The vulnerable glint in his eyes surprised me. I caressed his jaw. "You can stay—but I should warn you that my bed is pretty small. There's no five-star luxury here."
He grinned. "There's something quaint about roughing it. I'm sure I'll survive."
"Uh-huh." I mockingly rolled my eyes and turned toward the pounding spray to rinse the evidence of our shower tryst off my skin.
Yuri enveloped me from behind. His lips ghosted across my ear. "If this is only a shower, I'm sold on your version."
I laughed and reached out to shut off the water. "Well, you did fly all the way from Berlin for me. I suppose it was the least I could do."
His bark of laughter made my tummy flip-flop. That boyish grin of his brightened his whole face and made him seem younger and less stressed. I ran my fingertips down his cheek. The rough stubble rasped my skin. "You should do that more often."
He took my hand and kissed my fingertips. "Do what, Kitten?"
I tried to ignore the way his pet name made me shiver inside. "Smile." I gestured to his wet hair and his relaxed posture. "I like you this way, without the bespoke suits and the army of handlers and the glossy photo-ready hair and face."
"It's a character." He rolled his shoulders. "It's what investors expect of me. Hell, it's what most women expect of me."
Not for the first time, I experienced the strangest sensation of knowing Yuri. Sometimes I felt like we were more alike than either could imagine.
"I know what it's like to play a character. I've been playing a role since I was a teenager. Fake it 'til you make it, right?" I dragged back the shower curtain and reached for one of the neatly folded towels on the shelf. I handed him one and took another for myself. "People see this polished, educated, well-spoken professional but deep down inside?"
The shadow of his painful past crossed his handsome face. "You feel like a fraud? You feel like an actor playing a role? Sometimes I find myself in the middle of a gala or some political event and I'm rubbing shoulders with the elite and wealthy and I just think—" He stopped himself and cleared his throat. "I don't belong there. No one there understands what it means to be me."
My eyes grew hot and I glanced away from him. He confessed all the things I'd been feeling for years. "I understand, Yuri."
"Yes, I know you do. Earlier you said I'm the only man you've ever dated who could understand what it's like to have a loved one in prison. Well, you're the only woman I've ever known who can understand what it is like to claw your way out of hell and into a boardroom."
The heady statement hit me with its truth. He was right. He'd escaped an orphanage where the boys were starved and neglected. I'd escaped a neighborhood where hookers turned tricks next to my school bus stop and drug dealers lived next door. By twelve, I'd dodged more bullets than most soldiers would on deployment.
Yuri slid an arm around my waist and hauled me tight to his chest. "The other day, Dimitri told me that he believes fate brought him from Russia to Houston, to that tiny apartment over Benny's old bakery. He believes that she was made for him. I'll admit that I thought that to be the silliest thing I'd ever heard but now…"
Gazing up at him, I asked, "But now?"
He brushed his fingers through my wet hair. "Now I'm standing here with you and I'm telling you things I've never told anyone and I feel like…" His voice trailed away as he searched for the right words. "Maybe Dimitri was right."
No man had ever said anything so romantic to me. I desperately wondered what I could say that would show him I was feeling the same thing but he traced my lower lip with his thumb and smiled down at me. In that moment, I realized that I didn't have to say anything. He knew.
Silently, we finished drying off and gathered up our discarded clothing. Inside my bedroom, I cringed at the mess on my desk and the pile of dresses draped over the chair in the corner. "Um—don't mind the mess."
"It's fine." He pretended not to care but I sensed he was fighting the urge to pick up the piles of books and shift aside the pyramid of high heels blocking the closet. Not bothering to slip back into his boxers, he crashed down onto my bed and dragged the top sheet over his chest. With an arm over his eyes, he said, "I can't remember the last time I was this tired."
Patting his foot, I said, "I'll be right back. I'm going to make sure the coffee pot is off."
He made a humming sound of acknowledgment. By the time I'd slipped into a robe and secured the belt, Yuri had passed out completely. I stared at him for the longest time. I couldn't believe a man who regularly made the rich lists was sleeping on my rumpled Target sheets. As tall as he was, he took up most of my full-size bed. I was probably going to have to fight him for space when I got back.
After turning off the coffee pot, I spotted his phone on the table. Guilt seized me as I thought about poor Jake and the other bodyguard and his driver waiting out there while he slept. If they'd been in Berlin with him, they were probably dead tired.
Feeling self-conscious, I made my way to the front door and peered out the peephole. I spotted Jake's familiar form leaning against the opposite wall. I flipped the locked and opened the door. He snapped to attention and took a step forward. Even with his sunglasses in place, there was no mistaking his concerned impression. "Miss Cruz," he said with a nod. "Is everything all right, ma'am?"
"It's fine. Um…" I clutched my robe a little tighter. "Look, Yuri is asleep and I just wondered if you guys wanted to come inside and get comfy? I'm sure you're hungry and tired. There's no reason for you to be stuck outside while he naps."
"Oh." Surprise colored his voice. "Well, we aren't supposed to—"
"Please?" I turned up the charm. "I feel like such a bad hostess having you outside in that car. Come in. Have something to eat. Nap. You know—whatever."
Jake finally accepted. "Thank you. We'll be right in, ma'am."
"You can drop the ma'am. It's just Lena."
"No can do, ma'am. When you're with the boss, you're Miss Cruz or ma'am."
I didn't know how to react to that so I let it go. "I'll leave the door unlocked. Make yourselves at home."
Back inside the house, I returned to my room and found my cell. I didn't have the energy to look at the collateral damage from my night of drunken tweeting and Facebook posting. I typed a quick message to Vivian and got pulled into a conversation with her.
Yuri's bodyguards and driver are kicking it on our couch. Don't freak when you get home.
Oookay. Kinda weird but I'm cool with it.
Sorry. I should have asked first. Also—Yuri is sort of sleeping in my bed.
Sort of?
No, he is. I promise he isn't staying the night. I know how you feel about overnight guests.
Oh geez! It's fine. It's Yuri. Sister Vivian says to get some rest and quit bothering me while I'm in class! ;)
Smiling at her Sister Vivian joke, I dropped my phone on the bedside table and slid into bed with Yuri. He woke briefly when my foot brushed his. Reaching for me, he said, "Come here, Lena."