“You have always trusted in my judgment, brother,” she said touching his hand. “Please trust me now when I tell you this man holds my soul.”
Sitnikov stared at her his expression both sad and resigned. She relaxed and smiled up at him, “I would rather you not put a bullet in my heart.”
“I would never do such a thing.”
“Then you must promise me, Ash is not to be touched by you or your enforcers. Ever.”
He nodded once. “It is done.”
“Dos Vedanya, brother,” she whispered, turning back to Ash.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Two months later.
Anya had never been so nervous in her life. Her brother was the biggest, baddest mob boss the city had ever known. Her boyfriend was a well-known championship cage fighter that would destroy anyone who even sneezed wrong in her direction. Hell, she had killed three kidnappers with only a knife and a bad attitude. Yet, when faced with an eighty-nine year old woman who owned the admiration and respect of Anya’s boyfriend, she was ready to pretend she had the plague and cut her losses.
“She has blue hair,” stated Evelyn Schmidt, glaring at Anya and her offensive hair through thick glasses.
Anya tried an experimental, plaguey sounding cough. Nope. She never had been good at lying.
“It’s also black,” she pointed out lamely.
The silence that greeted her reply instigated more babbling. “And sometimes it’s red, pink or platinum! It changes with my moods, really.”
“Humph,” Evelyn snorted. “Also, too much makeup.”
Anya glared desperately at Ash who was guffawing at their interaction. She decided she was going to let her brother shoot him at the first opportunity for forcing her to meet his ‘sweet’ elderly friend. Watching Ash grin at Evelyn, who was still eyeing the much younger woman as though she wasn’t even close to good enough for the brawny fighter that had taken her under his wing, Anya realized she had yet another reason to adore him. He saw the injustice of an elderly woman who wasn’t even related to him, struggling in the current economic climate and wordlessly stepped in to help her by befriending her and giving her rides to the local shelter and soup kitchen.
He may be an asshole sometimes, but he was her asshole with a heart of gold and she was keeping him. She reached out to take Ash’s hand and tried to smile through her interrogation.
“I think she’s beautiful the way she is,” Shania Mahdavi announced, approaching the table. She sat down with a sigh and rested a hand on her rounded belly. “I wish I could change my hair colour whenever I wanted. I think that would be fun! Unfortunately it’s stubborn black, and so it shall remain for all time.”
Anya grinned widely and turned to her new friend, the wife of one of her brother’s former business associates and Ash’s boss. She and Shania had gotten to know each other well over the past several weeks, as it was Ash’s job to watch over Khalid’s wife, and after Anya’s kidnapping he wasn’t willing to let her out of his sight unless she was under her brother’s supervision. So he had combined work with his new girlfriend. Both women had discovered the benefits of having a female companion, something neither had really experienced before.
“She’s too skinny,” Evelyn persisted, suspecting she was close to losing this battle.
“She’s perfect,” Ash announced lifting Anya’s hand to his mouth and kissing her knuckles. “And she’s all mine.”
Anya smiled back and shifted closer to him.
Evelyn rolled her eyes. “Oh, all right,” she grumbled. “But I insist on calling her Anastasia. Anya and Ash just doesn’t sound right together.”
Anya laughed out loud and spontaneously reached out to take the elderly woman’s hand. She squeezed it gently. “Thank you Mrs. Schmidt. I’ll take good care of him.”
“Humph,” she replied, but didn’t take her hand away.
Later that night, as Ash drove her home, she laughed about his odd assortment of friends. “A kind-hearted pregnant woman, an orphan casino boss, an old woman with no family and a blue-haired rebel. Admit it Asher Bowles, you have a soft heart for misfits.”
He didn’t smile but his eyes softened. “I like the others, but you, my blue and black haired misfit, are the only one that softens my heart.” He groaned as he pulled into the driveway. “Now tell me why you aren’t moving in with me immediately? I’d like to reiterate my feelings regarding your damn six month plan.”
She laughed and unbuckled her seatbelt. Sliding over the console, she maneuvered herself on top of him until she was straddling his lap. She wiggled until she was riding intimately against the ridge of his cock, which was pressed hard against the zipper of his jeans, straining for freedom. He groaned and gripped her waist in his huge hands.
“Ahhh,” she moaned, rocking back and forth gently, her clit sliding against the rough fabric, causing exquisite vibrations to rush through her body. She dropped her face against his neck and inhaled his masculine scent.
Breathlessly she whispered, “We’re doing it right, getting to know each other before we move in together. And in the process we’re convincing my brother your life is worth preserving by not rushing into anything. He’s not ready to let me go yet, but he’s starting to get used to the idea that it will happen soon.”
Ash nipped at her neck, knowing she loved a bite of pain, hoping she might give him more before he had to let her go. “He’s an old woman, the way he watches over you. I feel like I’m sixteen instead of thirty-one, sneaking around, tossing up your skirts whenever I can get you alone. I want to start a life with you.”
“Patience,” she whispered, kissing his chin. “It’ll be worth the wait.”
He nodded and pulled her in for a hard kiss. “You’re worth waiting for forever, if I have to. I love you Anastasia, I’m never letting you get away from me again.”
“Good,” she said, smiling.
A bright light filled the driveway of the mansion, flooding the vehicle and its occupants. Anya laughed and reached for the door handle. Opening it, she hopped off Ash’s lap and patted his erection naughtily before slamming the door shut and skipping toward the front doors of the house.
Ash rolled his window down and mock growled at her retreating form, “Get your ass back here so I can spank it!”
She flipped him the finger as she continued to walk away, hips swinging, her purple nail polish glinting in the bright light.
“I fucking love you, woman!”
She laughed and looking back over her shoulder, blew him a kiss. “I love you too, fighter man.”
THE END
Other books by Nikita Slater
If you enjoyed this book, check out some other work by Nikita. More titles are always in progress, so check back often to see what's new!
Fire & Vice Series
Book One – Prisoner of Fortune
Book Two – Fight or Flight
Book Three – (Coming soon!)
Fight or Flight (Fire & Vice Book 2) Page 9