by AK Leigh
The day he’d been asked to show Nina the ropes, hadn’t the coach mentioned a wife?
Andrei continued spying. Marcel reached into his pocket and pulled out something. A key. The coach leaned forward and used it to open the unit’s front door. Nina stepped forward, gave the man a kiss on each cheek then entered the accommodation. Alone.
At least she hadn’t invited Marcel in.
The coach stared at the closed door for a moment, then turned and started making his way back toward Andrei. Fast.
‘Shit.’
He spun and bolted back inside the training facility before he could be caught. Once he was safely inside, he frowned. He needed to warn Nina about Marcel being married. She’d been hurt by one man’s secrets and lies already, he would not let that happen again. The problem was how he would go about telling her. He wasn’t exactly in her top one million list of people she trusted and believed …
Chapter 19
It had seemed like a good idea at the time. When Marcel had suggested a couple of drinks with the team that night to celebrate their successful first mixed relay team training. But since she’d had to watch Andrei flirting with Amber Cransen all night, she wasn’t so sure.
At the thought, her gaze flicked a few feet away. Andrei sat on a stool at the bar, as was his usual practice. His focus was at a spot opposite him. Nina followed his gaze and saw the object of his staring: Amber, a gorgeous Chinese woman draped over her.
Ha! Gay, just like she’d known.
Still Andrei was eyeing them intently. Thoughts of a sexy threesome running through his head?
A familiar grumble of jealousy hit her tummy. It started to feel hot and cramped in the bar. What she needed was fresh air and something that would get her mind off Andrei. And Amber. Thus far, alcohol hadn’t worked.
She stood. Too fast! Dizziness overwhelmed her.
She clamped a steadying hand to the table in front of her, ‘Oh.’
The next thing she knew, two sets of hands were on her, and two different men said, ‘Are you okay?’
She tilted her head to her left. The concerned-looking eyes of Andrei Strasinski met hers. His gaze burrowed into her, slithering its way toward her heart like the lying snake he was.
In irritation, she pulled away, and snapped, ‘I’m fine.’
On her right, she heard the calm French accent of Marcel as he said, ‘I think I should get you back.’
She faced him and gave a half nod.
‘I can take her, Coach.’
Nina whipped her head around. She winced from the pain the action sent through her temples as she spat at Andrei, ‘Marcel is going to take me.’
Andrei pressed his lips together and nodded.
He didn’t argue as she let Marcel help her out from behind the table. She was proud of herself when she managed to walk away without looking back.
Before she was completely aware of having left the bar and hopping in Marcel’s car, she was at the front door of her dorm at The Snow Globe. Marcel’s arm was around her waist, supporting her.
He handed her a bottle of water. ‘Have some more water.’
When had she had any?
She didn’t ask. Instead, she took the bottle and gulped the cool water.
He took the bottle from her and recapped the lid. ‘Do you feel any better?’
She shook her head, ‘No.’
He offered her a compassionate smile, ‘Once you’ve had a good sleep, you will be fine.’
‘Thanks for bringing me back.’
He shrugged, ‘It’s my duty as coach to take care of my team, especially mon étoile.’
She snorted, ‘I’m not the star. That’s Andrei.’
A frown line appeared between his eyebrows. ‘Strasinski peaked at the last Olympics. He’s not improving. But you are. Your peak is still coming. I can feel it.’
‘You really think so?’
She’d never thought about it before.
He shook his head, and replied in French, ‘I know.’
She smiled, ‘Merci beaucoup.’
‘It’s nothing.’ He hesitated then asked, ‘Do you mind if I ask what happened?’
She didn’t bother pretending she didn’t know what he was talking about. ‘With Andrei and me?’
‘Oui.’
She exhaled. ‘That is a long story.’
Besides that, she didn’t really know where to start. What could she say? She’d foolishly allowed herself to fall crazily in love with Andrei when they’d met in Russia; he’d convinced her he felt the same, then he’d broken her heart when he’d told her he didn’t love her and had no feelings for her.
Should she add that she still couldn’t forget him? Which was the least pathetic explanation?
‘Unrequited love?’
She nodded, ‘Something like that.’
‘Romantic and tragic.’
She scoffed, ‘More the latter.’
‘I wouldn’t be too sure of that.’
‘What does that mean?’
‘His heart still beats for yours.’
‘Pfft. I don’t think so. I don’t think it ever did.’
‘Why do you say that?’
‘He told me he never loved me.’
Marcel’s expression turned compassionate. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘Thank you.’
After a moment of silence, Marcel blurted, ‘He’s an idiot.’
She chuckled, ‘Yes. He is.’
Marcel smiled, ‘You should get some rest now.’
She nodded and stepped forward to kiss each of his cheeks. As she did, she spotted something from the corner of her eye. A person. Andrei Strasinski. He was at the front door of his unit, about five units up and across from hers.
Perhaps it was the way she saw Andrei looking at them—like he was a fighter waiting for his next round to start—or maybe it was the anger of his spying on them again, or the fuzzy head from too much alcohol. Whatever it was, an uncontrollable force made her close the gap between herself and Marcel. Her lips were pressed against his before she was ready for the full consequences of the decision she’d made.
Marcel reacted immediately.
But not the way she’d expected.
He gave her a gentle push away from him and said, ‘Nina, stop. I’m married. Happily married.’
‘Oh my God. I didn’t know. Je suis—’
Before she could get the French word for sorry out, Marcel was pushed away from her. By Andrei. Shoot.
* * *
Rage coursed down his arms, causing him to shove the coach a lot harder than he’d intended. Still, the arsehole deserved it. He was taking advantage of Nina.
Andrei took a step forward to close the gap and gripped Marcel by his shirt collar as he snarled, ‘What do you think you’re doing? Can’t you see she’s drunk?’
Marcel opened his mouth to respond, but Nina barged forward, cutting him off. She wobbled as she reached them.
Andrei reached over to steady her with one hand then barked at the coach, ‘See? She can’t even walk properly. How do you think she can give consent? I should call the Australian Olympic Committee and have you fired for sexual misconduct.’
Nina screeched, ‘What!’
Marcel whacked away the hand Andrei still had on him and shouted back, ‘I should have you thrown off the team.’
‘Stop it, both of you.’
Andrei ignored her, replying, ‘What for? Protecting a teammate from a sex predator or catching a man trying to cheat on his wife? The code of conduct applies to the coach too, Trusseau.’ Andrei faced Nina and added, ‘That’s right, he’s married.’
‘I know!’
The fire inside him puffed out with those words. He frowned, ‘Wait, you do?’
‘Of course. He just told me.’
Andrei glanced at Marcel, ‘You did?’
‘I did.’
‘So …’ He drifted off, unsure of what to say next.
Nina exhaled in obvious frustration, ‘Oh fo
r heaven’s sake, Andrei. Marcel did nothing wrong. It was all me.’
Understanding rushed over him, filling his stomach with bile. He stuttered, ‘You mean you wanted to kiss him?’
She nodded, refusing to make eye contact as she said, ‘But he stopped me right away and told me he was married.’
There was a deep, pregnant silence. Having Nina admit that she’d wanted to be with someone else sent daggers of jealousy through his chest. He needed to get away. He couldn’t get emotionally involved with Nina. This wasn’t his business. She wasn’t his business.
How many times do you need to remind yourself of that?
He refused to look at either of them as he said, ‘I sincerely apologise for my actions, Coach Trusseau.’
He heard the man sigh. ‘It’s okay, Strasinski. I actually admire you for watching out for Nina’s honour.’
A hand came into his line of sight. Andrei peered up, realising it was Marcel’s. He smiled as best as he could under the circumstances and shook the man’s hand. ‘Thank you.’
He couldn’t bring himself to look at Nina as he muttered, ‘I apologise, Nina.’
‘Thank you.’
Her words sounded weak, unsure. He couldn’t tell if she meant them or not, but it didn’t matter. He had to get away.
He turned, said, ‘Goodnight,’ and took off for his dorm without looking back.
Behind him, Nina said, ‘Goodnight.’
As much as his heart pulled at the emotion he detected in her voice, he forced himself to keep moving and not look back. Things between them had to remain strictly professional.
He stepped into his dorm and locked the door behind him. Alone, he realised his cheek was wet. He lifted a hand and wiped away a tear. Wait. He was crying. How long had it been since he’d shed a tear?
The memories of eight years earlier returned. The last time he’d cried had been over Nina as well. Like then, he lifted his hands to his face and let the tears fall.
* * *
‘You okay?’
Marcel’s words snapped her from her focus on Andrei.
She faced him. ‘Oh, God, Marcel. I’m so sorry. I’m such an idiot.’
He smiled. ‘You were trying to make him jealous, no?’
She nodded, ‘Childish, hey?’
He shrugged, ‘I don’t know. I’d say it worked.’
‘I don’t think so. Andrei doesn’t feel that way about me. I don’t believe he can feel that way about anyone.’ She half-whispered the last part.
Coach Trusseau gave her an understanding look, ‘It will be okay.’
She forced a smile, but didn’t believe him.
She’d seen the look on Andrei’s face, along with the way he’d avoided her gaze. It had been the same thing he’d done when she’d raged at him in Russia, before she’d run from his life. That meant one thing: he didn’t care.
Why had she hoped he might? He never had. Sure, his behaviour had been different—more open and apologetic than he’d been before—but it didn’t mean anything. The plan Carrie had come up with for her to ignore him and get him to come to her hadn’t worked because Andrei felt nothing for her.
You saw the jealousy on his face …
She shook her head. He knew Marcel hated him—it was obvious to everyone on the team, as was the fact he knew he had to be somewhat decent to Andrei because he was such a brilliant athlete—maybe he’d spotted a chance to get the man evicted from the games. I should call the Australian Olympic Committee and have you fired. That’s what he’d said. His actions had had nothing to do with her.
It was time to forget about Andrei for good. From now on, the AFP would be in charge of uncovering his secrets. She was done. Just like he’d been for almost a decade.
* * *
Nina had wanted to kiss Marcel! He paced the floor of his dorm as his brain fogged with confusion and irritation. He kicked the stool under his kitchenette’s table and ignored it when it crashed on its side to the floor. He paced again, trying to settle the agitation worming through his body. It didn’t work. Something else took hold.
Jealousy.
Raw, bitter, heated.
The way he’d felt when he’d seen Nina’s lips pressed against Marcel’s … he’d never been so consumed with hatred for another man before.
Of course, he could see now how stupid his behaviour had been. For starters, he could have been thrown off the team. It would had thwarted his dream. The FSB would have been furious, they may have fired him. Then where would he have been? He had no work history and no experience he could put on a résumé. The FSB was the only place he could ever belong.
Marcel had been diplomatic when he’d said Andrei had acted out of concern for Nina’s honour, but it hadn’t been that at all. The motivation had been something more primal. Another man had intruded on what he saw as his territory and he hadn’t liked it. He frowned. It wasn’t a modern, or politically correct, response, but there it was.
Andrei, you need to get a grip.
He was thankful for his brain taking over. Relaxing a little, he exhaled and slumped onto the edge of the bed.
Nina’s private life wasn’t his business. Everyone wanted it that way. Now that he’d told his leader that Nina would not be useful to the case, there was nothing preventing him from staying away from her.
Nina was an ex-target, and nothing more. He had to keep reminding himself of that.
You’re in love with her …
So? It was just an emotion that could be controlled as well as any other. Hadn’t his training taught him that? He could do this; he had done it, many times.
Nina’s different. Always has been. She’s your Achilles heel.
Frustrated, he spat, ‘Stop!’
Now was not the time to lose focus. He just needed to shove Nina Farris to the farthest reaches of his brain. As for her place in his heart? He would have to learn to live with it.
Besides, her actions tonight showed she had gotten over him a long time ago. Rightly so. He hadn’t expected her to wait around and pine for him all these years. In fact, there’d been numerous times when he’d hoped she wouldn’t. She deserved more than him.
Another, more urgent matter flicked forward: what if your handler finds out about this?
A wave of anxiety rushed over him. He cursed out loud in Russian and kicked the bottom of the bed with his heel. Now he had to call and confess what had transpired between them. Hopefully, because he’d been mostly up-front about the waterfall incident, they would let it slide without too much fuss.
Resigned to what he had to do, he pulled out his phone from his jeans pocket and prepared himself for another lecture and reminder about his duty.
Chapter 20
It was the day after the night before. Nina’s temples pounded like a little hammer inside her head. She grimaced as she strolled toward The Snow Globe’s café. It was later than she’d thought most people might eat breakfast, so she was surprised when she stepped inside and found the place half-full.
She scanned the room, searching for a place to sit that would allow her some privacy. Of course, the first person to make eye contact with her was Andrei.
She glanced away and marched in the opposite direction.
The occasional snicker being directed her way told her the news of what had gone down last night had spread around the teammates.
‘Oh, great.’
She rolled her eyes and took her place in the line forming at the counter. Luckily, she was well-versed in ignoring unwanted attention due to her experience with being an identical triplet. Right now, she needed a coffee to get rid of her blasted headache.
Her sisters would be there soon to discuss the case. It was time to get her mind focused on tracking down this terrorist and off the other distractions. She hated that her gaze shot to Andrei with that thought.
* * *
You’re in love with her …
Andrei faced the man who’d spoken to him: Oliver Grossman, his fellow teammate in the mi
xed relay event, old friend, and possible terrorist. Women flocked to Oliver’s shoulder-length brown locks, green eyes, and ‘pretty boy’ face. Personally, Andrei couldn’t see what the big deal was.
He shrugged. ‘It’s complicated.’
‘What did you do to her this time?’
Oliver knew about their Russian fling. Heck, everybody did. Olympic teams were a ripe petri dish of gossip.
‘I already told you, I butted my nose in where it wasn’t wanted.’
Oliver laughed, ‘Typical Andrei.’
‘What does that mean?’
‘You never give a straight answer.’
The familiarity of those words, spoken by Nina so many times, made Andrei bristle. He kept his cool and shrugged, ‘I like my privacy.’
Oliver laughed again, ‘You might want to check out social media then.’
A dark cloud of dread fell over Andrei. ‘Why?’
He sensed he didn’t want the answer, but it came anyway, ‘There’s stuff all over it.’
‘Like what?’
‘That you dumped her after you got what you wanted from her.’
Andrei rubbed a hand over his forehead. ‘Wonderful.’
‘Is it true? I’d always assumed there was more to it.’
‘I don’t remember. It was a long time ago.’
Liar. He remembered every detail like it had just happened two minutes ago. The words that had come from his mouth. I don’t love you, Neens. He remembered the way her eyes had moistened; how she’d forced herself not to cry; the pain he’d seen on her face as her heart had broken. The angry, hurtful words she’d hurled before running from him.
Oliver snorted, ‘You’re an idiot if you did do that. Look at her, she’s smoking hot! And those sisters of hers—’
‘Hey. Show some respect, Ollie.’
He realised he’d said it a bit loud when the conversation at tables around him suddenly stopped.
He pushed himself up from the chair he’d been sitting in and muttered, ‘I’m not hungry. I’ll see you at training this afternoon.’
As he made his way from the hall, he couldn’t help catching a peek back at Nina. She looked pale. She was still suffering from the effects of too much alcohol the night before. He frowned. Would she be all right for their first mixed relay training later?