She was in greater danger than she knew. He had to tell her so she’d take precautions and let him keep her safe. The way he could with his money and his fortress.
He didn’t want to lock her away, but he needed Alia to be safe.
* * *
“How did you find a place so quickly?” Rhea asked him.
“It wasn’t hard. You should be good for the month. No problems. It isn’t a bad neighborhood.”
“Viktor, you are so good to us,” Rhea said. “How can I ever repay you?”
“You don’t need to. Do something nice for someone else when you get on your feet.”
The drive stopped at an apartment building that rose high into the air. Cops often put people in this place to keep them safe before they testified. Viktor knew the manager of the building, and he told him that there was on empty apartment.
Viktor paid up front. He knew he could trust this manager.
He brought them up in a carpeted elevator. He settled them in.
“Where are we going today, Viktor?” Jeffrey said.
“We’ll go to the park and fly kites.”
“Jeffrey, let Viktor go for this one. He got us this nice apartment.”
“No, Rhea. I have the time. Let me take him outside. You can get yourselves settled.” He fished into his pocket and came up with a gift card. “Here’s so you can get some food.”
Rhea just smiled. Viktor took the boy back down to the car and then they drove to a park. Viktor had kites in the trunk.
“Have you ever flown a kite before, Viktor?”
“Not in a long time. I did when I was a boy. We’ll learn together.”
Viktor spent the afternoon with the boy, but Alia was never far from his thoughts. Could he convince her to come back home with him? He’d tell her about Olga. Everything.
Things his mother didn’t know.
When the day ended, Viktor brought the boy back to his mother. She had made cookies.
“Take some,” she said, shoving a box into his hands.
They smelled of chocolate and his childhood. He was transported back to his grandmother’s kitchen in Russia. “Thank you.”
“Can I have one, Mom?”
“Wash your hands then you can have one. Save your appetite for dinner,” she said.
The boy rushed off. Viktor wished he still had that much energy. He was tired himself and wanted to go home and take a nap before the club opened tonight.
“You want a cup of coffee?” Rhea asked.
He often chatted with the woman for a few minutes just to see how Jeffrey was doing at school. Not today. He wanted to get back to talk to Alia.
He had to convince her that there was nothing to what Olga said. Olga was his past.
“I don’t have time today,” Viktor said.
Rhea nodded. “You have to fix things with that girl.”
“Was I that obvious?”
“You clearly feel something for her. She’s important to you.”
“Yes, she is. I have to make things right with her. Hopefully she will see that it is just a misunderstanding.”
“You love her?”
Interesting question. Viktor wasn’t sure he could answer it. “I better go find her. I won’t rest until I fix this.”
“Good luck, Viktor. If she didn’t feel something for you, she wouldn’t be upset.”
Viktor held onto those words as his driver took him back to the shelter.
*
Alia spent the afternoon doing the books for the shelter. It took her that long because her mind kept straying to Viktor. Had she misjudged him? Had she overreacted to Olga?
Alia felt a little foolish for just leaving. Viktor opened his home to her and she wasn’t acting very grateful.
Kristin looked up from her computer. “Not a criticism, but I think you’ve spent more time staring off into space than actually typing.”
Alia nodded. “No offense taken. You’re right.”
“Is it that hunk of a man who was here before? Because if you want to pass on him, I’ll take him. He was hot and that accent, wow.”
Alia couldn’t help laughing. Kristin loved men. Sadly, she’d probably chew up Viktor and spit him out. She went through men like most women went through underwear.
Viktor deserved better.
“I just don’t know about him. He seems too good to be true.”
“He might be. Or he could be a really great guy. In our neighborhoods, we have so few examples of that. We aren’t sure when we actually find a man if he is really good. Trust your instincts. Those we have in spades.”
Kristin had a point. Her instincts were telling her that Viktor was the real deal. “What did our mothers tell us? Actions matter. Words do not.”
“What is he doing?”
“He’s being a good guy.”
Even his words were good. Why couldn’t she just believe?
“Then he’s probably a good guy. Sometimes we have to take a chance, Alia.”
She leaned her chin on her hand, her elbow on the desk. “It’s so hard.”
“It sucks how we grew up. We have no males that we can trust so we don’t trust any,” Kristin said.
She was right. Alia’s father hadn’t been part of her childhood at all. Neither had Deion’s. Her mother had raised them by herself. No uncles. No grandparents. No one but them. Must be even harder for Deion to be without a role model.
“I guess I should give him a chance. He didn’t grow up in the same atmosphere. I don’t even know if his dad is alive or not. He talks to his mother on the phone.”
“That’s sweet. What does he do?”
“He owns nightclubs all over the world.”
“Rich?”
“Yes.”
“Though you don’t care about that,” Kristin said.
“I’m not sure I even thought about who I’d be in a relationship with. I’ve been busy raising my brother.”
“Maybe it’s time. Deion’s almost out of school. It’s time for you.”
Alia never thought about what would happen once Deion was on his own. That day seemed as if it were so far in the future that she shouldn’t make plans. Even deciding to go to college had been a big deal.
The last few years, she’d just been keeping her head down, working her butt off. Deion only had another year in school. That time would go fast. She might find herself all alone and no idea what to do with herself. She’d been so busy for so long that having nothing to do scared her.
She might go stir crazy.
Viktor was offering her another option. Go to school now. And he was offering that whether she was in his bed, or not. She had to believe him. He was out finding a place for someone to live. Someone he probably didn’t even know that well.
“I guess I better figure out what I’m going to do. I feel foolish that I just left him. I didn’t give him a chance to explain.”
“You just walked out?”
“Yes. I waited until he was gone and packed a small bag.”
“He clearly wasn’t mad at you. That’s a good thing. I bet he’ll take you back.”
Alia hoped so. She did a stupid thing. She’d threw away the first person who helped her. The first lover who stayed the night. And, dare he dream it? Maybe the first man she could possibly fall in love with.
What an ass she had been. When she opened the door he’d been relieved to see her. Not mad. Not angry at all. Relieved. As if he had been worrying about her.
No one had worried about her since her mother died. Alia worried about everyone else. No one thought that Alia might need something. Until Viktor came along. He took her in as a stranger. He fed her. Kept her safe and at the first sign of trouble she booked.
Still, he’d been glad to see her.
“I can see on your face that you regret what you’ve done,” Kristin said.
“I do. He’s the first person who ever worried about me. At least since my mother,” Alia said.
She wasn’t sure what to do
next, when the front door rang.
“Maybe that’s your Prince Charming,” Kristin said.
Alia strode to the door. She didn’t expect to see Viktor, but there he was. She opened the door and pulled him inside so she could close the door.
“You could get yourself killed being on the streets at this time of evening,” she said.
Then she bit her tongue. She shouldn’t yell at this man.
He stood there with a grin on his face. “So you do care what happens to me.”
Of course she did. “Yes, and I owe you an apology.”
“For?”
“Running out on you. You are the first person in a long time that has done something nice for me and I left. Without a word.”
He put a hand on her face. “You’ll come home? We can talk about Olga?”
“Yes. Let me turn off my computer and get my stuff. Is your driver here?”
“He’s got the car idling with the doors locked.”
“Good. I’ll be just a few minutes.”
“I’ll wait right here, Alia.”
***
Viktor’s heart leaped. Alia was with him and they were heading back to his place. He never wanted anyone so much in his life. He would open up to her. Even a little bit might help her understand.
Olga didn’t mean anything to him. He didn’t love her. Viktor wasn’t sure he was capable of loving anyone.
“You hungry? Need something to drink?” he asked when they returned home.
She sat on his couch. “No, I’m fine, Viktor.”
He sat on the couch near her, but not touching her. He had to tell the story of Olga. And why, even though he didn’t love her, he couldn’t just cut her out of his life.
“Okay. Here goes the Olga story. Please listen without prejudice.” He took a deep breath. “Olga was my first girlfriend. I was a teenager. We were crazy in love. That wildfire of emotion that only teenagers can have.”
“Okay.”
“I was nineteen and trying to make my way in the world. I wasn’t planning on college, but a Russian man took me under his wing and taught me the restaurant business. I had big plans. Here we were in America. The land of opportunity. I couldn’t turn that down. I had to make myself into something. A Russian man feels responsible for his family, especially the women.”
“In this case, your mother.”
“And Olga to an extent. I thought she was the woman I was going to marry, so I had to be able to provide for her.”
“You take that seriously,” Alia said.
“Yes, very. It’s part of being Russian. It leads to some men being chauvinistic, but I didn’t get that part of it.”
“Good.”
He took her hand. She didn’t resist. Her hand was soft and warm and he wanted to rub it against his face. “So there we were, teens in love. Me trying to learn this business. Then we found out that Olga was pregnant.”
“Wow. That’s young.”
“Yes, we were young, but I was determined to do right by her. She was carrying my child. We were to be married.”
“Okay. What happened?”
He licked his lips. This was where the story turned dark. He hesitated to tell her this. He hadn’t ever told anyone. Only his family knew what went on. “Olga ended up losing the baby. She was working and there was a bar fight. She was hit and she miscarried. We hadn’t married yet.”
“Don’t tell me you deserted her,” Alia said.
He saw the flash of anger in her and never wanted to inspire that.
“No, she was heartbroken. I stayed with her as much as I could, but I had to work. My boss was going to turn over his business to me in a few years and he expected a lot of me. Olga never fully recovered and she found out that she’d never have children. One doctor told her. I don’t think it is true. It didn’t matter to me, but she felt that loss deeply. She ran away.”
“Where to?”
“I’ve never figured that out, but she didn’t reappear for years. I was heartbroken and never wanted to be in love again. I’ve never been since.”
Alia put a hand on his face. “That was a lot for someone that young to deal with.”
“It was, but I am tough. I am Russian.”
She smiled at that. “So what is Olga’s story now?”
“I don’t know where she goes. It isn’t my place anymore to ask, but she appears in my life every few years. Sometimes I give her money. Sometimes I give her a job. She drifts, but I no longer love her. I just feel responsible for her,” Viktor said.
He waited for Alia’s reaction. “So she isn’t right. She has some problems. That’s why you won’t ever abandon her?”
She clearly understood him. “Yes. I still feel responsible for her. As much as she’ll let me help, I do.” He cleared his throat. “I hired her at the club so she will be around.”
“I feel sorry for her. Is she really pregnant?”
“Only time will tell, but the child is not mine. I can promise you that. We haven’t been together in years.”
Well, months, but Alia didn’t need to know that. He’d tell her eventually. When might depend on how their relationship progressed. He didn’t know what the future held. They were so new to each other. Still in that fragile stage.
“Oh, Viktor, I’m sorry. I should have let you explain. You’re such a good man.”
Her faith in him filled him with pride. He tested the waters and kissed her lips lightly. She pulled him closer to deepen the kiss. He was ready for her, his tongue darting in and out. Her tongue met his in a graceful Samba that had them both panting.
Her eyes were dark with passion. He stood, reaching out a hand to her. He didn’t have to say a word. She took his hand and he led her to his bedroom.
She smiled up at him, then stood on her tiptoes to kiss him. He put his hands in her hair, holding that kiss as long as he could. Her lips set him on fire and it spoke of the future. Not just the near future of them in bed. No, that kiss assured some promises that he wasn’t ready to make.
He kept kissing her anyway. He couldn’t have been happier that Alia was back and that they were heading to bed.
She unbuttoned his shirt, then rubbed her hands down his naked chest. She spent time making his nipples stand at attention. He’d have to return the favor. She was amazing. And his. For now.
That’s all he needed. He didn’t need forever. Just now. Her in his bed, that was all he wanted. The future could take care of itself. They’d work it out when the time came.
Right now, he had to make love to her. Let her know how he felt.
Chapter 9
Alia wanted to tear Viktor’s clothing off. She was so turned on by him. Right now, they needed to be naked. Nothing between them. Alia had never considered herself a sexual being, but around Viktor, she couldn’t help herself.
He slid off her top, his hands immediately going to her breasts. She reached behind her back and undid her bra. She wanted to give him unfettered access. He touched and squeezed until she thought she’d combust.
“Viktor.”
His name came out breathy. That was all she could manage. His fingers ignited fires across her body. She shrugged out of her pants and panties, then her hands worked on his pants. She had trouble with the belt.
“Allow me,” Viktor said.
She smiled up at him, her eyes taking in the passion in his. He wanted her. Even if she didn’t see his penis straining against his zipper, she could see it in his eyes. At this moment, she was the only person in the universe. No one else existed.
She liked that. When he was naked, he scooped her up and put her on the bed. He knelt between her legs, his thumb rubbing circles around her clit.
“You are beautiful like this, Alia. Like a feast just for me.”
She hadn’t been in bed with too many men, but none of them seemed to enjoy being down there as much as Viktor. She’d had his tongue on her most intimate body part more than all of her lovers combined. She hoped he never lost interest.
Her hands fisted in the sheets as his rhythm on her clit sped up. She felt like she was falling, then her body tensed and she might have been falling. Over the edge. The orgasm rocked her whole body. Viktor sat up, smiling at her as the aftershocks rocketed through her.
He was good at that.
Her hands found his penis and stroked. He was already hard.
“You keep doing that, I’ll come all over you,” Viktor said. “And I want to be inside of you.”
He produced a condom. She rolled it onto him.
“Now, Viktor.”
He was poised over her opening when she said that, his smile feral. She tugged at him and he entered her, filling her. He paused when he hit bottom and a thrill went through her. This man was big.
She brought her knees up beside him, wanting all of him. Wanting him to go as deep as possible. He touched her soul from the outside. He could touch her soul from the inside also. She loved the muscles on his arms. She felt them as they bunched as he moved in and out.
Her body hummed again, as if knowing where to go. Knowing that this man would bring her to climax again. At least one more time.
He leaned on his elbows and licked the sensitive part of her neck. She shivered. Viktor set up an erratic rhythm, bringing her to the edge then pulling her back. She was so turned on that she couldn’t stop moving.
She met his every stroke. Almost before he was done.
Then she felt it. She was going to come. He slowed down. The climax was just out of reach. He was doing it on purpose. When she looked at him, he was studying her.
She dug her nails into his arms. “Faster.”
“Enjoy the journey, Alia.”
This was a longer trek than she expected. Just when she thought she’d get there, he’d slow down or stop. Sweet, erotic torture. She would get him back for this. Someday, when she was in control.
The he finally sped up. He thrust into her as if he couldn’t have done anything else. And she was over the edge, her body rigid, her heart beating wildly in her chest. Some strange sound came out of her. She had no idea what that was.
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