Page 7

It’s a good thing I’m used to getting by on very little sleep because I think I only had a grand total of two hours last night. Yet, despite the sleep deprivation, I’m feeling pretty good right now because I have Ella tangled around me. She’s wearing little shorts, her bare leg thrown over mine, her arm draped across my chest, and her head resting on my shoulder. From her breathing, she’s still deeply asleep. Good. I’m glad she’s able to rest. My girl will keep going until she collapses if I let her; I noticed that yesterday.

Asleep, her face is borderline angelic. Her plush lips are begging for a kiss, and when she sighs softly and wiggles against me, I feel blood rush to my dick. It’s caught beneath her pillowy thigh, and even that amount of friction is enough to get it rock hard. I’m so far gone, it’s frightening. How could she have burrowed so deeply into my heart so quickly? I’m fucked.

I drag my finger lightly up the back of her arm, then force my hands to still. All I want is to wake her up properly—with an orgasm, but I promised her I wouldn’t touch her like that unless she begged for it, and I meant what I said. She’s worth the wait, and I’m happy to take my time especially if that time looks like this.

This is the one and only time in my life I’ve gone to bed with a woman and not fucked her. Ella is different from all the rest. Resisting her is like resisting a buffet after a month of fasting, but her trust is worth more than a moment’s pleasure. If I play my cards right, we’ll have a lifetime of pleasure. I just need to convince her to open up to me.

She stirs, and her eyes flutter open. Chocolate-truffle brown and framed by thick, black lashes, I could spend the rest of my life looking into them, especially as they flare in surprise when she finds herself wrapped around me. But she doesn’t pull away. I can tell she’s still half-asleep, still realizing what position she is in, and I don’t do anything to risk speeding that realization along. I’ll savor these moments of her against me. My stubborn girl might not give me another for a while.

Her hair is a wild tangle around her face. She’s not a restful sleeper, but her tossing and turning are only part of what kept me awake last night. Sometimes, her brow would furrow, and she’d mumble something in her sleep. It has to be the stress of her life seeping into the night. Even when she closes her eyes, she can’t escape. It only makes me more determined to lift her out of that life and into the one she deserves.

There’s just the small matter of her not knowing we’re deeply involved in the Bratva world. She’s so innocent that I can’t imagine how she’ll react to that knowledge. Luka wants me to keep it from her, saying there’s no reason for her to get involved in that side of things, but it’s a part of me, and there’s no way I can hide it from her forever. At some point, I’m going to have to tell her.

She moves against me again, and this time, she’s awake. I know she can feel the hard press of my cock against her leg. It’s unavoidable. I’m expecting her to pull back, preparing myself to feel the loss of her heat, but she doesn’t. She moves again, rubbing her thigh against my dick in a way that is definitely intentional. Fuck. If she keeps that up, I’m going to lose hold of the self-control I’ve managed to scrape together.

I don’t stop her though, fuck that. She shifts, and I can feel the warmth between her thighs pressed against my hip, and now she’s grinding that against me with every one of her teasing wiggles. My dick is at full attention now and begging for more.

Ella buries her face in my neck, and I love the feel of her there, like she can’t get close enough to me. All I need is for her to tell me she wants it. I need to hear those words out of her mouth before I can do everything I want to do to her.

I want to throw the blankets off this bed so I can see her full, perfect body in the morning light. It’s probably breathtaking. Instead, I settle for feeling her find her pleasure against me. Beneath her thigh, my dick is starting to leak precum, and there’s no way she doesn’t notice that, given that it’s against her bare skin. She has to know she’s torturing me.

My hand twitches toward the curve of her breast. So full and round and begging to be grabbed, kissed, sucked on.

“Ella,” I groan, sliding my hand into the hair at the nape of her neck instead, my fingers curling in the strands for grip. “You’re killing me.”

That doesn’t stop her. She’s loving this, loving teasing me, and I bet if I pulled her face from where it’s hiding against my neck, I’d see a devilish smile on her normally innocent face. She doesn’t answer either, just gasps a little when I fit my other arm around her hips and pull her in tighter, sliding my hand beneath her shirt. That’s all. I won’t do anything else. Won’t cross that line until she says so.

“You’ve got me so fucking hard, Ella,” I say, skimming my hand just beneath her breast, the back of my knuckles brushing against the soft weight of it.

I can’t help but buck my hips up against her inner thigh the next time she moves. If she keeps this up, she’s going to make me cum like I’m some high school virgin.

She’s close, too. I can hear it in the way she’s moaning and the frantic pace she’s setting now, driving herself toward the edge. My hand splays out to cup her breast, and I start tugging gently on her nipple in the way I know she likes. I want my mouth on it, need to feel that taut little peak between my lips.

My phone rings. The sound is blaring, jarring against the quiet breaths and moans and fucking delicious sounds Ella makes when she’s turned on. She stills, her hand releasing its death grip on my bicep and I feel like the whole world just ground to a halt. My cock is throbbing with need and whoever just called me at this hour, in this moment, is about to regret it.

“Ignore it,” I say, but I know it’s too late; she’s snapped out of whatever sleepy state let her unwind for a minute and do what she wanted to do.

She snatches the top blanket off the bed and wraps it around herself like her pajamas aren’t enough protection at this point, like I haven’t seen her naked, didn’t have her about to cum a moment ago, and scrambles out of the bed. She doesn’t even look at me as she runs for the shower.

The phone stops ringing, and I’m left alone in the silence with a raging hard dick and a whole lot of frustration. We were so close. I don’t even give a damn about getting off, all I care about is that for a brief moment, Ella’s walls were down and she was letting herself enjoy. Letting herself get close to me, like I know she wants.

I lie face up on the bed and watch the ceiling fan’s rotation until my heart stops pounding and the blood in my dick finds other places to be. The shower water turns on, and I try not to think about her naked, wet body just a door away, but that’s impossible, so I grab my phone and find out who the hell was calling me at the absolute worst time. Viktor.

Before I call him back, I get up, place an order for room service coffee, pull on some joggers and a t-shirt, and pad out to the balcony. My mood after two hours of sleep was bad enough, but after that rude awakening, it has soured even further, so whatever he has to say, better be worth it. I call him back and lean my elbows on the railing as it rings, soaking up the view that isn’t half as good as the one I just had. Dammit, Viktor.

He picks up and says in a singsong voice, “Good morning. Sleeping in on your little business trip? Hope I didn’t wake you.”

“I’m not in the mood, Viktor,” I bite out. “What do you want?”

Viktor whistles. “Who peed in your cornflakes?”

“You did, so get to the point so I can get back to what I was doing.”

“Oh,” he says with a snort of laughter, “I get it now. Don’t you mean who you were doing?”

Maybe with six more hours of sleep and Ella admitting she wants to be with me, I’d find his jabs amusing, but right now I just want to throttle him. At least get a punch in.

“What are you, twelves? Why did you call?”

Room service knocks at the door and I head back inside to let them in, tucking my phone between my shoulder and my ear to take the tray of coffee from them. Ella’s shower is still going.

“When are you coming back?” Viktor asks. He’s wound up about something, I can tell, so I just pour my coffee and wait for him to get to it. “We’ve got the gala in two days, and you can’t miss it. Investors will be there, Anton, and they’ll want to see you.”

I hadn’t forgotten about the gala when I booked the trip; I just thought I could get away with skipping it. After all, Viktor will be there, and I’m sure a few others from the Milov group will be as well. They don’t really need me, and I’d rather be here with Ella, starting to make moves toward getting my own businesses up and running. The problem with a family business like ours is that creating your own branch means fighting tooth and nail for the opportunity when the rest of the family wants you focused on their projects. I’ve finally gotten myself to a point where I can make that happen, and I’m not letting it slip away. Still, I did say I’d be there.

Familial obligation. Ella’s reluctance to be with me. My own ambition. Everything is teetering on a knife’s edge.

“Do you really need me there? You’ll be there.” The coffee is strong and hot, and exactly what I need to cut through the brain fog I’m trapped in. “Not as good as the real thing, obviously, but I’m sure they can make do.”

Finally, the shower turns off, and I brace myself for Ella’s return. I want to wrap this phone call up so I can focus on her before she can rebuild all those walls again, if she hasn’t already. Damn Viktor and his timing.

“Not good enough, Man. There’s a big difference between me and you and it’s not just that I’m better looking.”

He’s not letting this go. I can hear Ella fiddling with things in the bathroom, putting products on, doing whatever she can to delay coming out and having to face me. We were so close this morning. So close to perfect. I can’t let this sort of thing happen again. I have to be more careful.

“What’s that?” I ask Viktor as I pour a second cup of coffee for Ella, adding cream and sugar just the way she likes it.

“You’re single. The investor is a woman, remember? That means we need your special breed of charm to seal this deal. Riley would kill me if I flirted to get it done, but you’ve got nothing holding you back. So, suck it up and get home in time.”

The thought of flirting with another woman while all I can think of is Ella turns my stomach. Not happening. “Get a new tactic because that’s not happening.”

Viktor’s silent for a moment, probably from disbelief. I can’t really blame him when he’s right. I usually am able to charm my way into a good deal, and some of that comes from flirting, but not anymore, and he’s going to have to accept that. He’s got Riley, and I’ve got Ella. Maybe I don’t really have her yet, as much as it kills me, but either way, she has me.

The bathroom door opens, and Ella steps out wearing the pajamas she was wearing in bed. Her wet hair clings to her neck and drips down the front of her tank top. She’s avoiding my eye.

“What’s this about? If you’ve suddenly got a girlfriend, it’s some damned inconvenient timing, and it can’t be all that serious yet. If we lose this investor, it’s a big fucking deal, Anton. He’s testy, and if I don’t placate him, I’ll be on the phone forever when all I want is to be making it up to Ella. “

“Fine, Dude. Whatever. I’ll be there, but I’m doing it my way.”

“What does that mean?”

“I’ve gotta go.” I hang up before he can argue and flip my phone to silent just in case he wants to call back and continue hashing things out. He can wait. Ella can’t.

She’s facing away from me, considering the clothing options in her wardrobe. I wonder if I pushed too far, too fast, getting this single room together. It’d seemed like a good idea at the time, a way of breaking down the barrier between us and showing her I could be trusted, but maybe I’ve scared her. Maybe I’ve ruined this.

I get up because sitting still with my fears and her back turned to me, preventing me from seeing whatever she’s feeling written across her face, makes my skin crawl.

“Coffee’s here,” I say, bringing her cup over and setting it on the dresser before her. She stiffens and doesn’t turn.

“What was that about?” she asks, and I assume she’s referencing the phone call that interrupted our perfect morning. “Sounded kind of urgent.”

At least she’s talking to me. She reaches for her coffee and takes a sip, her eyes closing in a moment of bliss that lets me know I nailed the ratio of cream and sugar. It’s the little things.

“We have to fly back a little sooner than anticipated,” I reply, smoothing the frustration from my voice because it’s got nothing to do with her. “There’s a gala we need to attend to secure some investors. Yet another part of the job, I’m afraid.”

“A gala?” Her eyes flare in surprise. “And I need to attend?”

“You’re my assistant, Ella. I need you for things like this. Is that going to be a problem?” If so, I can’t imagine why. I’ve seen her navigating the delicate business dealings over the past few days with ease. She’s a natural at it.

Her face shutters and she turns back to her clothes, but I can tell she’s not really seeing them. “A problem? Not really, no. I mean, sort of.” She hesitates, fingering the fabric of a blouse.

I set my hand on top of her busy one, settling her movements, capturing her fingers between my own, and using the connection to turn her toward me so she has no choice but to answer. “What is it? I can help. Are you nervous about meeting investors? I can be by your side every step of the way, but they’ll love you. I have no doubts about that.”

“It’s not that,” she insists, and even the tip of her nose is turning pink. So goddamn adorable. “I don’t have anything to wear to a thing like that.”

Money. Again. I hate the reminders that she doesn’t have everything she needs, never mind everything she wants, like she should. But I know I have to tread carefully. Her pride will never let her accept what she thinks is charity.

“It’s a business function, so obviously the required clothing will be a business expense.” I wave away her concerns with my free hand. As far as I’m concerned, she could buy an entirely new wardrobe and bill it as a business expense, but she’d never allow it. “Consider it taken care of.”

Ella’s hand tightens around mine, and she glances down in surprise to find herself holding onto me. She quickly drops it. “I don’t think—"

I interrupt before she can start whatever compelling argument she has against the idea. “We don’t have time to waste on this discussion. There’s work to do.”

To drive the point home, I walk over to my laptop and open it up, but what I really start working on is organizing an outfit for Ella.

“You’re a stubborn man, aren’t you, Mr. Milov?” Ella puts her hands on her hips and stares me down and fuck if I don’t adore that mulish look on her face, the one that says I’m not the only stubborn one in the room. “Used to getting your way?”

I flick my gaze to her body, letting my eyes linger in an obvious way on her curves. “In all things.”