She wasn’t justMoretti’s daughter.No.
She was Jade.Preziosa. Malyshka—my girl. The heathen who loved the beach and the ocean, who smelled like coconut and something else equally sweet, and whose words hit all the right notes inside my heart.
“You planning to take her as your plus one to Kirill’s wedding too?” Andrei added, full of vitriol, but my eyes lit up, and he noticed.
That was the most brilliant idea Andrei ever had! It wasn’t just a friend’s wedding—it was the top man’s wedding. The man who ruled it all. The Tsar. And he would have bulletproof security at his wedding, so it would be the safest place to go with her.
Andrei and I stared at each other, both of us knowing I wouldn’t leave, and there was no way to solve this disagreement without a fist fight. So, instead of pushing back, he turned on his heels and walked out the front door, letting me breathe easier and mentally plan mine and Jade’s outing together.
Jade squealed, pressing herself into my back. She said she’d never been on a motorcycle before, so I took the opportunity. The heavy leather jacket swallowed all of her, especially in that short little summer dress, and it took her a few seconds to get used to the helmet, but she was excited to go.
AndIwas excited too. For the first time in months—maybe years—I wasn’t on edge.
Jade requested we go out for tacos, and I knew just the place. Thirty minutes later, we sat at a tiny table in a small restaurant, the place filled with live music and plenty of privacy.
“Is this how you get dates? Kidnap women and then take them out for drinks?” Jade brought the margarita to her sweet cherry lips and took a tiny lick of the salty rim.
God,she was so beautiful. So light, so incredibly carefree and authentic to herself. But her pain and fear would flash in her eyes here and there. Still fresh. Like that scar.
“Not women. Just you. And who said this was a date?”
Her eyebrows shot up in surprise, and I chuckled, loving all the sides of Jade. “I’ve never had a man undress me with his eyes the way you do. Are you still pretending you’re in the driver’s seat of this whole kidnapping plan?”
Jesus, Jade had no damn filter and it gave me a fucking hard-on.
I leaned on the table too, my lips three inches away from hers. She blinked at me, all the innocence of an angel reflected in hereyes, and it was her duality—her seemingly good girl act with an unhinged mouth that clouded my judgement.
I had a choice. I could take this further, escalate it, flirt harder, make it dirtier, and risk scaring her off. I wanted to make the first move, damn it, but more than that, I wanted her to know that she was, in fact, in control. That she would make the decision. That I would—wewould—go at her pace.
Jade was in a metamorphosis, perhaps one she didn’t know about, and I wanted to just be there for her.
“I’m sorry I’ve been undressing you with my eyes.” I focused on her lips, and for the thousandth time, my mind tried to calculate what they would taste like. “It’s just that…I can’t help it.”
The bar was filling up with a crowd, and the loud music played, but there was nothing in my eyes except her.
“You’re lost, aren’t you?”
I was.
Absolutely disoriented. Off track. Adrift. Led astray.
"A little bit. I lost my way somewhere between that bite on my hand and your little horror story about Knox."
"That he sucked in bed?" I noticed she’d default to humor when it became too much. "That was indeed a horror story. Never judge a man’s bedroom abilities by the size of his wallet." She turned away for a second, a shy smile on her face.
"Yeah? What do you judge a man by?" I asked, doing my best not to grab her and start peppering her neck and chest with tiny kisses. Her little coy smile was destroying me.
"I don't know, to be honest. Clearly, I wasn't a very good judge. Not that I judged him by his wallet anyway. Maybe the size of a man's nose?" Her gaze dropped to my nose before trailing lower, settling on my hands. "Or...they also say his hands. And maybe…maybe feet.”
She sipped on her margarita again, her smile contagious.
“Wow. Those are very intricate ways to estimate dick size. Does it ever work?”
"Sure.” Jade nodded eagerly. “Same way you guys can guess if a woman is awhoreby her outfit." Jade narrowed her eyes at me, referring to that night I called her a whore.
"Okay, that was my bad, but in my defense—" I cleared my throat and sat up, preparing my explanation. “First of all, it's a perfectly legitimate line of work, andsecond…you made the evening very difficult."
Jade’s shoulders shook with laughter, and she threw her head back, showing off her long neck. That tiny birthmark flashed at me again, my lips zinging at the possibility of kissing her there.
