by Peyton Banks
Mila paced Kole’s bedroom. He could see that she was heated. He was surprised that steam wasn’t coming out of her ears.
“Attempt to kill someone? I’ve never missed a target, and I’m insulted that they would put it out there that I didn’t succeed on hitting a mark,” she muttered aloud, not knowing that he was standing in the doorway.
“Fuckers,” she muttered. He could see that her anger was building the longer she thought about it. “I have half a mind to leave now.”
“There’s nothing we can do now,” Kole announced from his position.
“Yes the fuck there is. I can go track down whoever started this shit and kill them with my bare hands. Slash them across the throat—”
“And that’s exactly what they would want you to do. We must keep our calm.” She turned and watched as he marched into the room. He came to stand in front of her and rubbed his hands along her arms.
“I’m good, Kole. The best. They would never see me coming,” she growled.
“That growl of yours is sexy as hell, and I know you’re the best. Your father entrusted you to me, and I will keep you safe. Even if I have to handcuff you to my bed.”
“You wouldn’t dare.” She glared at him with a look that he was sure would cause a regular man to tremble in his boots. Lucky for Kole, he was a man who was not easily intimidated.
“Oh, I would. I’m the best at what I do. Getting things moved undetected is my specialty. And yes, I would. I just happen to have a pair of handcuffs in my nightstand and I’m not afraid to use them. Matter of fact, I believe they’re brand new.”
“Handcuffs at the bedside? So, do all of your women like that kind of foreplay?” The glint in her eyes turned playful as she backed away from him.
He grinned on the inside, knowing that he had succeeded in changing her train of thought. He would have to keep her occupied for the rest of the night. There was nothing that they could do until tomorrow, when he could get to the shipping yard and make plans for moving her.
“Well, I’ll be the first to admit that when I have a beautiful woman in my company that I’m about to take to my bed, previous women are not the topic of discussion,” he murmured.
“That sounds fair,” she agreed. “Same here. The topic of my previous men is off-limits.”
“See, now that’s where we differ. Give me a list of the previous men who have had the pleasure of what you have between your thighs and I’ll go out and personally kill them myself,” he growled. Just the thought of someone else tasting her and taking pleasure in her was almost enough to throw him into a murderous rage.
“Oh no.” She shook her head, causing her dark curls to rest across her shoulders. “If I can’t go out and kill people tonight, you can’t either.”
“Is that so?” he murmured, pulling her back into his arms. Just the feel of her pressed up against him had him feeling things he didn’t know he could feel. Usually, once he had his fill of a woman he pursued, he would be done with her, no longer interested.
Not with Mila.
With her, he wanted forever. To claim her. Let everyone know that she belonged to him. He didn’t care that she was a member of a rival brotherhood. They could overcome that. After he carried out this favor for her father, it would get them off his back. The Tokhans and Belotov’s could become allies. He’d never bow down to another organization, but would be willing to work with the stronger organization as an equal.
“Well, if we can’t go out and murder each other’s past lovers, then what would you suggest we do for the rest of the evening?” Kole glanced at the clock on the bedside table. Four in the morning. They had a few hours before they would need to be at the shipping yard.
“I can think of quite a few things we could do that would include those handcuffs, but—” Her words were cut off by a massive yawn. It had been a long night, and with all the events that had transpired, he wasn’t surprised that she was crashing.
“No need to say anything else. Let’s get some sleep. We’ll have plenty of time to play with the handcuffs.”
He chuckled as he took her by the arm and led her to the bed. He pulled back the thick covers and patted the mattress. She shucked off the oversized sweatpants before climbing inside. He pulled the covers over her shoulders as her sleepy eyes locked on his.
“Kole,” she murmured, snuggling down in the pillows.
“Yeah?” he asked, turning out the light. They would have no worries on this night. His men would make sure that they could rest peacefully, and that the house would remain undisturbed.
“Thank you.”
Chapter 11
I need to get some clothes,” Mila announced as she settled on the couch in Kole’s office. She couldn’t walk around wearing Kole’s clothes forever. She thought it strange that a man of his stature didn’t have extra women’s clothes at his place. She would think a sex god like him would have spare clothes lying around.
“I’ll have someone bring you some. And, we need to change your hair,” he said as he sat behind his desk. She would have to give it to him, his office was beautiful. It was masculine in décor, and the large windows behind his desk allowed him to look out into the shipping yard.
“I’ve always wanted to go blonde. Maybe a blonde wig?” she asked, crossing her legs. She laughed at the sight she must have made. Old college T-shirt, too big sweatpants and killer heels. She pulled her shoes off and flexed her toes.
“Even though I love your hair the color it is, that’s a great idea,” Kole said, reaching for the phone on his desk. He spoke briefly to someone on the phone, before pausing to ask for her shoe and clothing size. Within minutes, he completed his call.
“I didn’t see many people here today. Is the yard closed?” she asked. She knew that the fewer people to see her, the better.
“With it being the weekend, there’s really no use in opening unless we have to. There’s nothing on the schedule today, so it should only be my security.” He leaned back in his chair and gazed at her.
She stood from the couch and walked toward the windows, gazing out over the industrial yard that seemed to go on for miles. The clear blue water was enticing from where she stood. She could see a few piers along the coast, for what she imagined ships used to come in.
“What is all of this?” She waved to the scenery. The sound of Kole’s chair scraping against the hardwood floors filled the air. His arms came from behind and drew her back against him.
“Belotov Shipping is home to one of the largest container terminals on the East Coast. We sit on over three hundred acres with state of the art cranes to move the containers.” The warm feel of him behind her was a distraction.
“Why the train tracks?” she asked, noting the tracks on the ground.
“Companies can use the trains to bring their materials they need, shipped all over the world.”
“And all of this is yours?” she asked, staring out over the bay. The sight of the machines, cranes, and metal storage containers was overwhelming. No wonder her brother wanted to control it.
“It sure is. Handed down to me by my father,” he murmured, running the tip of his tongue along the lobe of her ear, eliciting a shiver down her spine.
“Impressive.”
His phone ringing filled the air. He pulled away from her to answer it, and she instantly missed the warmth of him as he spoke to whoever was on the line.
What was this thing between them?
She got the best sleep she’d had in a while with him by her side. Even though they had only gotten a few hours of sleep, it was a good, solid one. She had awoken to find herself wrapped up in his arms, feeling safe and secured.
“I need you to go hide in the bathroom,” he announced, disconnecting the phone call.
She ripped her eyes off the scenery and nodded. She understood that they must remain discreet. She tiptoed to the bathroom in his office, leaving the light out and the door open by a slit. No one would see her unless they stood and stared at the bathroom doo
r.
There was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” Kole called out.
She held her breath as she watched a tall blonde walk in wearing a trench coat and extremely high heels, carrying a duffle bag.
“Good morning,” the woman greeted Kole with a husky voice. Mila rolled her eyes. Did the raspy phone sex operator voice really work on men?
“Morning. Did Viviana send over what I asked for?” he asked the woman.
Who the hell was Viviana? Mila racked her brain, trying to figure out who the hell it could be, and then it hit her. Madame Viviana. She was known in the underground world as the Madame to a stable of whores that was sought out by the wealthiest of customers.
Out of all the options he could have chosen, he called a Madame to bring her clothes?
What the hell?
She focused back on the pair and her mouth dropped open. Blondie had removed her coat and stood in front of Kole in just a see-through lace negligee. Mila’s hand gripped the handle tight as she closed her eyes, counting to five. Kole was not her man. They may have slept together yesterday, but that didn’t give her any claims on him, yet she’d be damned if she stayed in this bathroom while he fucked blondie.
“I don’t need your services today. Only the bag.” Kole’s deep, baritone voice broke through her thoughts.
“Are you sure? The other day was very…memorable. The feel of you deep in my ass has me aching for more. This one would be on the house,” blondie offered, placing her hand on her hip in what she probably thought was a sexy stance.
Deep in her ass? Mila silently mouthed the words. So this was what he preferred? Tall blondes? He had a blonde friend with no benefits, and then a blonde whore. Mila noticed his pattern.
“I appreciate the offer—” He stammered on the blonde’s name. “I’m sorry. What’s your name again?”
Mila’s eyes narrowed on the woman. Well it must not be too memorable for him if he didn’t remember your name, Mila wanted to shout out, but remained quiet. Her fingers ached to feel the handle of her glock. The murderous, jealous rage surfaced and she didn’t like it, not one bit. If she had her weapon, she would shoot blondie in the knee caps and make her ass crawl out of his office.
“Candace,” the blonde exclaimed. She dropped the duffle bag and sashayed over to where Kole leaned against the front of his desk. “But that’s okay. I can assure you that you’ll remember it after today.”
Mila’s eyes narrowed as she watched the woman run her hand down Kole’s chest and down to his cock.
“You need to go,” Kole said, his voice hard. Mila could see from her perch that his eyes went cold as he stared down at the blonde, but she was too set on jumping on his cock to notice.
“I know you’re a busy businessman, so this could be a quickie,” she murmured, her hand stroking him.
The whore would die. If she didn’t leave in the next five seconds, Mila would leave the safety of the bathroom and beat Candace to death with her bare hands.
Kole’s hand shot out, grabbing the whore by the neck, taking her by surprise. She released a gasp as Kole leaned toward her.
“This will be the last time that I ask you nicely,” he spat.
“But—”
“Shut the fuck up,” he growled. “I fuck you when I want to fuck you. If I want you on your knees, you will fall to your knees. But now, I want you to get the fuck out of here!”
Mila watched as he shoved her back. She stumbled in her heels, but was unable to keep from falling. Mila almost felt pity for the woman. Had she not been there, the whore could have gotten fucked by Kole as she had all but begged him to do.
“But, sir—”
“Go!” Kole shouted, pointing to the door. Candace scrambled from her position on the floor, grabbed her jacket and ran out of the office as quick as her sky-high heels could carry her. If Mila didn’t know any better, she would say that the whore had tears running down her cheeks.
Mila stood still in the bathroom, unsure of what to feel. The door slammed shut and she was sure that Kole was in the office alone. This was his life, and had she not been in the bathroom, she was sure things would have went down differently.
She was being a barrier to his life.
Mila held her head up high. No man would ever cause tears to fall from her eyes. He was a single bachelor and could fuck whoever he pleased. They had only slept together once.
She would allow him to move her to safety, and then they could go their separate ways.
“Mila,” Kole called her name. She drew in a deep breath and opened the door.
Kole beat down the anger that gripped him. He knew that Mila had seen and heard everything that transpired between him and the whore, Candace. The door drew open and out walked Mila, her entire persona changed. Her eyes were narrowed and her head was held high. He cursed under his breath.
“I’m sorry you had to hear that.” He ran a hand along his face.
“No need to be sorry.” She shook her head. “It is I who should be sorry. You were thrust into moving me, and it’s causing an interruption in your life.”
“No, it’s not. She’s just—”
“You don’t need to explain yourself to me, Kole.” A defiant look passed over her face and he knew he was losing her quick. “I get it, I really do. Thanks for the clothes,” she said as she walked over to the bag. She snatched it up from the floor and carried it back into the bathroom.
“Mila.” He stalked behind her. He wanted to explain that the fucking blonde meant nothing to him, that she was just someone who provided a service for when he needed release.
She slammed the door behind her, and Kole could hear the faint click of the lock. He growled, thinking that maybe calling Viviana wasn’t the best idea, but she knew how to keep her mouth shut, and had to give the Madame props. She knew what she was doing when she sent Candace to make extra money on top of the money he had just paid her for sending the clothes over.
“Mila,” he called out, placing his hands on the doorjamb.
“What is it, Kole?” Mila’s muffled voice came through the closed door.
“Look, this is new for me,” he began, but stopped. What the fuck was he going to say? He pushed off the door with a growl and took a few steps back.
“Don’t worry about it. You don’t owe me a damn thing.”
He stared at the door in silence. She was right. He didn’t owe her an explanation, but he was man enough to explain what had just happened in his office to her. He would never beat around the bush and hide anything from her. He’d made up his mind that Mila was the woman he wanted in his bed for as long as she would have him. He had done many things in his life, but lying wasn’t one of them.
He glanced down at his watch and cursed. He should be getting a call any moment from Denis. They had put it out there that he would be taking a vacation and traveling on his yacht. It had been a while since he’d had a vacation, so it shouldn’t be too suspicious. If he was going to personally move Mila, he couldn’t draw any unnecessary attention to himself.
The sound of the bathroom door opening grabbed his attention. He turned and watched Mila step out of the bathroom. She’d transformed into a mysterious woman, with long blonde locks now flowing around her shoulders. She was dressed in a dark V-neck, long sleeve blouse to cover her tattooed covered arms, and jeans that looked as if she were poured into them. His eyes dropped to her feet and found them encased into wedge sandals.
Viviana had done well. Just what they needed.
“So, you have a thing for blondes?” she sassed as she turned around, as if waiting for approval from his inspection.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” he snapped, irritated. Why the hell would she say something like that? Here he was, about to lay everything on the table for her, and it was like she was deliberately trying to drive a wedge between them.
“Oh, I don’t know. It seems like you have a thing for blondes. Your friend, blonde.” She brushed past him and moved towa
rd the couch. “Your girlfriend who just left—blonde.”
“Coincidence,” he growled as he moved to his desk. He leaned back against it so that he could face her.
“Really?” she asked with her eyebrow raised.
“I fucked you, didn’t I?” he snapped, and immediately regretted the word choice, but it was too late.
Her eyes narrowed on him as she leaned back on the couch and stretched her arm across it. She calmly crossed her legs as she glared at him, and if looks could kill, he would be pushing up daisies.
“That you did,” she murmured with a nod of her head.
“Look, Mila, I shouldn’t—”
“No, you should have.” The eyes that stared up at him were cold and hard. This was not the Mila that he’d had screaming his name. This was the mafia mistress, Mila Petrovna. “I think that’s what I needed to hear. I’ve been so caught up in what happened between us when I should have been focused on the fact that someone put a fucking hit out on me for something I didn’t do. It was good between us, Kole, but no more. Move me and we can go our separate ways.”
Chapter 12
Mila opened the closet in her bedroom on Kole’s yacht and stood there, eyeing the clothes. The bag that had been brought to them the day before held a few items, but the closet in front of her was busting at the seams with clothes that were perfect for her. Whoever stocked this room had great taste.
Mila had barely spoken two words to Kole since yesterday’s blow up at his office. His words continued to echo in her mind, and she didn’t know why she couldn’t shake them. She was made tougher than that, and words shouldn’t hurt her, but they did.
Down to her core.
I fucked you, didn’t I?
She let loose a growl and moved to the dresser where a drawer was filled with tiny bathing suits. She wouldn’t let him get to her any longer. She was on a multimillion dollar yacht and she would enjoy the hell out of it. There were many other circumstances that she could be in while laying low, and none of them would have been as luxurious as this.