We said our sickly-sweet goodbyes, and I managed to avoid Christian’s gaze, even though I could feel it on me like a rash.
“That was . . . wow,” Valentina said as we reached the bar.
“She’s nice.”
Val laughed. “You’re so out of touch with reality.”
“I need a drink. And this time, hold the bitters,” I told her.
“Honey, that’s a Moscow Mule. There isn’t any bitters.”
“Well, something’s bitter.”
“Yes, something is.” She eyed me meaningfully and then tossed back a shot that was placed in front of her. I followed suit and enjoyed the burn in my throat. I hadn’t planned to drink tonight, but I also hadn’t expected to feel inadequate in Aleksandra’s leggy, six-foot-tall shadow.
“Let’s dance,” I announced.
“I thought you’d never ask.”
She grabbed my wrist and dragged me to the dance floor. We found a spot in the crowd and moved with the bodies, pressing our backs together and rolling our hips. Maybe it was due to my lack of modesty, or maybe it was for pure attention, but I loved to dance with an audience. And right now, there were a lot of male eyes pointed in our direction. Each one lit a spark inside me, slowing, sensualizing, each roll of my hips, the glide of my hands in my hair.
The fact I wouldn’t let myself look at Christian made the touch of his gaze more intense. Each one sent an involuntary shiver down my spine. Set a fire in my blood as a drop of sweat dripped down my back.
Out of breath, we reached the men at our table and fell into our seats.
Van moved in to whisper in my ear, his voice deep and raw, “Do you have any idea how gorgeous you are?”
I leaned away shyly, a stupid blush rising to my cheeks. “Yes.”
He laughed at my bold response.
My gaze flicked up and caught on Christian. He leaned against the bar, with Aleksandra and Elena in conversation beside him. He wasn’t looking at me. His gaze was directed at Van, and it was dark enough I could feel the coldness on my skin. He took a sip from his glass, his expression filling with something volatile and conflicted before he looked away.
Uncertainty ran through me.
If he ruined another relationship for me, I’d scream.
We talked for an hour until I felt Mother Nature’s call. I weaved through the crowd and walked upstairs, past the bouncer Ronny who nodded at me, toward the bathrooms on the VIP floor. They were always less busy than the ones downstairs.
I pushed the door open and almost turned straight back around to brave the bathroom line downstairs, because Aleksandra stood at the sink washing her hands. Her cat-eyed gaze flicked to me, and I couldn’t back out now. I used the restroom, and when I exited the stall, she was still at the mirror, applying lipstick.
We stood side-by-side at the sink.
She brushed some powder on her cheeks. “I wouldn’t be caught dead in that dress.”
The truth always comes out in the bathroom, doesn’t it?
I reached into my bra for my lip gloss. “Confidence comes with time. I’m sure you’ll get there someday.”
She was unfazed. “You vant him.”
I sighed. We were actually going there.
“I had him. I don’t care for a repeat.”
“You lie.”
I applied a liberal coat of lip gloss. “You have nothing to worry about. Christian and I will never be a thing.”
“Now, that I believe. You are not what he needs.”
I felt an odd pang in my chest.
I raised a brow. “You know him so well?”
“He is not so complicated. He likes his privacy and his things the way he likes them. I won’t demand more from him, and neither will he from me.”
How could she not be curious? I didn’t even like him and still wanted to know everything about him. In truth, I was nosy beyond belief. I’d never be happy with a superficial relationship with him—the only thing I was sure he was capable of. We’d never work. But, for some reason, hearing that out in the open made me slightly uneasy.
She snapped her compact closed. “We will marry, and you won’t get in the way.”
“I don’t have any designs on him.”
“Good.” She headed to leave.
There was something on my mind I hadn’t been able to get rid of.
“Kak moya,” I said, smoothing the gloss on my lips and watching her in the mirror. “What does it mean?”
She stopped at the door, assessing me with a look.
“It means, like mine.”
GIANNA
DROPPING MY PURSE ON THE kitchen island, I kicked off my heels and stretched out my toes, wincing at the ache in my feet. I’d had too much on my mind to stay at the club, and while Van’s attentions weren’t unwelcome, I couldn’t find much interest after my conversation with Aleksandra.
I was glad to find Magdalena and her date had vacated my apartment, though I could see they’d enjoyed one of my expensive bottles of wine. Finding some left, I poured the remainder in a glass and leaned against the counter, taking a sip.
A heavy knock sounded at the door.
I sighed.
I’d been waiting for a visit from Luca—or, more likely, a check-in—now that I was a single woman. He was probably here to remind me about how not to go to jail. It’d been three years since my last felony offense—you would think they’d trust me now.
I finished off my wine and went to open the door.
My heart dropped to my toes.
Christian stood in the hall, his gaze lowered. He’d removed his jacket but otherwise wore his gray tie, pants, and white dress shirt he’d had at the club. When his eyes came up to me, I realized they were clouded with something dark and terrifying.
My pulse leapt.
On mere instinct, I tried to shut the door on him, but he kept it open with a hand. I took a step back as he entered my apartment. He shut the door, his eyes hot enough to set my skin on fire.
“You’ve been ignoring me.”
I shook my head.
He followed me as I walked backward, his tone demanding a response. “Tell me why.”
“You like me,” I breathed.
“Like?” His gaze flashed with something sardonic. “I don’t know if I’d call it that.”
I swallowed. “You like me . . . like me.”
I didn’t know how I could have been so stupid for so long—maybe I was in denial—but it was all clear to me now. He might hate himself for it, but Christian Allister was still into me. Really into me. Enough to kiss me. Enough to think I tasted like his.
My back hit the living room wall.
“Does that scare you?” A whisper of darkness laced through his voice as he stalked toward me.
I couldn’t focus—not with how hot my body was and how uncertain this revelation made me.
I nodded.
“Good.” He pressed his hands against the wall on either side of me. “It should.” The rasp of his voice sent the hair on my arms on end, and I sucked in a breath as his lips skimmed up my neck. “I’ve always thought about you.” He pressed his next words against my ear. “More than your date tonight could ever think about you.”
I shivered.