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She caught his hand, slowly opening it with her fingers, kissing his calloused palm, her gaze never leaving his as she did so. Lifting her lips away, folding his large hand between her own two smaller ones, she whispered, “I love you Nik. I did from the beginning. I tried to tell myself I was crazy. That it couldn’t be so. How could I fall in love with a stranger I didn’t know? And yet, as I sat next to you in church, there was such a rich wealth of feelings exploding from my heart toward you that it left me breathless, my mind blown by what was going on between us. I had no idea if you felt anything like I was feeling, but the emotions, the sensations, literally swept through me, dragging me along and I couldn’t fight it.” Daria gave him a rueful look. “The truth? I didn’t want to fight it, Nik. I didn’t know what it was at first, but I wanted to find out. I was sexually drawn to you, no question. But there was so much, much more and we were in a pressure cooker where it was impossible to explore what we had.”
“I felt the same way,moya kotya,” and Nik shook his head, giving her a look of wonder. “What I want to do now that I’m here? I want to explore the universities and colleges in Virginia, and find the best paramedic program they have available. Once I accomplish that, I’m going to go for a PA, physician’s assistant. I can have my own office; patients and I will be content. I know I’m a good combat medic, but now, I want to turn my skills toward a peaceful landscape. I will always want to help people, stop their suffering, and ease their pain. It’s who I am.”
She whispered Nik’s name, rising to her knees and sliding her arms around his shoulders, holding him tightly against herself. “That is the man I fell in love with,” she whispered brokenly against his ear. “Don’t ever change, Nik. You are healing me, too, whether you know it or not.”
He rasped Daria’s name, taking and easing her on top of him as he laid down on his back. He felt her softness, her body giving here and there against his, felt the heat explode where their hips met and fused naturally with one another. Daria gripped him with her woman’s strength, her brow against his jaw, clinging to him in the best of ways, as if trying to absorb him fully into herself. It was a stunning, beautiful feeling and he savored it, his hand slowly moving up and down her strong, capable back. He could feel how tight and firm her body was beneath his exploring fingers. He absorbed her warm, moist breath against his neck and chest, celebrating how well they fit one another, like lost pieces that had finally been found, fitted back together and come home to one another.
“We,” he told her huskily against her hair, “are going to have a beautiful, blossoming life with one another, my woman. We’ll have ups and downs, I’m sure. But we’ll have one another and that is more than most people are ever blessed to have in a lifetime.”
CHAPTER 21
The following evening,Daria felt tears stinging her eyes as she stood back beside Lauren Parker-Kazak as Alex surged through the opened door and bear-hugged his dear friend, Nik. She quickly wiped the tears from her eyes as Lauren drew a few steps closer, smiling.
“This is a meeting that’s been a long time coming,” Lauren told Daria, sliding her arm around her shoulders.
Daria hugged her sniper instructor friend. “Nik was so excited about seeing Alex once more,” and she watched the two men in the hall. They were speaking in Ukrainian, their voices thick with emotion. Alex Kazak had worked for three years with Nik in the same Russian drug team in Peru. Alex was the size of a massive Ukrainian bear, six foot three inches tall, heavily muscled, with black hair and hazel eyes. In comparison, Nik was six foot tall and a lot leaner. Ropy-muscled. When Alex threw his arms around his boyhood friend, the medic just about disappeared within his thick, tree-branch arms. They slapped each other heartily on the back, repeatedly hugging one another.
Daria saw tears streaming down Alex’s face. Nik’s expression was hidden to her. She could only see his heaving back, indicating a similar reaction. Tears leaked from her own eyes. Lauren gave her a soft look, wiping tears away, too.
The sum of emotions pouring out of them all was palpable. And wonderful. Daria absorbed the ecstatic happiness that embraced all. Even more important was that the two men could cry in one another’s arms. The deep sobs filled the hall. Her heart clenched as she watched the two men embrace, each head bowed against the other, their shoulders shaking. Seeing hardened soldiers become emotional through their mutual trust in one another, allowing that awful backlog of grief and horror pour out, enriched Daria’s soul. Daria didn’t know many American soldiers or Marines who would display such in front of anyone. But these two friends, who had shared so much anguish and danger together– and survived it, could and did. They were real men in her eyes. Real men cried. It was such an important part of their healing individually, and for each other. They’d seen too much. Things they’d never forget. Daria and, she was sure, Lauren knew just getting to offload the emotions, even though the images of horror would never be gone, was a huge, healing step in each of their lives.
There were no dry eyes in the hall, or in the living room and Daria ached to hold Nik as she heard the animal-like sobs ripping out of him. Alex held him, patted him on the back, his face ravaged with pain, tears for his closest friend glistening in runnels unashamedly down his cheeks. Daria hoped that someday she could hold Nik when he was hurting like this. The bond he had with Alex was special and she understood that and felt so glad that he was here for his partner of so many years.
Nik had endured two more years of hell than Alex had. Daria knew the concern Alex had always held about Nik being on the front lines as a CIA mole, always worried he’d be found out by Korsak, and then slowly tortured to death. She’d seen the distress in Alex’s eyes often and knew intuitively he was thinking about his friend who was laying his life on the line for his injured brother every day, without rest.
Finally, the men broke apart, gave each other silly grins as they wiped the last of the tears from their faces.
“Welcome home, brother,” Alex rumbled, gripping Nik’s shoulder and giving it a good shake. “It is about time.”
Nik gave him a strained smile, gripping Alex’s meaty shoulder back. “Yes, more than due time. I’m just glad it’s over.” He turned toward Daria and Lauren. His gaze centered on the woman he loved. Seeing her face wet, her eyes dark with emotion, he released Alex’s shoulder and walked over to her, taking her gently into his arms, kissing her hair, holding her against him. He saw Lauren move around him and walk over to her husband, comforting him as well.
“It’s all right,” Nik rasped against Daria’s hair. “This is a happy meeting. Tears of joy. Okay?” and he eased her back to hold her glistening gaze that held so much love for him in its depths. He saw her wet lips part, the lower one trembling slightly, as she raised her hand to cup his cheek.
“We’re crying for both of you,” she whispered unsteadily, trying to smile, but failing. “It’s wonderful to see men being able to hold one another let it go, and cry.”
His mouth stretched ruefully. “We are brothers in spirit,moya kotya. Alex has saved my life so many times…”
“And you have saved my sorry ass, too,” Alex growled, his arm around Lauren as he moved, bringing her with him to stand before the other couple.
Nik nodded; his expression serious. “It’s over, Alex. That’s all I care about. Dan will be coming to the US in about six days. He’ll be free. And he’s already scheduled for that brain scan technique.”
Clapping him on the back, Alex said, “Come, it is time to celebrate. I have been cooking for two days straight, wanting to give you a good, hearty meal that will make you think of our farm life in Ukraine.” He looked over at Lauren, his face growing tender with love for his wife. “Shall we begin to bring in the banquet?”
Lauren grinned. “Yeah, let’s haul in that food. I’m hungry.”
“Let me help?” Daria asked, her arm around Nik’s waist.
“No, no,” Alex said, waving his hand at them. “All you need do is set the table for four people. Lauren and I have this.”
Daria gave Nik a warm look. He looked ravaged and relieved on the surface of his expression, but so many other emotions surfaced from beneath it. “We can do that.” She tugged at his waist. “Come on,” she coaxed gently, giving him a tender smile. Daria didn’t feel like eating, and she was sure Nik probably wanted to wait, but he would put himself out for his beloved friend, Alex Kazak. The closeness of their bond was beautiful to behold, and Daria was so glad that Nik had Alex to talk to. No one could understand the pressure, the terror and suffering he’d gone through more than Alex. They’d shared them those unrelenting hellish years together. She was grateful that life had given each of them another chance after a time of such danger. A time where the knife-edged balance of life-and-death had swirled relentlessly around them daily.
Daria watched Nik begin to recover throughout their evening meal. The laughter, the spattering of Ukrainian mixed with English, the jokes and stories that Alex and Nik told, had them all laughing. Lauren didn’t understand Ukrainian, so they would stop and translate for her when needed. The meal they ate was huge but, to Daria’s surprise, she was hungrier than she had thought at first. Nik seemed to recover fully, eager to sup the Borscht soup. Alex knew Nik’s tastes and had been in the kitchen preparing these courses for him for days. Lauren helped as a sous chef while Alex, who was a true chef at heart, had made this wonderful meal of Beef Stroganoff, potato salad and yeast-risen rolls that they were all eagerly consuming.
Lauren and Daria removed the dishes afterward. Alex had made a dessert of honey Babka, a sweet, moist apple cake with a cream cheese topping. Lauren placed it on the table. Daria made them thick, strong Ukrainian coffee. Once they were all seated back at the table, cups full, everyone settled in to taste the luscious dessert.
“So?” Alex said in English to Nik, “Will you meet Dan in Colorado Springs, when they fly him in from Ukraine?”
“Yes, I will.”
