AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The guard pretended not to be annoyed with me and radioed the guy on the other side to go look for it and toss it back. And then there was an explosion of noise. The gate crashed inward, followed by a giant monster truck. Gunshots rattled from the windows as they raced past us, and clumps of dirt actually flew six feet in the air, where the bullets landed all around us. My guard flung me to the ground and rolled us into a nearby bush, then dragged me back to the house, where I was surrounded and jostled upstairs.
It might have taken ten seconds or two hours. I wasn’t sure. All I knew was that I was in a war zone. Leo’s men swarmed the courtyard, returning fire at the enemies who’d burst through, crashed their truck into one of the beautiful jasmine-festooned pillars, and then poured from the vehicle like ants when you stepped on their hill.
Everything was a horrible blur of violence until I saw Leo and could breathe again.
Now I was locked in a tiny room resembling a prison cell, still terrified that Leo would leave me. He’d wanted to put me in there alone, after all. Didn’t he know what was going on outside? He was going to be—no, already was—a father. He couldn’t risk his life that way. What would happen to the baby if he was gone?
Thinking about it made me gasp for breath. The baby would be alone in the world without Leo. My heart couldn’t handle that. And not just because of the baby.
“This isn’t normal,” I muttered as he held me close.
I made him tell me everything would be okay, and he’d complied, but it hadn’t had the same instant, magical result as when he relocated my family to his house in Long Island. As far as we knew, the shooting was still going on outside. The safe room was maddeningly quiet.
“It’ll be over soon,” he said, rubbing my back as I clung to him like a barnacle.
I had a sudden realization that made me sit up so fast that I knocked his chin with my head. I was too panicked to apologize. “Burya,” I said, jumping for the panel with the code to let us out. “Burya ran off when the truck broke the gate. He’s out there by himself.”
Leo grabbed my hand and pulled me back to the cot. “He’ll be fine. He probably took off to the beach.”
“He doesn’t know what’s happening,” I said, finding it somehow easier to focus on the dog than keep wondering what would happen to us if the bad guys won this battle. “What if he’s hurt? Bullets were flying out there, Leo.”
He got up and jammed in the code, turning to me as he opened the door. “I swear to God, if you leave this room, I will relocate you to Russia.”
“Whoa, wait. Where are you going?” I grabbed his arm.
“I’m going to find the damn dog,” he said.
I pressed my lips together and pulled him back into the room, reaching past him and shoving the door shut again. “I think I’d probably worry more about you being out there than the dog,” I admitted.
“Wow, thanks,” he said sarcastically.
“I’m trying my best here,” I told him. Trying not to panic, not to think the worst, not to worry about how many dead bodies there would be when we finally got out of this awful little room.Ifwe got out.
“You’re doing great,” he said, pulling me close again. It was nice and comforting being in his arms. “I’ll tell you a little story about a similar situation from my childhood to take your mind off things.”
“Okay,” I said, closing my eyes to pretend we were in the big, open living room instead of this stamp-sized trap.
“So, Evelina and I were about nine or so when my dad’s second-in-command really pissed off our rival family at the time. We used to have this house in the country, surrounded by acres of dark forest, and way out in the middle of it, my dad built us a safe room. It was ten feet underground and—”
I pulled away with a gasp. “Not helping,” I said. “Tell me some nice Russian fairy tale instead.”
“There are no nice Russian fairy tales,” he teased. “But I’ll tell you about the first time I asked a girl on a date.”
I frowned, feeling oddly jealous of that girl from so long ago, but at least it wasn’t grisly, and no one got locked in a hole underground. It was a pretty cute story where he saved his money to buy her a purse she wanted but was too overcome by the latest video game and used most of his funds on that, getting her a cheap knockoff purse instead.
“That’s why I’m still single,” he sighed.
I smiled against his chest, lulled by his voice and his fingers stroking my back. He lapsed into silence, and I looked up to see why, enjoying his soothing chatter. Our eyes met, and he smiled a bit ruefully.
“I’ve really been trying,” he said softly, kissing me softly.
I raised my head to meet him halfway, everything I’d been holding back and pretending wasn’t there unleashed when his lips met mine.
I got my hand under his shirt to press my palm against his smooth, hot skin. His hand wrapped in my hair as he murmured against my mouth. I wanted him so badly. It was a wonder I hadn’t broken before this, now that his hands were on me, our bodies pressed close together. How had I managed to go so long without this?
The room was cramped, and the cot was only meant for one person to lie down on, but that didn’t stop us. There was something so empowering, almost intoxicating, about how he made me feel so desirable. Whether short-lived or not, the look of desire in his eyes was real and strong.
He moved slightly away, running his hands down my arms, then slowly peeling my top up over my head. I had no bra on because Florida is freaking hot, and my breasts bounced free. With my arms still over my head, Leo held my wrists together and pinned my hands against the wall behind the cot.
