Chapter 15 - Katie

My mind was blank. Really blank, even more than from the heights Aleks brought me to just a few moments ago. Now, I was crashing down hard.

Tomorrow? We were getting married tomorrow, and not months or even a year from now?

That was it for my big plan. It was entirely out of the question, no way I could go through with it now. Not without causing a huge mess when it was time to let go.

I stood there, clutching one of the fancy peacock feather-trimmed pillows in front of me, still reeling from the aftershocks of the wildly intense orgasms Aleks gave me. He lay on the velvet bedspread in all his naked, masculine glory, staring at me with a look of confusion on his face. Why was he so handsome? Why did I want to jump back into bed with him, wrap the velvet cover around us, and lose myself in his kisses again?

And why did I have to let go? This man seemed crazy about me, and there was no doubt how I felt about him. I could live in the lap of luxury, without a care in the world, and have Aleks along with it, so why was I still planning on pulling a runner in the first place?

Of course. The reason hadn't gone away, and was still insurmountable. My best friend, Nataliye. Aleks's only daughter, and a spoiled, willful one at that. Oh, she was a great person and a fantastic friend. She also held grudges and could teach a master class on getting revenge against people who wronged her.

And marrying her father seemed like a pretty big wrong. Oh my God, I never should have gotten involved. I couldn't even blame it on drunkenness because I'd barely had a few sips of wine that first night, wanting to be able to remember every second of our one-night stand.

It should have stayed a one-night stand.

"Katie, what's wrong?" he asked, sitting up. He began reassuring me we could eventually have any kind of wedding I wanted, still thinking that was what upset me.

Although the idea of walking down a long, flower-strewn aisle, surrounded by family and friends, with Aleks standing tall and proud and stunning in a black tux, made me almost swoon, I snapped back to reality.

This couldn't happen, not at City Hall, not anywhere, or any time. I sat back down, still holding the pillow like a shield.

"Did you already take care of those things?"

My voice came out shaky, but if he hadn't fulfilled my demands, there might have still been a chance I could get away clean. Still have these memories to cling to. Maybe he wouldn't be too angry, and we could stay friends.

He beamed, reaching for my hand. "I already paid for your sister's trip, and her tuition, as well as set up a fund in case she decides to continue on to a Master's degree. If not, it will be there for her to start out on her own after graduation." My heart rolled over, sinking into a pit as he kept smiling. "And I arranged for her to move into an apartment close to campus. That is, unless she likes living in the dorms?"

My heart sank faster by the second. Jenna hated living in the dorms, always complaining about how dirty the showers were and how noisy her floor was. She'd been begging to move into an apartment with her new friends since last semester, but it was impossible.

Until now.

"What about my aunt?" I asked, barely getting the words out past the lump in my throat.

"Your Aunt Marjorie's mortgage is paid in full, and I've directed her doctor's offices to send all pertinent bills to my lawyer, who will make sure they're paid. Once she feels better, we can have her over for a visit, or fly there. Whichever you prefer."

I was too gobsmacked at that bit of generosity to do more than gape at him. "How do you even know who her doctors are?" I asked.

He chuckled and reached over to tap me on the chin, effectively shutting my mouth, which had still been hanging open. "I know everything I need to know, at all times, Katie."

He really was even more powerful than I realized, and I got a little frisson of fear up my spine. At the same time, my desire for him was rushing forward again, ready to take over my last bit of resolve. There was only one man who I truly wanted, and this power and confidence Aleks exuded from every pore was just one of the reasons why.

Still grinning smugly, he jumped out of bed and stalked toward the balcony doors he'd left open when he carried me here. I admired his lean, muscular body, then wilted as soon as he was out of my sight. Wrapping the velvet bedspread around me, I hurried after him, wondering what he was up to now. Really just needed to keep him within arm's reach, because his listing off how he'd gone above and beyond what I'd demanded, made me want him all over again.

He was treating my family like they were his own. That was very enticing, and made it easier to forget the inconvenient details. When he saw I'd trailed after him into his own room and was dragging the bedspread behind me, he laughed, then snapped open the laptop that was on his desk.

After a few clicks, I heard the whir of a printer and saw pages shooting out into the tray tucked away under the desk. Still, buck naked and seeming not to notice or care, Aleks leaned over and handed the sheaf of paper to me.

"This is our contract," he said.

I skimmed the pages, outlining everything I asked for and so much more. The answer to dreams I never even had the imagination to conjure up. Jenna could finish school without a care, and Aunt Marjorie could concentrate on getting treated with the best care available. All I had to do was marry him and give him a child.

My head swam with the possibilities. And the impossibilities were huge, one of which was due back for a visit from Italy by Christmas.

I thought I had more time.

"What about my job?" I asked, stalling.

"Well, you're certainly not working at that restaurant anymore. I've already put in your resignation this afternoon."

I tried to argue, but I hated Chef Danello, and now that I'd been demoted, it hardly seemed worth arguing about. "But my lunch business," I said. This was a big deal, along with my floundering catering company, which I just couldn't give up on yet. "I'll need my car so I can keep making deliveries and get to the markets for ingredients."

He groaned and stomped to his closet, returning wrapped tightly in a thick terry cloth. Good, now I wouldn't be distracted by his chest, rippling abs, or… other parts.

"Why do you want to keep doing that?"

"I love doing it," I said. "You can't keep me from it. Are you expecting me to stay trapped in this house to do your bidding?"

He got a wicked gleam in his eyes that had me yearning toward him, but I mentally slapped myself to stay focused. I crossed my arms over my chest, ignoring the fact I was still wrapped in a bedspread. He raised a questioning brow.

"What specifically do you love about it? Getting up before dawn to haggle over prices? Fighting traffic, hauling everything up and down in office buildings all over town, dodging security guards?"

I sighed and sank onto the edge of his bed. "Okay. Fine. I hate all of that. But I love creating new meals. I worked hard to gain loyal regulars who really look forward to my lunches and I don't want to lose them. Now that I can access your brilliant kitchen, I could expand my offerings and blow their minds."

His lips puckered as he studied me, and then he slowly shook his head as if he couldn't quite understand my passion, but was trying.

"You can keep making the meals," he said. "But I'll assign some of my employees to do the deliveries and arrange for my personal chef to get the ingredients." He held up his hand when I opened my mouth to disagree. "Olga is highly trained and does the shopping almost every day anyway. She knows good produce when she sees it."

It would be rough relinquishing control over my ingredients, but I didn't doubt that Aleks had a great chef since I'd seen how she kept the kitchen so well-stocked and in tip-top condition. The thought of not having to lug everything up and down countless elevators and flights of stairs, too, because he was right about dodging security guards. I'd made friends with some of them and they let me right up, but there were a couple buildings where I had to be stealthy to keep my customers fed.

"Okay," I agreed. "I can live with that. But what about the catering company? What if I get a booking?"

His brows furrowed, then his lips set in a thin line. "You'll have to set that aside, at least for now. I'm a high-profile person, and your safety is my top concern. But we can possibly talk about it again sometime in the future."

"I don't see how catering private parties could be dangerous," I said, remembering that the butler was packing heat. I narrowed my eyes. "If you're concerned about safety, how come there's only one person working here?"

"Only one person you noticed," he said mysteriously. "When you're within these walls, you don't have to worry about anything, Katie. Take my word for that."

I shivered again, and realized what a sweet deal he was offering me. Letting go of the catering business was hardly giving in at all, since I hadn't had a single inquiry in months, not counting his sham dinner party. I was still going to get to do what I loved, and the more inconvenient parts would be relegated to someone else. It wasn't just a good compromise, it worked out in my favor.

"Sounds good to me," I said, holding out my hand.

He took it, kissed my palm, and then sat beside me, sweeping the papers off my lap as he pulled me close. "You can sign it tomorrow at the courthouse with my witnesses present," he said, leaning over to nuzzle my neck.

"Are we really getting married tomorrow?" I asked, my limbs going weak as he continued to kiss his way down my shoulder.

"We really are," he said, drawing back to grin down at me. "Although, I think you're already mine, aren't you?"

With a moan, I tipped back my head to take his heated kiss.

This was happening, then. Despite my trepidations about Nataliye, I had wholeheartedly agreed, and was still agreeing as I opened my mouth to his tongue. Tomorrow, I'd be Mrs. Fokin, for better or for worse.

And what would end up being worse? The fallout from me trying to get out of my end of the bargain and asking for a divorce before Nat came home, or the explosion that would occur if she somehow found out about us before that? Either way, it was going to be devastating.

It was much cozier in Aleks's arms, so I snuggled closer and let him help me forget that anything bad was looming on the horizon. Let him make me believe that everything was perfectly safe here, just like he promised.

For the moment, anyway.