by Lucy Leroux
“I see I got here just in time,” he murmured.
“Dmitri.” Nina swayed a little, leaning into his embrace. Her eyes clouded over as she gazed up at him. Her relief was palpable.
The sounds of the crowd faded. Dmitri forgot their audience as he realized how much he’d missed her.
“I thought you were going to wait for me,” he said in a low voice.
Nina’s mouth quirked. “I never agreed to that.”
The timbre of her voice changed as she relaxed in his hold. She might not have wanted him to come, but she was happy to see him. More than happy. The spike of pheromones in the air said as much. It kindled an answering response in his blood.
He sighed, pulling her in close. Just being in her presence was enough to make him hard…
Dmitri was debating finding a convenient closet somewhere for a more meaningful reunion when someone loudly cleared their throat.
Blinking, he laughed at the young couple watching them with avid interest.
Nina was blushing. “Oh, I’m so sorry. Dmitri, these are some old friends from med school. This is Jane and her husband Dale. We were all in the same year together.”
Dmitri nodded, oozing charm. “Please excuse us. You know how it is when you haven’t seen each other for a few hours,” he said with a nod. He extended his free hand. “I’m Dmitri Ivanov, Nina’s fiancé.”
Chapter Twelve
Jane’s eyes, always a little protruding due to a minor thyroid issue, almost bugged out of her head.
“He’s your what?” she gasped.
Nina nudged the impossible Russian hard with her hip. “Dmitri,” she hissed in a warning tone.
He pulled her in closer, the smug expression on his face almost enough to make her scream. “I know, I know. We’re not supposed to say anything for a few more weeks. Sorry, dusha moya. It slipped out.”
He turned to her—make that Matt’s—best friends, and leaned in conspiratorially. “You’ll keep that to yourselves, I hope.”
Nina watched, wide-eyed, as Jane and Dale took it all in. And this pair of vipers would have been the biggest skeptics. Despite her claim they were old friends, these two had been staunchly on Matt’s side since the breakup. They’d come up to her, with condescending grace, to wish her the best and to see how she was ‘holding up’.
She knew these two well. What they really wanted was to pick at her pain like parasites. But now they were derailed.
“How long have you been engaged?” Dale asked, measuring Dmitri’s biceps with his eyes as if he couldn’t help himself. Though he was above-average height himself, it must have seemed like the Russian towered over him.
It wasn’t just Dmitri’s size or his broad chest. The man was an overwhelming presence—an alpha personality who made betas like Dale want to follow. The latter was drinking him in like a puppy.
With that little prompting, Dmitri launched into a romantic story of meeting in the park near her apartment months ago. He was so smooth, his lie flawlessly delivered. Nina held on to his arm, stunned as he weaved a simple and yet touching tale, springing in little facts about her life to give the whole thing an air of veracity.
The details caught her off guard until she remembered his relentless questioning over the past few days. Had he been preparing this story the whole time? It was too well-crafted to be off the cuff.
What had she gotten herself into? Nina’s stomach tightened, her grip on Dmitri’s arm loosening. Sensing her withdrawal, he turned and covered her hand with his, a gentle touch that soothed and comforted.
Unbelievably, the vipers were buying the whole thing, hook, line, and sinker. The Russian was a damn snake charmer.
Woman, get ahold of yourself. Being an amazing liar was a bad thing.
“Does Matt know?” Jane asked bluntly, snapping Nina out of her reverie.
Dmitri shrugged as if this was of no importance. “My only concern is when we tell her parents.”
He laughed and held a finger up to his lips, making a shushing sound. “It won’t be long now. Spring weddings on my family estate are a long tradition, so we’re putting the notice in the papers in a few weeks—after the sister’s honeymoon, of course. We wouldn’t want to upstage the happy couple.”
He gestured meaningfully at the not-too-distant bride and groom.
Nina glanced up long enough to see Kate watching them with pinched lips. She avoided Matt’s gaze, preferring to face his friends instead.
“Speaking of your parents, darling, I think it’s time you introduced me.” He waved casually, leaving the pair and heading in the direction of her parents, bypassing the bride and groom with a cordial nod.
The pair ignored them. Kate turned her back, making a show of greeting a third cousin with too much enthusiasm.
Nina gritted her teeth, keeping her attention fixed on the Russian charging across the room. “Oh, no you don’t,” she whispered, trying to pull him to the doors.
He wouldn’t budge. “You’re going to want to introduce me to your parents now.”
“And why is that?” She stopped short in the middle of the dance floor.
“Because the second I get you alone, I’m finding a private place so I can fuck you till you scream,” he said, just loud enough for her to hear. “That can be before I meet your parents or after…your choice.”
Holy hell. Nina flushed. “We are not doing that here,” she insisted, but her voice was as weak as her knees.
Before she could think straight, Dmitri had dragged her to her parents.
“Zandra, Ricardo,” he said, greeting them by name with his hand outstretched.
“Er, hello,” her mother said, exchanging a sideways glance with her father as they shook hello.
He greeted her father in turn, launching into a steady stream of small talk and compliments on the loveliness of the wedding.
She didn’t know who was more surprised, her father or her mother, but he broke down their surprise and skepticism the same way he’d done with Jane and Dale.
Within minutes he had them eating out of the palm of his hand.
It was so skillfully done Nina was convinced he was an actor. She was tempted to ask who had hired him, but her priority was getting him away from her family.
“Excuse me, Mom. Dad. I forgot the gift in the car,” she lied when her father invited him to go fishing on his boat. She tugged at the big Russian’s sleeve. “Will you help me?”
He came, but not until after he’d shook her father’s hand again and kissed her mother on both cheeks, Gallic style. After that, he followed willingly, allowing her to pull him out the doors without a struggle.
“I hadn’t realized you’d driven here,” he said when they were alone. “Where is this gift?”
“I didn’t buy them anything.” Her focus had been getting through the event. Buying a gift hadn’t crossed her mind.
“Well, in that case, it’s a good thing I had the Caislean concierge send something—a nice little porcelain set. It’s a traditional Russian wedding gift.”
She stared. “Why?”
His eyes were soft on her face. “It’s expected. Not that I think they’ll last given the way your ex was eye-balling you. I give it a year at most.”
What? “Whether they make it is no longer my concern. You’re the only problem I have at the moment.”
“Me?” he said with an injured air of innocence.
“Yes, you,” she said from behind gritted teeth. “The only reason I’m not kicking your ass is because you didn’t tell my parents we are engaged, too.”
“That can be easily remedied, you know,” he said, grinning back at her as he led her down the hallway. “I believe I’d like to see you try. I’ll even bend over for you if you like, but I can’t promise you won’t forget what you were trying to do. My ass has been known to distract members of both sexes.”
Nina stopped, closing her eyes to pray for patience. The worst part—it’s probably true.
“Where are we?’ she ask
ed, opening her eyes. She’d been on autopilot, letting him pull her along with no heed to their surroundings.
They were in a nondescript hallway. The music from the main hall was distant.
Dmitri rapped his knuckles on a door marked supply closet.
“I scoped this place out earlier,” he said, leaning in to put his mouth next to her ear. “This room is empty…”
“Absolutely not.”
Nina’s fingers dug into the wall behind her. “This is crazy. Why can’t I say no to you?” She moaned as Dmitri pressed her against the closet wall, his mouth fluttering up and down her neck. Her legs were wrapped around his waist, her panties soaked and shoved to the side to make room for his fingers while he supported her with his other hand. Her heat was almost enough to scorch his skin.
“Because you don’t want to,” he murmured, turning his attention to her lips.
Her lower lip was an unholy temptation, but fortunately for him, there was no need to abstain. He bent his head, nipping it.
“Hey, no biting,” Nina said, pinching him in retaliation.
“Sorry.” He licked her lip, soothing it before sucking it gently.
One taste wasn’t enough. Dmitri deepened the kiss, wanting more, while his fingers worked their magic, teasing and opening her for his possession.
“We have to stop. I can’t do this here.” The words were weak, broken by another moan as she writhed in his grasp.
“Are you sure?” His tongue snaked out, licking the soft spot near her ear. “Think about what memories you want to make tonight. This could be the day your ex-fiancé married your sister…or this could be the night your new fiancé fucked you senseless in a closet.”
She hesitated, then threw her arms around his neck. He kissed her again, but not to silence her objections. Those were over. “Tell me you want me,” he whispered, sucking an earlobe.
Nina strained against him, fingers digging into his back as he pressed a digit past the tight constriction of her entrance.
“Oh, God,” she gasped.
“Good enough.”
Dmitri removed his hand from her tight pussy to open his pants. Pushing down his boxer briefs, he pumped his cock, touching it to her heated softness before pinning her to the wall and stroking in deep.
The ride was hot, fast, and furious, but he was motivated. Dmitri wanted to mark her, to brand her permanently.
Seeing his mate’s ex in the flesh was enough to stoke his competitive streak. But he was serious about making this night about them.
She’d been hiding it well, but he knew Nina was hurting. He’d seen the way she’d averted her eyes, refusing to make eye contact with the groom. Dmitri didn’t need to look into her eyes to see her pain. It was there in the set of her shoulders, and the tightness around her mouth.
He didn’t like it.
It’s okay. He was fixing it. By the time he was done with her tonight, she wouldn’t remember the bastard’s name.
“Dmitri,” she gasped as he pumped into her hard.
That was a hell of a good start.
He thrust a little slower, easing out of her with deliberation. He wanted her to feel him—the thickness of his length, every ridge and vein.
Damn. He’d never been this hard or hot for anyone else before.
Her musk was intoxicating. Dmitri was almost drunk on it. He was pretty sure she was in a similar state. That was why he was here with her now—why she hadn’t pushed him away. She couldn’t. The burgeoning mate bond wouldn’t let her.
Under normal circumstances, a woman watching her ex marry someone else would be a wreck. Most would be holed up somewhere licking their wounds, or at least drinking themselves into oblivion. Nina was too strong for that. Her family had demanded she be here, so she came and somehow managed to hold her head high.
By rights, she deserved to do this on her own. She was more than capable, but Dmitri wasn’t about to let her flay herself alive, not when he could ease her.
And easing her he was…
Nina clamped down on him, going all silky soft around his cock as her orgasm blew through her. Her fingers trembled on his shoulders, her head fell back, and her body pulsed, milking his shaft for all he was worth.
Dmitri saw red, the highly focused storm of his orgasm rushing over him. His heart pounded, and he was an inch away from biting her and making their bond permanent.
Not yet. Not tonight. Tomorrow, Dmitri promised himself. And not a moment later.
His neck corded, trying to hold off his climax, but it was impossible. He let go with a hiss, pumping his seed in hard spurts as he clamped his jaw shut to keep quiet. If he hadn’t, his roar would have been heard all the way down to the dance hall.
He slid down the wall with her in his arms, cradling her in his lap until she regained her senses.
When she did, she groaned. “I did not just have sex at my sister’s wedding.”
“We had sex,” he said, the back of his neck prickling in disquiet. “Actually, we made love.”
She pushed away, tears shining in her eyes.
“Nina, don’t get upset.” He stroked her back, then frowned as she scrambled to her feet.
“This is not me. I don’t care what today is. I don’t have sex to get back at anyone.”
Dmitri hurried to stand, closing his fly in the process. “That’s not what we were doing. This wasn’t revenge sex.” At least, he hoped not. “You’re with me because you’re mine now. It doesn’t matter that you were his before. That’s over. I am your future.”
Nina stared up at his face. He knew she couldn’t see his features clearly in the dark, but he could see her with crystal clarity. “You know you sound crazy right?”
He laughed. “I am crazy…about you. I love you.”
She froze for a beat, staring in the general direction of his eyes.
Something in the air shifted, and her lips parted. “Shit. You’re serious, aren’t you?”
Chapter Thirteen
Nina stumbled to the bathroom in a daze. A bizarre cocktail of shame and hope was fizzing in her brain like champagne.
Don’t forget, you hate champagne.
She needed to clean up before anyone saw her. Her inner thighs were wet with Dmitri’s seed, face flushed and sweaty.
She almost tripped opening the door to the restroom. Breathing too fast, she stared at herself in the mirror before turning on the sink to splash water on her heated cheeks.
What the hell had she been thinking? She hadn’t even asked him to wear a condom. Not just now and not at the cabin.
I was right. I have lost my mind. Not once in all this time had she even entertained the idea of consequences. What kind of a doctor am I?
She could well be pregnant now or worse. Dmitri appeared healthy but considering how fast he’d jumped into bed with her, he had to be a prolific lover. He could be teeming with STDs under the surface.
“Shit, shit, shit.” She had to talk to him. Better yet, she needed him to give her a blood sample. STAT.
Grabbing some paper towels, she proceeded to wash up, her cheeks flaming. Cleaning up after a clandestine sexual encounter was a new one.
You need to get ahold of yourself. Of all the problems in her life, this one shouldn’t even rank. As long as none of her relatives saw her stumbling from the closet en dishabille, it wouldn’t even be a blip.
And surprisingly enough, the fact she was at her sister and ex’s wedding wasn’t the biggest issue. What felt like a much greater one was the look in Dmitri’s eyes when she left the closet without saying ‘I love you’ back.
He wasn’t lying. There was no way for her to be certain of that, yet she knew it was the truth.
Nina should be screaming, running like hell in the other direction. But even as she thought it, she knew the only direction she was going to be running toward was the one he was in.
Crap.
How the hell had this happened? Nina was damaged goods, but she should have enough sense not to let another
man near her right now.
But Dmitri was here tonight. He’d literally crashed into her life. After what he’d just said, it was getting clearer he meant to stay. That was why he’d insisted on coming to the wedding. It had been a calculated move to let everyone know.
This is too fast. Nina had to get her bearings, or everything was going to spin out of control.
After a few minutes, she had herself in hand. She repaired her coiffure as best she could, grateful she wasn’t in the wedding party. The bridesmaids had elaborate hairdos she wouldn’t have been able to replicate even with a hot iron and hundreds of YouTube tutorials.
Back when this was supposed to be her wedding, Kate was going to be maid of honor. Nina had asked her at her mother’s insistence, but with poor grace. In the back of her mind, she’d expected her younger sister to find a way to make Nina’s big day all about her. Nina snorted. Was this irony? She was a gifted doctor, but wasn’t great with idioms, metaphors, and the like. Her English teacher would be disappointed at how often she had to Google definitions for those. One thing she did know…this should hurt more. She’d been one of the walking wounded for the better part of the year. But now she was either numb or too spent to think straight. I guess I can thank Dmitri for that. Nina took a last look in the mirror. She was presentable. Well, presentable-ish. But if her memory of past weddings was right, the hall lights would be dimmed now that the dancing had started. Her state might go unnoticed if she made her goodbyes quick.
Hesitating at the door, she reconsidered, but no…she had put this off long enough. She was going to speak to Kate—to publicly congratulate her baby sister on her wedding day.
When she pushed the swinging door open, it hit Matt on the shoulder.
“Nina.” Reaching for her, he took hold of her upper arms, pulling her to him.
Nina swiveled her neck right and left to make sure they were alone before pushing him away. “Don’t you dare touch me,” she hissed.