75. Nat

Every time I close my eyes, I see Beata on the bed, her mouth wide open and screaming. I smell the blood and hear the pop of Kolanski's eyeball as the metal hairpin ruptures it.

Max tells me he's dead. I didn't ask how he died. If it was at my hand, I refuse to feel guilty. The man was evil and he deserved everything he got.

Uriov's dead, too. Can't say I feel bad about his death either.

Hot water sloshes out over the tiled floor as Max climbs into the tub with me. He pulls me between his muscular thighs and I lean back against his chest. He made sure the doctor checked me over before we came back to his house. Aside from bruises and a nasty headache, I'm fine.

Jane's fine too. Physically, at least. Beata not so much. The poor girl will be in hospital for a while. I heard Max say she's had a complete breakdown, so will likely be moved to a psych ward once she recovers physically. Hopefully, with some professional help, she"ll get better. It's the best we can hope for.

Max left his men cleaning up the farmhouse. Most of Uriov's men are dead and the rest have gone into hiding. I was surprised to learn I have Mickey to thank for being found. Max told me he showed up and insisted on helping. Apparently, he intercepted a communication about the PlayPen website and realized Uriov had captured Jane and me. He then tracked down the origin of the message to the farmhouse.

Thank fuck he did, as I doubt we'd have been found otherwise. He's now helping Sasha figure out the network Uriov used to traffic women from the shelters. So far, they have located a property 20 miles outside of the city where some women were being held. And also identified the main players in the trafficking ring Uriov set up.

All of this will form part of the story I have planned.

My original idea was to expose the mayor's corruption, but the story is so much bigger than that. I can't wait to get started but first, I need to heal, mind and body, and that won't happen overnight.

Max's arms hold me close. His steady heartbeat thumps beneath my cheek. It feels like we've been apart forever when in reality, it's been less than 48 hours.

"I'm sorry," I say eventually.

"Sorry for what?" he asks, sounding puzzled.

"For not telling you about the message about Jane from Uriov, and for leaving like I did."

He doesn't say anything for a few moments and I wonder if he's angry about that. Rick would have been. He always got mad when I didn't listen to him. But instead of berating me for my poor judgment, Max just sighs.

"I'm sorry too," he murmurs.

"For what?" It feels like we're going around in circles.

"For not protecting you as I should have done." I start to argue but he shushes me. "I knew there was something wrong after the funeral but I got distracted by work issues."

"Bratva work?"

He chuckles. "I see you know more than I thought."

"Yeah," I admit. "I asked Mickey to investigate you a while back and he found out all sorts of things."

"Hmm," he mutters, "I bet he did, the little fucker."

"Hey! Mickey's my cousin, so don't talk shit about him!"

I feel more than hear his low rumble of laughter. "You're like a mother bear protecting her cub, malyshka. It makes me want to put a baby in your belly."

Baby? Until now, I haven't thought much about having children. Does he mean it?

"I can hear your thoughts, malyshka. Don't you believe me?"

"You want to have a baby with me?"

"Natalya…" He moves me so I'm lying with my breasts pressed against his chest. "I love you, of course I want to have children with you. I plan to spend the rest of my life with you, making you happy, filling you with my seeds until they take root and grow a baby."

There's something primal about his words and I shiver. I didn't expect to want anything sexual yet, not after all that's happened in the last 24 hours, but suddenly, I need to feel him inside me.

Not because I want a baby - although I find I do like the idea now that he's mentioned it - but because I want to erase the horrible memories and make new ones.

"I love you." The words fall from my lips without conscious thought and I realize how much I mean them.

Before this awful thing happened, I wasn't ready to tell Max I loved him. But he's shown me what kind of man he is. He saved me and eradicated the people who meant me harm. Yes, he's morally gray, and some would call him a monster, but he's my monster, and I love him, all of him. Even the monstrous side of him.

"And I love you too, baby girl." His lips meet mine and heat unfurls in my belly. We slide together in the warm water, each touch igniting a fire in my veins. Before long, gentle touches and kisses are not enough.

"Don't treat me like a fragile flower," I growl.

"Baby, I don't want to hurt you," he protests. "You've been through so much."

"I want you to fuck me like you mean it!"

He hesitates but when I grab his hard shaft and squeeze, he growls like the feral beast he is.

In a heartbeat, I'm swept up out of the bath, water dripping everywhere, and taken into the bedroom. He drops me on the bed and dives between my thighs to feast on my pussy.

This is what I need. I don't want Max to make love to me - I want him to take me hard. In no time at all, he has me teetering on the brink of ecstasy and I cry out as pleasure rips through me.

"Fuck, yes!" I yell, not caring whether anyone hears me. While my body is still flying high, he pushes his thick cock inside me.

"You feel so good, malyshka," he groans, sliding in and out, each drag of his shaft pushing me closer to a second orgasm.

"Please, harder!" I can't explain why I want him to fuck me hard, but I need it this way. Gentle won't cut it. Hard and brutal will push me out of my head and help me vanquish all the awful thoughts churning around in there.

He slams into me, setting a brutal pace. My hands grip his shoulders, leaving crescent-shaped indents in the muscle from my nails. With each punishing thrust, I climb a little higher. Then his mouth latches onto my breast and he sinks his teeth in, hard.

I come with a scream as my body shatters around him. White-hot pleasure washes over me and for a long, beautiful moment, my mind is wiped clean like a blank slate. Nothing else matters but Max.

"I love you, malyshka," he whispers as he rolls to the side, pulling me with him.

"I love you too," I reply with a yawn before drifting off into a deep, dreamless sleep.