyond anything I ever experienced before, despite her clumsy grasping. Maybe because of it. And it affected her, too, of that I would have bet everything I owned. I could have kept going. Right now, she could be clinging to me again, gasping against my mouth.
But memories of the auction stopped me, the way I felt seeing that terror turn her into a quivering mess. I refused to ever see fear in Lilia’s eyes again, especially not put there by me.
So, yes, she was going to be a problem.
After a long, icy shower, I collapsed into bed, alone, still consumed with thoughts of my bride. But now it was about what she said about the Collective at dinner, and her disdain that I wasn’t being more proactive about my wayward organization. It was obvious she’d feel that way.
The Petrovs ran a tight ship and never tolerated the least whiff of disloyalty. Even when I kept to myself in my part of Russia, stories would trickle over about things that went down in Moscow.
Men who thought they could run things better than a family that had held that city in its grip for generations would just disappear as if they never existed. There would be murmurs,whispered stories, and then they would just be forgotten completely. Until their remains inevitably turned up.
Their power had only grown since then. However, as powerful as they were, they still weren’t as big or far-reaching as the Collective. I had learned the hard way in my time in LA that bigger didn’t always mean better, and we still couldn’t bring the Petrovs down.
All that could change if I made proper use of Lilia. I stood to gain a great deal if I brokered her safe return. As of now, if I chose that path, I might get to live, but that was always up in the air with the unpredictable Petrovs. They would do anything to protect their own.
