Burn: Book 3 (The Heat Series)

by MJ Masucci

  “Are you okay?” She asked.

  “I have a massive headache. When did you get here?”

  “I got here before dinnertime. You came home hours later, drunk.”

  “I don’t remember much from last night.”

  “You told me you had clients. Did you go out with them?”

  “I don’t remember if I did or not. I think so.”

  She waited for him to tell her what she wanted to hear. She wanted him to be honest with her about Katerina.

  “You were so drunk that you fell asleep on the floor near the coffee table. I woke you up and got you undressed. You kept calling me pretty girl.”

  He removed his arm from his face, “You are my pretty girl.”

  “Xander is there something wrong?”

  “No, why would you think that?”

  “You usually don’t drink that much. I haven’t seen you that drunk since…”

  “Since I told you I loved you and you rejected me? I was drunk a lot after we separated; you know this. For weeks I drank to forget you. It was my escape.”

  “I do remember. That is why I’m asking if something is wrong. You normally don’t drink so much unless there is a problem.”

  “Don’t read into it, Ava. There is nothing wrong.”

  He slid off the bed holding his head and went into the bathroom. She heard the medicine cabinet opening and the shake of a bottle of pills. It was still early, the shower started to run, and she heard the familiar clank of the glass doors closing.

  She realized that he wasn’t going to tell her, and he seemed like he was in a foul mood. She had called her uncle and told him that she would be back to work on Wednesday. So she had the whole day free. She was glad because she didn’t want to be around Xander when he was this way.

  She opened her suitcase and pulled out some clothing. She would take a quick shower and leave when he did. Maybe she should take the boys and stay at her apartment tonight. She was hurt that he hadn’t thought it important to tell her about Katerina.

  She sat at the edge of the bed, bouncing her knee. She was nervous. When Xander finished, he went straight to the closet. He hadn’t even bothered to kiss her, and even though he had spent the night curled around her, she still felt empty. She went to take a shower resisting the urge to cry. She saw him come in to brush his teeth without a word to her. He didn’t even look at her. She watched him stride out the bathroom door, and the tears started to come.

  Ava dressed quickly putting her hair in a ponytail. Then she went out to the kitchen rolling her suitcase behind her. Xander was sitting at the breakfast bar drinking coffee and scrolling through his phone. As he read, worry flashed across his face. She decided to test the waters.

  “Would you like to go out to dinner one night this week?”

  “Uh, sure,” he said, without looking up from his phone.

  “How about Thursday? We could go to Filipos. I haven’t eaten there for awhile.”

  “I can’t Thursday. I have a thing.”

  “Excuse me?”

  He gave her his full attention, “I have something to do that night.”

  He stared at her intensely, and she returned the stare, hazel eyes to green.

  He snapped at her. “Something you want to say?”

  “No, I have to go.”

  She removed the pet carrier from the closet and packed the boys up.

  “You’re not staying here tonight?”

  “No. I haven’t been home for a week, and I have things to do.”

  He drank his coffee and watched her walk out the door. It was reminiscent of when they had a big fight after Liam had injured him. He had snapped at her all week, and she had finally had enough. At least this time she didn’t throw his keycard across the room.

  He ran his hand through his hair and sat down at the breakfast bar again to look at his phone. He kept looking at the email with the picture of the boy that Katerina had sent him. He was so careful, and this was a tremendous shock. Why didn’t she tell him sooner, it had been years. How was he going to tell Ava? Once again he found himself being deceptive and keeping things from her, something he promised he would never do again.

  Ava walked in the door of her apartment. The cab ride for the few short blocks had been sobering. What exactly had happened between them the last few days? She understood his attitude when they were in Georgia. He needed time to process what he had encountered when they were on the run. But this was totally different. He practically ignored her except when they were in bed. Then he curled around her like a snake.

  She tried to keep her mind occupied, but so many things were going on simultaneously. She looked at her phone. It was a little past seven. She wanted to call Rachel to ask if she would show her some fabric and take her measurements, but maybe she should wait. Her apartment was dusty, and she needed to vacuum. When she was finished, she decided to run to Sunset and work out. This was definitely off her routine, and Liam would expect her to be at work, not at the gym at this hour.

  Liam stretched himself out on the king-sized bed in the master bedroom. What a life this place offered. He slept better than he had in years. Those cots in prison were about as good as sleeping on board. The bed at the hotel wasn’t much better. The springs squeaked when he turned over making it impossible to get a good night sleep. Also, the walls were paper thin, and he could hear the activities of the prostitutes that an hourly hotel brought.

  This was heaven. It was quiet, and the bed was so comfortable. Though it wasn’t hot out, he blasted the air conditioner and snuggled under the thick comforter. The night before he took a shower in the huge tiled shower stall, the towels were thick and soft, the water hot. He found a bottle of lavender body wash, and it reminded him of Ava. How long ago had she been here? Had she fucked the asshole on the very bed I slept in last night?

  After his shower, he went to the kitchen. The refrigerator didn’t have any fresh food, but the freezer was full. He found instant oatmeal in the cabinet and heated some water to make it. A Keurig sat on the counter of the large kitchen, and he loaded it with a pod. This was perfect, a nice hot cup of fresh coffee and a bowl of oatmeal. Later he would go into town to get some food.

  He checked his watch and decided to call Little Papi. He explained his plan and telling him he had been harassing Ava with phone calls.

  “You fucking moron. Merda,” Papi growled.

  “What?” Liam said shocked. Papi might have been tough, but he rarely cursed. It was one of the reasons he was so well respected in prison. He could use his words rather than curses to make his point.

  “Don’t you know they can trace your phone?”

  “But it’s a burner.”

  “They can still trace it. Did you disguise the number?”

  Liam hadn’t, “No, I didn’t know.”

  “Smash the fucking thing and throw it away. Get a new phone and use a pay phone or don’t call her at all. Killing should satisfy you enough without telling her where you are first. Stealth is your friend. Keep your mouth shut and keep to the shadows. Don’t go back to the hotel either. I’m sure you can find another dump to reside in.”

  Little Papi hung the phone up before Liam could answer. He slipped on his boots and took the burner phone out to the patio, smashing it under his heel. He would get another phone and only call Ava from a pay phone if he could find one. He didn’t want to stop the calls. It delighted him so much to hear the fear in her voice.

  He went back inside and kicked off his boots. His coffee had gone cold, and the oatmeal was like glue. He dumped them in the sink and turned on the disposal. Then he went to the bedroom and pulled on his jeans and a t-shirt. Fucking Papi, making him feel like an ass. He had to be careful because they were looking for him. The other two idiots he escaped with had been caught already. Not that it mattered; they didn’t know anything.

  He decided he would stay in Westchester somewhere just in case Ava had them trace the phone. He went upstairs and got the laptop he had found si
tting in one of the smaller bedrooms. He booted it up and was able to do some research because it didn’t need a password. Papi had been correct, all they needed was a phone number to trace what cell tower his call had bounced off. They might not know exactly where he was, but they would canvass the streets looking for him. He just couldn’t take that chance.

  He decided to return the rental car halfway home and then take a bus the rest of the way. He would stay in Westchester. He needed to get to his sister’s house to get the rest of his money. She was married now to some jerk, but he should be able to slip into the basement through the window to retrieve it. He had loosened a block in the foundation wall. It was an old house and had an actual bomb shelter. His sister kept a bunch of junk in the small room, and he doubted that anyone would find the money. He had everything planned.

  Chapter 12

  Xander sat in the alcove looking out the window. He hadn’t heard from Ava all day, even after he texted her over two hours ago. He knew she was upset and she had every reason to be. He came home drunk and then he was cold to her this morning when he should have been ecstatic that she was home. He didn’t remember much from last night, but he did remember he called her “pretty girl.” Why did he say that? He never called her that before, and he couldn’t recall who he did call that name. It sounded so familiar, but he didn’t know why.

  Ava had wanted to go to dinner with him on Thursday, and he had been curt with her, almost nasty about not wanting to go. How was he supposed to tell her that he had to go for the test? If it came out positive, their lives were going to change drastically. Katerina was already pushing for him to pay her.

  He had met Katerina Yumashev in his first year of law school at Duke. They had assigned seating in their torts class, and since his last name began with a W, he got the seat next to her. She was beautiful, intelligent and distracting, so much that he couldn’t keep his eyes off her most days. She was tall, almost statuesque, with long blonde hair and soft gray eyes. Her family was affluent, allowing her to spend plenty of money on fashionable clothing and shoes.

  When she was around, he was like a dog in heat. He wanted her in the worst way and often would follow her after class to find out her likes and dislikes. What he didn’t know is that she wanted him, too; however, she was a cool about it. She often ignored him in class, only interacting when she had to pass the attendance sheet or pass along handouts. It was at those times that he looked into her eyes and saw desire.

  One night he was out with some friends, and he saw her having coffee alone at a local Starbucks. She was sitting near the window reading a book. He watched her perfect plump red lips hug the lip of her cup, and he instantly felt himself harden. He wondered what else she could do with those lips. He took a chance and went inside to talk to her.

  A half hour later they were having frenzied sex on his bed, on the floor, on the kitchen table of his small one bedroom apartment. Neither one of them was a relationship type of person back then, so their sex was casual for the next couple of years. The last time they had sex was near the end of their third year of law school. It was just before he had started dating Abby.

  They had always been careful; she was on the pill, and he used a condom. They slept with other people in between the times they spent together. Now, this. He had no idea how he was going to explain it to Ava if it was true.

  Ava was upset and had ignored Xander’s text. She wasn’t ready to talk to him, even electronically. He had been rude and snapped at her this morning when she asked him about going to dinner. Something was going on with him, and it all centered on Katerina. She knew that the visit to the accident site had shaken him, but this was more. He seemed to have been coping with his flashbacks and dealing with it when he went the next day by himself.

  She put it out of her mind and went to Sunset. After she had come back from the gym, she took a leisurely bath for over an hour while she read the two New York Times Sunday editions that she forgot to put on hold. She almost dozed off when her cell rang. She quickly rose from the water and stepped out of the tub while reaching for her phone. Ava hoped it wasn’t Liam; she wasn’t in the mood to talk to him and play scared little girl. As it turned out, it was Xander. She let it go to voicemail and listened when her phone chirped.

  “Sweetheart, I know you are pissed at me. I deserve it. I’m dealing with a problem, but I need to get the full particulars before I speak with you about it. I ask that you, please be patient. I will tell you everything when I have all the information.”

  What could possibly be the problem and why would he need to get all the information before he spoke with her? She decided that until he told her, she wasn’t going to spend the night with him. Unfortunately, she needed to go to work tomorrow, and that meant that she would see him.

  That night he texted her to ask if he could come over. She told him that she needed space and to please respect her wishes. She climbed into bed early and began reading where she left off in Crime and Punishment. It calmed her, taking her mind off Xander and her other problems.

  The next morning she woke up refreshed. Even though she went to bed with her mind racing, she fell asleep quickly and stayed asleep. She entered the office earlier than usual and sat at her desk eating a granola bar.

  As the office filled with employees, she went down to Xander’s office to see what he had for her. Though Jacob had mentioned he had some research for her to complete, she had to check with Xander first. She could feel his foul mood before she even walked into his office, it was emanating off him like smoke. He glowered at her as she sat down in the chair in front of his desk.

  “Do you have anything for me to do or should I get the research Jacob wanted me to take care of?”

  “I have two cases I need you to research.” He handed her two thick folders and a piece of legal paper with specific requests.

  She rose from the chair and started to walk out.

  “Ava? Please don’t be angry at me. I love you,” he whispered.

  She hesitated as he spoke the words and she felt a tug on her heart; then she continued walking. In the research room, she laid out the folders and retrieved the books she needed. As she worked, fat drops spattered onto her notes. Damn him! I need time, and he goes and says something like that.

  Lunchtime came and went, and she didn’t feel like venturing into the break room. She was miserable without him, but it was his choice not to divulge his secret. By four o’clock she had finished Xander’s task and picked up the folders as well as her notes. She went to retrieve her laptop so she could transcribe them while sitting in the alcove.

  As she passed by Xander’s office, she saw someone sitting in the chair that she had occupied hours earlier. It was a woman, and she had long blonde hair. A little boy of about eight or nine was sitting on the couch playing with a couple of toy cars. She couldn’t help herself, and she stood by the door, out of sight, trying to listen to the conversation. She couldn’t hear very well, and the door pushed open even more when she wasn’t paying attention. Xander looked up at her and scowled.

  He rose from his desk, “Come in, Ava.”

  The woman that was sitting in the chair turned, and Ava suddenly felt self-conscious.

  “Katerina Yumachev, may I present my fiancée, Ava Keene.”

  Katerina got up from her chair, and Ava saw that the woman was several inches taller than her. She was beautiful. Katerina was dressed very stylishly in a gray pencil skirt and white silk blouse. She wore four-inch black heels making her almost as tall as Xander.

  She offered her hand, and Katerina shook it with an ice cold hand, sending shivers down Ava’s spine.

  “Xander was right; you’re very pretty.”

  Ava’s eyes swung to the little boy sitting on the couch.

  “Lex, come say hello.”

  The boy approached her and looked up. She almost gasped since the boy had the same shade of hazel eyes as Xander. He also had a thick swath of sandy brown hair. In fact, she had seen pictures of Xande
r as a boy, and this child could be his twin. The thought made her sick. Is this what he had been hiding from her? He fathered a child and never told her. The boy offered her his hand, and she shook it.

  “Very nice to meet you, Lex.”

  The boy smiled at her and went to sit back down on the couch to play with his cars.

  “Xander, can you please show me where the restroom is?” Katerina asked.

  “Uh, sure,” he gave a weary glance at Ava.

  When he left the room, she questioned the boy.

  “Lex, what is your full name?”

  “My full name is Alexander Robert Yumachev,” he said without looking up.

  Her stomach lurched, it was a good thing that Ava had not had lunch because she would have thrown up at this moment. Xander came back to his office, and she practically fled before he could say anything to her. She wanted to go to the ladies room, but an encounter with Katerina was not what she wanted. Instead, she went to the fire stairs and sat on the landing.

  She wrapped her arms around herself and started to rock. What the fuck was going on? He had a child? How many other things was he hiding from her? She waited several minutes. It was close to five, and soon the office would be clearing out. She preferred not to speak to anyone and would wait until they all left, even if she got home late.

  She kept checking her watch, and at a quarter after five, she opened the fire door. The office was quiet, and she started to go to her desk when she heard Xander’s voice.

  “I’m having the test on Thursday. The results should take about five days. Are you staying in New York until then?”

  “Xander, I think you know the results will be positive. Lex is the spitting image of you.”

  “Katerina, I am prepared to take care of him if he is my child. But I wonder why you didn’t tell me when you were pregnant?”

  “I didn’t want to burden you with a child. Lex has asked many questions about his father, and I think he is old enough to know you now.”