I can’t fight him there. “I’ve always felt like my father would give me a copy of the world but keep the original for himself.”
His eyes soften as he rubs soothing circles into my hand. “It’s going to be tough, especially since we just got each other. But after a few weeks we can share a lifetime together if you’ll have me.”
My mind takes a minute to process what he’s implying. “Do you mean you want to marry me?”
He nods. “This isn’t a proposal though. That will happen when you least expect it.”
I have to be grinning like a fool. I jump from my chair and tackle him to the ground. “Of course I will!”
I straddle his waist. “If we have to be apart for weeks, then I want to have all the sex we can fit in before we have to go to bed.”
He laughs. “Well, we can go another round, but I want you to be able to walk straight tomorrow once I return you to your father.”
I wiggle my ass against his cock through his sweats. “And don’t worry about the phone. My father owns a tech company, remember. I’m sure he’ll only want me to have one from his company. It’ll make sense if I show up without a phone anyway.”
He laughs and nods. “I guess you’re right. It would be better if you showed up with nothing. You know he probably has the phones he gives you bugged right? That’s another reason we should keep our distance, because I know if I’m around you, I’m going to want to do and say things that would make him want to castrate me.”
I frown. Well, that’s a disturbing thought. “If he has been, then he probably knows of the crush I have on you. Ensley and I talk about you all the time. After you save me, it might not be a shock at all, and if he thinks I lured you in, then he can’t fault you for that.” I lean down and kiss him long and hard, while moving my ass over him. “Now shut up and fuck me.”
* * *
Before I know it, we’re back in the city. We went to the airport and Will let us in through an underground tunnel. I don’t know how he knew about it or how he got us in, but it’s clear Cason’s family is way more cunning than I ever thought they were. Like spies, but they don’t work for an agency.
He has us come out the gate from a nonstop flight from Moscow. That way, if my father checks things he sees us arrive. We’ve roughed up the clothes I went missing in, because there’s no way I would wear Rosalie’s style clothes, and my father might know that. I told Cason I doubt he would but he told me not to doubt how observant he is.
Now, we’ve driven from the airport to my family’s estate. I know my parents are inside waiting for me. Everything was planned out so well by his father, the only way this could be messed up is if I let something slip. For Cason’s sake, I can’t let that happen.
“I’m certain we’re being watched right now, but I want you to know that I care about you.”
We’d agreed not to say I love you once we got here. Him saying he cares about me isn’t that big of a deal. My father knows that we grew up together and I’m close to Cason.
“I care about you, too. Thank you for saving me.” I said it for the possible eavesdroppers, but in a way, I do feel like he saved me; he saved me from a life of loneliness and pining, and I think I did the same for him.
Getting out of Cason’s truck, we head up the drive to the mansion I called home in my youth. I haven’t lived here since I was seventeen, and I don’t plan to ever again. Before we can even make it to the set of giant double doors, they open by the hands of our butler and my mother rushes out sobbing as she takes me into her arms and holds me close.
“My baby! My baby!” She pulls back for a second, her tears stilling. “Let me look at you. Are you okay? What are you wearing? You look too skinny.” Her wailing doesn’t stop as she pulls me into another hug,
I don’t think I lost weight while I was with Cason, and before this she liked to remind me I needed to lose five more pounds to look fantastic. I pat her on the back. “Mom, I’m fine. It’s just been a long week. I promise. Can you let me go? I can’t breathe.”
“Vera, let her go. You’re going to break one of her ribs with how tight you’re hugging her.” My father appears in the doorway. One hand shoved into the pocket of his dress pants. Ever the one to look formal even in his house.
My mother turns on him. “You be quiet, Michail Dimitri Kotov! I’m still livid with you. This is your fault! They took my baby because of you!”
My father stares at her with bored eyes and he sighs. “Come inside all of you. There’s business at hand.”
My mother doesn’t let me go as she pulls me into a side hug and holds me tight with her arm. I glance over at Cason, but he motions for me to go ahead of him. It’s not like we can walk in holding hands anyway.
We enter the house and my father leads the way to the foyer. This season it’s decked out in pinks, yellows, and blues to welcome in spring. My mother changes everything in the house according to the time of year. I suppose I don’t blame her. She’s never worked, so she doesn’t have much to do other than decorating. I wish she would open a business designing for people. I think my father would let her, he let me open a bakery, but she’s too shy to put herself out there like that. If she did one bad job and it got out, she would think her reputation is ruined.
My brother, Dimtri stands at the bar cart, a glass of something in his hands. I frown, he’s been drinking more lately. It’s something new, and I haven’t been able to get a chance alone with him to figure out what’s going on.
My mother pulls me over to the long, red, and I’m sure vintage sofa with gold accents and sits me down. “Dimitri come over here. I want to know both my babies are here and safe.”
He sighs. “Mom, I’m twenty-eight. And I’m right here and fine. She looks fine, too.”
“Dimitri, come sit, now!”
I wince. Her tone is giving me flashbacks of when she would force us to attend church on Sundays and Dimitri would do something to piss her off.
