Viktor

by Clarissa Wild

  Then I start to dance.

  His eyes completely focused on me.

  Mesmerized by my sleek movements as I show him my curves.

  Deliciously distracted.

  As I turn around, I breathe a sigh of relief, glad that he can’t see through my lie. Then again, now I’ll have to dance for him … and maybe more because I don’t think he’s going to let me off the hook this easily.

  I twist and shake and show him all my best moves, desperate to win him over, but he’s solid as a rock, his hands twisted around the armrest like he’s trying to contain himself … and it’s making me want to dance even harder.

  I want to prove to him that he’s not as closed off as he thinks.

  I could see the way he looked at me behind that curtain, how he looks at me now with those needy eyes.

  I know what he wants … Me.

  ***

  Viktor

  I’m possessed by her.

  I don’t know how else to describe it, but the moment she started dancing, I was hooked.

  I can’t stop watching.

  Can’t stop wanting more …

  Yet she pisses me off to no end.

  Why? I don’t know. I blame it on the fact she was in my room. She says she came to dance, but I don’t believe her. I think she was looking for something, and that only makes this dance more aggravating … because it’s all a fucking lie.

  Except her eyes … They sparkle when she looks at me; they tell me there’s more to this than just a distraction. She’s getting into it, dancing with the flow; her sultry, black-lined eyes open and close slowly as she touches herself just as sensually. The way her hands move across her hips and her breasts peak at the sight of my tongue dipping out to wet my lips make me think she likes this just as much as I do.

  She won’t admit it, though, and neither will I.

  So I’ll just keep sitting here, looking at her while digging my nails into the wood of the chair to stop myself from doing stupid things I’ll regret. And she’ll keep dancing and think I’m falling for her little trick, and I’ll let her believe that.

  After all, Winston told me to be nice.

  She bites her lip, and it sparks something inside me. It reminds me of that night she danced for me. That same night I knew she was the first girl I wanted to see twice. The only girl I’d ever trust to step back into my house again. The only girl who didn’t fear me.

  The only girl who could ever win my trust.

  She comes closer, her curves bouncing in my face, making me hyperaware of her body invading my private space. It’s not something I’m used to. Hell, I can’t remember the last time a woman touched me … except just now.

  When her fingers nudged my chest, I could feel it in my entire fucking body. I fucking froze up for a second, my dick almost instantly hardening from her touch.

  I never thought I’d get that sensitive. Then again, it’s no wonder. It’s been a long time.

  Now, she’s in my face, swaying that ass in my general direction, and I’m fucking aroused. I shouldn’t be because she’s only doing this to distract me, but I am.

  I fucking love it.

  I love every minute of her dance, of having her all to myself. When she’s dancing, it’s like the world disappears and there’s only her and me.

  Her and that delicious offer she’s making me … her body oozing sex.

  It’s all I can think about.

  My cock is already hard when she suddenly sits on my lap and gyrates, stimulating me to no end. Fuck me. How am I supposed to resist this?

  I can’t. I fucking can’t. Not when she looks at me with eyes that show her interest.

  She wants to know me just as much as I want to know her.

  And it’s fucking me up.

  I shouldn’t want to know her. She’s a lawbreaker. A violator. Someone who adores the attention. And then there’s me … the loner, the pessimistic asshole who took her freedom because he was selfish.

  I wonder if she regrets her decision to trade her life for her sister’s.

  I do.

  I do because I probably could and would have let her sister go, even if after only a few hours.

  But her?

  My skin erupts into goose bumps as she pushes her boobs in my face and then sits down with her back facing me. She grabs my hands and places them on her waist as she twirls around on my lap, probably aware of the huge hard-on in my pants. She’s probably used to it, with the line of work that she’s in, and I don’t feel any shame for having a hard dick.

  If she asks me, I won’t deny it. I want her. Badly.

  I’ve wanted her ever since she stepped foot into my home.

  There’s just something about her … her aloofness, the mystery behind her eyes … the confidence she has when she’s near me. Near anyone, for that matter.

  It’s intoxicating.

  At this moment, I find myself leaning forward to take in her scent. She smells of sandalwood and roasted nuts. She smells of something I want to savor, so I keep sniffing desperately trying to stop myself from gripping her clothes and ripping them off.

  I’m crazy.

  We don’t know each other. Her presence here is dangerous, and her behavior both infuriates and excites me. But I’m so fucking drawn to her that I can’t even fucking stop it anymore.

  My hands move on their own, sliding up her body, wanting to feel her breasts. It’s wrong, so wrong, but I’m lost in her scent, the music, her.

  My fingers inch over her peaked nipples protruding from the fabric. I can feel her inhale against my chest, her body rising with me. And she lets me. She fucking lets me.

  I hiss and say, “Fuck.”

  I have to put a stop to this before it’s too late. Before I pull off my mask and kiss her. Before she sees me for who I really am.

  I lower my hands to the small of her back and push her off me.

  “Let me dance for you,” she says as she gets off my lap and continues dancing anyway.

  She pulls her top over her head, exposing her black lace bra, and then pulls her skirt down too, showing the matching panties. “This is what you want, right? Me?”

  I bite my lip and look up at her. “You have no fucking clue.”

  Chapter 7

  Viktor

  She’s fucking beautiful with her black hair swaying across her shoulders as she dances, exposing the intricate bird tattoo on the back of her shoulder. The birds flutter freely across her back and shoulder, disappearing into her skin like the sky. She’s entrancing to look at, and she knows it too well.

  She slides forward on her knees, and within seconds, her fingers are around my belt, pulling it loose. “Then let me give it to you.”

  She pulls at the button and zipper, but I grasp her wrist in time before she pulls my hard cock out.

  “No,” I say, jerking it away.

  She makes a face. “I thought you wanted this.”

  “Not like that,” I say, and I push her away.

  She looks at me with eyes that speak the truth. Eyes that show me who I really am. With disgust. “Well, fuck you,” she spits. “You don’t want me to dance, you don’t want me to fuck you, so what do you want?”

  I want her … to want me. But I know she won’t want me.

  “I don’t want your lies,” I say, running my fingers through my hair. “You finished?”

  “Fine.” She gets up from the floor and picks up her clothes, putting them on again.

  Too bad, I kinda liked the view.

  “Why do you have to be such an asshole?” she asks.

  “Because you’re trying to distract me, and it’s not working.”

  “I’m just trying to show you that I’m not as bad as you think I am. I can be good … to you.”

  “So you can seduce me to let you go.”

  She takes in a sharp breath.

  “Forget it,” I say. “What do you want? This or the cops?”

  “Why do I even have to choose?” she says.

 
; “Because you’re a criminal.”

  She folds her arms. “And I’m a prisoner in your home, which makes you a criminal too.”

  “Who do you think they’ll believe, you or me?” I smirk when I see her angry face. I know she knows I’m right.

  “Whatever. I’m done. I came here to make you happy. Obviously, it isn’t working.”

  “You were in here for a reason, but it wasn’t so you could dance.”

  She glances at me over her shoulder. “How would you know? I just said I did.”

  I lean back in the chair. “Because you’d never dance for me like that if it wasn’t just a way to cover up for something.”

  “Hmpf.”

  Her lack of response tells me I’m right. Still, it stings.

  She tries to leave, but I grab her hand. “Wait.” When she looks me in the eye, I ask in a serious tone, “What were you doing in here?”

  She slams her lips shut, her eyes darting back and forth from the door to me. I can tell she’s looking for the answer, but I’m not sure if this one’s going to be the truth.

  I sigh. “I promise I won’t get mad.”

  “Yeah, right. You were pissed off when I didn’t wanna have breakfast with you.”

  “Because you were rude.”

  She glares at me. “No, you were rude.”

  I shrug. “Fine, we were both rude.”

  “I’m not gonna give you any more ammo either.”

  “I’m not looking for ammo.”

  “Then why are you asking what I was doing in here? You fucking know what I was doing in here. You just want me to admit it, but I won’t. I won’t give in to you, Viktor. I don’t give a damn how hard I have to fight, how hard I have to fake it, but I will get out of here, and you will let me out thinking it was your own fucking idea.”

  She’s cute. Her little tirade has me smirking. I never fucking smirk. “Are you done?”

  She rolls her eyes at me. “Let me go.”

  “No.” My grip on her wrist grows tighter.

  “Okay, fine, hold my hand the rest of the day.” Like a kid, she sits down on the floor and looks up at me with a raised brow.

  “Alexis … you really are something.”

  She narrows her eyes at me but doesn’t respond.

  “Hmm … I like that name.”

  “That’s why you asked for it when I danced for you, wasn’t it?” she says, looking me straight in the eyes. “You like me.”

  I lick my lips. “I like what you do to me.”

  “Is that why you want me here?”

  “Maybe,” I say, turning my head away. “But I don’t want it when it’s just a means to an end.”

  She starts drawing circles in the carpet. “You’re really something too, you know?”

  I muffle a laugh. “Thanks. I’ll take it as a compliment.”

  I release her wrist, and she looks at me for a second before she smiles. I smile back. Yet she doesn’t get up and leave. She stays, and it surprises me.

  “How old are you?” I ask.

  “Eighteen. You?”

  “Twenty-Eight.”

  Her eyes widen. “Wow …”

  “Don’t call me old.” I narrow my eyes at her.

  “I didn’t.” She holds up her hands.

  “Good. What’s your last name?”

  Her brows draw together. “Why do you wanna know?”

  “If you’re gonna stay here, I might as well get to know you. Mine’s Melikov. Apparently, it’s an old name, and I’m fucking royalty.”

  She laughs. “You? Royalty? Yeah, right.”

  “I know, right? Melikov sounds more like a fucking semi-automatic brand than royalty. I prefer my version.”

  “Hmpf. Well, at least you know your last name. Have any family?”

  “Not that I know of. Or that they even fucking care that I exist.”

  “So you’re an orphan, huh?” she asks.

  “Street rat,” I say, shrugging like it doesn’t mean anything, but it does.

  Silence hangs in the air for a few seconds, and she turns her head away. “Kidd.”

  “Kidd what?”

  “Well, that’s it. My last name.”

  “Oh.” I smile. “Cute.”

  She makes a face at me. “It’s not cute. It’s supposed to be tough.”

  “Right,” I muse. “Supposed to be? So you made it up?”

  Her cheeks turn red, so I guess I’ve hit the mark. “Before I even had a name, people used to call me Kid.”

  “Wait, what? You didn’t have a name?” I lean forward.

  “Not really,” she says, making it sound like it’s nothing strange, but it is. “But I wanted something real, something people could actually call me, so I named myself Alexis. Alexis Kidd.”

  “Wow … you named yourself? Where are your parents?” I ask, sarcastically adding, “Were they as great as mine?”

  For a moment, she stops drawing patterns in the carpet and focuses on me instead, but her face is completely blank. “It’s complicated.”

  “So? Tell me,” I say. “I’m not going anywhere, and neither are you, so we might as well talk.”

  “Right … well, when you put it that way …” Her eyes briefly dart away and then back to me. “No.”

  I sigh. “C’mon. Tell me.”

  “No. Not until you tell me why you hid behind the curtains and why you wear that mask.” She points at my face, and suddenly, I’m hyperaware of the mask on my face. Moments like these, when I realize I’m wearing it, are rare because I’m so used to it. It’s like people with glasses; only, mine is a complete mask.

  It’s become a part of my identity. A part of me.

  And she makes it visible. Reminds me of the pain that simmers underneath.

  My heart races in my chest.

  My instinct is to pull away. To ignore her and storm out.

  But I manage to control myself only by gripping the chair.

  “Not a chance.” My voice is raw and filled with emotions I can hardly contain.

  “You want me to tell you something about my life? Fine, but only if you tell me something about you too. I’m not giving away information. I’m not that stupid,” she huffs.

  I growl. “I’m not playing games.”

  “I’m not either,” she growls back.

  Grinding my teeth, I say, “You have no idea what you just asked of me.”

  “Oh, and you do when you talk about my parents?”

  “That’s different.”

  “No, it isn’t,” she says as she gets up from the floor. “I’m not afraid to tell my story, but you are.” She pats her legs and turns around. “If you don’t wanna talk, then I’m done.”

  Adrenaline rushes through me as I jump up from the seat. She’s not getting away from me that easily.

  ***

  Alexis

  Out of nowhere, he grabs my arm and twists me around. “Don’t you walk away from me like that!”

  “Or what? You gonna call the cops? What’s new?” I shrug, trying to pass it off as indifference.

  He shoves me against the wall and places a hand on the wall next to me, trapping me inside. “You have no clue what you’ve unleashed. I wear this … thing for a reason.”

  “To hide.” My eyes don’t even show the slightest hint of fear, even though I feel like trembling. Only now do I remember how tall he really is. He towers above me … and he looks furious.

  “To stop girls like you from screaming their lungs out,” he barks.

  I take in a short gasp. “It can’t be that bad.”

  “It. Is.”

  His voice gets darker and darker, and I find it hard to breathe with him in my face. Especially when I can feel his breath on my skin. And even though I want to deny it, it does something to me; it makes me want to lean in. It’s stupid and irrational in every way, but I can’t help the way my body feels when it comes near him. It’s his eyes … The way they look at me with complete and utter obsession is enchanting.

&nbs
p; “You’d be scared if you saw me …”

  “I won’t be.”

  “You should be.”

  The pause that follows is raw and full of unspoken words that die to be out in the open, but neither of us dares to make the first move. His face hovers closer to mine, and every passing second feels like minutes as we engage in a stare down.

  “You should’ve never come here …” he growls.

  “But I did. For my sister.”

  “And now, you’re trapped here … with me, the monster.”

  I swallow as I hear the word I said to him. It sounds painful, and from the look in his eyes, it was.

  “There’s more to you than what you’re trying to hide.”

  “I’m not a good man, Alexis. I’ve done some shit that can’t see the light of day. Just like me.”

  “I don’t believe it.”

  He slams his fists into the wall, making me flinch. “Dammit. You have no fucking clue what I’ve done!”

  My hands ball into fists. “Then tell me. Who are you and why are you keeping me here? Tell me the truth.”

  He breathes in and out loudly, his eyes focusing solely on mine, as the air between us grows thick. And then his lips part and the words roll out like thunder.

  “I’m a murderer.”

  The oxygen is sucked out of my chest.

  My lungs feel tight, and it feels as if the temperature in the room has suddenly risen by twenty degrees.

  “Are you scared yet?”

  I shake my head, determined to learn more. I don’t know why; I just know he’s not telling me everything.

  “I’m not a good guy. I’ve killed people. Both on purpose and by accident. I’m the bad guy, Alexis.”

  “Not if they deserved it.” The words slip off my tongue before I realize it.

  He leans in. “None of them deserved it … and I gave them death. And it gets worse. Some lived … as servants.”

  My eyes widen, but I slam my lips shut before I say anything I’ll regret.