Page 12 of Trapped by the Bratva (The Valkov Bratva #5)

DMITRI

I van watched Hannah exit my room, then glanced back at me. “What was that about?”

I furrowed my brow, not sure what to tell him. I noticed how upset she seemed, and as I thought back to what triggered it, I almost laughed out loud. We’d been arguing about what it meant to bicker or argue—that was how petty we had gotten with each other—then he mentioned the bachelor party.

Or more specifically, having women come here and entertain me if I wasn’t physically up for attending the party yet.

“Are you…?” Ivan raised his brows, amused and curious. “Are you messing around with Hannah?”

“No,” I answered, perhaps too quickly to be convincing.

“Then why’d she get so weird like that?” He rubbed his jaw. “It seemed like she was jealous of your having dancers or strippers here.”

I shrugged, feigning ignorance. “No clue.” I did have a clue. That simmering tension between us hadn’t faded at all, and I bet she was suffering from the same pent-up and unresolved desire that only built in intensity between us.

I couldn’t tell why Hannah would be jealous of another woman being with me in any capacity. Was it because she wanted to be the woman dancing or stripping for me? Even fucking me?

Maybe it’s all in my head. She had been stubbornly clinical and professional lately. Perhaps I lusted after her so much that I was seeing something that wasn’t there.

There was just as much of a chance that she was jealous of someone else helping or putting me in a better mood, like Ivan had falsely predicted a stripper or dancer could do.

Hannah was bright and happy, or she tried damn hard to look like it.

I wouldn’t say she had a campaign to make me smile, but that wouldn’t be far-fetched from the truth.

“She seemed pretty upset at the idea of you with another woman,” Ivan mused.

Upset? No. She looked mortified. And it was all for nothing, anyway.

I had no desire to be entertained by any woman—except her.

No one else would appeal as long as Hannah was in my life.

I hadn’t lied when I said that she annoyed me, but it wasn’t in a bad way.

She nagged me, but it was because she was determined to help me improve.

She pissed me off, but that was only due to my own frustration and impatience at still feeling so weak.

“If you’re sleeping with her…”

“I’m not.” I scowled at my brother and pointed at my ankle. “If you haven’t noticed, I’m not at the physical level of fitness to handle any activities like that.”

He raised his brows, smirking.

I’m not bed-ridden. But even if I were, that wouldn’t have stopped me from having a woman ride me.

Like… Hannah sort of already did. On my face. Soaking my lips and coming from the barest touch.

“I’m just saying. If you were—” he started again.

“Then what?” I snapped. “It wouldn’t be any of your fucking business.”

“If you were,” he repeated, unbothered by my attitude, “reconsider the ramifications of this. You’ve fired all the other recommended therapists.”

“That’s not true.”

“Fine.” He crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. “Three quit.”

“And one was a spy,” I reminded him.

“Fair enough. My point is that you do need assistance, Dmitri. I understand why you are in a hurry to recover.”

“Do you?” I hadn’t made a secret of how much I wanted to get revenge on Erik Avilov. My brothers were aware of my determination to pay him back. But I wasn’t sure if they understood how that motivating factor was all that kept me wanting to live.

Is that true anymore?

This tension that continued to boil between me and Hannah was intriguing me too. I wanted that sexy, peppy woman to the point of being vexed at not having her. I wouldn’t act on it, but… I wanted to. Desiring her had become another challenge—one to resist.

Ivan smirked. “Yes. You’re going to hunt for Erik as soon as you can. We’ll help you?—”

“No.” I shook my head, pleased that the muscles in my upper back weren’t as tense with that movement. Hannah really was knowledgeable about getting me moving smoothly again. “No help.” It pissed me off that I needed so much assistance already with rehab, even if Hannah’s help was paying off.

He nodded but sighed in resignation, as though he’d counted on me to say that. We were all independent and stubborn when we got our heads stuck on an idea or plan.

“I want to get that motherfucker. On my own. He will pay for what he did, and only I will be the one to deliver his due justice.”

“Yeah. I get that. I don’t blame you. If I were in your position, I’d wanna kill the fucker myself too.

” He lifted his head. “But you aren’t in any position to go hunting after anyone.

Recover. Get stronger. Then go find him.

None of us will stand in your way. We want to support you, and we know your impatience is justified. Just don’t rush it and get hurt again.”

I scowled, looking at the wall to avoid making eye contact. He was right, but I didn’t want to admit that.

“You’re only human, Dmitri. We all are.” Ivan stepped back toward the door.

“So if Hannah is a resource who gets you back to your former strength, don’t mess it up.

Keep things civil so you don’t make her run off too.

” He huffed. “Because I don’t know how easily Alek would be able to find another qualified replacement willing to come here. ”

After he left me, I stewed and simmered on his words.

I hated taking this slow, but now that I was doing so under Hannah’s constant supervision and within close proximity to the sweet, younger woman I kept lusting for, it was a double-edged sword of desire.

I wanted to regain my strength, and I wanted to explore this curiosity about her.

Mila said that she’d hire Hannah as a babysitter if I chased her away, and that sounded like a worse fate, to have her in the house but not near.

Fuck it. I wanted her when she was in my room. And I wanted her when she wasn’t. Like now, with her absence, I fought a deeper sense of longing that I didn’t want to invest energy on.

For the rest of the afternoon and evening, I tried to keep my mind off her. I failed. Epically. It didn’t matter how often I reread the dossier my brothers had collected on Erik or how many times I tried to close my eyes and nap, I was stuck on her.

My concentration was shot, and this gnawing irritation settled deeper into my muscles as the minutes ticked away.

More than once, I glanced at the clock to gauge how much more time sat between now and when she’d come for the next therapy session.

When I was checking the time every three minutes, I gave up.

Annoyed and loathing this weird sensation of anticipation, I used my walker to pace in my suite.

Hannah showed up, surprised to see that I’d graduated from my walker to the cane. “Don’t overdo it,” she cautioned good-naturedly. Somehow, her tone wasn’t nagging. She said it with an easygoing bit of concern without preaching.

She looked at me as she spoke, too, which was a vast difference from how she’d blushed and stammered when she left earlier.

Trying to sweep this under the rug, too? I wasn’t having it.

“Why were you jealous earlier?” I put her right on the damn spot, direct and blunt with my greeting.

She opened and closed those pink lips, and the expression of embarrassment that covered her face somehow made her even sexier. Docile, yet not.

“I’m… I wasn’t.”

I walked back toward my bed, where she’d placed the elastic exercise bands I both loved and hated. They hurt, but no pain, no gain applied when I used them.

“You weren’t jealous when you ran out of here earlier?” I arched a brow, watching her cheeks turn pinker.

“Nope.”

“Bullshit.”

“I—no.” She furrowed her brow. “I’m not jealous of anything or anyone.” After crossing her arms in a classic defensive mode, she lowered them, only to re-cross them.

I almost smiled, towering over her. “You’re so young you don’t even know how to fucking lie.”

“I’m not ly?—”

I gripped her chin. “You’ve got a lot to learn about dishonesty. You were jealous.”

She swatted my hand away and rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said as she rolled the low stool toward my bed. Short and mobile, it was at an ideal height for her to guide my ankle through stretches.

“When Ivan came in and talked about a woman coming to me.” I sat, watching her frown. “To… how’d he say it? To put me in a better mood?”

She clamped her lips shut tight as she reached for my ankle. I kept it low with my foot still on the ground.

“You were jealous of another woman coming here to satisfy me.”

“I wasn’t,” she insisted, reaching again for my ankle. Each dip down brought her nearer my crotch, and my desire flared to nuclear heat. My entire body felt charged and wired up to explode.

“You’re not mine,” she clarified hotly. “You’re not my man. So, there’s nothing to be jealous about.”

But you want me. I stared at her, letting her detect the unspoken words hanging between us. We both wanted something more than her touching my ankle in a clinical, professional manner.

She raised her brows, almost sassy about it. “If you’ve got ‘needs’ and having them met would make you less of a grouchy pain in the ass, then go for it.” Her slim shoulders lifted and fell. “See if it helps.”

I held in a growl at her boldness. “You do it.”

She blinked, gazing up at me.

I spread my legs apart to demonstrate how much I meant it. Already, my erection pushed up against the material of my gym shorts.

“What?”

“You do it,” I repeated, growling the order. It was a suggestion, but I wanted to command her to touch me.

“Do… what?”

“Fuck me, Hannah.”

She laughed once, too harshly. “Yeah, right. Funny, Ivan.”

“You want to.”

“Oh, you think you can read my mind now?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Am I wrong?”

She stuttered, unable to really reply with anything coherent.

I stood, and she didn’t back up. Frozen, her face inches from me, she remained locked in place as I shoved my shorts and boxers down. Standing without the assistance of my cane hurt, but I sat right back down before the pain got to me. Back on the edge of my bed, I let my dick stand straight up.

Her caramel gaze dropped to my cock, and having her focus there was my undoing. When she licked her lips, unsure but tempted, I growled and lifted my hand.

She volleyed her gaze between my erection and my face, uncertain but also unafraid. I push her hair back, cupping the back of her head. All those wavy black strands fell over my knuckles, tickling my skin, but I didn’t let go.

Urging her closer, I got lost in her hungry gaze. “Suck me, Hannah.”

Again, she licked her plump lips. “I?—”

“You want my dick?”

She blinked, leaning down closer of her own will. “I… I don’t know how.”

I growled, grinning at her admission of ignorance.

“I’ve never done this before.” She reached out, sliding her cool fingertips along my shaft. I arched up toward her, groaning at needing a lot more than that.

“But…” She lowered her gaze to stare at my dick, almost to her mouth. Looking up at me with a hooded, sultry glance, she hesitated. “But I want to.”

Fuck. Me. She was inexperienced, and it would be my pleasure to show her. I relished the idea of teaching her, of training her how to please me.

“Yeah?” I whispered as I brought my other hand to her head.

The tip of her tongue peeked out and traced her lips. “Yeah, Dmitri. I want to… please you.”

I grunted at the tentative lick of her tongue. She didn’t look away, gazing up at me as she swiped her tongue over the bottom of my head, collecting the drops of pre-cum.

“Then open your mouth, Darling.” I tensed. My thighs squeezed, and my muscles burned with the intensity of bracing myself so hard.

She closed her lips around my cockhead and stared up at me.