“Just what do you think you’re doing, Mikhail?”
My stare darkens as my brother slides his hands up Alex’s sides. “What do you think I’m doing? I’m staking my claim, you fucking idiot.”
“Get your paws off her.”
“You weren’t interested in her before,” Mikhail growls while cupping her breasts. “Why now?”
Scarlet blotches clog my vision as I grab my brother by his shirt and yank him away from Alex. I grip the silk material and slam him into the wall, listening with satisfaction to the air leaving his lungs with the force of the movement. A punch to his gut causes him to curl forward, but he doesn’t let his expression change.
“You gonna touch her again?” I slam my fist into his side. “Huh? Are you?” Another punch socks him in his solar plexus, shoving a squeak out of him.
Each blow sends me deeper into a spiral, teeth grinding and muscles flexing as I shove my brother harder into the wall. I don’t stop until he begs me to quit, his chest heaving as he drops to his hands and knees on the ground. He coughs violently, saliva leaking from his mouth and darkening the cement beneath him in small puddles.
I shake my head and turn to Alex. “Fix your pants. Let’s go.”
She doesn’t question me or meet my gaze as she zips up her shorts, scoops her backpack from the ground, and then trots to the books sitting in the middle of the road. After walking her to my Audi A4, I glance over my shoulder, shooting swords into my brother from across the parking deck.
The clap of the door draws me back into the present. Once I’m strapped into the driver’s seat, I start the car and peel out of the parking garage, following the roads that will take me to Alex’s mansion. Aside from the steady rumble of tires beating against the tar beneath us, the cab is quiet. Alex fidgets in the passenger seat, a sniffle arising every so often as she twists her hands in her lap.
Pity swells in my gut. Maybe she doesn’t want this life. I shoot her a sympathetic glance, noticing how her eyes have glassed over as she stares straight ahead. “I’m only claiming you sexually to protect you.”
A choking gasp cuts through the cab. “You’re so fucking full of it, Lev.”
“I’m serious, Alex. You think I want to see you get attacked by my own brother?”
“But you’ll let your friends attack me.”
She hiccups and then covers her mouth, muffling the sob that surfaces. I want to reach for her and grab her hand. Fuck, I want to pull over the car and yank her into my lap where she can bury her face into my chest. Fighting the urge to do so takes more strength than it did to beat my brother into submission.
“You’re right,” I whisper to her. “I could stop them if I wanted to.”
It’s hard to hear her cry like this, uncontrollable and belligerent. But I fucking deserve it. The way it cuts through my heart and lodges me in place freaks me out. I won’t be able to free myself from the bonds she’s putting me in if I keep feeling this shit.
But how can I let her suffer like this?
“Alex, don’t cry.” I flick the blinker up and slow the car, turning into the main entrance of the Moretti Estate. The road forks and I take the right lane, heading toward the pool house that sits far away from the house. If she wants to cry, then I’ll let her cry. But just for a few minutes. “Hey, look at me.”
My voice prompts her tearful gaze. She sniffles as she drops her hand, another hiccup causing her to shudder violently. I park in front of the pool house, unbuckle my seat belt, and keep my gaze on the wheel as I whisper, “I’m never going to let him hurt you again. Understand?”
“Okay.”
It’s such a weak sound—and it makes me crumble. Seconds later, I’ve got her sitting in the guest house on a plastic chair, a miniature fountain spewing water into the circular pool. The trickling water, evergreen plants lining the windows, and natural light pouring through the skylights above make the place seem like an oasis away from the world.
I stand next to her, feeling as out of place as I did in her bedroom.
“Lev,” she whispers, her hand sweeping over the front of my jeans. I shudder and grip her shoulder to steady myself, my cock responding without me even having to think. “Thank you.”
I bite the inside of my cheek while watching her unzip my jeans. “Fuck…” I hiss when she plucks my cock from my pants. “Don’t mention it.”
A soft hum greets the tip of my cock as she lightly strokes my shaft. I’ve had a chick blow me in the past, but the way Alex traces the ridges of my cock, rotates her fingers around the base of my shaft, and laps at the slit in the head is somehow reverent. It’s like she’s trying to savor it.
And then she looks up at me.
Her eyes are so much rounder from this angle, lids lazily shuddering as she nestles the head of my cock at the back of her throat. I shake my head when she starts to gag. “No, not like that.” I cup the back of her head gently and pull back my hips, returning with shallow thrusts. When she suckles on the head, I nod eagerly. “Fuck, yeah. Keep doing that, baby.”
I let her take the lead, resting my hand at the base of her neck as she bobs on my cock. Her slurping sucks draw heat from every corner of my body, harboring it in my cock. As my balls twitch, I tangle my fingers into her hair and pull out, aiming for her lips. I nut on her mouth, hypnotized by her dedication to licking up my fluid.
The way she looks at me while she cleans her lips strikes me. Jesus Christ, she’s fucking precious like this. I caress her cheek, letting my thumb drift from her nose to her eye, realizing how her lids are still slightly puffy from crying. I start to bow forward, lips aching to feel her mouth on mine, to discover how her tongue might feel in my mouth. I’m inches away from finding out.
And then my jaw tenses. I can’t.
Breaking eye contact hurts, but not as much as holding it. I withdraw from her, tucking my cock away as I turn to look at the pool, the plants, the windows—anything but those eyes.
I hear her struggle to breathe. When the chair squeaks, I feel her standing next to me, her breath coming in ragged waves. She sounds like she might start crying again. “Lev, look at me.”
Instinct inspires me to step toward the exit. She catches my arm, nails digging into the crook of my elbow as she whispers angrily, “You’re hot one minute and then you’re cold the next. What the hell did I do to you?”
What did she do?
Hell, what the fuck has she not done?