Execution (Off Balance 2)

Kova looked at me. "No, it is not. It is not normal at all," he said with such genuine sincerity I knew he wasn’t lying.

"Have you…" I glanced away for a second and licked my parched lips. "Have you ever felt like that with anyone else?"

I swallowed, not sure I should've asked that. He used his finger to trace over my lips. "No, never. Only you."

My eyes shot to his. "Really?"

He nodded. "Only you, Ria. Why do you think I cannot get enough? I have never felt like this with anyone else, and I do not know was it even is. All I know is that I am hooked on all of you. Hooked on your body, hooked on your smile, hooked on your personality, hooked on your ambition, hooked on you. I can only hope you feel the same way."

"Yes," I said softly.

Leaning forward, Kova licked his lips before he pressed them to mine and kissed me. But this wasn't any regular kiss. It was a kiss that wrapped around my soul and embraced the worst and best parts of me.

He kissed me like he loved me.

Pulling back, Kova stared at me with nothing but raw affection. The ache in his gaze rendered me speechless and I found myself staring back. In the stillness of his office with our naked bodies pressed together, he studied me for a long moment. He reached forward and brushed back the strands of hair that stuck to my mouth.

His jaw was propped on his fist as his eyes lovingly roamed my face. A lyrical melody of Russian filled the space between us, like he was singing me a song. With my heart in my throat, I didn't do anything other than blink and listen. He spoke softly, intimately, grazing my cheek with the back of his finger. I watched his mouth move, his tongue tapped his teeth between words. His brows furrowed and thin lines creased the corners of his eyes as he spoke. A dozen emotions crossed his face. This was his vulnerable side, a side of him I was not often privy to. Only when the layers peeled back, and I got to the core of him, was I reward

ed with juicy little seeds I coveted for myself.

Our small moment of closeness broke at the sound of Kova's cell phone ringing again. He droned on about not wanting to answer the phone, but he rolled off me with a content smile. As he stood, I took in his magnificent back and round ass until I saw all the marks I left on him.

I hissed. There was no way he was going to be able to hide them from Katja, or the hickey that I stupidly gave him.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

He turned around on his heels with his phone cradled in his hand, distress spanning his face. He looked up. His Adam's apple bobbed and he sputtered, "Get your stuff now, Adrianna."

I froze. Immobile. The unnerving tone of his voice sent chills down my spine.

"Adrianna. Now. Get your stuff, now!" he yelled as a flash of light traveled across the windows.

"What's going on?" I asked as I shot up.

His wide eyes scanned the floor. Kova threw his shirt on, and said, "Katja is on her way."

"What!" I panicked and picked up my leotard. "I told you to answer the phone before!"

"Let us not discuss that again. Hurry up and get your stuff."

There was no way I was going to be able to get the leotard on right now, so I held it to my chest and walked to the door. I turned the knob and the door creaked open a sliver.

"Konstantin!" I froze at the sound of Katja’s shrieking voice echoing down the hall. Her shoes slapped against the tiled floor.

My blood turned ice cold.

The world faded around me and the walls closed in. This was it.

Call me naive, but I truly never thought we'd get caught. I thought we’d been careful. I thought we had put up the perfect pretense and disguised our attraction to each other well.

Maybe we had, and nothing could've prepared us for someone catching us. Just like when Hayden had caught us.

I backed up and turned to face Kova, who was fully dressed. She's here, I mouthed, terrified and on the verge of vomiting. His eyes widened and he grabbed my shoulders to scan the office for a place for me to hide. He didn't have a closet, or a personal bathroom.

There was nowhere for me to go.

Katja's fearful voice echoed in the distance, but much closer this time.