His mouth opened to say something, but I didn’t wait to hear it. I couldn’t. He was too dangerous to my sanity. I fled as if the hounds of hell itself were chasing me. I arrived back at the dining room to see that my dad had risen to his feet and seemed like he was ready to leave. He gave me a look of extreme disappointment, but he did not say anything. I’d never felt more relieved. We didn’t speak, but I did politely say my goodbyes to Maxim's father, Levan, and Bianca.
“Let me know if you need any help with your wedding,” I said to her.
“Actually,” she said sweetly. “I will. I want to wear your jewelry on my big day. I saw a really gorgeous necklace when we were at your place. Perhaps I can pick out that piece for me and some other stuff for my bridesmaids?”
“Really?” I breathed.
“Yes,” she said. “I’ll come to your office and we can go from there.”
I tried to get myself together. “That would be awesome.”
“And we’ll try to get them photographed and carried in some publication.”
I was so shocked I looked from Bianca to Levan. “Are you guys trying to bribe me?”
“I’m not,” Levan replied. “Bianca just likes supporting everyone.”
“Take my phone number,” Bianca said.
In a daze I took her phone number, accepted her embrace, and soon we were on our way. The ride back with my father was not at all comfortable. Not one word left his lips. It would be much better if he had screamed and condemned me. The complete silence made me feel horrible. From the time I was a child I always knew, in our world, every minute with each other could be our last. That I should never squander it.
I hated feeling that one day I could be regretting this car ride.
“The plane is ready,” he said to me, as we arrived at the house. “You can leave when you want.”
I got down from the car and he was driven away into the night. Where I did not know.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Freya
The moment the taxi pulled up in front of my apartment, I experienced a feeling of relief. I had escaped my father’s tentacles in one piece.
I had survived and made it back, still unmarried and with my freedom intact. I was extremely exhausted but I knew Britney needed assistance. We had scored rooftop access at a residential property in Soho, and she was supposed to be managing a quick photo shoot with some model friends she had managed to convince to work for free. Really, she needed me there so I thanked the driver and hurried on to the house with my luggage. If I was quick I could be with her in less than an hour.
I put the key to the lock and the door pushed open. The door had been left unlocked. Or more accurately, as I looked closer, the door had been broken open. I listened. There were no sounds at all.
Dropping my bag on the floor, I reached into our storage basket by the door and grabbed an umbrella. Then I began to walk as quietly as I could into our apartment. My heart was pounding in my chest. My entire system was alert to the possibility that whomever had broken in might still be there. Perhaps even have a gun. No matter how fast I was, I couldn’t outrun a bullet so I shouldn’t be taking one more step forward, but I couldn’t stop myself because I was an idiot who wanted to see my enemies.
There were very few places to hide in our small apartment. I ran my gaze across the one couch and armchair we had in the middle, and the hideous bright red hanging chair that Britney had bought from the flea market.
There was no one there, so I headed towards the two bedrooms. Mine was empty, and so was Britney’s, so I returned to the living room to think.
Fortunately for me, I had found no one, but with the passing of danger I began to shake. I’d never been haunted like this despite all the enemies my father had managed to accumulate throughout the years. Anyway, where were the guards that I knew my father had on me?
I pulled out my phone to call him, but given the cold way we had parted, the last thing I wanted was to give him a reason to reiterate his point that I needed a man to protect me.
I needed to tell someone about this, and it had been instilled in me from a very young age that you never call the police. No matter what you didn’t call them. There was only one person I could think of. It was all his fault anyway. Until he came into my life, everything had been normal. I knew he’d already be back in town so I pulled out my phone and called him.
I got straight to the point as soon as he answered. “Someone broke into my apartment.”
“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice calm and sure.
Something warm broke open inside me, and began to spread through my veins. I cleared my throat to rein in my focus. “Sure, I just thought to let you know, and to find out if you can think of a way to quickly bring this harassment to an end.”
“I’ll be there in five minutes,” he said.
Before I could protest or agree, the line went dead. I rose in a moment of instinctive panic. The apartment had been trashed, but then I sat my ass back down, refusing to be bothered by the complete mess.
I went into my room and busied myself with unpacking and putting away the clothes I took to Moscow and the four new dresses I brought back. Then I gathered all my underwear that had obviously been rifled through and dumped them in the washing machine. Bastards!
“Freya,” I heard my name called.
I walked out to see Maxim in the most casual form I’d ever seen him in. He had on a dark polo shirt and dark slacks. Suddenly, the most irrational and stupid thought crossed my mind. I wanted him to pin me against the wall and take me. Against my will.
My gaze moved restlessly over his body. I couldn’t stop staring at him.
The bulge of his thick biceps against the material and the way it molded to the ridges of his chest made me feel hazy. He rested his icy blue gaze on me, and I had to blink twice to clear my head.
“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice seductively velvety.
“I’m fine,” I replied, my body tingling with awareness of him. “You didn’t have to come over.”
He turned around to inspect my broken lock. I watched him as he dialed a number and issued out the instructions in Russian to fix my lock immediately. His voice was brusque, but the language had never sounded so sexy to my ears.
I needed to sit down, I was losing my mind. I didn’t want him. I wanted a career. I wanted a normal man. A normal life.
He turned to me, concern in his blue eyes. “Are you sure you’re alright? You look dazed.”
That snapped me right back to reason. “Um, I most definitely am not dazed, and I need to leave right now. Britney needs my help at a shoot.” All of a sudden fear gripped my heart. Britney. Was she actually safe?
In my state of shock I hadn’t even called to find out if she was actually okay and not been kidnapped or something. I scrambled for my phone and dialed her, but she didn’t pick up. I shot to my feet, terrified out of my mind.
“Pick up, pick up, Brit,” I muttered through gritted teeth, as I paced the ground.
“Is there a problem?” Maxim asked.
I spun around to face him. “Britney, my roommate. I need to find out if she is okay.”
“Do you know where she is supposed to be?”