Page 117 of Claim Me

Rurik growled. “What the fuck.”

A rush of air caught me off guard, the pressure lifted.

Suddenly, I could breathe.

Boom!

A horrible crash pounded in my ears. I blinked furiously as I heard noises. Muffled voices. What was I hearing?

The intense roar was unmistakable. Someone else was here.

“Fucking hold him. I’m not finished yet.”

The voice. The voice… Kazimir. Blinking several times, I tried to lift my head, but the pain was unbearable.

Wham!

Thud.

Every noise was brutal, grunts and groans deep and guttural.

Suddenly, there was silence.

Two more sounds of gunfire.

I jerked my legs together, turning onto my side as I cinched my eyes shut. What was happening?

“Kazimir,” I managed.

“Hey, baby girl,” a soft voice said, breath brushing across my cheek like a soft feather. “You’re okay. I’m going to take the handcuffs off now. Okay?”

“Kazimir?” I whispered again, finally opening my eyes and staring into the most beautiful pair of them I’d ever seen. “It’s really you?”

“It’s me.” He reached over my head, his gaze never leaving my face.

“He said… you were dead.”

Kazimir chuckled. “Not a chance in hell. I told you I’d find you no matter where you were. Just take it easy.”

When my wrists were free, he gathered me into his arms, pulling me off the cot.

I pressed my hand against his chest, uncertain I wasn’t just seeing things that I wished for more than anything in my life.

“Baby. No one is ever going to hurt you again.”

“What happened?” He refused to allow me to see whatever carnage he’d left behind.

“Just cleaning up a little trash.” As he rose to a standing position, he lowered his head. “I thought I’d lost you.”

I slid my arm around his neck, tangling my fingers in his hair and nothing had ever felt so amazing. “I love you.” The words came easily. Maybe I was far too emotional, but deep inside, I knew I meant them.

As he nuzzled his head against the side of my neck, I didn’t need to strain to hear his whispered words or to feel the heavy load of emotions electrifying the tight muscles of his body. “My perfect virtuoso.”

How sad. How… He would never be able to say he loved me.

Rest.

I’d been told by a visiting doctor and by my beautiful, amazing, and powerful rescuer that I needed to rest, but that’s what I’d been doing all day and I was sick of it. What little I’d learned was that Kazimir had started a war so he could find me. While he’d left the details in the shadows, I sensed he was different than before.