Page 17 of Forced Bratva Hostage (Dubrov Bratva #15)

The message is bothering me.

Boris is a master manipulator, and Tatiana is falling for it.

There is no way in hell that he plans on attempting to make things right with me, and there is no way for him to make things right unless he can bring Grig back. Impossible.

I can’t forgive him for what he did, and on top of it all, he’s flat-out lying. He is the one who ordered Van to take the shot at Tia.

I know it.

But she’s not ready to accept the truth about that.

It’s not her fault; she has never had the opportunity to see who he really is from another perspective. She’s been suffocated by him her entire life.

She reasons that his harsh treatment was just him trying to protect her; she says he locked her away to keep her safe. But she’s wrong.

And the warning her father gave Boris is clear evidence of that.

A father would never feel the need to threaten his son in order to get him to be kind to his daughter.

It’s not normal.

Besides all of that, I’ve met Boris. I’ve worked with him for many years, and I know him for exactly who he is.

The brutal, selfish, and unkind man he is.

***

“Are you ready?” I ask, picking up her overnight bag.

“I am,” she grins, over the moon to be heading out of the city on a little vacation I’ve arranged for us.

When she told me she never gets takeout, I started asking her what else she hasn’t experienced, and it turns out she’s never been away on holiday. Somehow, she’s never even been on a plane, which is crazy considering that Boris has his own jet and could have taken her anywhere, if he cared.

This presented an opportunity for me, because I want to get her as far away from Boris as possible.

Unfortunately, she is not ready to accept the truth about her half-brother, and I need time to figure out how to deal with him and how to make her see who he really is.

When I told her I wanted to take her away on vacation, I focused on the fact that she’d never been before and made no mention of getting her away from Boris.

“How far away is it?” she asks as we climb into the car.

“We’re taking my private jet. It’s not a long flight at all. Just under three and a half hours.”

“I can’t believe we’re going to the Bahamas. I’ve seen pictures, and I’ve always dreamed of going. I mean, there are so many places I have dreamed of going, but this was definitely on my list. The water looks so blue there, and the sand looks so white.”

She’s very chatty, bubbling with excitement, and it makes me smile to see her like this.

I’m amused and enthralled by her enthusiasm, and I’m really happy that I get to be the person with her for this experience.

“I’ve booked us a villa on the beach. That crystal-clear water and those white, sandy beaches are going to be your backyard for a few days.”

I park my car on the runway alongside the waiting jet. As I toss my keys to the guy who works in the hangar, he waves hello.

“Mr. Volo. I haven’t seen you in a long, long time. Welcome back.”

“Thanks, Luke. It’s good to see you, too.”

Tia is grinning from ear to ear as she steps onto the plane and her eyes roam over the sheer luxury of it.

“But it looks like a living room,” she murmurs.

“What did you expect it to look like?” I chuckle.

“Maybe with rows of seats or something. This looks like a five-star hotel, but one that can fly.”

“Come on, we’ll get comfortable and order some champagne to celebrate your first time flying.”

She nods, suddenly looking tense.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, pulling her into a seat next to me.

She giggles and scrunches her nose. “I’m nervous,” she admits.

I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her close to my side.

“Firstly, you’re with me, and I’ll keep you safe no matter what. Secondly, a glass of champagne, or two, will take the edge off. A lot of people get nervous flying, even after they’ve done it a thousand times. It’s okay to be nervous.”

The hostess pours our champagne, and I crack up laughing when Tia doesn’t even wait for a toast—she just downs the glass.

The hostess looks from me to Tia.

“She’ll have another glass. Thanks,” I say with a grin.

The second glass she enjoys with me, and by the end of it, just as the plane is rolling onto the runway, she’s a little more relaxed.

But she still reaches out and clutches my hand tightly during takeoff.

Once we’re in the air, she’s practically glued to the window.

“It’s so beautiful,” she says, peering out of it. “We’re above the clouds.”

***

I doze off during the flight and wake up to Tia poking me in the ribs. Her grin is immediately infectious. “We’re here,” she squeals, then moves towards the window again. “Look, the ocean is so blue.”

Her playful, childlike enthusiasm is cute. I lean towards the window and nuzzle my face into her neck. She smells like honey and flowers. “We should swim as soon as we get there.”

She turns towards me, and our lips are so close that we’re almost kissing. I clear my throat and lean back. I don’t want her to feel obliged to be with me because I’m taking her on holiday. And I don’t know what to do about how I feel about her.

Separating my needs and my emotions is confusing.

I’ve felt lust before, and it was nothing like this. This is more intense, more intimate.

And more intimate means dangerous.

Especially if she is going to leave and go back to Boris, and I never see her again, because he’s up to something.

***

I pull up outside the villa in the rental car. I chose an emerald green Mustang, for fun, because driving around the Bahamas in any other car didn’t seem right. We stop right outside the villa, but Tia is already out of the Mustang and running towards the beach before the car parks.

“Wait,” I shout after her, but she hardly pays any attention. In her short summer dress, she runs straight to the edge of the water, pausing to splash her feet in, laughing, then running all the way in and diving beneath the surface.

Dammit, this girl is going to be the death of me.

Kicking my shoes off and tugging my shirt over my head, I run into the ocean after her, still wearing my pants.

She laughs and swims into my arms, wrapping her legs around my waist as we stand in the cool, blue water.

“This is incredible. I can’t believe we’re here,” she whispers, as though this is some magical place.

“I can’t believe you didn’t even wait to put your bathing suit on,” I chuckle.

“There is no time for waiting. I want to experience all of it right now.” She laughs, kicking away from me. I reach out and grab her leg, pulling her through the water, back towards me.

She splashes me and makes a weak effort to get away.

I pin her against my chest and hold her jaw in my hand.

“You’re trouble, Tia. A man could get lost in you.”

She knits her brows. “What do you mean?” she asks, confused by curious.

Instead of answering her, I kiss her.

I wish I had the strength to control myself around her, but clearly, I don’t.

I can taste the salty ocean water on her lips, and the dress she’s wearing is drifting up as the gently waves rock us. My hand dips beneath the water, and I grab her ass, pushing my cock against her.

I could fuck her right here in the water. I don’t even care who’s watching.

Suddenly, Tia lets out a high-pitched scream and practically climbs up my body in fright.

I start laughing, lifting her out of the water and throwing her over my shoulder. “What’s going on? What in the world are you doing?”

“Something touched my foot,” she screams again, and I look down into the clear water around us.

“Seaweed?” I ask. “I never took you as someone who would be scared of seaweed.”

She wiggles back into the water, her cheeks bright red as she tries to see the culprit beneath her feet.

“But it wrapped all the way around my ankle,” she giggles, looking at me with a sheepish grin.

“I’m sure it did. I’m sure it tried to drag you beneath the water,” I say seriously.

She splashes at me and ducks beneath the surface, swimming away from me.

I watch the water shimmer over her body.

***

Every moment of every day, she has kept me on my toes.

I don’t think I’ve ever laughed this much or danced this much, or tried so many different flavors before. She wants to touch and taste everything. She wants to explore every little shop, visit every corner of the island, and swim in every part of the ocean.

She is a breath of fresh air and a wild adventure herself.

And she’s driving me crazy.

It’s becoming impossible to keep my hands to myself.

Tia is a temptress, and she knows it. Her dresses are getting shorter, and she’s even started bending down in front of me, being blatant about it, but feigning innocence when she sees me watching.

I’ve taken to slapping her ass cheek whenever she does it. The red handprint it leaves on her skin is satisfying in ways I couldn’t imagine. It’s like I’ve marked her as my own.

With each passing day, I’m getting more attached to her. Something deeper is growing between us, and it scares me and excites me at the same time.

“What’s that?” she says loudly, pointing out of the restaurant window to the street below.

I peer over the edge to see what she’s looking at.

“It looks like street racing,” I say.

“Oh my word, it’s been so long since I did that,” she says, muttering to herself.

“Sorry—what?” I say, wondering if I heard her correctly.

“I said it’s been ages since I raced.”

“A car?”

She throws me an annoyed look. “No, wheelbarrows. Yes, a car. What else?”

“You used to watch them race?”

She folds her arms across her chest and looks cheekily at me. “No, I used to drive.”

“Bullshit.” I shake my head.

“I used to win, too,” she sasses. “I snuck out whenever I could get away from Boris and would race for an hour or two and sneak back in.”

With my eyes narrowed at her, I can’t figure out if she’s teasing me or not.

“Prove it,” I challenge her.

“Fine. Let’s go,” she says, standing up.

In disbelief, I rush to settle the check and then follow her down to the street.

Her tight red dress has my full attention as she walks boldly over to the guy managing the racers. “I’d like to enter,” she tells him.

He asks her a few questions, which she seems to answer to his satisfaction.

She takes the keys to the Mustang from me with a smile on her face that could shatter hearts.

I climb into the passenger side, and she grins at me. “You better strap in.”

“I still can’t tell if you’re joking or not. Did you really race before?” I ask, clicking the safety belt in place.

“You’re about to find out. The track runs around the island, apparently it’s got amazing twists and turns.”

She starts the car and the engine growls beneath her like a cat, ready to pounce.

In front of us, a man waves a flag, and the entire street becomes loud with revved-up cars.

He drops the flags, and the wheels spin. Tia slams her car into gear and takes off.

She snaps it into second gear, rounding a sharp corner.

My fingers are wrapped tightly around the handle on the roof of the car above me. My body leans left and right, and Tia drifts effortlessly and expertly around corners, gearing up and down as though she were playing a musical instrument.

I’m in shock.

She’s fucking incredible.

My heart is racing, my eyes are wide, my mouth is hanging open, and Tia is screaming in excitement as we shoot across the finish line in first place.

Not even one of the other drivers stood a chance against her. She crosses the finish line way ahead of them, then, just for show, she lifts the hand brake, spinning the car to a stop facing the other direction.

I let out a sharp breath.

“What the fuck just happened?” I ask, stunned. “That was fucking incredible.”

Tia wiggles in her seat, and someone comes to the window to congratulate her and hand her a bottle of champagne.

She pops the cork straight away and drinks out of the bottle, then hands it to me.

“Let’s get out of here,” I say as the other racers start crossing the finish line.

She pulls away from the track and drives us around the island, still smiling. I reach out and brush my hand over her leg. My adrenaline is pulsing through me like lava. Every fiber of my body is alive and electrified.

“Stop here, on the lookout point,” I say, running my hand up her leg. She bites her lower lip and does as she’s told, parking the car in a secluded parking area.

We’re the only ones here, and that’s exactly what I was hoping for.