Viktoriya’s meeting was in Turkey. Apparently, some of the families weren’t too pleased with the new rules set in place. She was going to smooth things over and make the transition easier. She was going to kick someone’s ass if she had to. She sat back in the seat and closed her eyes. The plane pulled away from the terminal and she heard a voice she knew immediately.

“Would you like a drink?”

“What are you doing here?”

“I am your bodyguard,” Luka said simply.

“Oh, hell no. I don’t need one.”

“I am under orders to protect you with my life.” Luka handed her a rum and Coke. “So, I shall.”

“Um, no you shan’t. Get off the plane,” Viktoriya snarled.

“I can’t do that, we are taxiing down the runway. You should sit.”

“I will do no such thing.” Viktoriya felt the nose of the plane go up and lost her footing, falling right into Luka’s arms. She scrambled away from him. “This is not going to happen.”

“It is too late.” Luka sat down and opened a newspaper.

“How’s your knee?” Viktoriya smiled wickedly.

Luka kept his face expressionless. “It’s fine, thank you for asking.”

“Ugh.” Viktoriya sat back and picked up the phone. “Put me through to my father please.”

“Hello, darling.” Andrei’s voice was full of cheer.

“Don’t ‘darling’ me, Dad. What is this? Why do I have a bodyguard?”

“Because you are in need of one, my love. Please indulge Daddy.”

“This isn’t funny, Dad.”

“I agree. The situation requires you to be protected. I do not trust the Turks.” Andrei winked at Vince. “Please keep us apprised of the situation darling. I love you.” Andrei hung up quickly. “She is not happy.”

“Tough shit.”

The ride seemed to take forever once they landed. Viktoriya hated uncomfortable silences, so she turned her MP3 player on and tried to ignore Luka. She had to admit he was one hell of a good-looking guy. Clean-shaven, although he looked rough around the edges; she could see he had another side to him. His hands were three times the size of hers and strong. She could imagine them running her up her body. Oh God, she needed sex.

The car wound through mountains and Viktoriya noticed the sheer drop off the side. A half-hour later they pulled into the driveway of a very large mansion settled into the mountains. Luka got out first and did a sweep around the perimeter before coming back for her.

As they entered, the leader’s son, Vladimir, greeted Viktoriya. He asked if she required a drink. She declined, and was escorted past a group of fully armed men. Luka put a hand on her lower back, assuring he was there. His eyes darted back and forth — making a mental note of everything: how many men, exit doors and so on.

Dinner consisted of Viktoriya relaying her father’s message down to the letter. If they did not cease their illegal activities, it would get ugly. Luka noticed Viktoriya was armed. She wore dress pants, but he could see the butt of the gun; maybe not noticeable by others. He smiled and chuckled inwardly. Viktoriya Markov was not stupid.

“So, Viktoriya, maybe we could take a walk around the grounds after dinner?” Vladimir asked.

“If I’m not too tired, it would be my pleasure.” Viktoriya knew exactly what Vladimir’s job was at this meeting: keep her distracted. Jesus, men were stupid.

Luka’s eyes drifted to the son and he narrowed them. He was here for one purpose only: as a distraction for Viktoriya. As if she would forget her purpose and follow this idiot around. His eyes drifted to Viktoriya. She was charming and he watched her drink her wine. Her eyes were becoming heavy and the men wanted to call it a night on the grounds she needed rest. Luka stood off in the corner watching everything and everyone. As soon as Viktoriya’s napkin hit the table, he stood behind her and readied to pull her chair out.

“Goodnight. We will speak more in the morning.”

As soon as he put her to bed, he crawled out the window, hitting the ground below. It was a good fifteen feet to the ground, and Luka took off running. He stopped behind the vehicle they had come in and grabbed a suitcase and bag from the under carriage. His eyes darted back and forth, and when the guards turned, he ran up the side of the mountain, staying low to the ground. Once he found what he was looking for, he went back to the mansion, avoiding detection and crawling back up to Viktoriya’s room. He put his hand over her mouth and hoped she wouldn’t kill him in the process.

“Shh, it’s me.”

“What?” Viktoriya sat up. “What’s wrong?”

“You were drugged. We need to go, and now.” Luka picked her up.

“I can walk!” Viktoriya hissed.

Luka put her down and she stumbled. Her eyes went wide. “Oh God, you’re right.”

“Put warm clothing on. They jammed cell phone reception. We have to get far away from here.”

Viktoriya was throwing pants on and a T-shirt. She pulled a sweater on and then a parka. Her boots went on next and she almost fell over. “Son of a bitch!” Viktoriya whispered. “Assholes!”

Luka bit back a laugh. He knew he shouldn’t be laughing, but Viktoriya Markov was not a regular woman; she could take him down without breaking a sweat and cursed like a trucker. He could see why Vince had put her in charge of the interviews. “We need to go.”

Luka opened the window and slid out, hitting the ground. Viktoriya threw her legs over and looked down, now that she was half hanging out of the house. It looked like a really long way down.

“I will catch you.” Luka stood below.

Viktoriya closed her eyes and let go. The next thing she knew she was in Luka’s very strong arms. “Are you all right?”

The alarms went off and they took off running. The first guards were already shooting, and Luka shot back, hitting two of them. Viktoriya pulled her gun out and shot two more before the first bullet hit her. She almost tripped and fell before Luka had her in his arms.

Luka crossed boulders as if they were pebbles. She felt as if they were flying. The guy could be a track star, and he wasn’t even breathing hard. Viktoriya winced at the pain in her side. She put her hand down and it came back full of blood.

“I’m hit.”

“I can’t stop just yet. I’m hit too. Hang on okay?” Luka kept going.

It seemed like forever before they stopped. Time flew by, and Viktoriya knew she was losing blood. The last thing she saw was a gaping hole in the ground and then blackness.

She awoke sometime later, in her bra and pants. Luka was bent over her, touching her side, and she elbowed him in the nose. Luka let out a string of curse words and eyed her, eyes blazing.

“I’m trying to help you!”

“I’m sorry.” Viktoriya sat up and let out a yelp.

“Please lie back and let me finish. It was a clean shot, through and through, so I am disinfecting it and closing it up.” He gave her a bottle of water and a pill. “It’s an antibiotic.”

Luka’s hand was running up her side as he finished putting butterfly strips over the wound he had just stitched. Thank God she had been out for that. She closed her eyes and felt his hand turning her over to finish the other side. For someone so big he had a very light touch, and it sent shivers up her spine.

“Are you cold?”

“Just… a little freaked out is all.”

“I should have gotten you out sooner. When I realized what was happening, I had to wait until there were fewer guards. I couldn’t take the chance of them getting to me and leaving you unprotected.”

He helped her back over on her side and she finally got a look at him. He was shirtless and Viktoriya bit her lip. Not only did he look good with clothing, shirtless Luka made her want to throw him a parade. The man was absolutely beautiful. And bleeding.

“Oh God, you’ve been shot.” Viktoriya got up and let out a small hiss. “Lay down.”

“I’m fine, it’s not bad.” Luka lifted his arm.

“Lay down.” Viktoriya commanded.

Luka sighed and settled on his back. Viktoriya took a good look and went about tending to his gunshot wound. The urge to throw up hit her when she could see muscle and tendons.

“Talk to me.”

“About what?”

“I don’t care. Just talk. What happened in the military?”

“I was kicked out.”

“I know that part. Why?”

Luka launched into the story of his military career. They had been out on a mission and his superior officer had ordered him onto a mountain ridge. He was to shoot the man who lived in the house as soon as he had a clear shot. Luka had been the only sniper in their brigade with the talent to pull it off, and when he finally had the man in his sights, he was holding a little boy. Luka had flat-out refused to shoot the man while holding the child and was reprimanded. During his court martial he had called his superior officer a shithead and an asshole with no moral values, with a sick twisted way of thinking. That was it. They kicked him out, and he had been working for whoever would hire him since. Not too many people did, thinking he was a huge asshole.

“I thought you were.”

“I can be.”

It was the first time she had seen him smile like that — not a forced smile, but a real one. Viktoriya finished stitching him up and then took in their surroundings. They were in a cave of some sort, and she realized the only light was a flashlight propped in the snowy roof so he could work.

“Snow cave?”

“It was the best I could do with the time that I had. I know they’ll be coming, probably with dogs. I spread rabbit blood everywhere a half mile from us. They will get close, but not too close. In the meantime…” Luka shut off the flashlight.

“It’s a little chilly.” Viktoriya wrapped her arms around herself.

Luka pulled her down and wrapped his arms around her. She felt his strong chest on her back and closed her eyes.

“I called your fathers; they have our coordinates and they will come for us when they have finished taking care of the problem.”

“So, the mansion. Blown to bits, huh?”

“I would assume. I know how your fathers operate, and this attack on you will be punished — severely.”

“I know. They’ll wipe out that whole house, I’m sure.” Viktoriya turned to look at him. She could barely make out a small smile at his lips. “You really do respect them, don’t you?”

“They don’t kill needlessly. They have reason and they never, ever put anyone in harm’s way who doesn’t belong there.”

“You know your accent changes a lot, right? When you interviewed I heard a lot more Russian than I do now.”

“It comes and goes depending on the situation. I grew up in Leningrad, so yes, I am Russian. But I have spent a lot of time in the States.” Luka pushed a wisp of hair from her forehead. Viktoriya was breathtaking. “What about you?”

“Born in Russia, given up for adoption when my parents died and no one wanted the responsibility of raising me. My dad… Andrei… came to visit me once a week in the orphanage, and when he and my father got together, they adopted me. I’d always hoped one day he would come back for me and keep me, and that day came.”

“Is it true, what they say? That he killed your dad’s father? You don’t have to answer that. It’s none of my business.” Luka shut his mouth. This was getting too personal.

Viktoriya turned on her side. “No, it’s okay. They told Nik and me the story, and yes, it is. My grandfather Panchenko was a guard; he kidnapped and tore apart my father’s family right in front of him when he was a teenager. Dad swore revenge on the guards who killed his parents and sister, but when he saw my other dad and his mother, he just couldn’t kill him. He let them live. They’d had nothing to do with the murders. When they saw each other again as adults, well, it took some time, but they fell in love.”

“They are well suited to one another. They have a deep respect for each other.”

“Yeah, well, eventually my father got a front row seat to ‘Andrei Panchenko sends a message.’ Seeing him in revenge mode — it kind of made him feel better about his own violent past. Supposedly my dad is just as ruthless as my father. I don’t ask about that.”

“They love you very much.”

There was large explosion and Luka announced, “I think your fathers have found the mansion.”

“Viktoriya?”

“Uncle Reece?”

Luka moved the rock and snow from the cave and she saw her uncles.

“There you are!” Lorenzo held her close. “Are you all right?”

“Luka fixed me.”

Reece checked her wound. “Nice job.”

“Thank you. She will need more antibiotics.” Luka pulled his jacket on.

“So will you.” Reece picked up his shirt.

“Am I needed?” Luka asked Lorenzo.

Lorenzo let out a low chuckle. “No, we have taken care of everyone.”

“I am not surprised.”

“Let’s get you to the plane.” Reece took her hand.

Luka watched her leave with Reece and then he noticed Lorenzo looking at him.

“What?”

“It does not matter if they are gay or straight.” Lorenzo threw his hands in the air. “What is with the guards and their charges?”