Page 29

TWENTY-EIGHT

Vlad

I nessa has gone from lost in lust to drowned in nerves. I’ve never fucked a virgin, it’s purposeful. My preference for pain and bloodshed stops at my belt. She holds on to my bicep like it’s a lifeline and it has me going even slower as I circle her clit ignoring my own desire waiting for her moans to spring free. I’ve finally found a sound I like coming from her lips and the stubborn brat has shut them off.

There’s only the smallest portion of her face visible and I fixate on it. Lust mixes with nerves of being inexperienced, as long as it doesn’t turn blank I’ll stay sane. She’s soaked, her pretty little clit is swollen and sensitive, but those nerves are locking her muscles. Pressing my lips to her nape because I can’t stop, she relaxes under me.Her skin is soft and soothing, calling to me and twisting everything.

I don’t thrust all the way in, and she clenches as soon as the head of my dick pushes into her tight hole. I don’t move despite how soaked and warm she is, I wait for her to relax again and press my lips to her cheek. Her nails are digging into my arm, and I try to soften my voice.

“Breathe out for me, meely moy.”

Blowing out all the air in her lungs has her muscles unclenching and there’s a gentle smile lifting her lips when she realizes why I told her to.

She’s too tight and her inner walls are choking my dick, making it difficult to fit more inside despite how wet she is. Keeping my thrusts slow and shallow, she turns her head towards me and doesn’t look away from my eyes. I pause at how beautiful she is and just blink like a dumb fuck. Tugging on my thigh to get me to move, I work one hand under her body and massage her tits. It’s not for her pleasure, I just want to hold them and feel her heartbeat against my palm.

She’s calling me closer with only one eye visible, and her cheek pressed to the sheets. My nose brushes her hair as I rest my lips at the corner of her lips. The sounds start again as she moans and adjusts around me. Any hesitation leaves when she wriggles her perfect ass and I turn smug.

“Does your tight little cunt need more?”

The brat manages to glare at me despite our closeness, but lust has it losing heat and she fucks me back. Her hips rock as she tries to pull me in and I’m a fucking fool, moving forward without any thought. This woman, this queen, is below me practically prostrating, but she’s never going to lose control of me.

Pushing my hips further into her, I’m not even half the way in when she turns rigid. Nothing but pain contorts her face and I move back, but she rushes out.

“No, just go slow.”

Waiting for Inessa to open her eyes to move, she has tears lining her lashes but there’s no fear or blankness. Her smile comes back, and I move forward half an inch, slowly rocking in and out of her while trying not to come from the feeling of her wrapped around me.

Something changes and she guards herself, it’s not due to pain and I’ve never seen her do it before. My hand on her tits moves up without me controlling it and I’m too slow to react as she abruptly pushes her ass back with her full weight and screams. It’s blood curdling and something inside of me dies at the sound. Her ass is touching my hips and the tears have escaped as I carefully pull out of her fully.

The stubborn fucking thing caused herself pain for no fucking reason and blood covers my dick. Any anger that was trying to take root from her need to be a brat disappears at the sight of her limp form and her face buried in the sheets. Turning her on her side, I ignore the blood staining the sheets and lift her as she tries to hide. She doesn’t let go of the sheet and I don’t give a fuck about it — if she wants to use it as a comforter and hug it, she can.

She’s forced to let go of it when it’s dragged off the bed and she buries her face in the crook of my neck. Her tears touch my skin making me recoil. I feel like a sick fuck knowing my dick’s still hard while she cries in my arms. Her sniffling doesn’t mute her bullshit thoughts.

“I didn’t think it would hurt that much.”

Kissing her temple, the urge to apologize is new, my tongue pauses unaccustomed to the exact syllables, and she holds on to me. Seeking comfort from me instead of hiding away.

There’s no hesitance asking her for the one thing that I continuously tell her not to do.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Normally Inessa never shuts up, she’ll open her mouth and let the wildest shit leave. Now she’s silent and I hate her silence, the constant chatter is just a dislike in comparison.She meekly shakes her head and I try to force her filthy tongue to move.

“Thank fuck, you’ve finally shut up.”

She lets out a small soundless laugh as I carry her into the bathroom.

I don’t put her down as I turn the shower on. I test the water making sure it’s the same as the setting she always leaves it on at home. Keeping my fingers under the spray, I curl my fingers through her hair by her temple and flatten my palm over her ear. She doesn’t flinch, she leans into the touch as I massage her scalp with my fingertips.Protectiveness is building inside of me. I told her I wouldn’t hurt her, and she fucked it up. She made me into a liar.

I don’t let her out of my arms and step under the spray once it’s heated. She sniffles, returning to her annoying self.

“If you say I have snot on my face, I’ll drown you.”

My chest moves as I bite the inside of my cheek, trying not to laugh. It doesn’t work wrapping itself around my voice.

“I can feel it on my neck, meelaya. You done using me like a tissue?”

Wiping the tip of her nose down my neck, she pulls back, smiling with red-rimmed eyes.

“All done now, lapackha.”

The smile holds her usual warmth, but I’ve found someone whose pain I don’t like. Setting Inessa on her feet gently, she keeps her arms around my neck and hugs me. It’s like my brain has short-circuited. My arms come up, but they don’t touch her and her soft admission has me moving again.

“You didn’t hurt me. I just thought it would hurt then stop straight away.”

I didn’t even realize that I was only using half of one lung and breathe easier.

My arms loosen reluctantly when she moves back and takes shaky steps to stand fully under the water. All the pins and shit that kept her hair up are still there and I stand at her back like I’m her personal assistant taking them out. There are hundreds of them piling up on the floor and she laughs looking over her shoulder.

“I should make you pick them up.”

She turns after I’ve got the last one and her eyes trail down my body. They go wide when she sees my dick covered in watery red.

Tilting her chin up with my knuckles, so I can see the blush staining her cheeks, I can’t help repeating her words.

“Is it okay that I’m small?”

I’m not some dickhead teenager that needs the ego boost of boasting about the size of my dick. It’s capable of doing that on its own. The woman who has words for every situation loses her voice and nods.She’s more youthful, innocent, like this. It’s easy to forget when she has the armor of her heels and attitude, but she’s stripped bare and the previous instinct I had that she’s going to ruin me intensifies.

My smirk can’t be hidden as I roll my lip into my mouth, and she swats my chest lightheartedly, turning back around and tilting her chin in the air.

“Humility is a good quality. You should try it, lapachka.”

This woman walks around ordering me about as though I’m not someone who has made people piss themselves with a look and now she has the fucking audacity to say I’m egotistical.

Letting Inessa live in her delusional bubble of false reality, I don’t point out the obvious ego in front of me. It’s not strange showering beside her. Little jokes or jibes leave her lips, but it’s comforting. Shutting off the water before we both age, I pick her up with one arm and grab a towel for her hair. I push it over her face and it muffles her argument coming through. I prefer it and leave it there as I wrap another around her body.

Drying myself off, I pick her up again, liking her weight in my arms and she pulls the towel off her face to look at the bloody sheets with her nose scrunching up. Walking out of the room, I take the one across the hall and lay her down on the side furthest from the door without turning on the lights. There’s a thin strip coming through the door from the hallway as I take the other and she freezes. Her voice is softer as speaks slowly with an accusation.

“You never sleep with me.”

Laying on my back with my hand under my head, I close my eyes and hum.

I fucked up once and let myself fall asleep, the next day she had bruises to show for it. I’ll stay awake tonight and go back to my usual routine of sleeping in my private office or Viktor’s room in our wing. I can feel her staring at me, and the sheets move as she shuffles closer without touching me. She should be exhausted given the events of the day, but her mouth opens.

“Is it because there’s blood on the other bed? You always hate things being untidy and it’s kind of weird when you’re, well, you.”

If I buried my dick down her throat, she would still find a way to run her mouth. Opening my eyes since there’s no reason to fake sleep anymore, her eyes suck me in and the truth leaves.

“We moved from Moscow to Sankt Peterburg into this shithole place. I won’t live like that again.”

She moves closer into the thin strip of light that has both of her dark eyes in view and she gently places her hand on my sternum.

“Why did you move? I thought Moscow is the place to be, closer to the Pakhan, so no one misses the opportunity to kiss his ass.”

I turn my head fully as she continues to inch closer. Does she realize she’s doing it?

Her observation isn’t wrong, and my tongue moves, nearly spilling out the full truth, my only weakness.

“A new baby, it was after Vitali was born.”

Not picking up on my lie, she keeps getting closer and rests her head on my bicep. Closing her eyes but not her mouth, the order has no heat, and I let her drift.

“Go to sleep, old man.”

It doesn’t take long for Inessa to fall asleep, and I lay there tracing her features with my finger. I’ve never gotten close to admitting shit to anyone, even my brothers are ignorant. Dima has his suspicions, but that’s down to rumors, not fact or my admittance. One part of the truth is buried in Russia and the other will be buried with me.

The moon moves through the sky, the clouds parting as I watch it illuminate the room. It was a habit I had the first ten years after I no longer had Vanya to talk to. I’d tell her my secrets and lie to myself that she was on that piece of rock. She always loved the moon. She’d lay awake staring out the window at it while I stared at her.

Fuck, I can’t breathe.

The familiar tightness settles in my chest again. My eyes close as water builds behinds them and I concentrate on bringing up the memory of her giggling when I’d blow raspberries on her cheeks. Everything settles at the faint echo. I can breathe for one more day.

Stroking down Inessa’s back, I pull the sheets up to fully cover her. She doesn’t twitch or stir. She does something worse and makes noises in her sleep. It’s halfway between a snore and talking. Even unconscious she refuses to be quiet like she’s allergic to undisturbed air. I have to turn my head to hide my laugh. I’m surprised she doesn’t sleep talk and only limits herself to little snores.

My laugh dies hearing my phone ring from the other room, and I carefully extract myself from under her. It’s not a call but a message congratulating our nuptials and extending an invitation that isn’t to be ignored to return to Moscow. The sun has just started to come up and I read through it again, looking for a way to keep Inessa home. I don’t trust any of those fuckers around her and the walls of Dmitri’s home hold too many secrets.

I won’t be able to keep my promise not to leave her with Vanya only being a few hours away. Another message comes through while I’m searching for a loophole and Maximoff kills the idea, giving his confirmation that Inessa will be there. She can drain my account when we return or bitch the entire flight, but I won’t lose the extra minutes when I can have peace.