Abby opened her bedroom door, hoping that someone would come along soon and show her where to go to meet Mr. Romanov.
Seth stood in the hall, his hand raised to knock at her door. He looked incredibly sexy in a dark blue shirt and black trousers. His gaze traveled up and down her body with a satisfied smile. “So, how do you like your room?” He placed her hand through his arm and led her to the grand staircase.
She smiled a tight, false little smile. “It’s lovely. He shouldn’t have. Really.” She lifted wide, innocent eyes to his.
Seth shot her a puzzled glance, but didn’t ask as they descended the staircase. Andi waited at the bottom to lead them to Mr. Romanov. She wore the same suit she’d worn earlier in the day, once again all business as she trod the halls of Mr. Romanov’s castle. Abby eyed the few servants to be seen in the hall and concluded that Andi was putting on this act for their benefit.
Andi led them to a set of hugely ornate double doors that opened silently at her approach. Abby couldn’t see anyone who could have opened them. Either Mr. Romanov had the doors set with some kind of motion sensor, or the servants had secret passageways they used to follow everyone around.
Abby shivered. This whole place had a sort of vampire vibe going for it. Creepy.
Inside, the room was obviously a library. The hardwood floors were covered in fine burgundy and gold carpets, the furniture dark and masculine. Bookcases lined the walls from floor to ceiling. A Victorian sofa, upholstered in burgundy, nestled against one wall, while two leather Queen Anne chairs flanked the fireplace. An open book lay on the coffee table.
There was movement near the window, and Abby’s breath caught in her throat at her first look at the infamous Piotr Romanov.
Newspaper photos did not do him justice.
He was lean and sleek in his pearl-gray Armani suit. A silver clip held his unfashionably long blond hair back. His smile was cruel, and his eyes glittered like twin shards of ice, so light in color they almost appeared colorless. His was the face of an evil sorcerer, thin and mocking and utterly beautiful.
Hollywood would have loved him.
When Piotr moved it was with an old-world grace that was all the more frightening when paired with the expression in his gaze. He glided toward them, his hand held out in welcome. She felt like a deer caught in headlights, unable to stop herself from staring at his face. If it wasn’t for the single swift, almost affectionate glance he sent Seth, she would have sworn she was staring at a vampire.
In short, he terrified her. She had the feeling that he would, quite casually, destroy her if she ever stood in his way, and go out for canapés after, without ruffling his suit.
All of the rumors that she had heard about him came rushing to the forefront of her mind as he stood before her, studying her with all of the interest of a scientist studying a new species of bug. Then he gently picked up her hand, his skin warm and slightly dry, and very soft. She noticed that his nails had recently been manicured.
“Piotr, this is Abby.” Seth’s hand at the small of her back jolted her from her preoccupation with the polished demon standing before her.
“Charmed, mademoiselle.” His voice was smooth like honey, soft and rich, and suited him perfectly. It was a voice she could imagine purring in satisfaction after viciously slicing his enemies to bits. He had a slight accent that hinted at his Russian ancestry, adding to his allure. He lifted her hand and, at the last moment, turned it so that his greeting kiss was planted on her wrist.
His gaze darted over to Seth, full of unholy amusement.
And here’s the head vampire. Abby smiled weakly and tried to pull her hand free. It didn’t budge.
He smiled as he lifted his head. “You must do me the honor of sitting next to me at dinner.” His gaze returned to her face, and she stilled, prey before the ultimate predator. “Come, sit by the fire and warm yourself.” He led her to the fireplace and helped her into a seat.
Abby smoothed the skirt of her dress out as she sat, praying he didn’t notice the way her hands shook. Piotr was up to something.
Seth moved to stand by her chair, his back to the fireplace. He handed her a glass of red wine and she took a sip, allowing the dry, strong flavor to wash over her senses. Seth smiled at her and winked, but there was a tension in him that wasn’t there normally.
Piotr wandered back, a drink in his own lean, elegant hand, a diamond and gold ring glinting in the firelight as he turned to face his friend. “It has been a while, Seth. One trusts things are well with you?” Ice clinked against crystal as he took a slow sip from his glass. Seth shot him an amused look. Piotr responded with a raised brow. He smiled a slow, disquieting smile, and sighed. “Very well, old friend. No more games.” He placed his drink on the table between the two Queen Anne chairs. When he straightened back up, the mocking glint was gone from his eyes. “Why don’t we go to my study for a few moments before dinner? I’m quite certain that Ms. Hancock can adequately entertain Ms. Marcheson in our absence.” Andi nodded her acquiescence. Seth smiled reassuringly at Abby before being led off.
Abby took a deep breath, grateful Piotr’s overwhelming presence was gone. She’d warmed to Joe van Licht and Dante Zucco, but she didn’t think she’d ever be comfortable in Piotr’s presence no matter how close he was to Seth. He was just too...large, despite the fact that Seth was the taller and broader of the two.
As the door shut behind them, Andi’s amused voice floated over to her. She flopped inelegantly into the chair next to Abby’s and kicked off her pumps. “And so, the men go off to discuss war, leaving the womenfolk behind to discuss embroidery.” She picked up her glass and raised it, and an eyebrow. “Whatever shall we do?”
Abby giggled as the tension she’d experienced in Piotr’s presence drained away, leaving her strangely lightheaded. “The same thing we do every night, Pinky.”
Andi grinned as they both cried, “Try to take over the world.”
The women clinked glasses and drank.
* * *
When the men rejoined them, Piotr and Andi led the way to a formal dining room, set for four. Crystal and china gleamed in the light of a crystal chandelier. The Queen Anne table and chairs were polished to a high finish. Red and brown damask wallpaper graced the upper half of the walls, while the lower half was decorated with an ornately carved wainscoting.
Seth and Piotr were talking, Seth’s posture utterly relaxed as he laughed at something Piotr had said. Abby wasn’t certain what. She was too busy trying to control her fear of the man in front of her. She clung to Seth’s hand, taking comfort in his presence.
She caught Seth watching Piotr with the same affection he’d turned on his parents. The same affection he lavished on Bill and Trish.
Huh. Maybe Piotr wasn’t quite as bad as she thought. Andi believed in Piotr whole-heartedly, defending him from everyone who so much as frowned at him behind his back. And Seth acted as if Piotr was family.
If Seth trusted him this much, maybe she could believe the most fearsome man she’d ever met wasn’t such a bad guy after all.
She took a chance that Piotr had more of a sense of humor than he let on...
She leaned toward him and whispered, “If you’re going for the Disney villain vibe, you’ve nailed it.”
Piotr choked on his drink, probably a first for him, if his startled expression was anything to go by. “Spasibo.” She raised her brows at him, and he chuckled. This time, it sounded genuine. “Thank you, Ms. Marcheson.”
She grinned back even as she snuggled closer to Seth. Maybe big, scary Piotr wasn’t so bad after all, but that didn’t mean she was giving up her hold on Seth anytime soon.
Dinner started with a delicious green salad with balsamic vinaigrette. Abby dug in with a relish. They’d been forced to skip lunch, and she was starving. The butler brought the second course, placing the plate in front of her. She stared at the bits of raw fish on rice pillows and bit back a groan. She should have guessed Piotr would like sushi. Piotr picked up a p
air of chopsticks and waved them in her direction. “Why don’t you try the maguro? It’s quite good.”
Abby looked down at her plate. There was a small pile of green paste called wasabi and another small pile of pickled ginger. She watched Seth out of the corner of her eye as he took a bit of the paste and mixed it with soy sauce. He deftly picked up the sushi with his chopsticks and dipped it in the soy and wasabi mix, moaning at the first taste.
Apparently he really liked sushi.
“Thank you, Piotr. I haven’t had this in quite some time.”
Amusement laced Piotr’s voice. “You work too hard, my brother. You should relax and enjoy the things you love most once in a while.”
Andi was using chopsticks too, so elegant she didn’t even drip excess soy sauce onto her plate.
Abby picked up her chopsticks and prepared to make a fool out of herself.
She mixed the wasabi into the soy sauce. Okay, step one completed. She carefully picked up a piece of sushi. She could feel it slipping off of the chopsticks, so she quickly moved it to the dipping sauce. She then promptly dropped it in.
Glancing around the table to see if anyone had noticed, she picked it up and rammed it to her mouth before she could drop it again. She took a deep breath and began to chew.
It felt like her sinuses were being fumigated. She swallowed quickly and reached for her wineglass. And I thought sushi was bland. She gulped down some of the wine, quenching some of the fire the wasabi had lit.
Thank God she hadn’t tried to pile the wasabi on top of the sushi.
“How do you like your first taste of sushi?” The amusement on Seth’s face was going to earn him one unhappy girlfriend, if he didn’t knock it off.
She cleared her throat. “Well, it’s not bland.” Abby managed to dip the second piece without making too much of an idiot out of herself. She turned her head to grin at him triumphantly and promptly dropped the stupid fish back onto her plate. She grimaced.
Seth had the sense to hide his grin behind his hand. It might have had something to do with the death glare she was throwing his way. “Don’t worry. You’ve made a good first start. Most people have no idea how to use chopsticks when they first pick them up, so don’t be too embarrassed.”
She picked up the piece of sushi and quickly maneuvered it into her mouth. This time she didn’t inhale, and the impact of the wasabi was a bit less. She discovered that she liked the sushi.
For the third piece, she had Seth show her how to eat the pickled ginger. That she didn’t like as much, so she ignored it on the last piece.
The sushi plates were removed, and the butler brought in the third course, a very delicate soup. Abby thought it delicious. For dessert, the butler placed something called tempura in front of her. It was a sweet, batter-fried banana, and she ate every last bite.
Abby sat back with a sigh. She wasn’t full, but she was no longer hungry. The meal had been the perfect size. “I wonder how difficult sushi is to make?”
Seth took her hand in his. “We’ll pick up a Japanese cookbook when we get home.”
Home. Dear God, Abby wanted to go home with Seth. She wanted to get back to that first week, when things weren’t so frightening and Seth had been the perfect roommate. Only this time, they wouldn’t be in separate bedrooms. “I’d like that.”
He picked up her hand and kissed the spot inside her wrist that Piotr had. “I look forward to it.”
After dinner, Piotr led them to his study. It had a similar appearance to the library, and Abby was beginning to wonder if the dark, masculine style was more his, and the rest just for show. His house was a showplace, but maybe it was designed to be.
Sort of like Piotr himself.
He sat behind his desk and waved the others into the chairs placed around the room. Seth settled next to her, his gaze glued to her face, his hand on her knee.
Shit. If Seth thought she needed comfort, this couldn’t be good.
Piotr motioned for Andi to remain, and she sank gracefully onto the sofa against the wall. “So, Seth has told me something of your problem, Ms. Marcheson. Can you tell me what this Doug fellow is like?”
“Evil. Just...evil.” Piotr raised one eyebrow at her, and Abby found herself elaborating. “He’s dangerous. He’s also a bit crazy.”
“How is he dangerous?”
“He was in jail for murder and attempted murder, among other things. He got life without parole.”
Piotr was silent for a moment. “I see. And he has since escaped from jail?”
“Yes. Seth tells me he escaped three months ago.” Abby was proud of herself. She’d managed to keep her eyes on Piotr’s face the entire time. Seth’s hand on her knee kept her calm.
Piotr nodded, as if he’d been expecting the tale. “What do you think he’s capable of doing?”
“The only thing I’m sure of is that if he gets to me, he’ll kill me.”
“Any idea why he hasn’t tried to kill you yet?” Piotr took a sip of his wine.
“I have no idea.” Abby allowed her confusion to color her voice. “I was wondering the same thing in Colorado. Doug usually goes for the direct approach. I think he’s trying to scare me half to death, and then plans on finishing the job once I’m terrified enough.”
Seth and Piotr exchanged a glance that puzzled Abby, as if they knew something they weren’t telling her.
“Did Seth tell you that he asked me to check out a few things for him?”
Abby caught the warning look Seth shot his friend out of the corner of her eye. “No. He didn’t. Anything I should know?”
Piotr smiled. “He asked me to look for the whereabouts of Doug for you.” Piotr studied her for a moment, and Abby could feel the blood drain from her face. “Do you know what I found?”
“What?” Abby began to imagine all sorts of things: Doug at her parents’ house, or at Seth’s parents’ house or, God forbid, at Lindsay’s dorm.
“I found that Doug Finley was in Delaware.”
That didn’t make sense, unless he’d left Colorado right after they had.
“Where in Delaware?”
Piotr picked up his wineglass, twirling the stem gently between his fingers before taking a sip. Abby thought she would die from the suspense.
“Christiana Hospital, I believe.”
Abby blinked. “The hospital? What is he doing in the hospital?”
“Being autopsied, I imagine.”
What?
“He’s dead, Abby. Doug is dead.” Seth’s soft voice barely penetrated the haze around her.
Dead. She could feel the word reverberating in her brain, and felt faint with relief. Doug is dead. She wanted to dance, to laugh, to sing. Doug is dead.
Then reality began to intrude itself as she realized that no one else at the table shared her sense of relief. The silly grin that had crossed her face eased away, to be replaced by a worried frown.
Piotr sat there, the mocking glint once more in his eyes. Seth held her hand tightly, and Andi appeared thoroughly shocked. She also sat and watched Piotr, but the expression on his face was not reassuring.
“Dead, Ms. Marcheson. Yes. I believe he died sometime three weeks ago. The mortician has not yet determined the cause of death.”
Abby shook her head, trying once again to clear some of the confusion. “Three weeks ago? But that’s not possible. He was in Colorado.” She turned to Seth, but he nodded, confusing her further.
“I’m afraid it is, Ms. Marcheson. Douglas Finley, age thirty-three, died rather violently three weeks ago. His body was discovered a few days ago in some obscure place called the Augustine Wildlife Preserve, in one of the many inlets there, by locals fishing in the creeks.”
Abby went absolutely still. She could feel the color drain from her face, and wondered briefly if she was going to pass out. Doug was dead. He couldn’t hurt her again. But if he was dead...
“If Doug is dead, then who’s been stalking me?”
Seth shook his head. “I don’t know.
All I know is you are being stalked.” He looked over at Piotr, a challenging glint in his eye. “But we’re going to find out.”
A thought crossed Abby’s mind. “Do you think whoever it is killed Doug?”
Seth’s brows rose. “That’s an interesting idea. Definitely something to look into while we’re here.”
“A thought we should toss Dante’s way.” Piotr took another sip of his wine before placing the glass down with a clink.
Seth tapped his fingers on her thigh. “Speaking of which, why hasn’t Dante called us to tell us Doug is dead?”
“Yet another good question.” Piotr’s gaze landed on Andi. “Andrea.”
“On it.” Andi pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.
Seth stood and began to pace. “What can you tell us about Doug, Abby? Who did he spend time with, what were his favorite activities, that sort of thing?”
Abby shook her head in confusion. “He liked to hang out with some friends once in a while, but I don’t remember anyone being really close to him. He didn’t really share that part of his life with me. He wanted me away from his male friends.”
“Any female friends?” Piotr asked quietly.
“Not that I’m aware of, but I’m positive he would have either tried to hide any female friends from me or used them to try to hurt me.”
“What about family?”
Abby thought back to her brief relationship with Doug. “I know his mother is still alive, but other than that, I don’t know much. I never met her. He mentioned her birthday once, but that was it. He has a brother and a sister, but I’ve never had much to do with them.”
“The sister believes Abby was to blame for the fire, not Doug.” Seth came to a halt by the fireplace. “Any enemies that you know of?”
All for You Page 16