Chapter 7

Victoria

 

 

 

I pulled dress after dress down from the racks in my walk-in closet. I had enough to start my own boutique, but I wasn’t really into selling clothes. Buying, on the other hand, was something I excelled at. It was my de-stressor, my happy place. I loved trying on pretty things, loved how the soft material of a new outfit caressed my skin like a lover’s touch.

The problem was, I loved it a little too much at times. After my shopping spree with Scarlett the day after we had gotten home from our three years in Sicily with our grandmother and uncle, I had zero room for the new things. That meant I got to do my second favorite de-stressor—give my older clothes to one of the charities I loved.

I was a big contributor to many charities, but the one that took my barely worn clothes and gave them to women who needed a nice outfit for work interviews and such was my favorite. The way a person looked was one of the keys to getting a decent job, and my practically brand-new outfits were helping others accomplish that.

Humming to myself, I went through all the clothes that had been hanging in my closest for the past three years. How had it been that long since we had been home? It felt like no time at all had past to me.

For Scarlett, however, I knew it was a completely different experience. It was because of her that we had been sent to live with our grandmother in the first place. Not that I blamed her or anything. That was squarely on Ciro Donati’s shoulders. He hadn’t been able to handle how my twin made him feel, and he had convinced Papa that we would benefit from a little time in Sicily.

I had enjoyed my time with Nona, so I hadn’t been cursing his name … much. She was one of my favorite people in the universe, and not just because I could twist her around my finger as easily as I did Cristiano.

It had only been a few days since I had seen her, yet I missed her like crazy. I had gotten used to having a mother around. Mary Donati had been the only real mother figure we’d had after our mother’s death, but she hadn’t always been available when I had needed to talk about girl things. Nona had spoiled me with all the motherly affection and attention she had given me.

Pulling three dresses from the racks without giving them much thought, I wondered if Nona would like Adrian. She was of the mind that women should be with men who took charge, alpha to the core, but could still let a woman step in and do what needed doing at times.

My Russian wolf was definitely alpha, and I fucking loved when he took charge. Plus, he didn’t seem to have a problem with letting his sister do her own thing.

I missed him like crazy today. When I had woken up that morning, I had wished he was in bed beside me. Had wanted to be back in his apartment, in his bed, with him wrapped around me, making me feel cherished and protected.

As I had gone about my usual morning routine, I had texted him to tell him I was missing him. He had responded almost immediately that he was missing me, too, but I had gotten the impression he was busy. Knowing how crazy my father’s mornings normally were, I had figured his were the same. So, I had left him to it for a few hours.

Now, as I fished my phone from under a thick pile of dresses, I wanted to just let him know I was thinking of him again.

Hope your day is going smoothly. Miss you. So. Much.

Hitting send, I set the phone on one of the shelves where I had row after row of heels. I would be donating some of them, as well, but not nearly as many as dresses. If I were honest, I would admit to being a shoe whore. I loved variety and could have easily bought a small island with all the money I had spent on my collection of them.

I got lost once again in pulling dresses from the racks and adding them to the pile. Time went by quickly. It was only because I knew I had to check my glucose levels that I even looked at my phone again.

Over an hour had gone by since I had sent that last text to Adrian, but he hadn’t messaged me back yet.

Slightly disappointed but knowing he was a busy man, I walked through my bedroom and into the bathroom where I kept my blood sugar tester and everything else that I would need.

I was so used to doing this that it barely took a few minutes to test my glucose levels, and then prepare to give myself a shot of insulin in my stomach.

Feeling tired since I hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before, I dropped down on my bed and picked up my phone once again, after having thrown it on my pillows on my way to the bathroom. There was a text waiting for me, and my heart gave an excited jump when I saw it was from Adrian.

Miss you so damn much, my kotyonok. Will I get to see you tonight?

My excitement spiked.

Scarlett still thought I was upset after the whole thing with Anya calling her and making me think that Adrian couldn’t be with me. For the first time in our lives, I hadn’t run to her to tell her that things had changed. I hadn’t told her that I had snuck out by myself the night before. I didn’t know why I was keeping it from her, but something told me she would disapprove and I didn’t want to argue with her over him. Not when she was like the other half of my soul. Adrian was beginning to bury himself deeply into the other half.

It wouldn’t have been hard to sneak out again on my own. I had this desperate ache in the pit of my stomach. I wanted to see him again. Needed to have his arms around me once again as he held me against him and stroked his fingers over my hair while I listened to the tempo of his heart.

I feel like dancing …

Hitting send, I turned onto my front and pulled my pillow close. As my eyes shut, I didn’t even try to hold back my yawn. If I was going out later, then I needed at least a short nap. This staying out until the early hours of the morning was already beginning to catch up to me.

Just as I was starting to drift off, my phone got an incoming text. I opened one eye as I read Adrian’s message.

Will pick you up. 11:30. We can dance all night long.

A happy smile touched my lips as I let myself drift off into dreamland where I could always be in Adrian’s arms.

 

 

 

***

He was waiting for me in the same spot where he had dropped me off the night before. As soon as I climbed into the passenger seat, I couldn’t stop myself from leaning over and kissing him long and deeply. He fisted his hands in my hair, and I didn’t even care that he was ruining the time I had spent making it perfect for him.

He was just as hungry for me as I was for him.

His breath hissed out from between clenched teeth as he pulled back. “Let’s go dancing, yeah?” He gave me a wink that made my already racing heart pound against my breast bone.

His car wasn’t flashy, not like a lot of the guys I knew tended to be. They had money and wanted the world to take notice of what kind of death trap on wheels they could afford. Adrian’s car was plain and black, but I could feel the rumble of the powerful engine inside the beast of a car. That was sexier than anything I had ever rode around in before. I liked it and had to admit it was pretty perfect for my Russian wolf.

With his hand on the shifter, he changed gears effortlessly, like he was one with the car and it was second nature to him.

Unable to keep my hands to myself, I covered his hand, tracing my nails over his then linking our fingers. He clasped them between his own and didn’t let go, even when he had to shift gears.

As we rode through the late-night darkness, he would lift our joined hands every once in a while, and kiss the back of my hand. Every time he did that, I would shiver deliciously as my heart squeezed at how much I loved him.

We didn’t go to the Iron Hand, as I had assumed we would do. Honestly, I hadn’t wanted to go there, not after Anya had tried to come between me and her brother. I didn’t want to put myself in front of her so she could attempt to fill my head with more lies about him. I had no idea why she didn’t want me with him, but I wasn’t going to give her a chance to turn me against him.

Instead, he pulled up in front of a club I had never seen before. The place looked crazy busy, even more so than Anya’s club had been. Maybe the busiest club I had ever been to. Given the amount of times Scarlett and I had snuck out to go clubbing as teenagers, I was pretty sure we had gone through a fair number that New York City offered.

The outside of the club didn’t even have a name above it, so I had no idea where we were. There was a line to get in, but it didn’t seem to be moving.

Adrian pulled up to a roped off area, right in front of the entrance, and my door swung open. Before the suited bouncer could offer me his hand, though, Adrian growled something at him that had the other man quickly jumping back.

Smirking at how possessive he was, I waited for him to get out and move around the car so he could assist me out himself.

As soon as my feet were on the ground, he pulled me tightly against his side, as if he planned on carrying me.

I pressed my hand to his chest, pushing back a little. “Relax,” I murmured with a laugh. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He lowered his head, brushing his lips over the shell of my ear. “I can’t help it, kotyonok. You look so delicious in that dress, and fuck, those heels are killing me. I need to mark you, let every man within a two-mile radius know you belong to me.”

I lifted my free hand, stroking the backs of my fingers over his scruffy jaw. “You’re a smart man, cuore mio. You must know that I adore you.” I looked up at him through my lashes and licked my bottom lip, tempting him to kiss me. “But if you kiss me here and now, no one would ever doubt I am yours.”

His dark eyes were glued to my lips, watching every word that they formed, every stroke of my tongue across the fullness of my bottom lip. “What does that mean? That word you just spoke in Italian?”

It took me a moment to realize what I had said. I hadn’t even known I had said it. Then, with a shrug, I told him, “It means, my heart.”

His next breath was a sharp inhale. “I like it. Use it always.”

“I’ll think about it,” I teased then stepped back. “Come on; I want to dance. You promised.” I gave him a sassy little pout that made him groan then chuckle.

Linking our fingers together once again, we walked over to where two well-dressed bouncers with sophisticated headsets attached to their ears stood. They were giants, at least six and a half feet tall, and the muscles on them … holy crap, they looked like their suits were spray painted over their bulging muscles. They had to have been on steroids or some shit, because no one could get that big, even if they spent every hour of the day in the gym.

But, even for how big and scary they appeared, they seemed to stand at attention a little more when they spotted Adrian at my side, seeming nervous by his sudden appearance. As we drew closer, one stepped aside, opening the door for us.

“Mr. Volkov, enjoy your evening.”

Adrian barely acknowledged the man.

The bouncer had known him at first glance, and I couldn’t help wondering how many times Adrian came here. Did he bring other women? If so, how many had he brought before me?

I put the brakes on that line of thinking, pushing down the sudden wave of jealousy that wanted to ruin our night out together by turning into a raging bitch and demanding he tell me how many women he had dated—was currently dating.

Were we dating?

Fuck that shit. I was not going down that road tonight. I just wanted to have fun, enjoy my time with the man who knew good and well that he owned my heart, and maybe even be a little naughty in the process. I was craving his hands on my body, in all the places he had explored the day before. I wanted him to make me come again, and I promised myself that he would before the end of the night.

Inside, there was music pulsing through the entire building, something no one right outside could have possibly heard unless the door was opened. It was good music, too. Not like some clubs that played only trashy techno that was outdated and boring as fuck. This music seemed to bounce off the walls and hit me right in the middle of the chest, begging me to move my body to the beat.

“You can’t stand still, can you?” he murmured close to my ear, his voice deep and amused. His fingers bit into my hip hungrily, and when I lifted my eyes to his, they glowed with a need that matched my own. “Will you dance for me, kotyonok?”

“I’ll give you whatever you want, cuore mio,” I breathed, staring up at him through my lashes.

When he turned his body into me, I instantly felt how much he wanted me. His hardness flexed against my waist, his eyes eating me alive.

“Come with me.” His voice was rougher now, his hand practically shaking as he linked our fingers together and pulled me farther into the club.

We hadn’t even reached the other people dancing and having a good time. He stopped before we even saw any other people. At first, I didn’t see the door that blended seamlessly into the wall. Lifting our joined hands, he brushed his lips over my knuckles as he leaned into the wall and the door slid open for him.

I was momentarily confused until he stepped back, pulling me with him into a secret alcove that led to a staircase. A single man stood between us and the stairs, but he moved aside as soon as he saw Adrian.

With a single curt nod to the man, my Russian wolf guided me upward.

At the top, there were several different doors, but he didn’t even hesitate to pick one. There was no foot traffic through here. I saw no one except for the bouncer we had passed, though I could almost sense others behind the doors. I wondered if they were VIP rooms, or perhaps something more. Something naughty.

Just thinking of the possibility had my panties becoming uncomfortably wet. I pressed my thighs together, attempting to assuage the ache building in my clit.

Opening the door, he urged me in.

I stepped through, gasping at the sight before me.

We were directly above the dance floor now. The floor and opposite wall were glass, one large one-way mirror that allowed us to see everyone and everything going on below us, but kept us in seclusion.

The door shut behind us. I shouldn’t have been able to hear the click of the lock sliding into place over the throb of the music, but I did. The vibrations of it seemed to echo inside my body, making my entire being quiver with anticipation.

I touched my tongue to my lips, trying to hide just how badly I wanted him, but the look in his eyes told me he knew. That he felt the same.

“Where are we?” I asked.

Adrian shrugged, his eyes those of a predator as he watched me. “Just a club I am a silent partner in.”

“You seem to be a silent partner in a lot of clubs.” I turned away from him, crossing to the full-walled mirror and looking out over the club. I watched the people below for a long moment while he stood quietly behind me. I felt his eyes skimming over my entire body like a physical caress and savored each stroke. “What other clubs do you own?”

“How about I take you to them all?” he offered, finally moving toward me. “You can dance at every one of them, and then tell me which is your favorite.”

I leaned back against the wall, waiting for him to touch me, silently begging him with my eyes. “Sounds like fun.”

Adrian watched me closely, a dark look on his face that only made me hungrier. “Dance for me.”

That command, spoken in that dark seductive voice that I loved more and more each time I heard it, made me shiver.

The music coming from the DJ below seemed to slow down, turning more sensual. I briefly wondered if Adrian had worked his magic to make it happen.

Closer he came, taking his time, his eyes becoming demanding.

I pushed away from the wall, moving away from him as he came closer to me. I smirked at him from over my shoulder when he growled deeply in his throat.

“When we were little girls, my sister and I took dance classes. She lasted all of one recital, then proclaimed she was never going to do it again. But, for me, dancing has always been in me blood.”

“You have a body meant for it.”

I crossed to one of the couches I hadn’t noticed when we first entered the room. As I had wanted, Adrian followed, but when he reached for my hand, I sidestepped him and pushed him down onto the plush cushions. He grasped me by the waist on his way down, taking me with him.

A giggle bubbled up out of my mouth as I buried my face in his neck. I felt his chuckle before it even left him, vibrating through him and into me. The feeling was erotic, as if he was part of me, but the sound was pure and masculine. I wanted to memorize it, savor it so I could keep it with me even when he couldn’t be.

His lips touched my ear. “I can’t remember ever being this happy, kotyonok. What is it about you that makes me feel so at peace?”

I lifted my head, wanting to see his dark eyes. “Maybe we were just meant to be,” I murmured, tracing a finger over his stubble-roughened chin. “Maybe I was made to be yours. Because I am, cuore mio. I’m yours … and you are mine.”