"That's a lie. You've been acting like I didn't exist."
A low chuckle escaped him. It sent goose bumps down my arms.
"You think I would do it in plain sight so everyone could see? Never. Believe me, I have watched you all night. How do you think I knew where to find you just now?"
I clenched my eyes shut at his cavalier tone. I knew he wouldn't be lackadaisical about his roaming gaze. He hadn't been in the past.
"Where's Katja?" I asked, even though I didn't want to. I was too curious how he could be here with me and not be questioned by her.
Kova lifted his shoulder. "I do not know. She said she was going to use the restroom and make a phone call to her mother in Russia."
I finally looked at him, confusion creased the center of my brows and he answered the question on my face.
"Time change. She is wishing her a Happy New Year. She only calls her during specific times of the day."
"Ah," was all I could say. I really didn't care to hear more.
A moment of thick silence passed between us. "I need to go," I said, stepping away. But Kova stopped me with his hand on my wrist.
"Is there somewhere we can talk?"
"No." I tried to pull away, but he pulled harder on my wrist.
A plead. He was begging through touch, much like how he expressed himself on a regular basis.
I sighed. "Talk about what, Kova? There's nothing to talk about. We already cleared everything up at my condo."
Kova didn't let up. His heady stare bore into me until he broke my resolve. For some godforsaken reason I loved when he looked at me with such desperation. I caved every time. His emerald green eyes framed between black-as-midnight lashes put me in a hypnotic state of mind.
"Follow me," I said, and he dropped my wrist. "Just don't follow too close. When we get to the staircase, wait three minutes. Go up to the second room on the right."
He nodded and I guided Kova through my home toward the stairs. I knew there would be eyes and ears everywhere, and even though there would be no earthly reason to suspect anything between us, I still took caution. One could never be too safe.
I made my way up the staircase and decided I would never wear these high heels again. Each step caused my dress to tug up higher on my thighs and my hips to sway as I struggled to keep my balance.
Or, maybe it was just my false bravado that caused my ankles to shake. Growing up with a mother like mine, high heels were of the norm.
Walking into my room, I exhaled a nervous breath and quietly closed the door behind me. I kept the lights off and headed straight for the balcony. I pushed the sheer white curtains aside and opened the sliding glass door, breathing in the salty air that helped steady my racing heart. My room overlooked the Atlantic Ocean across the road, and it was on the complete opposite end of the party.
I leaned on the railing, staring as far as my gaze could reach at the dark sea when I heard a soft click. I didn't move, and I didn't look over my shoulder, but I felt his presence as soon as he stood in the doorway.
Adrenaline kicked up a notch. Goose bumps broke out over my arms as a gust of wind blew across my skin while I waited in anticipation for him. I hoped he locked the door.
"You look breathtaking tonight," he said, his voice strangled. The way he said those words caused my heart to stammer. "I cannot believe your father let you wear that."
I finally glanced over my shoulder and pushed myself up.
"Why not?"
His piercing eyes looked at me in disbelief. Kova stepped forward until we were face-to-face with just a handful of inches separating us. I leaned my hip against the railing as he stared down at me.
In complete bluntness he said, "Because it screams sex, Ria. I want to rip that dress off you and spend hours inside you."
My nipples hardened, and my lips parted with a soft breath. He shook his head in blatant desire, his heated eyes openly trailed down my body. His gaze did not deny his words. His eyes lit up like he was imagining all the dirty and perverted things he wanted to do to me. Kova made sure I felt every inch of his stare.
"Hot, sweaty, rough sex in ways you have never even dreamed of, until you cannot walk. I had no idea you could look so… so…" He scratched his jaw. "I have no words."
His voice, deep and raspy, heavy with his Russian inflection, glided over me in waves of euphoria I didn't know how to handle. His tongue licked slowly across his bottom lip, and damn was it hot as hell when his eyes met mine again. The warmth of standing so close to his body hit me with a force so strong I wanted to lean into him.