by Katie Reus
He faltered and she wanted to kick herself. “I thought you liked it.”
“Thank you. And I do, a lot.” Oh my god, she sounded like an imbecile. Her gaze kept straying back to the beauty of his body and she felt like the biggest asshole. Vadim was her friend, she couldn’t ogle him like…like…She blinked again as her brain short-circuited and somehow found the strength to meet his gaze while reaching for the cup. There was no hiding the flush on her face now. Absolutely no way. She couldn’t stop staring at his body and now he knew what a pervert she was.
“Is there something wrong with the water pressure at your place?” he asked as he handed her the simple brown mug with light tendrils of steam rolling off the top.
“What…oh, no, it’s fine. But your guest bathroom shower is amazing.” It was definitely spa quality and she’d loved the different showerhead options. One directly above and one on the wall. But she didn’t want to stand around talking about his freaking shower. Because it made her think about being naked and how she’d almost stroked herself to orgasm not long ago.
He started to respond when a light scratching at his kitchen door made them both look. Vadim smiled. “That would be Charlie.”
Angel put the mug down on the long rectangular island top as Vadim opened the door. A moment later, his German Shepherd trotted in. As he shut the door behind her, the dog stopped in her tracks, watching Angel carefully for all of one second. Then she bounded over to Angel, before whining softly and falling to the floor where she rolled onto her back, revealing her belly.
Vadim snorted. “She’s shameless.”
Grinning, Angel bent down and rubbed Charlie’s belly. “She can be as shameless as she wants. I wish you brought her to the hotel more often.” She paused in rubbing as she looked up at Vadim. “So what’s the deal with her schedule? I don’t work tomorrow.” Even though she still needed to call Sierra and apologize. Again. “So should I take her for walks or do you have a schedule you like to keep her to? I know you like to take her to the park sometimes.” She’d met Vadim and Charlie at a park near the casino on multiple occasions. Vadim would try to get Charlie to exercise but she mainly flopped on her belly and soaked up the sun.
Vadim snorted again and motioned to the pantry door. He opened it and pointed inside. “You don’t have to worry about the park. There’s plenty of room around here. She’s spoiled and does whatever she wants all day long. She prefers to stay inside and she’s got a doggy door I leave open when I’m at work. However, I lock it at night. She goes outside when she has to. All you have to do is fill up her bowl of food in the morning and then again in the afternoon. She eats when she’s hungry. Her water is set for the next couple days, but check on it. And she’ll try to convince you that she’s allowed to have as many treats as she wants.” He pointed to a bag filled with green bones. “She’s not, but…I indulge her sometimes.”
Angel grinned at Vadim. “You’re such a softie,” she murmured.
To her surprise his ears flushed red. “Yeah well, don’t tell anyone. As far as sleeping, she usually sleeps on her bed, which is in my room. But she might want to stay close to you at night. She likes human contact. If you’re comfortable with that, you can bring her bed in with you and she’ll push it wherever she wants to sleep.”
“Okay. Sounds good. Oh, what about furniture? Is she allowed on it?” Angel didn’t think so because all of his stuff was leather and in pristine condition, but she wanted to make sure.
“She has a beanbag in the living room that’s hers,” he said as he pulled one of the green bones from the plastic baggie.
Angel turned from the pantry doorway to find Charlie sitting there patiently and quietly. Dang, the dog was as stealthy as her master. She hadn’t even heard Charlie move. The second Vadim gave her the bone, she ran off, this time making plenty of noise as she bounded from the room.
Vadim chuckled lightly. “She hides her treats under her beanbag.” He cleared his throat almost nervously as he stepped out and shut the door. “You’ve got my cell number and I’ll leave the name and number of my hotel on the kitchen counter when I leave in the morning. I’ve got a taxi service coming to get me at the crack of dawn, so I’ll leave my keys on the counter too. Use my car for work or whatever you need. It’s yours while I’m gone. And the refrigerator is stocked and you’re welcome to everything in it.”
She shifted uncomfortably, but nodded. She didn’t know much about vehicles, but she knew enough that his Mercedes S-Class was pricey and one of the newer models. “Okay, but I don’t work the next two days so unless you’re gone longer than that I probably won’t drive anywhere.”
He nodded, watching her for a long moment with those unreadable pale eyes. Feeling unsettled, she shoved her hands in the pockets of the robe.
Taking her by surprise, he reached out and lightly fingered the lapel of the thick robe. On instinct, she stepped closer to him, not wanting any distance between them. Then he froze and she realized from his expression that he’d surprised himself too. But he didn’t back up like she expected. Her heart rate kicked up a notch being this close to him.
His next words nearly made her knees buckle. “You look good in my robe.”
His? She was wearing his robe? Okay, she might not be able to read the sexy Russian all the time, but the fact that he’d given her his robe to wear had to mean something. Didn’t it? Taking a chance, she reached out and traced one finger along a particularly ugly scar that ran from the bottom of his neck across one of his pecs.
He shuddered at her light touch, but didn’t attempt to move. No, his grip tightened on her robe. He wasn’t touching her at all and his breathing was unsteady and erratic, but he was holding onto that robe for all he was worth.
A wave of desire slammed into her. “What’s happening?” she whispered, feeling almost stupid for asking, but needing to know what the heck was going on between them. She’d always been attracted to him but had known—well, clearly her knowledge was wrong—he only saw her as a friend. Now it was like things had changed in one night. And she wasn’t sure what had happened to push the change.
He didn’t answer, just bent his head to hers, giving her plenty of time to pull away. Hell no. Clutching onto his shoulders, she met him halfway, feeling dazed that Vadim was actually about to kiss her. That the man who starred in all her fantasies had given her his robe to wear. How sexy was that?
The second his lips touched hers, she moaned into his mouth. It was like that sound set something off in Vadim. He jerked against her, a ragged sound tearing from him as one hand fisted her hip and the other tugged on the robe, pulling her closer.
Stroking her tongue lightly against his, her nipples tightened when he shuddered against her. She was vaguely aware of him guiding them backward and when his big hands clasped both her hips she realized why. He lifted her up onto one of the high swivel chairs at the island, making her closer in height to him.
As their tongues danced, gently teasing and learning each other, one of his hands slid slowly, smoothly, inside the lapel of her robe. He moved slow enough to give her time to stop him. Instead her fingers dug into his shoulders. She wanted to explore every inch of him too, but all she could seem to do was clutch onto him for dear life. She’d wanted this for so long.
Her senses were going into overload as Vadim lightly nipped her bottom lip. He made the sexiest sound, a groan of pure pleasure that told her he didn’t want to be anywhere else. When his hand finally cupped her breast, his big body shuddered again.
And she could barely think as his thumb stroked over her nipple. It was already hardening under his touch, but when he slowly rolled it between his thumb and forefinger, she gasped and let her head fall back a fraction.
He took it as the invitation that it was, immediately nuzzling her neck in the sweetest way. She wrapped her arms around his neck, spreading her legs wider for him as he stepped closer against her. A rush of heat flooded between her thighs and she cursed all the clothes between them. His erectio
n pressed insistently against her lower stomach, letting her know he was just as affected as she was.
“Do you know how often I’ve fantasized about the color of your nipples?” he growled against her neck before feathering soft kisses up to her jaw.
He’d fantasized about her too? “You don’t have to fantasize anymore,” she murmured as he lightly tweaked the hard bud. She couldn’t wait for him to slide the robe fully off so he could completely look his fill—and touch and taste her everywhere. She moaned loudly, arching into him, but froze at the sound of a loud bark.
Vadim whipped around, withdrawing his hand as he swiveled to face Charlie. If dogs had expressions, Angel would swear Charlie was frowning at Vadim. She barked again then made a low growling rumble that almost sounded threatening.
“Crap, I think she got jealous,” Angel whispered.
“It’s not that…I think she thinks I was hurting you,” he said before murmuring soothing sounding words in Russian, still keeping his body in front of Angel’s.
After spinning around in circles a couple times, Charlie sat down, but still made a soft whining sound. As soon as she sat, Vadim stepped away, still keeping his gaze on the dog. “Get down so she can see you’re okay.”
Angel slid off the seat and immediately Charlie lunged for her, tongue hanging out as the dog loudly sniffed and nudged her hands with a cold, wet nose. Even though the sharpest sense of disappointment punched through her that their kiss had been interrupted, she found herself smiling. She petted Charlie’s head with both hands, bending down to nuzzle her. “I’m okay, you adorable mutt. Though I think I might have to kidnap you later,” she said as she looked back up at Vadim.
He didn’t respond, just watched her with a gaze so hungry there was no mistaking what he wanted. Abruptly he turned from her, taking her off guard. “I’ll leave the instructions for the alarm code, but there’s an alarm fob on my key chain with four buttons. They’re all self-explanatory.” His voice was brusque as he pulled a pad of paper and a pen from one of the drawers.
“Okay.” She wrapped her arms around herself, confused by the sudden change in his demeanor. She wanted to continue right where they’d left off and hopefully end up with both of them naked, sweaty and satisfied.
“I need to get her settled for the night and pack.” He didn’t look up as he scribbled on the pad of paper. His jaw was clenched tight; she couldn’t read his expression or even guess what he was thinking.
But she recognized the tone enough to realize he was dismissing her. It hurt more than she could have imagined. Almost like a physical blow. “Oh…okay.” She floundered, willing him to look at her, but he didn’t, he just continued writing. She could feel her face turning red and something even more horrifying, tears burning at her eyes. “Hope you have a good trip,” she said softly before hurrying from the room.
She wasn’t sure what had happened. He’d initiated that kiss and he’d been into it—that much she knew. His erection left no doubt in her mind. But something had clearly happened to make him pull back from her.
Once she made it to the safety of the guest room, she shut the door and headed directly for the inviting bed even though she knew she wasn’t going to sleep. Not with the memory of Vadim’s hot lips on hers and the way her nipples still tingled from his touch. If she was braver she’d ask him what had happened to make him do such a one-eighty on her, but she felt too raw to even contemplate asking him. Sighing, she turned off the bedside lamp and closed her eyes. After all these months she was finally in Vadim’s bed—his guest bed—and now she was worried that she’d lost her chance with him before it had even started.
Chapter 5
Angel stared at her cell phone, willing herself to stop being such a coward and simply make the call she needed to. Vadim had left early that morning just like he’d said, leaving all the necessary information she could want, including how to arm and disarm his alarm system. She’d been with Charlie most of the day, reading, relaxing and despite the cold, she’d played outside with the dog for a couple of hours.
But Angel couldn’t get the kiss and Vadim’s bizarre reaction afterward out of her mind. A couple years ago she’d have had plenty of girlfriends to call and they could dissect his behavior over glasses of wine. Now? Not so much. And it sucked. Maybe she only attracted psychos and Vadim sensed there was something wrong with her. Or maybe he sensed her reluctance since she’d have to eventually leave Vegas. Just like every other place over the past couple years.
She sighed, shoving those thoughts away. She could play the ‘what if’ game for hours and make herself crazy. Not to mention she had other important things to take care of, like apologizing to Sierra.
“Screw it,” she muttered to herself. Charlie looked up from where she was dozing on her beanbag—Vadim hadn’t been joking about her loving that thing—but just as quickly lost interest when Angel held her phone up to her ear. Biting her bottom lip, she hoped Sierra wouldn’t answer.
Of course the woman picked up on the second ring. “Hey, Angel, I’m glad you called.”
She swallowed hard. “I didn’t get a chance to really apologize and explain myself last night.”
“It’s okay, Vadim called me this morning and explained what you were doing.”
“He did?” That was news.
“Yeah, freaking early too. He called from Wyatt’s jet before they took off.”
The other woman knew more about Vadim’s trip than Angel did. Which shouldn’t bother her, but it did just a little. And she was surprised he’d called Sierra on her behalf. “I might have had a good reason but I still should have asked you.”
“You were bringing the food back though, weren’t you?” Sierra asked.
“Yeah.” But she’d thought telling her that would sound like a lie.
“I figured that out after you’d left. Listen, any time you want to take any of the throw away food home, for you, your neighbors, whoever, you can. Just let me know first.”
“I will, I promise. And thanks for being so understanding.”
“Of course, you’re a good employee. Probably the best I’ve ever had…And I’m not just saying that because I need a little favor.”
At this point there wasn’t much Angel would say no to. “What is it?”
“Can you come in tonight? I know it’s last minute, but—”
“Yes,” she said quickly, not needing any convincing. Charlie would be fine and Angel could use the money and distraction. Anything to get her mind off Vadim. Which was hard to do when she was at his place.
“Great, thanks. Can you be here by six? I need an opener, but you won’t have to close. I’ll cut you as soon as we have a lull, but it’s Friday so expect to stay until at least eleven.”
“That’s fine and the time works too. I’ll see you soon.” Once they disconnected, Angel turned on the television for Charlie, hoping it would keep her company the next few hours, then she checked the dog’s food and water.
She’d already showered so she changed into casual clothes and sneakers, put on makeup, then pulled her hair into a ponytail and braided it. She needed to run by her place to get her work clothes but it would take her less than a minute to change once she got there. Knowing she’d be cutting it close, she grabbed her purse, Vadim’s keys and headed out only once she was sure Charlie was okay. Angel felt bad leaving the dog, but she hadn’t even seemed to notice Angel getting ready to leave as she snored softly in front of the TV. Plus she was clearly used to Vadim being gone for work. Once Angel was in the garage she set his alarm to stay mode using the keyfob—which was incredibly nifty.
Driving his Mercedes was like driving around in an insulated cloud. The leather was butter soft, the interior sleek, and even the seats had warmers. Still, it was hard to enjoy the luxury car when she was terrified she’d get a ding in it or something. Things were already weird between her and Vadim and she figured that scratching this baby would make things even more strained. Sticking to the speed limit, she made her way
to her place, scanning for the men Vadim had taken on the night before.
Even thinking about that impressive display made her feel warm all over. But clearly she’d overthought things with him. He probably regretted kissing her and now didn’t know how to deal with it. She’d noticed that sometimes his social skills were a little off and figured he just hadn’t known how to tell her last night that he regretted their kiss. Instead, he’d simply shut down. Which was seriously depressing when all she wanted was a replay.
Shaking away all thoughts of Vadim, she pulled into a spot right in front of her building. She couldn’t believe she’d gotten such a great one, but she wasn’t going to question her luck. Racing up the stairs, she hurried into her place, changed into her standard uniform and black Mary Jane slingbacks and ran back down. The complex was quieter than normal, especially for a Friday night.
Glancing at the row of cars, she rubbed the back of her neck, feeling almost uneasy, as if she was being watched. For a moment her throat tightened as that familiar panic surged through her. But just as quickly it was gone as she took a deep, steadying breath, forcing herself to remain calm. Rolling her eyes at herself, she slid into Vadim’s car and steered out of the parking lot, thankful her hands were steady. With thoughts of Vadim and her cash problem on her mind it was no surprise she was on edge. When she’d first gone on the run she’d seen the man hunting her in every corner, in every shadow, waiting to strike her down.
It had been two years. Still, she knew she could never let her guard down. Not after that monster had killed her brother. She might not be able to prove it, but deep down Angel knew he’d been behind it. Hell, he’d confessed to her that he had and she didn’t think he was lying. He’d had no reason to.
Blinking back the sudden tears that always formed when she thought of her brother, she steered out of the parking lot and tried to think of happier things. She couldn’t act depressed while serving people tonight. It was time to get her game face on.