4. Kat

4

I stare at Nik in shock.

"Eyes on the road," he says. I follow his command without thinking.

My mind races a mile per minute, and my heart might burst out of my chest.

This man—this crazy, absolutely out-of-this-world, scorchingly hot man will be the death of me. Even if I somehow survive him, once he's done with me, I'm not sure I'll even recognize myself. Because so help me God, I can't deny it. When Nik stared into my eyes and calmly threatened to kill anyone who dared to touch me, I was thrilled.

Not terrified or concerned.

Thrilled.

I'm nothing but thrilled that this impossibly dangerous man feels such a powerful urge to protect me.

Real life bullets are flying around our heads and angry Irish mobsters are racing to kill us as we run for our lives—yet, all I can think about is that I want to jump into Nik's arms and beg him to take me until I can't remember my own name.

"Kat, pull into that driveway over there," Nik says, pointing to a spot to our right. "Quickly, now. Before they come around the turn."

I rush to pull into the driveway he is indicating, slowing down before asking, "Why are we stopping?"

"Get out of the car," he says once the car comes to a full stop, opening his door.

I stare at him, confused, and he comes around the driver's side with a sigh. Wordlessly, he opens my door and drags me out of the car himself.

Vladmir rushes to take my place behind the steering wheel, closing the driver's side door shut.

Nik pulls me into his arms before addressing the other man. "You know what to do."

With a nod, Vladmir drives away.

I stare at the car as it leaves, dumbfounded again. I tilt my head back to look at Nik. "What are we doing here?" I ask.

"Hiding." He directs me towards the house. "Good. Nobody's home," he murmurs to himself while pulling me by my hand. He doesn't stop until we're standing behind the single-family home, completely hidden from the road.

"Now, what?" I ask impatiently.

"Now, we wait," Nik says.

"Why are we here, and where did Vladmir go?"

"It was the first place I spotted, and Vladmir's leading McGuire's men away from us."

"Why?"

"They were getting too close for comfort. I didn't want them to catch up to us with you in the car. And I wasn't sure how much longer you'd keep it together before you slammed the car into a tree."

With an insulted huff, I retort, "Well, I'm sorry I'm not as cool and collected as you when bullets are zipping past my head. This little adventure may be just another day in the office for you, but let me tell you—it's not commonplace in my life."

Nik sighs. "Kat, I didn't mean it like that. You did great—much better than most people would've managed in that situation. I'm just trying to get you to safety as soon as possible, as I promised you I would. You shouldn't even have been in danger in the first place. That's on me, and I'm so sorry—more than I can say."

"Oh, please. I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself."

"I know. You got us our getaway car, after all. Still…"

"You're damn right I did. And I'll have you know I had the entire driving thing under control. If you hadn't startled me with your neanderthal display of jealousy, I would've been completely fine."

"My what? Oh, you mean Vlad's hand. Kat, about that?—"

"No, listen to me. I know you think I'm a helpless damsel in distress?—"

Nik scoffs. "I most certainly do not."

"No, you do. Don't lie. But I'll have you know I've managed just fine for twenty-six years without your condescending, supercilious, overprotective ass."

He groans, rubbing a hand over his face. "Kat, just listen to me for a second?—"

I do no such thing, of course, choosing to ignore his interruption instead. "If anyone saved anyone's ass tonight, it was me who saved yours, Nik. Your super tempting, looks-great-in-black-jeans ass."

Nik smiles. With a sigh, he pulls me closer. I try to resist him, but he's relentless.

"Come here, milaya."

Then I'm in his arms, and he's showering me with kisses. He tenderly nuzzles my hair, my eyes, my ears. Before I know it, his caress isn't as tender as it's scalding hot. I half expect things to pick up right where we left them against the tree in McGuire's property before Vladmir interrupted us, but Nik seems content to just lazily, languidly kiss my skin.

"Nik, please…" I say, sexually frustrated beyond measure.

He chuckles. "What do you need, kiska?"

"You. In me. Right now."

"Behind some random house while we're on the run from McGuire? I don't think so. Next time I have you, we're doing it properly. At last."

"But I want you. Right here, right now."

Nik's eyes glitter, turning the most devastating shade of golden brown as he softly laughs. "Ah, Kat…" he says, half-sighing, half-chuckling.

"What?"

"My world's crashing around us. We might not live to see tomorrow. All my plans for McGuire might be ruined. But you just made my day." He gives me his megawatt smile, the one I saw only once—when we stepped out of that little airplane.

Nik tucks me against his chest, and I sigh. After a moment, I ask, "What does kiska mean?"

"Don't even bother asking. I'm not telling you."

"Whatever. I'll just look it up online when I'm by myself." I shrug.

Nik shakes his head in disapproval, but his smile remains in place. "Maybe it was a mistake to give you that phone back."

"That bad, huh?" I say, teasing him. "Kiska must mean something super juicy."

The only reply I get from Nik is a kiss on my forehead.

Eventually, I pull away to look at his face. He gazes back at me, and he's so handsome—so dear and even familiar to me at this point—that it's hard for me to fully accept that because of me he's committed an act of such violence against a man sworn to him.

"You broke Vladmir's hand. For me," I say.

Nik studies me before saying, "I did." His eyes remain on me, observing my every reaction. Something he sees in my expression surprises him. Still looking at me, he raises his eyebrows, understanding washing over his expression before amazement takes over. While holding his breath, he stares at me, waiting, I realize, for me to say something.

With a slight nod, I pat his chest before telling him, "Good job."

Nik's amazed expression flickers into amusement, but then our eyes connect. His gaze turns darker—hotter. He sinks his fingers into my hair and pulls me closer, hard and fast. "Kat…" he says, my name nothing more than a sigh.

I wrap my arms around Nik's neck and close the distance between our mouths. I don't bother with a slow build-up before touching his tongue with mine. He holds me even tighter. In response, I push harder and faster, wanting all of him right now, but he paces me, clearly intending to keep his word from earlier.

I want to groan in frustration at the maddening man, but he's saved by the bell. Or close enough, as it is.

"We've got company," Nik whispers, breaking our kiss as headlights come up the driveway. With a sigh, he holds me against him for a moment longer before breaking our embrace completely. He holds my hand when we spot the approaching car.