Isabel
Looking through my windshield, I stare at the house. He’s in there.
Viktor Prinz.
He’s occupied my every thought for the last three weeks of my life. The kiss we shared the last day I saw him has burrowed itself deep in my heart. It doesn’t matter that I’ve tried ignoring this unethical attraction to the man. He’s all I see when I close my eyes at night. The rough timber of his voice visits me in my dreams, and my skin aches for his touch.
This is wrong. He’s my patient. “ACK! Was. Was my patient.”
Now I’m sitting outside of Viktor’s like a creeper. Toby told me what happened after his one session with Viktor. I had to bite my cheek to stop myself from laughing. Toby’s a prick. I’ve seen him with patients, and I’m mostly surprised that it has taken this much time to get kicked out for showing a patient pity.
Of course that’s not what Toby told me, but I know better. I’ve also come to know the prideful man that is Viktor Prinz. I really should feel bad for Toby, since I know how it feels to be kicked out of Viktor’s house. But Toby and his huge ego deserve to be put in their place for treating a patient like that.
I’ll never admit it to anyone, but I kind of wish I was there when Viktor kicked him out. An angry Viktor is scary as hell—another reason I don’t know why I’m sitting here in front of his house. I know the man in there has to be pissed at me for not being there last week.
I no longer have a reason to be here at all, but the need to see him is suffocating me. I’m like a drug addict needing my next fix, and Viktor is most definitely my drug of choice. His kiss branded me, and I crave another dose of his sweet, dirty mouth.
I’m also curious to see how he’s adjusting to the prosthetic. He’s performed better than any of my prior patients. It helps that he was in immaculate shape prior to being injured. In two weeks, I watched the muscle memory in his body take charge. I know he pushed himself when I wasn’t around. Each session, I took extra care to make sure his leg was adapting to the stress. I never found a reason to tell him to slow down.
Rubbing my face, I draw in a fortifying breath before I grab the handle to my door. My heart beats faster with each step I take toward his door. My nerves are shooting signals at increasing speeds—excitement over seeing him and fear that he’ll turn me away without an explanation.
I promised him I would return last Monday, and I broke that promise. I hate it, but there was nothing I could do. I asked Toby to apologize and explain to Viktor what happened. He never told me what Viktor said, and I never asked for fear that Toby would see right through me.
My fist hovers in the air before I finally knock on Viktor’s door. I shift my weight from one leg to another. When the door opens every thought flees my mind.
God, he’s so beautiful! He’s wearing a tight, black thermal, and I can see every dip of muscle under the material. Dark jeans hang off his hips, and I smile when I see he’s standing there without crutches or the wheelchair nearby. Instead, I see the plastic foot of his prosthetic.
“Hi.” I know how inefficient and simple of a greeting it is, but I’m excited just to see that strong jawline, even if the muscle over it is ticking furiously. If not for his eyes, I would have turned away right then.
“Belle,” his rough voice whispers. I know he’s as surprised to find me standing here as I am at the all-consuming need to be here.
“May I come in?”
Viktor steps back, and I see the discomfort in his eyes. Getting used to the prosthetic won’t be easy, but the man is stubborn enough to get through it. He closes the door behind me, and my hands shake with nerves. I’m unsure if I should remove my jacket or not, so I stand there. I breathe him in, enjoying the scent of body wash and Viktor.
“You lied.” The skin between his eyes crinkles, and I hear the hurt under his anger.
I make a show of looking at my phone’s screen. “Is today not Monday?”
Viktor doesn’t find it funny. He pulls himself straight, the invisible coat of armor he wears now in place. I hate it. I hate that I put him on the defense.
I close the distance between us, feeling the electrical charge around us. “I’m sorry.”
He looks down his nose at me as if I’m the crap left behind on the sidewalk when an owner doesn’t clean up after their dog. His nostrils flare as he ignores my apology and only continues to stare me down.
Anger rises within me. “What would you have me do?” I snap. “Leave my father after his fall?”
“What? Your dad fell?” Compassionate eyes bore into mine.
Damn Toby to hell. “He didn’t tell you,” I say, because it’s now so obvious.
“Why would your dad tell me he fell? I don’t know him.”
“Not my dad, Toby.”
Viktor’s eyes harden at the name.
“Never mind. Look, I only got home late last night after visiting my dad. I was supposed to be home over a week ago, except dad took a tumble off a ladder.”
“That’s awful! Is he okay?”
“Yeah, dad got away with only a slight concussion, bruising, and a broken ankle. I stayed until he told me I was driving him crazy.”
“That had to have been scary.”
“God, seeing him lying motionless at the base of that ladder was the worst moment in my life. He looked small, and I thought I lost him until I checked his pulse.” The thread of life had spurred me into action. By the time the ambulance arrived, he was conscious and in pain. “I couldn’t leave him after that.”
I called Toby, my supervisor, to tell him what happened.
“Don’t worry Izzy,” he said, using the nickname I hated because of him. “I’ll cover Prinz this week. Don’t you worry your pretty little head.”
“I’m glad he’s okay now,” Viktor said.
Viktor’s angry reaction made more sense now. Although, I’m not sure he would have reacted any differently. I laugh and look down at my hands. Warmth seeps into me as he cups my jaw, and our eyes meet. “I’m sorry. I thought you knew.”
“No. I thought—” He looks away before meeting my eyes again. The intensity of his gaze takes my breath away. “I thought you broke your promise, that I drove you away with our kiss. That you remembered how much better you can do than your pathetic, broken patient.” He spat the last word out, bringing us back to the elephant in the room.
Without a thought, my hand snaps out and I pinch his side, hard. “Stop that! You aren’t pathetic or broken, or even my patient any—”
Viktor’s mouth crushes mine, and his hot tongue dives inside. He’s assaulting my senses, and it feels amazing. Our tongues perform a sexy dance, rubbing this way and that. Weaving my hands around his neck, I pull him to me, fusing our mouths together. His large hands grab my waist, tugging me forward. My softness presses against the hard planes of his body.
I pull his delicious lip into my mouth, sucking and nipping at the sensitive skin. Viktor growls, and my core tightens at the sound. He scatters kisses along my face before burying his face in the hair gathered at my neck.
“God, I’ve missed you.” The confession is out of my mouth before I can even think it. I feel my face warm with embarrassment, and for a moment I worry it will drive him away.
Viktor’s answering sigh tickles my neck. He drags his tongue down the column of my neck and scrapes his teeth along my over-sensitized skin. Needy and desperate moans slip from me, my fingers tugging at his hair.
He removes my jacket and throws it at the wall behind me. I kick off one boot then the other. His hands massage my ass as he grabs handfuls of the flesh, a mixture of pleasure and pain at his desperate touch.
He guides me farther into the house and teases my ear. “Fucking need you, Belle.”
This strong, beautiful man needs me. My heart flutters and my body perks up. Slipping my hands under his shirt, I explore the muscles of his back and shoulders. My short nails scrape at the flesh as his mouth devours mine.
When my back bumps into a hard surface, I look around the kitchen. Viktor pulls off my shirt, leaving me in my black, lacy bra. His eyes take me in, and I fight the urge to squirm under his intense gaze. With a flick he unhooks my bra and pushes the straps off my shoulders.
“Perfect beauty.” He drags his fingers down my neck and between my breasts to the button on my jeans. Goose bumps form along the path his finger has taken. His touch pulls my nipples into tight little peaks. He presses his mouth to my neck and begins to follow the same trail as his fingers as he unbuttons my jeans.
I cradle his head in my hands and close my eyes. I try to catch my breath at his tender touch, but it only comes out in little pants. His tongue circles the sensitive bud of one breast then the other. I growl with frustration as Viktor teases my nipples.
“Tell me what you want, Belle.” Those piercing eyes stare into mine, his mouth a whisper from my nipple.
My hand presses on the back of his neck, but he only smirks at me without budging. “No, beautiful. I want to hear you tell me.”
“Please, baby!” I beg, but he only flicks his tongue along the edge of my nipple. “I want your mouth on me.”
He chuckles. “That’ll do for now, but we’ll work on it.”
Before I can snap at him, his tongue flicks the hard point, drawing a needy moan from me. The bolt of pleasure shoots through my body straight to my clit. He bites, licks, and sucks one nipple while the rough pad of his thumb grazes back and forth over the other. Switching breasts, he repeats it all over again.
“Such pretty tits,” he says around one nipple. “The best I’ve ever seen.”
His mouth takes mine, and his hand cups my heat. My legs part, begging for more attention. Growing bolder, I slide my hand down and run my hand up his jean-clad, hard length.
I smile when he groans, “Fuck, baby.”
Viktor surprises me when he removes my hand and threads our fingers together. He gently pulls me toward the hall and into his room. Once inside, I freeze. My eyes dart to the single rose on the dresser, and memories of the last time I was in here assault my senses.
“Belle?” Confusion is clear in his voice.
My gaze moves to his before returning to the rose. What does it mean to him? Why did he react so violently to me nearly touching it last time?
“Ah, shit. Belle? Baby, I’m sorry about last time.”
My brow lifts in challenge. “You mean the fact that you nearly ripped me in two?”
He pulls me forward and I let him. We stop before the rose, and he releases my hand. Reaching behind him, he grabs his shirt and pulls it off. It’s not the first time I’ve seen this beautiful man without a shirt, but it still takes my breath away. In three weeks he’s become stronger in so many ways. All the work is paying off as I note the extra dips created by his muscles. So much definition and—
My mind stutters when it sees a new tattoo on his chest. It wasn’t there the last time I saw him shirtless. A single red rose as it opened is forever etched over his heart. One petal lays on its side, fallen from the beautiful flower. A drop of blood slips off the rose, and another pools on the fallen petal.
It is heartbreakingly beautiful. I raise my hand toward it, stopping midair to check his reaction. Viktor gives me the smallest of nods, and my fingers touch the artwork. He hisses at the touch, and my eyes fly to his.
“Does it still hurt?”
“There’s still a sting. You’re fine though.”
I step closer to him and kiss the petal. My lips move along the raised skin, kissing the beautiful rose that seems to mean so much to him.
His hands grasp the sides of my face, and his fingers thread into my hair. Viktor’s face dips, and his lips capture mine. This kiss is tender and sweet with no hurry.
Wrapping my arms around his waist, I pull myself against him. Under my fingers I feel his muscles ripple as I explore this man I haven’t been able to forget.
Viktor lays me down on his bed, and for a moment I worry about his leg. I search the expression on his face and see his desire for me, no signs of discomfort or pain. I push my thoughts aside and scoot up the center of his bed.
He moves like a predator as he follows me. The therapist in me can’t stop from worrying as he kneels between my legs. He distracts me from my thoughts as he scatters kisses along my stomach. He tugs off my jeans, throws them aside, and kisses his way up my thighs.
My clit throbs when he kisses my mound. “You’re driving me crazy, honey.” I whimper, needing his mouth on my center.
Viktor only smirks before he widens my legs and glides his fingers over the thin material covering me. Before I know it, he’s ripped my thong clear off my body.
A primal growl escapes him. “So fucking wet…So fucking pretty…” A thick finger glides through my sensitive folds and my back arches. I need more of his touch. “My beautiful Belle,” he rasps before his mouth is on me.
Fantastic. Amazing. Beautiful.
His hands squeeze my ass cheeks as he raises me to him. My core tightens as the pressure builds within me. Each flick of his tongue on my clit shoots thousands of bolts of pleasure through my body. Viktor is everywhere. One hand cups my breast, plucking and pulling on my nipple. Two magical fingers slip inside of me, and his mouth suckles my clit.
He’s assaulting my senses. My heart is beating against my ribs with each touch, lick, and pull. In no time, I feel my body coil tightly before I shatter into a million pieces. I cry out his name, and my fingers pull at his hair, needing something to stop me from floating away from this earth.
Viktor moans against me, and the vibration against my bundle of nerves makes my body twitch. He gently licks me until my tremors subside. He takes his time exploring my body, kissing every inch of me that’s exposed for his viewing pleasure.
No man has ever worshipped my body like Viktor Prinz. I relax into his touch and sigh, savoring the attention he’s showering me with. Finally when he kisses me, I taste myself on his lips, a heady combination mixed with the taste of Viktor’s sweet mouth.
“I can’t get enough of you,” he says with a press of his hardness on my hip.
His words make me feel powerful. I nip his lip and smile. “My turn, big guy.”