I shouldn’t care about his hunched shoulders. He’s my captive, and I do what I want. And yet suspicions rise inside me instantly. “Then what is it about?”
“The point is, I want to cuddle. I want to touch you. I want to wrap myself around you. Why are you making me spell it out?” Victor spreads his arms, backing toward the bed. “And how would I even run away if—” He stills, watching me with a sharp gaze. “No. You’re afraid I would hurt you? In your sleep?Me?”
I exhale, trying not to roll my eyes. “I’ve once had a young girl stab me while I tried to help her carry a baby stroller up a flight of stairs. You’re not incapable of violence either.”
As we both know, since he broke in with a gun and a backpack full of rope.
“Sure! But I… I trusted you with my body today.” He crosses his arms on his chest and pouts.
He actually believes what he’s saying makes sense. He is delusional.
“One of the reasons I was recruited as a spy and killer? I was good-looking. You think being a honey pot makes one any less deadly?” I ask, spreading my arms in frustration, because I do know how easy it is to kill a man sleeping off a sex marathon.
Victor shrugs and shakes his head, hiding his eyes behind his hair. “Fine. Goodnight, Seva.”
That stings, but I need to keep up my boundaries if this budding thing between us is to survive. “How about apple fritters for breakfast?” I ask, trying to give him something nice to look forward to.
Victor nods. “I would love that.” His voice is sour, but he’s giving me something.
This is fine. Just growing pains as we establish how our relationship will work.
I kiss his forehead, then close the door between us, and I slot all four bolts in place. And for the first time, I don’t leave immediately, instead staring at the steel surface in front of me. It doesn’t make sense to forego the rules that have kept me alive so far.
In the end, I shake my head and walk off to do my nightly rounds. I’ve already been neglectful in checking the regular alerts on my phone because of my moody little distraction.
Ratimir chirps at the sight of me, but it’s late, so I only pet him a little bit, then add more food to his bowl, and proceed with the ritual of checking all traps, windows, doors, and other safety measures I keep in place.
I’m all the way down in the basement when it occurs to me that I should check my phone again. I looked at the alerts so quickly before, when I was defrosting the chicken soup, and now I swear I’m having some brain glitch.
But no. Something’s not right.
A lock in one of the back doors to the house isn’t closed.
That could, of course, be an oversight on my part, but I always check thrice, and I’ve not even been at that door today, far too busy with Victor.
In a frenzy, I flip through live feeds of every single hidden camera in the house, and I almost miss the man in black stalking one of the corridors, but I go back to the video, and a sense of peace replaces the initial dread.
It’s just one man, and I’m in control here.
Then I realize I’m not the only person living in this house now, and that the man has approached the door of the decoy bedroom.
Victor’s bedroom.
Chapter 14
Victor
It’ssoeasytoforget Seva and I aren’t a normal couple. Between all the touching, him cooking fresh meals for me, and our work at the studio, reality and my fantasies become entangled. I really shouldn’t be hurt by him wanting to sleep alone, yet here I am, spilling tears as I watch the wall across from the bed.
Yes, I did initially try to attack him, but that feels so distant it might as well have happened in another life. The present me would never…
I thought opening up to him so physically would show him that I’m over my loathing. Things have changed, so maybe as time passes, I can prove to him he can trust me too.
My heart skips a beat when I hear the locks turning. It’s not reasonable. He hurt my feelings and should have to work for forgiveness, but his life’s been tough, and I don’t want to give him a hard time when he’s here, ready to apologize for his rash behavior. Maybe he just needed time to rethink the situation.
I jump right out of the bed, and approach the door, wrapped in a blanket. I’m naked underneath, so if he so wishes, I can let him in, and keep him warm all night long.
I think he doesn’t want to disturb my sleep, because the click is very slow, as if he’s pacing himself. I smile when a sliver of skin appears in the gap between steel and concrete, but the rest of him is covered by fabric, which is so unusual I take a step back.
