I grab the device and lift it. The screen wants her face, not mine. But I saw her type in that code, so I open her phone and scroll through several of her texts. Apparently, she likes chai tea lattes from a place called Bernie’s. I read through several more, and then I find the number I want, keying in the text message.
When I’m finished, I wait. An answer comes almost immediately. I read it and then shut the phone, plugging it back in. With that, I strip off my clothes on the way to the shower. I might as well join her this morning.
There’s so much steam when I enter the shower that I can barely make out her form. Pulling open the glass door, I move inside.
She jumps and turns around, her hands to her neck and her elbows covering her breasts. It’s an instinctual and primal reaction to a threat. She blinks and then her body relaxes. “What are you doing here?”
I look down her naked and wet form. She has all the right curves, plenty of them, in all the right places. I like that. Have never gone for stick thin or fashionably skinny women who don’t eat. “For now, I live here.”
Her chin lifts as wet and dark hair sticks to the side of her face. “For now? That’s over. You have your own money now and can afford to own Silicon Valley twice over.” With the steam dancing across her, she looks like a mysterious angel.
“For nowbecause you’re moving somewhere more secure as soon as I find a place.” I place one finger on her cherry-red lips and trace down, taking my time, sliding over her chin to her clavicle and between her breasts. Her abdomen clenches as I continue the journey until I find her and press that finger inside her. I like that she waxes everything. She’s wet and hot. Scalding.
Her eyes flare. Need and anger. A little fear. She grabs my wrist with both of her hands and pushes it away, taking my finger from its home. “I’m not moving anywhere.”
Ah. I’m not the best at communicating anything other than threats, and that’s not the route to go with her. At least not unless it’s absolutely necessary. “Have you ever felt this way with another man?”
“No,” she says, giving me such an innocent honesty that my chest fills with something heated. “But I’m not surethisis good. It’s certainly not safe.”
God was beyond generous when he gave her both this body and that brain. “Baby, your safety will never again be your concern. That’s mine.” I’m about to control one of the most dangerous forces in the world, and every single one of those men will take a vow to protect her to the point of their own death. As will I. I indulge myself and sweep that thick wet hair away from her stunning face.
She shakes her head but doesn’t back away from my touch. “Alexei. Be serious. I know this it hot and thrilling, probably stupid and dangerous. But we just met. Stop talking like we’ll be rocking on chairs on a front porch together eighty years from now.”
There’s a new vulnerability in her cerulean-blue eyes. One I don’t mind. She’s starting to care more than her intellect says she should, and that must be terrifying. Especially since I’m, well, me.
So I wrap that glorious hair around my hand, twist, and lift her face for a kiss. I take her deep, already lost in her. She makes a sound of surrender deep in her throat, and it tunnels through me to land in my heart. Hard. A warning ticks in the back of my head and I ignore it.
Finally, I release her mouth to allow her to breathe.
She blinks, her eyes stunned and her lips already a little swollen.
“You should probably thank me for the shoes,” I suggest.
Her eyes refocus. “Oh.” Delight dances across her face and she banishes it. “The shoes are beyond beautiful and way too many.” Yet she’s touched and she doesn’t hide that from me. “They were very, ah, unexpected.”
I’m sure. In addition, I’m still surprised by how much fun I had in choosing them. For her. “There’s another gift in the dresser by your bed.” It’s an amethyst pendant that I spent a wondrous time charging. “You need to choose a new car. Do you want the same kind?”
She swallows and her spine stiffens. “Absolutely not.”
I kiss her nose. God, she’s adorable. “Okay. How about a BMW?”
She plants a hand on my chest but doesn’t push. “No. No car. No other presents.” Confusion wrinkles her face until she smooths it out. “I’m not ... I’m not a mistress. I can’t be bought.”
Unexpected humor takes me, and I chuckle. She’s been watching too many mob movies. “Mistress? No. I’ll marry you right now, if you want.”
Her mouth drops open, and she tries to take a step back. I keep her in place. “What kind of game are you playing?” Her voice trembles.
I dig deep for patience. “The only games I’ll ever play with you are in the bedroom. Other than that, you can take me one hundred percent at my word.”
She shakes her head, and I loosen my hold so she doesn’t hurt herself. “We just met.”
“You admitted I claimed you last night. We both meant the words.” Then, before she can argue, I kiss her again, lifting her up against me. I know from the calendar on her phone that she has early meetings scheduled, so we don’t have much time to play.
This is the only way to start a morning.
TWENTY-FIVE
Rosalie
