15. Kat

15

I walk toward the door that Nik exited through. I'm surprised to find it unlocked. It would be just like him to play infuriating mind games with me.

After a moment of hesitation, I step out onto the empty hallway. Just like the bedroom, its walls are a soft off-white color. The cold marble floors from my gilded prison cell also cover the corridor's length.

I follow the distant sounds coming from the opposite side of the penthouse. The hallway leads to an open sitting area. No one is around, so I keep walking, looking for Nik.

As I cross the sitting area, the smell of coffee and spices beckons me. I follow the scents, and the sounds grow louder. Finally, I walk through a doorway that leads to a kitchen. I expect to find a housekeeper or cook looming around, but instead, I spot Nik.

His back is turned to me, and I study him for a second as he moves around. He opens and closes cabinets, searching for something.

Nik doesn't notice me so I continue to watch him in silence. He's dressed in a black cashmere sweater that temptingly molds to the planes and ridges of his back as he reaches for a wine glass on a high shelf.

His matching black jeans hang low on his narrow hips, the fabric deliciously hugging his ass. Against my better judgment, I find myself staring.

I'm so uncharacteristically distracted by the sight of him in these jeans—trying to recall if I have ever grabbed his ass—that it startles me when he turns around and faces me.

"Oh, there you are. Finally," he says, a friendly expression on his face. "I hope you're hungry."

"Starving," I say, my mind still sidetracked by him. "What are we having?"

"Well, I wasn't sure what you wanted, so I warmed up everything we have—except for the sushi, of course." He shrugs, gesturing to a dozen dishes spread out over the kitchen island.

"Wow," I say. There's enough food here to feed a large family. Some dishes I can't identify but there are some classics, too, like fettuccine Alfredo.

"Did you make all of this?" I ask, incredulous. I walk up to the kitchen island for a closer look. Everything looks amazing.

He scoffs. "Hell, no. I can't fry an egg to save my life. But don't worry, Irina is an outstanding cook."

"Who's Irina?" I ask before I can stop myself, my voice ringing louder than I intended. Nikolai raises an eyebrow, but thankfully, he doesn't make any snide comments.

"Irina's my chef. She's been working for me for over ten years now." He places his hand on the small of my back before squeezing past me to reach the oven to my left. "Excuse me, I have to get the lasagna out of the oven."

A delicious shiver runs up my spine at the slight touch, but I pretend I don't feel anything, and he doesn't seem to notice.

Nik pulls out the lasagna, and the scent is so good I want to moan. I didn't realize until now just how hungry I am. No wonder—I haven't eaten today. I planned to grab a bite with A.J. after our meeting with Camilla. I was hoping we would have cause for celebration.

After setting the dish down, Nik removes the oven mitts he's wearing. For some reason, I'm shocked to notice he is barefoot. He rolls up the sleeves of his sweater before grabbing a wine bottle from the refrigerator, and I realize I'm staring again.

The entire scene is so domestic that it's a struggle to reconcile the man before me with the sensual lover from the gala and the commanding, all-powerful mafia boss I encountered earlier today.

Not that he doesn't look sexy right now. The man couldn't stop oozing sex appeal even if he tried. But it's a different kind of allure. He looks approachable and inviting instead of forbidding and unattainable.

I kind of like it.

"Why are you doing all of this?" I ask, unable to hide my suspicion from my tone.

He pauses while removing the wine cork. His forearms look impossibly hot as he works the corkscrew, and I have a hard time focusing on anything else.

"Well, we have to eat, Kat," he says, shooting me a confused look.

"No, I mean, why are you doing this yourself?"

"Oh. You mean why not have someone else do this for me." He looks amused. "I gave the staff the day off today once I decided to have you over for dinner tonight." He winks at me.

"Once you decided to have me kidnapped, you mean."

"I thought we had agreed not to argue semantics, Kat."

Nik removes the cork from the bottle and pours out two glasses of red wine, not even bothering to hide his amused smile. Naturally, he doesn't ask me if I want a drink. Simon says I will have a glass of wine, and that's the end of it. I let it slide, as well as his remark.

"So we are all alone here, I guess." I sip my wine. It's rich, smooth and delicious.

"Why do you ask? Are you planning to have your way with me?"

"Ha-ha. Hilarious. You're the one trying to wine me and dine me, buddy."

"I'm just trying to feed you and myself. Everyone's more pleasant with a nice, warm meal in their stomach. And before you get any ideas, I should probably tell you we're not completely alone. A few of my men are still here. They're going to be hanging around the place until you and I are done with our little job. I'll introduce you later."

"Scared I will get the best of you?" My question amuses him, and his eyes glint with humor. It's a good look on him.

"They're not here for backup. So, if you were feeling good about your chances of subduing me with a butter knife, think again. I'm sure I can handle you, and I assume you're not eager to have me spank you again for misbehaving. Or are you?" He inches closer to me, a kitchen towel draped over his shoulder.

"In your dreams, maybe. And thanks for the reminder. It completely slipped my mind that I owe you payback for that."

"Aw, Kat. Don't threaten me with a good time," he says. I faintly recall telling him something similar the night we met.

Ignoring his attempt at levity, I press on. "If they're not here for backup—just in case I overtake you with my mad ninja skills—what are they here for? I thought you said I'd be safe with you, but if you need to keep security around…"

Nik grows a little serious at my concerned tone. "It's not that. You are safe here, Kat. They're here for the same reason you are. I don't want to waste my time looking for them if I need them."

"You know, Nik… They have these new gadgets nowadays that I think might interest you. You can use them to reach people anywhere whenever you want to. They call them cell phones. Maybe you should look into that."

"Cute," he says. Pulling a stool out, he gestures for me to sit down. "Sit. Eat. I saw you eyeing the lasagna."

After sitting down, I dish out a generous slice of lasagna. I don't appreciate his bossiness at all, but I don't have the energy to argue with him after the day I've had.

Besides, I really do want some lasagna.

He sits on another stool facing me, putting a bit of everything on his plate.

"Speaking of cellphones," he says, pulling something from his jeans pocket. He stretches his hand, palm facing up, offering me my phone back. "You probably have people worried about you."

I'm stunned for a second, but then I remember—Nikolai knows I can't escape him or his plans for me. It makes no difference to him if I have my phone or not.

Nonetheless, I take the device back, my fingers grazing his hand. Sparks fly at the slightest physical touch between us as if my life was a stupid teenager flick. I try to hide my response to the slight contact, but I look up and catch his eyes with mine, and it's obvious—the feeling is mutual.

"Thank you," I say. He nods.

I glance at my phone screen, and there are over two dozen missed calls from A.J. and many more unread texts. So I quickly type a message to her.

Sorry for missing our meeting. Don't worry, I'm fine. But I can't talk now. I'll try to call you later tonight.

My best friend starts typing back immediately. A wall of text pops up, but I can't read it right now—not while Nik is paying attention to my every move. Instead, I send A.J. another message.

I can't talk. I'll explain everything tonight. Promise.

She starts typing up a storm again before abruptly stopping. Her reply comes a second later.

You better.

With a sigh, I set my phone down. Nik glances at it, before turning his gaze to me. He says nothing.

"So," I say. "Tell me about the job."

He studies me for a long moment, appearing to consider his answer carefully. At last, he says, "I think it would be better if we discussed this tomorrow, after you had a chance to rest from today."

"I feel fine. Thanks to your two friends, I had a lovely nap this afternoon."

Nik winces slightly. "Sorry about that. But it's not like you'd have come here given the choice. As a matter of fact, Boris told me you put up quite a fight."

His tone is a little too amused for my liking. I perk up in my seat, still furious at the brutes who abducted me for manhandling me. I'm even angrier at Nikolai for ordering them to do so in the first place.

"Which one of them is Boris?"

"Boris has a pretty noticeable scar on his face."

"Oh, that one. He'll get his comeuppance, I assure you."

"Easy, tiger. The man was just doing his job."

"And that's supposed to make it okay?"

"Well, Kat, I'd think you'd have some sympathy for Boris, since you got yourself in trouble for doing your job, too."

Another reason the stronzo must burn. It wasn't enough for him to endanger my life by making me steal from a freaking mobster. He had to add insult to injury and make me lose my moral high ground with Nik. Unforgivable.

"I didn't harm anyone," I say.

Nikolai scoffs. "Debatable."

"No, it isn't. I may be a thief—allegedly, of course—but my hands are clean of blood. Can you say the same for yourself?" It gives me great pleasure to lord this over him.

He pauses for a moment before speaking. "I won't apologize for doing what I have to do, Kat," he says. Another pause. "Like I said, I think we should wait until the morning to discuss businesses."

"What else would we talk about?"

He smirks at me, and I want to groan in frustration and hit myself. I can't believe I took his bait so easily.

"Well, we could talk about us, of course, Kat," he says—as I knew he would. His voice is as smooth as the wine he's been generously pouring for me.

"There's no us."

"Come on, Kat. You know that's not true."

"We had sex. Once. It was a one-night stand. Two ships passing in the night. Nothing more. Our relationship is strictly professional now."

"So you do admit we have a relationship. Let me ask you this: do you consider what happened between us earlier today professional? Damn, I should've hired you a long time ago."

"That was a momentary lapse of judgment. Nothing else."

His smile grows wider. "Tell me, Kat. Did you touch yourself after I left you?"

The urge to throw the fine wine I've been drinking in his face is almost too strong to resist. But something gives me pause. As I look at Nik, I see the same smug, self-satisfied expression from earlier. He's toying with me again.

Of course, I can still splash him with my drink. But that would give him the satisfaction of thinking he's getting to me. It would also ruin his cashmere sweater, and I'd hate to destroy something so fine and beautiful.

More importantly, I'd like to get at least a little of my power and control back from him if I can. And I think I do. Two can play this game of his.

With a dramatic sigh, I set my wine glass down. "You know what, Nik? I didn't touch myself after you left me. I thought I'd save it for later tonight. You probably don't know this, but I'm really into delayed gratification."

He stares at me in silence with a playful but calculating look in his eyes. "You don't seem the type, Kat."

"I know, right? But I am. There's just something about bringing myself to the edge over and over again, feeling the climax build up as I tease my body repeatedly until I can't take it anymore. I just can't help myself." I say with a sigh. "So, I thought it would be best to wait until later tonight. Hey, if I'm lucky, you might even join me."

I bite my bottom lip before smiling at him. His eyes immediately fly to my mouth.

Still looking at his face, I raise my right foot, stretching my right leg as far as I can under the kitchen island until I reach his leg. Inch by inch, I run my foot up his calf before placing it on his stool seat, right between his thighs.

His eyes connect with mine, a dangerous glint in them. "I know what you're doing, Kat."

"I know." Raising my foot higher, I run it inside his thigh as slowly as possible. He firmly grabs it and stills it just as I'm about to touch his crotch with my toes.

"Kat…" he says in a warning tone. "You don't want to start down this path with me again."

"Oh, but I do."

He has no idea how much. Flirting with the Russian is never a hardship—the man is pure sex on a stick. But as it happens, seducing him just might be my salvation. If Nik is fond of me or of my body, maybe he will think twice before hurting me or A.J. Perhaps he will even come to see me as nothing but one of his lovers. It would be a vast improvement to his current opinions of me—a shameless thief and a possible co-conspirator in his friend's murder.

Besides, it occurs to me that Nikolai Stefanovich could end up being just what I needed all along—a powerful ally against the stronzo. A bit of sugar from me might be just the thing to get the big, bad bratva boss to claim the role of my protector.

Nik won't let go of my foot, so I reach for my blouse and run my index finger over the first button. I pause and look at him.

Shaking his head, he says, "Don't even think about it."

"Too late," I say as I free the first button, revealing the top of my breasts.

"Kat—"

I ignore him. An intoxicating, heady feeling of power inundates me—it's almost inebriating. I got him. He might be able to force me into working for him, bending me to his will in a hundred different ways, but it doesn't matter. I hold the cards.

Nik wants me—badly. I recognize the feeling in him because I feel the same way. It drives me crazy that I can't resist my attraction to him, but I can still use his desire for me.

"It's okay, Nik," I say, shushing him as I work down my blouse, one button at a time. Soon, my bra is revealed. He mutters a foreign word I don't recognize, and I stop.

"What does that mean?"

He stares at me, confused.

"What you just said. Is that Russian?"

"Yes," he says, transfixed by my breasts displayed by my lacy balconette bra.

"Won't you tell me what it means? It sounded like a curse word," I ask again. My fingers play with a button around my navel, teasing him.

"What if I refuse to tell you?" he asks, knowing the answer.

"Then, I will stop."

I start buttoning up my blouse again, smiling at him.

Nik rises from his stool in one fluid movement, unceremoniously releasing my foot. In the next heartbeat, he is by my side. He grabs me, lifting me from my seat. Wordlessly, he walks over to the kitchen counter and sets me down.

Brusquely, Nik spreads my legs wide so he can stand between them. Before I can react, he drags my hips forward until his erection presses against the bottom of my underwear. Next, he grabs me by the neck, pulling my head close to his. His forehead touches mine, and our breaths mingle. The Russian smells as manly and irresistible as I recall. His scent makes me crave his taste even more.

"I warned you not to toy with me, milaya. I'm starting to think you want me to punish you."

"Turnabout is fair play."

Nik shakes his head. "You started this. You teased me first, playing with me."

I don't back down. "I don't care who started it. You took it to another level. You spanked me."

He pulls me even closer. "And you loved it. There's no point in denying it. I felt how wet you were through the silk of your panties. I can still hear your breathy moans as you begged me to keep going."

"That's not the point. You meant to leave me hanging. I can't let you get away with that."

Nik smiles. He looks so handsome that I want to claw the clothes off his body until I can see all of him at last. "Is that what this is about? If you're sexually frustrated, milaya, then may I once again suggest you avoid starting something you can't finish?"

"Well, I am finishing this. We're done here. Let me down, Nik," I mutter through gritted teeth, pushing against his chest. It's pointless. He's relentless, and it's like trying to move a mountain.

"We are done when I say we are done. We can't carry on like this, with one upping the ante over the other repeatedly," he says in a pacifying tone, running a hand through his gorgeous black hair.

"Funny you should say that now that we both know I have the upper hand—great timing on your part. Well, guess what? You can't control me. I'll do whatever I please whenever it's convenient for me. And there's nothing you can do about it," I say, punctuating my words with my index finger against his chest.

Nik grabs my poking hand, before grabbing the other and holding both behind my back.

"Are you sure about that? Because I think you'll find out there's plenty I can do about it. You don't want to fight this battle of wills, Kat."

"I'm so freaking tired of you telling me what I want or don't want. You think I won't stand up to you? Try me, Nik. Just fucking try me."

He doesn't immediately respond, and we stare at each other for a while, both furious. Our breaths come out in pants, still mingling with each other. I smell the wine and him, and, even against my wishes, it makes my mouth water.

Nik's hand behind my back, still restraining both my hands, drags me closer to his body. I can't tell if he moves first or if I do, but his other hand grabs hold of my shirt, pulling me close before slipping underneath the fabric to touch my stomach.

My ankles lock behind his legs, and I pull his hips to mine, craving the friction of his erection between my legs.

We both groan in unison. We are so close that I can no longer tell my thundering heart apart from his. Our gazes connect, and I realize that things are about to slip out of my control. But an unexpected noise originating at the kitchen entrance startles me. I almost jump down from the counter, but Nik stops me, holding me tightly against his body.

A heartbeat later, it comes to me—it was somebody clearing their throat. His man. I completely forgot we weren't entirely alone.

"What is it?" Nikolai practically barks over his shoulder. I can't see the person who interrupted us with Nik blocking my vision.

"Nikolai," a male voice replies. "Lucien is here to see you."

Nik closes his eyes for a second. After taking a deep breath, he opens them again. As he studies me, his eyes harden.

"Tell him I'll be there in a moment," Nikolai says to the man behind him.

"Sir," the man replies. His footsteps echo in the kitchen as he leaves.

Nik closes his eyes again, pausing for a second. After a moment, he sighs. He picks me up from the counter and gently sets me down.

"I have to go," he says. "You should finish your meal. Then try to get some rest."

Before I can say anything, Nikolai departs.