3. Kat

3

Nik's touch isn't gentle or tender. No, his kiss is almost savagely overwhelming. With little preamble, his tongue enters my mouth, and he groans against my lips as he tastes me.

Next thing I know, Nik's left hand's fingers are tangled up in my hair as he pulls me even closer to him. With his right arm, he scoops me up against his body, lifting me.

I squeal in surprise as Nik walks with me tucked against his chest. My Russian climbs down a set of steps deep inside this darkened corner of the terrace.

"Where are you taking me?" I break our kiss to ask him, panting.

"Away from here," he says, grunting against my lips, annoyed that I dared to separate our mouths. "When I make you come, I don't want anyone else to hear you moaning in pleasure. That's for my ears only, kiska."

Nik carries me until we are standing under a tree. He leans my back against it, his body covering mine. I immediately pull him back to me by his hair and kiss him as hard as I can, wrapping my legs around his waist. His erection rests against the silk of my underwear, and I can't resist pressing against it. His fingertips sink into the flesh of my hips as he pulls me even closer, groaning into my mouth.

"I want you so bad," I say between erratic breaths as his mouth kisses its way down the column of my neck.

Nik's answering groan sounds almost pained as his lips suck hard on the spot where my neck meets my shoulder. Then he bites down hard there. I gasp, and his face returns to mine.

My maddening Russian looks into my eyes as he rasps, "I need you, Kat. You're mine."

As we kiss, I can't tell where I end and he starts. I breathe in the air he exhales, and yet, I need to be closer to him. Thoughts race through my mind—there's so much I need him to know. But right now, it's enough to feel his skin against mine, taste him on my tongue.

Time feels like an absurd concept as Nik's hand slips under my dress. I grow lightheaded, feeling like I can't get enough air even as his breath fills my lungs.

In one fluid movement, two of his fingers sink inside me. "Kiska, you're mine." His lips brush against mine.

I nod, grabbing a handful of his clothes and dragging him even closer. My tongue tangles with his and I push him to pick up the pace. I've waited too long. I want him now—all of him.

Almost surreally, I think for a second that I hear something. After a moment, I realize the sound is coming from behind Nik.

"Nikolai," the voice says again, interrupting us once more.

Vladmir.

"What?" Nik asks, furious anger vibrating through him. I feel it all over my body, with my arms and legs still wrapped around him as he pins me against the tree.

"We have to go. Now," Vladmir says. He adds something in Russian, and Nik immediately straightens. His arms tighten around me and his expression changes into one of concern.

Nik glances over his shoulder at Vladmir before addressing him in Russian, his commanding tone familiar to me. Then he turns back to me.

"We have to get out of here. Erin is gone. McGuire thinks I'm behind it," Nik says, untangling my legs from around his waist. He gently lowers my feet to the ground, holding me steady as I process the news.

"What do you mean, she's gone? She said she'd meet me later tonight to tell me about her dad and Maxim," I say, trying to catch my breath.

"Well, she's missing. Vladmir says McGuire is out for blood. More specifically, mine. He's sure I only came to this party to abduct her in retaliation for Maxim." Nik takes my hand in his as he hurries away from the house with Vladmir by his side.

"Fuck," I say under my breath, doing my best to keep up with their long strides in my heels through the grass field. Me and impractical shoes in moments of danger. Name a more iconic duo.

"Fuck, indeed," Nik says, glancing over his shoulder before speaking to Vladmir in Russian. His urgency is unmistakable. Vlad speaks in the same tone.

"English, please," I say.

"I was just asking Vlad if he knows how many men McGuire has on the property tonight," Nik says, pulling me along. Clearly, I'm not moving fast enough for him.

"The answer is too many," Vladmir says. "We're vastly outnumbered and outgunned. Plus, this is their home turf. We have to get the hell out of here now."

I'm surprised Vladmir has even deigned to address me after what happened earlier. "What's the plan?" I ask.

"The plan is to make it to the car, preferably without running into the Irish," Nik says as he and Vladmir frantically scan the area. "Come on, Kat. Less talking and more jogging. Maybe you should lose the shoes. I'll have to carry you if you don't start walking faster."

Nik's short tone startles me. I guess my expression shows it because he brings my hand to his lips and kisses it, still pulling me along the way.

"Sorry about putting you in danger," he says.

"No harm, no foul. Let's keep it that way," I say, still wary of his sharp command a second ago but slightly mollified by his tender gesture.

"I can't believe I thought it was a good idea to bring you here," he says under his breath. "Can't believe I dragged you into this situation."

"Don't beat yourself over it. It's not like you actually kidnapped the girl. I mean, you didn't, right?"

Nik looks at me, his lips curving into a smile. "Not this time."

"Well, good. For what it's worth, I was putting myself into danger every day and twice on Sundays well before you came into my life," I say, panting as I struggle to keep up with his pace.

"Kat, I'm getting you out of here safe. No matter what," he says, his tone allowing no doubts.

I sigh. "Nik, I know. But running away from an angry mob army is a little outside of my field of expertise. So, lead the way, and I'll follow."

The look he gives me is so scorching hot I'm mildly concerned it will melt me in the spot. He pulls me suddenly against his chest, giving me a quick, rough kiss before releasing me, a smirk on his face.

"There's the garage," Vladmir says, pointing to a large building a few dozen yards away. We hurry towards it, trying to keep to the shadows, my hand still in Nik's. The three of us make our way to the back of the building, and I groan in frustration when I see a locked gate separating us from Nik's car. I can even spot it through the gate's mesh; its gleaming dark exterior is so close, and yet so far.

Vladmir slams his fist against the gate, and Nik curses under his breath. We look around, trying to find some way to lower the gate and clear our access to the vehicle, but nada. No keys, no electronic panels, no nothing.

McGuire and his men—whose voices grow closer and closer by the second—must have a remote key to lower the gate.

"We'll have to make a run for it," Nik says. "On foot. Kat, I really think you should lose the shoes. I can carry you, but it'll slow us down."

"If we're fast enough, we might lose them in the woods," Vladmir says.

"Wait," I say. "I think I see an access panel in the garage. It must lower the gate. I can climb it, get it to lower, and drive the car out. Give me the keys."

Nik glances at the panel as I point at it, hesitating. "I don't know if that's a good idea, Kat," he says. "What if it doesn't control the gate? What if you can't work it out? You'll be stuck in there."

"My plan will work. But even if it doesn't, I can always climb back out, and we'll make a run for it then."

"We'd waste too much time—time we don't have," Nik says, glancing over his shoulder. Even I can tell McGuire's men's voices are growing louder. They'll find us at any moment now.

"Nik—" I say with urgency. "I can do this. I know I can do it. You'll just have to trust me."

He studies me for an instant, and something I can't put my finger on flashes over his expression. He takes a deep breath. Then, to my surprise, he nods and tosses me the keys.

I smile at him, and it's my turn to steal a quick kiss. Before he can react, I step back and take a running start before leaping toward the gate. With a turn of my hips, I leverage my lower body until my legs swing over the top of the gate. Then, I jump from the top, landing gracefully on the ground, absorbing the fall's impact and straightening myself.

Vladmir lets out an impressed whistle, and I look over my shoulder to find an amazed expression on his face and Nik's.

With a smirk, I wink at them, hurrying toward the panel. "What did I tell you? Mad skills, baby," I brag as I run across the vast garage.

"Kat…" Nik says, exasperation and amusement warring in his expression and tone. But his eyes burn with warmth for me, and I melt completely, foolish as I am.

"I'd say this amazing display of breaking-and-entering mastery will cost you, but honestly, you can't afford me." I wink at him again.

Nik groans. "You can hustle me for all I'm worth later if we make it out of this alive. Hurry now."

"Don't worry, miliy. For you, this one is on the house."

Vladmir raises his eyebrows. I don't even care. When I finally reach the panel, I flip it open and study it. "Feeling lucky tonight?" I ask Nik with a throaty voice.

He half laughs and half chokes on a groan. He rubs a hand over his face before sighing. "Kat." His tone is as close as he's ever been to begging.

"Ok, here's the deal. I'll dumb it down for you two civilians," I say, as I work on the small keypad on the panel. "Usually, with this tech stuff, I get by with a little help from my friend A.J. But as it happens, I'm very familiar with this type of panel. It's very run-of-the-mill. Now, here's the catch—with this model, there are two things I can try. One will get the gate to open, but the other will sound an alarm. There's no way of knowing which one is each."

"You didn't tell me any of this before you pirouetted your way in there," Nik mutters through gritted teeth.

"Well, duh." I shrug. "You'd never have gone for it. It's a fifty-fifty situation. I'll take those odds. Here goes nothing."

My fingers work on the panel, and I hope for the best. Destiny laughs in my face as the garage's overhead lights start flashing red and an ear-splitting siren echoes through McGuire's property.

"Fuck," Vladmir groans as Nik shouts my name.

"My bad," I say. Then I run as fast as I can towards Nik's car. I unlock it and jump into the driver's seat of the shiny vehicle. After pressing the start button, I yell, "Step back."

Nik and Vladmir barely have enough time to react and follow my instructions because I slam my foot on the gas and ram the car into the gate. I waste no time before backing up and doing it again. This time, the metal partition falls over.

"Get in," I say to the two men as I drive through the garage's opening.

With a disapproving shake of his head, Nik yanks the door open before taking the passenger seat. Vladmir hurries to the back of the car, pistol in hand.

I stare at the gun in shock for some reason.

"Kat. Drive the fucking car," Nik grunts. His sharp tone snaps me out of my reverie.

I peel out of the area, racing through the property's driveway just as screams echo behind us and bullets zip past the car. Vladmir sticks his head out of the window and fires back.

I gasp, swerving, and Nik grabs the wheel. "It's all good, Kat," he says in a soothing tone. "Just keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road. Don't worry about the shots."

"Don't worry about the shots?!" I yell, turning to face him. "Now, why didn't I think of that?"

The car swerves again as I speed away down the driveway and onto the main road. Nik tries to reassure me. "Shh. Just do your best. Please. Just worry about driving. Let's put some distance between us and them."

He's barely finished with his sentence when I spot headlights in the rearview mirror. Nik and Vladmir share a look that makes me feel cold to my bones.

"What is it?" I ask Nik anxiously.

"Can you drive with one hand?" Nik asks Vlad, making eye contact with him through the same mirror.

Vladmir hesitates for a moment before nodding.

"What are you talking about? Why would he have to drive with one hand?" I ask frantically, glancing at the headlights as they grow closer and closer.

Nik ignores my question, so I look at Vladmir, noticing his right hand wrapped in bandages. He even has a makeshift splint. It must be broken.

"What happened to your hand?" I ask. Vladmir shakes his head, glancing at Nik from the corner of his eye.

I look at Nik, too, but he doesn't make eye contact with either of us. After a moment, I understand with a jolt that Nik must've broken Vladimir's hand. I'm even more shocked when it dawns on me that he must've done it to punish Vladmir for touching me earlier today.

"Are you fucking insane?" I yell, turning my head to look at Nik. "You broke his hand!"

Nik sighs. "Kat…" he says in a pacifying tone.

"What's wrong with you? With both of you!" I ask, yelling even louder.

"Kat, we can talk about this later. Now, for fuck's sake, will you please focus on driving?" Nik shouts right back at me while reaching over to keep the wheel straight.

"How can you expect me to focus on anything right now when I just learned you broke this man's hand as punishment for touching me?" I ask. My rising tone doesn't impress him. Nik makes eye contact with me, looking as angry as I've ever seen him.

"You're damn right I did," he says. "You're mine, Kat, and anyone who even thinks about laying a finger on you will have to answer to me. I'll kill the next one, too, if I think it'll drive my point home better."