by Khloe Wren
Like tonight, he'd seen her down on the beach taking photos of the tower. After watching her work for far too long, he’d come up here to one of the many bars to get a drink and perhaps relax a little. His obsession with this girl was strange. He'd never felt the need to keep watch over a woman before. In fact, he couldn't recall an occasion when he'd put this much time into watching anyone, at least, not someone that wasn’t related to a job. He knew he was bordering on stalking her. However, he couldn't seem to help it. Trouble seemed to follow her, and only last week he'd had to scare off a would-be-attacker when she was taking photos down the coast. The woman seriously needed a keeper. He couldn't understand how she'd survived this long in the world and remained so naive and well, sweet. She was special, no doubt.
That was why he couldn't claim her for himself. She was all things bright and sunny in the world, while he lived in the darkness of the shadows. He'd never minded before, but over these past two months he'd begun to wonder what it would be like to have a woman of his own. Maybe even a family. But that would give him a major weakness that would leave him vulnerable. He shook his head. No, he would simply continue to guard her from a distance when he could.
Downing the last of his drink, he moved from his place at the bar and headed in the direction the men had gone. Apparently, his night was going to end with a little wet work, because if those two assholes were going to make a try for his little surfer, he would intervene and make sure they were unable to try it on her again.
He was far enough behind them he easily blended into the shadows to follow them past the bars and into the quieter back streets. Daniil shook his head as the woman strolled along, oblivious to the danger prowling after her. Where was her man? He couldn't understand how any man who had a woman as pretty as she was would ever let her out unguarded, especially at night. Yet, all the times he'd seen her or followed her, he'd never once seen her with a man. Perhaps she had left him, or he her. Although he doubted the latter. Daniil had been tempted many times to dig deeper to obtain more information on her, but that would raise flags and put her in too much danger. Unless he was willing to claim her and put a guard on her around the clock, he couldn't afford the fact she held his attention to be known.
She turned down a side street, and while one man followed her, the other crossed the road and jogged down the opposite side, before returning to her side of the road and coming back toward her. Daniil was still a way behind them and knew he needed to quicken his pace if he wanted to prevent her from coming to any harm. Before he did, he pulled his phone and sent a message to his most trusted associate, his right-hand man and close friend, Viktor, telling the man his location and that he'd need a pickup ASAP. When the return message came back with an ETA of five minutes, he picked up his pace as much as he could while remaining hidden in the shadows. When the men cornered her and herded her out of sight, Daniil broke free of the shadows and ran on silent feet. As he moved, he pulled his gun, quickly attaching the silencer. Even with the silencer, a gunshot would still draw attention if he was forced to fire, so he also grabbed his knife from its holster and hoped he could get the job done using only that. Fortunately, he'd been working earlier so he had the weapons on him. Australian gun laws were tight and he didn't risk carrying often, but today's job had required it, and since he hadn't been home yet, he still had his equipment on him.
When he got within feet of where the trio had disappeared, he moved back into the shadows but didn't stop moving forward. He could hear her sweet voice laced with fear, along with the gravelly, cocky voices of her would-be attackers. He slipped around the corner and barely held in his growl. One man had her held against his chest. He held one of her arms twisted behind her back at a clearly painful angle, while the other palm was over her mouth. Tears glistened in her eyes, and her chest rose and fell rapidly. She was panicking, with good reason. The bastard holding her was whispering in her ear, while the other asshole came at her with a knife, holding the thing up to make sure she saw it. Her eyes were wide, and her gaze was focused solely on that blade.
In the seconds it took Daniil to plan his attack to take them out, the asshole slipped the blade under the center of her bikini and sliced through the material. Her whimper cut through Daniil like a whip. With his teeth bared, he stepped up behind the man holding the knife. Within seconds, he thrust his own blade into the neck of the asshole, severing the main artery. Blood gushed, and with a shocked gurgle, the man dropped his knife to grab at his neck. It was human nature to try to stop the bleeding, but no way would the man survive the wound. Daniil knew what he was doing.
He roughly shoved the dying man aside. He was no longer the active threat, so Daniil moved on to the man who was. As the bastard pulled his head back from her ear in shock, Daniil switched his hold on the knife and threw it. His aim was true, and the blade slid easily into the man’s eye. She stumbled as the man fell, but Daniil didn't let her go down. He thrust into the back of his pants the gun he fortunately hadn’t had to risk using and snatched her to him. Her palms and bare breasts pressed against his chest, causing a shudder to run through his body. Damn, but she was beyond beautiful, and he was struggling to stop his cock’s reaction to her close proximity.
"You are safe now, krasivaya."
She blinked up at him with a vacant look to her eyes before her pupils rolled back and she went limp against him. Not wanting Viktor to see her topless when he arrived, Daniil awkwardly shrugged out of his jacket and wrapped it around her.
"Ah, solnyshka moto, this is going to change everything."
This wasn't a job, and him helping a random stranger without reason was unheard of. Everyone in his company would hear about this before daybreak. And as much as he trusted those closest to him, people talked, and soon a friend of a friend would tell someone who wanted him harmed that he now had a weakness they could come after.
Viktor pulled up, and Daniil swung her up in his arms and headed toward the vehicle. He laid her over the rear seats before heading back to help Viktor bag up the bodies.
Once they had them stored in the rear of the van, Daniil snatched up her bag from the ground and headed back to her. He climbed into the rear and lifted her head so it rested against his thigh. Even with her unconscious, his dick twitched to life at having her so near to him.
Bloody hell, this woman going to be trouble. He knew it.
He started going through her bag looking for her purse. Since all his good intentions had gone to hell, he may as well take the opportunity to find out a little about her.
Things like her name.
Chapter Three
A gentle touch down her cheek had Juli stirring awake. With a groan, she rolled to her side, blinking her eyes clear.
"What the fuck?"
With a jerk, she shifted across the bed, away from the sexy Russian she'd met at the market a couple months ago. He was lying beside her, dressed in dress pants similar to what he’d worn to the markets, except he wasn’t wearing a button up shirt this time. Nope, he was wearing a black wife-beater that hugged his sexy torso like a glove. Stretched out on his side facing her, he looked like some kind of sleek predator. Panther. That's what he made her think of when she saw him. Sleek, beautiful, dangerous.
"Relax, krasivaya. You're safe here with me."
With a frown, she tore her gaze away from him and glanced around, but she couldn't see much. The only light was from a bedside lamp set on low, and that only showed her the large bed they were on. The fact she couldn't see any walls aside from the one behind the bed had her thinking it was a large room
"Where is here exactly?"
"My home. Do you remember what happened?"
Memories flashed through her mind as she thought back. Memories of the two men cornering her, grabbing her, then him appearing out of nowhere and … that was the last thing she remembered. Raising a palm to rub her eyes, she realized she was wearing a jacket. She focused on her arms, then her chest. Was she wearing his jacket? She pressed her nose to the collar and inha
led. It smelled like him, so yep, this was definitely her Russian's suit coat. That crisp, fresh, slightly spicy scent she'd not been able to get out of her head for days after he'd bought that photo from her.
"I remember the men grabbing me, and you arriving. But nothing after that."
He made a noise in the back of his throat that had her gaze flicking up to his. He looked happy with the fact she couldn't remember. She sure as hell wasn't impressed with her memory blank spot.
"Tell me what happened, and why am I wearing your jacket? Please."
He frowned and reached his hand over the tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She’d put it up in her usual twin braids this morning, but by the end of the day there were always sections that came loose and hung around her face. A shiver ran over her body when his callused fingers stroked her cheek as he pulled back. Yep, this guy was seriously dangerous to a woman's sanity.
"All you need to know is that I took care of them in a way that assures they won't bother you again. And you're wearing my jacket because those bastards cut your top open."
His fist clenched on the bed between them. Instinctively wanting to soothe him, she reached over and covered his fist with her palm. A moment later, his fist unclenched and he twisted his hand over to slide his fingers over then between hers.
"Thank you. You don't even know me, had no reason to get involved, but you did, and I’m extremely grateful. How did you know I was there?"
She remembered the men herding her into a little lane way, out of sight from the road.
"I was having a drink in same bar as them. I recognized your hair as you walked past. So, when I saw those two assholes take off to follow you, after they’d been talking about taking you, I followed them. You've been on my mind since you sold me that photo, and I didn't want to see you come to harm."
He was frowning as though he wasn't entirely happy about the fact he'd saved her. She didn’t like the idea he regretted his actions. She certainly didn’t. She gave him a soft smile.
"Well, I'm really grateful you did whatever you did. And I hadn't forgotten about you either."
His blue gaze snapped up to hers.
"Truth?"
She giggled. "Which part? That I'm thankful you saved my ass, or that I've thought of you since the markets?"
He growled low before he moved in. Like the panther she'd labeled him earlier, he prowled with sleek powerful movements until he had her pinned beneath him. She gasped out a shocked breath at how fast he’d moved. Then a shiver ran through her at how good it felt to be caged beneath his muscular frame, surrounded by his scent. He held his weight mostly on his arms, his bicep muscles bulging with the strain.
Unable to resist the temptation, she ran her palms over the smooth, inked skin of his arms, following the lines of his muscles. With another growl, he lowered his face in against her neck, inhaling against her skin before he lightly nipped at her throat, making her shiver.
"You are not wearing your ring, krasivaya. Does that mean you are single?"
She stiffened at the reminder of her ex. Of the violent backhand he'd given her the day she’d left him. On reflex, she cringed away from him, pushing herself into the soft mattress. He lifted up on his arms, giving her a little space.
"Are you not single? Tell me."
She cringed. Bugger, he must think she was pulling away from guilt. "I'm single. I left my ex over a month ago."
"Why did you flinch when I asked about him? What did he do to you?"
She shook her head. "I don't want to think about him. Please." She lifted her palms to cup his face, his shadowed jaw rough against her soft skin. She was well aware she was being reckless as hell, allowing her body to make the decisions. But she didn’t care. He was being nice to her, acting like he gave a damn about her. She'd had so little of that throughout her life, and she wanted to bask in it while she could. "Kiss me?"
His gaze stayed hard for a moment, before it began to melt into something softer, sexier.
"You will tell me later what happened that made you flinch at the thought of him."
Before she could respond, he lowered his mouth to hers. His lips were soft yet commanding, and he stole her breath as he proceeded to kiss her passionately. The arousal that singed through her blood cleared her mind of all other thoughts.
****
Tilting his head, Daniil kissed his Julietta deeper. She was like a highly addictive drug. One taste and he was hooked. So much so that it wiped his mind of all other thoughts, including the fact he’d noticed some bruising on her face around the time she said she left her ex. He’d assumed it had been a surfing accident, and from a distance, he hadn’t even been certain it was a bruise, and not just shadows over her face. It was something he planned on getting to the bottom of, later. If her ex had laid a hand on his Julietta, he’d pay for it. But not right now.
Right now, he was busy enjoying the woman who’d occupied his thoughts far too fully for far too long. He shifted so his weight was on one arm, freeing up the other to cup her face with his palm. Her cheek was like silk against his skin, and he needed to feel more of her.
It hadn’t been the time or place earlier for him to check out her breasts. His need to cover her before Viktor arrived had been more important than checking out her assets. But now was a different story. She was squirming and moaning beneath him as he continued to kiss her.
He slid his hand under her back before he rolled them over, so she was now on top of him. Pressing her palms on his pecs, she broke the kiss to sit up. Her legs had fallen on either side of his hips, which left his rock-hard cock up against her pussy. Even through their clothes, he could feel the heat from her against him.
With a groan, he gripped her hips and thrust up against her a few times.
"I want you, Julietta. You going to let me take you?"
He wasn't sure what he'd do if she said no. He'd never rape a woman, of course, but he may just perish from the pain if she made him stop at this point.
She gave him a shy smile as she nodded slightly. Then she sat up straight and began to slip open the buttons on his jacket. He loved how she looked wearing his clothing. It was way too big for her and made her look feminine, fragile, and like she was his woman. As the black material slipped from her shoulders, her perky tits were bared to him, their tight peaks making him growl as a new wave of desire flowed through him. She wasn't huge, but plenty big enough to fill his palms. And by the way they sat, he was quite certain she was all natural. He’d fucked plenty of Barbie-doll type women, who had surgically altered the bodies to what they thought men wanted. He couldn’t speak for all men, but for him, natural beauty would always shine brighter than anything made of silicone and plastic. Especially when the natural beauty was confident in herself, which his little surfer was.
"Ti kraslvaya." He shook his head a little before translating his words when she frowned at him. "You are lovely."
He’d been raised in Australia, but he tried to keep at least a few of his native Russian words in his vocabulary. Not so many that he would constantly need to explain himself to people. But he found the odd curse word or endearment spoken in his native tongue was enough to settle his heart that he was staying true to his heritage. Didn’t hurt that women seemed to swoon at his accent and whispered Russian words.
He sat up, and with a palm behind her back, he arched her toward him as he wrapped his lips around one of her dusty pink nipples. The peak not in his mouth, he teased with his other hand, pulling and tugging on her nipple with his finger and thumb, as he nipped, licked and tormented the other with his mouth. She tasted so sweet, and he'd never get enough of her.
As she ground her pelvis against his, she used both hands in his hair to hold him against her, not that he had any intention of going anywhere. His cock was about to burst through his pants to get to her, he was that desperate for her. He rolled them again, and sitting back in a kneel, he pulled her shorts and panties down her long, lean legs. Tossing the clothing on the floor,
he kept her foot in his other hand. He reached over to turn the lamp to a brighter setting before he pressed a kiss to the arch of her foot while he ran his gaze over her now naked form in the brighter light.
She squirmed on the mattress as he took her in. She was glorious. The paler skin around her waist and breasts drew his attention. He grinned at the thought of him convincing her to try sunbathing naked to even out her tan. He could just imagine how stunning she would look with the bright sunshine on her skin. Her pussy was waxed bare, and he licked his lips as he noticed the glisten of moisture on her folds. He was desperate for a taste of her cream. Would it taste as sweet as her skin?
He pressed kisses up the inside of her leg and nipped her inner thigh when she tried to pull her legs closed against him. With a gasp, her muscles loosened enough he could make more room for himself between her thighs. He pressed his nose into the crease between her leg and torso, inhaling her musk. He felt animalistic around this woman, to the point he barely resisted the urge to mark her like some kind of beast would his mate. He had never felt like this, and if he wasn't half mad with desire, he probably would have freaked the fuck out. But too much of his blood had pooled in his dick to give his brain enough to function correctly, because he wasn't worried. Not one bit. He shifted his mouth over and ran his tongue slowly through her folds, collecting her honey and enjoying the hell out of the way she shuddered at his touch.
He pulled back slightly to swallow his first taste. "Damn, you taste so good. But I need a lot more than that little taste."
She didn't say a word, just continued to pant as he fastened his mouth back over her pussy and ate at her like she was the most decadent food he'd ever tasted. Moving up to suckle on her hard, little clit, he thrust two fingers inside her wet channel. He stroked and searched until he found the spot deep within her that made her cry out, and then with a wicked grin, he set about driving her insane.
In a matter of minutes, he had her thrashing on the mattress beneath him, and then she came and gave him more of her sweet cream. He couldn't get enough of her and only allowed her a few moments to settle before he began working his fingers within her again. He needed more of her down his throat.