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“Why don’t we take a swim before we open our wine?” While he asked a question, I sensed he wasn’t going to allow me to say no.
“I thought you’d wanted to go to Orient Beach?”
He laughed, the sound deep and throaty. “To be able to show off my woman’s naked voluptuous body to aging tourists with sagging bellies? No man will ever be allowed to bask in the glory of my beautiful lioness ever again.”
And there it was, that moment of true possession. He’d said the words before, but I’d passed them off as if they’d been stated in the heat of the moment. But there a distinct alteration in his tone, a deliberate statement made as if thinking anything else was ridiculous.
After removing his shorts, tossing them aside, he came for me, his gaze falling slowly to my feet. There is so much hunger in his eyes that I was certain he would devour me. He was just as intimidating as before, tall and far more handsome than any man had a right to be. But there was a difference in his hunger, a deeper connection that seemed out of place.
When he fisted my hair, lifting my chin upward, I expected the forceful dominance from earlier. Yet he slowly lowered his head, capturing my mouth, rolling his lips with mine. The fire burning in my belly was back, the rush of vibrations as intense as before, but there was much more intimacy in the kiss, the exploration entirely different.
He wrapped his arm around me, pulling me against his chest, caressing my bottom for several seconds as he slipped his tongue inside. The hard beating of my heart matched the solid wave of electrified sensations, the rush leaving me lightheaded.
When he pulled away, he breathed a swath of hot air across my cheek. “Take off your dress.”
“I need to get my suit.”
“As I told you. It’s not necessary.”
I glanced at the embankment then laughed. “You’re right.”
He chuckled as he backed away, slipping off his underwear. As he headed for the water, I took a deep breath, enjoying the view. The man had the most gorgeous ass I’d ever seen. When he dove in, I closed my eyes briefly before tugging the dress over my shoulders, shimmying out of my panties.
Even as I took steps toward the water, ugly thoughts continued to swell in the back of my mind. Our attraction was real and out of bounds, shaking both our tenuous hold on the lives we’d planned. But the connection wasn’t. It was contrived from his hatred of law enforcement, his burning desire to crush anyone who stood in his way. There was no forgiveness with him, no ability to consider anything other than using brutality and violence to right whatever wrong he believed existed.
While my intentions were entirely different, a one-hundred-eighty-degree jerk in another direction, I’d only seen black and white during my career. There was never a moment or a single case where I’d allowed myself to be swayed enough to see shades of gray.
Criminals deserved harsh punishment. ‘Do the crime, do the time’ was a motto that I’d adopted from the first moment I’d set foot inside my criminal justice class.
However, did our commitment to our beliefs really make us that different? The answer wasn’t any easier than why I’d allowed the affair to continue or why I’d decided to trust him.
He was seeking information, punishment for Gregory’s continued efforts to derail his family. Maybe it was time I did the same, determining what the man was hiding and what hold he had over Gregory.
And if I found out that my ex was in bed with the enemy, I’d crucify him, just like I would do to Alexei.
For now, I’d endure the time spent with a man I should run screaming from. He had no idea just how formidable I was. It was time to turn up the heat. I’d learn what he was hiding and what plans he had for increasing his family’s wealth. My gut told me Alexei was using me as a pawn, exacting a plan that had been in motion for months if not years.
When I was at the water’s edge, I watched as he popped up from underneath the water, throwing back his head and raking his hands through his hair. He was truly an insanely gorgeous man, every inch of him raw steel. I’d noticed several scars I hadn’t seen before, three from bullet wounds. He’d endured physical brutality, suffering as I suspected every enemy had before facing his wrath. Should I feel sorry for him? I wasn’t certain any longer.
I dove into the cool water, remaining underneath the surface. Within seconds, strong hands yanked me into the light, Alexei pulling me into his arms. I was adrift in a moment of haze, his throbbing erection pushing against my stomach. While every muscle tensed, my stomach coiling into several knots, I found myself drawn to him even more.
The tropical location.
The feel of the water lapping against our heated skin.
The way he held me, as if he was never going to let me go.
I eased my arms around his shoulders, sliding my fingers under his tangled mass of hair. As he spun me around, the light dancing in his eyes was a reflection that he’d shifted aside his frustration with me, and his overbearing need to have me not only understand but accept his way of life. For this moment in time, we were nothing but lovers embarked on a delicious adventure, one of passion and unbridled need.
As he wrapped his hand around the back of my neck, pulling me even closer, he whispered words in Russian that I couldn’t understand, nor did I want to learn their meaning. I had a feeling that if I did, I would be lured into a web that I would never be able to leave.
“Don’t you want to know?” I managed, every nerve ending seared from his touch.
“I long to learn many things,l’vitsa. What are you referring to?” Just the stroke of his hand kept my insides churning.
“About Gregory.” I gazed at him coyly, brushing my fingers across the skin on his shoulder.
“I would assume it would have been a marriage of convenience and one of power.”
