The tightness in my chest eased. I wasn’t known as a man who liked to compromise, but for her I would make an exception. I reached over and cupped her jaw, caressing her cheek with my thumb. “Okay, baby. We’ll go to your place… for tonight.”
I knew Dimitri had plans to move Emma out of that apartment as soon as possible, which meant I definitely would not be allowing Mary to stay there on her own. The security system we had installed was a Band-Aid, but the truth was as much as they may love it, that apartment was not fit for the girlfriends of two powerful men like us. They deserved the best and their tiny first-floor place was not it. For starters, being with us meant they were targets, so even a top-of-the-line home security system would not cut it. They both needed to be in a building we owned with twenty-four/seven security cameras at all entrances and our men patrolling the property. Starting tomorrow, I would move her things to my place.
It was strange how I wasn’t even questioning that decision. It had never even crossed my mind to move in with any of the women I had casually dated in the past, and yet I’d known this spitfire for less than forty-eight hours and already I was practically picking out china patterns for our wedding. It didn’t bother me in the least. I wasn’t a stupid man. When you found a woman as amazing, as spirited and beautiful and intelligent as Mary, you held on to her with both hands and that was precisely what I intended to do.
We pulled up behind the Ferrari. After seeing her expression earlier today, I’d realized my mistake in giving it to her. While I thought she would look sexy as hell behind the wheel of it, it clearly didn’t truly match her style. It was too trashy for a classic beauty like her and having it parked here would only draw unwanted attention to the building. I texted two of my men to grab the spare keys from my place and swing by and retrieve it. I also told them to bring the Range Rover and take the Mercedes home. I couldn’t have it on the street with a broken window, and I had no intention of leaving Mary alone to switch it out on my own.
I then walked around the car and opened her door.
I could see the exhaustion on her face. The night’s events were finally settling on her shoulders. Ignoring her feeble protest, I lifted her into my arms and carried her into the building. I held her close as she rooted around in her cherry-shaped purse for the apartment key. As we entered, I deposited her on the sofa and turned to plug in the security code to disarm the system, only to see it wasn’t armed.
“You know we didn’t install this for wall decor. It only works if you actually arm it.”
Mary slumped back on the sofa. “We tried, but the motherboard beat us.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. I did not know what that was supposed to mean, but it only reinforced my decision to move her out of here and into my place as soon as possible. Shrugging out of my coat, I rolled up my shirtsleeves and headed into the kitchen. “Have you eaten?”
“Does three shots of tequila and half a bag of Doritos count?”
“No.”
“Then, no.”
Shaking my head, I looked in the refrigerator. There was a container of Chinese food that I was afraid to open and half a packet of processed cheese. “How the hell do you girls survive?”
She peeked up at me from over the back of the sofa. “We have the essentials.”
“What essentials? There are no eggs, no vegetables. There isn’t even butter or milk or bread,” I responded as I rummaged through her cabinets.
“There’s tequila, coffee, and chips. That covers the primary food groups of any graduate student.”
With a resigned sigh, I reached for my phone. “Do you like Italian?”
She nodded.
I called La Scarola, the best Italian restaurant in the city in my opinion. When they answered I told them to put the owner on the phone. I then ordered a small feast of calamari, bistecca alla Zorich, capellini fra diavolo, antipasto, bruschetta, and some tiramisu.
When I hung up, Mary protested. “Are you inviting a small army over to dine with us?”
Tossing my phone on the counter, I walked over to the sofa and took both of her hands to raise her up. Without saying a word, I walked her down the hallway.
“What are you doing? We just ordered food.”
“It won’t be here for at least an hour. Besides, they can leave it at the door,” I responded as I led her into the bathroom and leaned over to start the shower. After adjusting the water, I turned back to her. “Arms up.”
She of course did not do as I asked; instead she objected, “What are you doing?”
I grasped her wrists and raised her arms for her. “Taking care of you.” I pulled her shirt over her head.
She lowered her arms and covered her bare breasts. Her beautiful blue eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Men like you don’t do stuff like this.”
I raised an eyebrow as I reached to unbutton her pants. “What do you know about men like me?”
She nodded. “Good point, but I’m perfectly capable of showering by myself.”
The small room filled with steam. I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her close. “Maybe, but you’re not capable of doing what I have planned by yourself.”
Chapter 13
Mary
“Technically, a dildo could—”
Vaska pulled me against his chest by the waistband of my pants. “Don’t even finish that sentence unless you want me to blister your backside with my belt.”
He finished unbuttoning my pants and gruffly ordered me to step out of them. I slipped out of my heels, panties, and my black Capri pants. Of course, without my heels, my head barely reached his shoulder. It made me feel small and vulnerable but in that sexy, who’s-your-daddy, dominate-me kind of way. That was what was so mesmerizing about Vaska. Other men were just posers acting a part when they tried to be all tough in the bedroom. Vaska was the real deal.
He untied the red silk scarf from around my throat. He set it aside and said with a wink, “I’ll keep this on hand for later.”
I reached up and peeled off the thick fringe of fake eyelashes and put them on the small plastic dish by the sink.
He gave me a sweet look and stroked my cheek before saying, “Beautiful. So beautiful.”
I scoffed. “You don’t have to do that, you know.”
His brow furrowed. “Do what?”
I shrugged as I stepped past him to pull back the bright pink curtain with white daisies before stepping over the tub edge into the shower. I gasped at the heat of the water hitting my chilled skin before continuing, calling out over the rush of the shower, “You know. Acting like I’m beautiful without makeup. I’m on to that player trick.” I lathered my hands with soap and scrubbed the rest of my makeup off.
“I wasn’t going to say that at all. I prefer you with makeup on.”
I was so shocked I accidentally got soap in my mouth. Spitting and coughing, I tilted my head back to fill my mouth with water, swished it about and spat it out. I couldn’t believe he had just said that. Didn’t that violate some cardinal rule in the male-female relationship book? Of course, we weren’t in a relationship; I was just the one-night stand that wouldn’t end, so I guess it didn’t matter.