by Katie Reus
On trembling legs she pushed up from her crouch. Her nose felt sensitive but she was just glad she and Viktor were unharmed. “You carry a gun?” she blurted out even though yeah, it was pretty freaking obvious he did.
Ignoring her question, he tucked it under his shirt and out of sight. She probably shouldn’t be surprised but it somehow took her off guard. That wasn’t the thing she should be worrying about right now though. But she was feeling off balance in a big way. Trembles racked her body as she thought about what could have truly happened, how much worse things could have been. Someone could have stabbed or shot them.
Moving to her, he ran his hands up and down her arms, his gaze sweeping over her from head to foot in a purely clinical way. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I…we need to call the police. And I need to cancel my bank card immediately. Are you okay?”
He blinked, frowning at the question, as if she’d asked the most insane thing ever. He pulled out his phone. “Do you know your bank’s number?”
“Yes… Crap, I’ve got to cancel my phone now too. God, that was insane. Did you get a look at who took my purse? Oh, maybe they have security footage here the cops can use.”
Viktor simply nodded, scanning the parking lot, and opened the passenger door for her. “Get inside.” The words came out like an order. “Ah, please,” he added when she raised her eyebrows at his brusque tone. “I want to keep you safe.”
The way he said those simple words did something strange to her insides. He said it as if he truly meant it. As if her safety was the most important thing to him.
She slid into the seat, and for some reason wasn’t really surprised when he actually buckled her in. The way he just took charge sometimes made her melt. Heart still beating out of control, she started to dial her bank as he rounded the front of the vehicle.
To her surprise he pulled out another phone and made a call, speaking in Russian as she made her own phone calls. First she canceled her bank card and then reported her phone stolen. This was a huge pain in the ass but she was just glad they were okay. Once she was done, he was wrapping up his call as well. She handed him his phone as he started the engine.
“Wait, what about the police?”
He snorted, the sound laced with the slightest bit of derision. “I’m not calling the cops.”
“Why not? I was just mugged.” They needed to make a report.
“I want to get the locks changed on your condo tonight. I’ve already called someone and I’m having it taken care of immediately.”
“My locks… Oh my God. They’ve got my address and my keys.” At least she hadn’t had any work keys in her purse. She’d just brought the basics tonight.
“What else did you have in there?” he asked, steering out of the parking lot.
She wanted to argue with him about not calling the police, but answered. “My phone and debit card, both of which are taken care of now. A little cash and some makeup stuff.”
“No work stuff?”
“No.”
“Okay. Good.”
“Now why aren’t you calling the police?”
“Because they won’t be able to do a damn thing about tonight. Did you see the man who took your purse?” he asked, even though he had to know she hadn’t seen a thing.
Biting her lip, she shook her head. “I didn’t even get a glimpse of him.” One moment she’d been almost kissing Viktor and the next someone had shoved her into him. “Where did he even come from?”
“He must have been waiting for us. There was someone waiting with him which means a team timed this perfectly, waiting until we were distracted.” Viktor’s voice was tight with barely concealed rage. “I should have kept you safer. I’m sorry.”
There was so much self-recrimination in his voice it made her pause. “Viktor, it was just a random mugging. It’s not your job to keep me safe. I’m just glad we’re okay.”
He seemed troubled. “I…don’t necessarily know that it was random.”
A new thread of fear slid through her veins. “What? Why would you think that?”
He glanced in the rearview mirror before switching lanes. “Mud was rubbed across the license plate, and the way it was almost choreographed…” He shook his head, his expression darkening. “I have a lot of enemies and you were out with me.” Again, there was that note in his voice she didn’t like.
“Some jerk stole my purse. It’s no one’s fault but his. And I can’t imagine someone mugging me simply because I was out with you. That doesn’t even make sense.” He had to see that.
But instead of agreeing with her, he just did that grunting thing and took the next turn.
Sighing, she leaned back against the seat, fighting the rush of nerves that had invaded her and didn’t seem to be going away. Something so much worse could have happened tonight. What if her mugger had been carrying a weapon? She fought off a shudder, and to her surprise, Viktor reached out and squeezed her thigh, ever so lightly.
“I’m going to find out who did this.” There was a blade-sharp edge to his voice that took her off guard, but she just nodded.
The truth was in his voice and part of her felt bad for her mugger. Because if a man like Viktor did find him… She was pretty sure he’d hurt the guy. And she didn’t know what to think about that.
Didn’t know what to think about anything lately. Viktor had completely knocked her world off its axis and she was only now coming to terms with the fact that she was insanely attracted to him. A man who most definitely had a shady history in business and was the son of a man she’d considered her enemy for a long time.
Even though she was worried about her stolen purse, she still couldn’t help but wish that they’d gotten to follow through on that kiss. What would it have felt like to have Viktor’s lips teasing hers and his body pressed up tight against hers?
She wasn’t even sure what she’d like. Her sexual experiences consisted of kissing and what her mother would have called ‘heavy petting.’ All over the clothes.
After her mom had killed herself Dominique had retreated into herself, just working through college and barely even going out with friends the first couple years. The only people she’d even let into her life had been her extended family. Looking back, she realized that she’d been depressed. It had taken a long damn time to crawl out of her self-imposed prison. Not only that, she’d been afraid of sex for a long time. Her mom had been used sexually, had felt so ashamed that she’d killed herself. Even after Dominique had managed to start living again, she’d still shied away from sex.
So now she was a twenty-five-year-old virgin and for the first time she wondered if that would be an issue. The men she’d dated in the last few years had all been metrosexual types and more often than not the kind of men who used more beauty products than her. None of them had ever gotten her remotely hot enough to even consider sex. She’d go on a date or two and realize that nope, the guy wasn’t for her. It wasn’t like she was saving herself for marriage, but she wanted her first time to mean something, to be with someone who got her so turned on that she couldn’t think straight—
“I promise I’ll find who took your purse.” Viktor’s hard voice cut through her thoughts, his gaze on her intense as they idled at a stoplight.
“W-what…oh, okay. That’s good.” She stuttered over her words, embarrassed that she’d been so caught up in her own thoughts she hadn’t been paying attention to anything else. It was clear he thought she was worried about her stupid purse when all she wanted to do was tell Viktor about her lack of experience.
But she wanted to wait to see if they even had a second date after this. That wasn’t the kind of thing she could just blurt out. If things moved forward she’d definitely tell him. Especially if things got more heated between them.
And she really, really hoped that they did.
* * *
“Keep your eyes to yourself,” Viktor growled out, careful to speak in Russian to Dimitri, the friend he’d asked to come ove
r and change out Dominique’s lock.
Viktor could have done it himself, but this particular friend had been a thief in another life and had the right tools and hardware on hand—because Dimitri now owned a string of hardware stores around Miami and in Homestead. Installing locks wasn’t part of his normal job description but he was doing Viktor a favor.
Didn’t mean he had to let the guy stare at Dominique. Not that he blamed him, but it still annoyed Viktor.
Dimitri just grinned and went back to installing the lock.
“Thank you again for doing this,” Dominique said, standing close to Viktor as she watched Dimitri finish up.
“Thank Viktor, not me.” Dimitri didn’t look up as he worked.
Viktor’s annoyance was somewhat appeased at his friend’s words.
Dominique glanced up at Viktor then, her cheeks flushing slightly. Just the sight of her like that made him think of what she’d look like after sex—and during sex. And he’d had way too many fantasies in the past few days about that.
“Thank you,” she murmured, sliding her hand around his upper arm the same way she’d done at the beginning of the evening. Her fingers rested gently against his skin, her hold light.
He loved the way she touched him and he knew it was because she wanted to. Not because she was paid to. Or…he assumed she wanted to. That doubt still lingered in the back of his head, wondering if she was somehow using him.
He quickly shelved the thought, not wanting his past bullshit to color the time he spent with her. If she was using him, he’d deal with it later.
Right now he wanted to kick his own ass for not being able to protect Dominique tonight. Someone—more than one person—had worked very carefully to make sure they were able to grab her purse and flee with a backup driver for a supposedly simple mugging. Everything about what happened felt off and he was pissed that he’d let his guard down.
As Dimitri worked, he gently pulled Dominique down the exterior walkway, wanting to give them a little more privacy. Her complex had been very quiet tonight, or at least her building and floor. He’d only seen one neighbor arrive since they’d been back.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, still holding onto his arm as she turned her body toward his.
With her so close to him, her breasts brushing against his arm as she shifted, it took serious effort to think. He cleared his throat. “I’m going to give you a phone to keep, just overnight, until you can get a new one tomorrow. I don’t like the thought of you not having a way to contact anyone and I’m guessing you don’t have a landline.” Almost no one did anymore.
Her expression softened and she brushed a hand down his chest, just briefly touching him. “I didn’t even think of that. Thank you.”
All his muscles pulled taut at her touch. It was as if she was trying to make him crazy with need. “I’m also going to have someone watch your condo. Just tonight.”
She blinked in confusion, then shook her head. “That’s really sweet, but it’s not necessary.”
“Look… I don’t know if the mugging tonight was random or not. I don’t like how it happened.” He didn’t like telling her this much—didn’t want her to know what kind of man he was, how many enemies he had. But he wouldn’t risk her safety for anything. “I’ve made a lot of enemies over the years. People who don’t like their businesses getting bought out. I’ve never had a…” He paused, looking for the right word. He’d never had a woman in his life before, and even if they weren’t in a relationship she meant something to him. “You and I have been potentially seen together at multiple places. If someone thinks you’re important to me it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they might target you to get to me.”
She blinked at him again. “I…that seems a little crazy.”
“Then you can humor me.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly. “That sounds a little bit like an order.”
He lifted a shoulder. “I’m having someone watch the place whether you like it or not.” Yeah, he knew that was high-handed but he didn’t care. “I could lie and tell you I wasn’t, but I’m not going to lie to you.”
“You are…frustrating.”
“I’ve been called worse,” he said dryly.
She snorted, the sound adorable. “Fine.”
Consumed with the need to touch her, he slid his hands down to her hips, pulling her close to him. There was no way to hide his erection from her and he didn’t want to. She should have no doubt how she affected him. “I want to kiss you right now,” he murmured.
Her eyes were dilated and her breathing grew erratic at his words. She set her hands on his chest. “Why don’t you?” Her voice was a whisper.
“Because when I do, I don’t want an audience.” His employee was waiting at the end of the hallway, watching Dominique’s place. Not to mention Dimitri was a few doors down and there were any number of nosy neighbors potentially watching.
She hitched in a breath at his words, her gaze falling to his mouth.
“Can I take you to lunch tomorrow?” He kept his voice low, somehow resisting the urge to lean down and claim her mouth.
She nodded, that almost dazed look back as she met his gaze. “I’d like that.”
Yeah, he would too. Way too much. Pushing against his own self-control, he reached up and cupped her cheek, slowly slid his thumb over her full bottom lip. What he wouldn’t give to kiss her right now.
Just the thought was tempting, but he hadn’t been lying. He didn’t want anyone to see him kissing her. Didn’t want anyone to hear her moans of pleasure, no matter how small. She made him feel ridiculously possessive and those sounds were just for him.
He was moving into unknown territory with her but he knew that once they crossed the line into a physical relationship he was going to consider her his.
Chapter 9
“You staying in the building for lunch, or heading out?” At the sound of Lizzy’s voice, Dominique looked up from her computer.
“Ah…” She glanced at her cell phone, surprised it was lunch already. She’d been working nonstop all morning. “I’ve got to grab a new phone at lunch. I’m just going to walk down to the store.”
Lizzy frowned as she sat on the edge of Dominique’s desk—as per usual for her. Today she had on flip-flops, jeans and a T-shirt that said ‘Unicorns love bad girls’ with a picture of a unicorn wearing a biker jacket under the text. “What happened to your phone?”
Dominique didn’t want to lie to her friend, even if she still felt weird about not calling the police. “It was stolen. I was actually mugged last night. My purse was taken and my phone was in it.”
Lizzy’s eyes widened. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “Yeah, annoyed but fine.”
“Still, that sucks. Where did it happen?”
“Outside a restaurant. I was with…Viktor when this guy just snatched it.”
“I’m surprised he didn’t kill the guy. What did the cops say?”
Dominique bit her bottom lip. “He didn’t call them. Said they couldn’t do anything about it and then he got someone to change my locks since my license and keys were in my purse.”
Lizzy’s expression morphed to one of something that looked a lot like respect. “Good for Ivanov.”
“You don’t think it’s weird he didn’t want to call the cops?”
Her friend lifted a shoulder. “Maybe. I don’t know. It depends on a lot of things and I don’t know how he feels about cops in general. But I can guess. If you tell me what restaurant it happened at I might be able to find out more information for you. I could hack into some CCTVs if you want.” She rubbed her hands together, looking way too excited and a little scary.
“If you start cackling like some sort of evil villain, I’m out of here. And I’m not going to tell you where it was. I’m not supporting your hacking habit.”
“I’ll find out on my own, you know.”
Dominique lifted a shoulder, fighting a smile. “If you have extra time to figure
it out, go for it. It was just a stupid mugging and everything is thankfully replaceable.” She was really glad Viktor’d had her locks changed though. She’d been able to sleep easier last night.
Lizzy just grinned. “Fine… So, have you talked to Raegan this morning?”
“Yeah, she texted me that she and the sexy cop are a thing again.” Dominique wasn’t sure what to think about that, considering the guy had ghosted on Raegan for a few days. But if the man made Raegan happy, that was what mattered.
“He’s a good guy. Relationship challenged, that’s for sure.”
Dominique laughed. “What guy isn’t?” Not that she really had a leg to stand on—she’d never even been in a serious relationship either. “Listen, I’ve gotta head out if I want to beat the rush. Your man should just be getting off his conference call.” She glanced at the phone, saw Porter’s light still on. “Or he will be in a minute or two.”
Lizzy’s expression went pure wicked as she headed for the adjoining door. “If getting your phone takes your whole lunch break, just extend your lunch so you get to eat. I’ll tell Porter you’ll be longer than usual.” Without waiting for a response she opened the door and ducked inside. The lock snicked into place behind Lizzy.
At that, Dominique grabbed her purse and practically raced out of there. It was pretty rare that Lizzy came down to their floor during work hours and Dominique didn’t want to stick around for whatever was about to happen.
The elevator made four stops before finally reaching the lobby. It was weird not having her phone. She felt almost naked without it. Even though she’d had her phone locked she’d still changed all her passwords this morning too. Something she should have thought about last night, but she’d been consumed with thoughts of Viktor.
She blinked when she saw him standing in the lobby near one of the huge pillars, talking to Harrison Caldwell, of all people. He was one of the owners. His father had founded Red Stone, but since semi-retiring recently he’d left his three sons in charge of everything. It didn’t matter that Porter was Harrison’s brother—Dominique still felt nervous around him. The man had an edge to him. Not that Viktor was any less scary, but…she wasn’t afraid of Viktor.