Rays of sunlight had already streamed inside her bedroom when Fleur gradually stirred out of sleep, and just as she was about to turn on her back—-
"Dobroye ootro, milaya."
Julian's sleep-roughened tone startled Fleur into immobility.
A second later, all of last night's memories kicked in, and she found herself grinning so widely it was a miracle her face had yet to split into two.
Clearing her throat, she asked, "Is that 'good morning' in Russian?"
"Da."
His arm tightened around her as he spoke, and Fleur couldn't help but snuggle close. "Dobroye ootro," she said softly even as her toes curled when Julian pulled her even closer. This was called spooning, wasn't it? How in the world had she survived three decades without this?
"Now, go back to sleep."
Fleur was happy to do just that except—-
"Julian?"
Although she always liked to dress herself in hoodies and thermal leggings when she had her period, Fleur had finally noticed something about the hard, powerful body she was curled up against.
"What?"
"Are you naked?" she whispered.
"Da."
Oh my.
Fleur was mesmerized at the idea of Julian sleeping in the buff.
"Now go back—-"
"Do you always sleep naked?"
"Yes." This time, Julian had uttered the word in a warning growl, and Fleur had to bite back a smile. TIL: Julian Alexeyev is not a morning person.
Julian had barely closed his eyes when Fleur once again uttered his name, but just as he was about to groan, she also happened to wriggle close, and Julian's exasperation turned to pleasure. With his morning wood now snugly fitted right at the crack of her deliciously plump ass, Julian could no longer remember what he was supposedly groaning about.
"Julian, are you awake?"
"Da."
He sounded a lot mellower for some reason, and Fleur couldn't help smiling. Morning Julian was adorbs. She was about to ask if this was always the case him when Julian's arm suddenly shifted under her—-
Oh.
She was still lying against his arm, but the slight change in his position also allowed Julian to lazily rub her nipple between his fingers, and oh...my...gosh...
"Julian..."
His name came out in a moan, and Julian groaned himself at the sound of it.
"Oh God, Julian..."
Fleur could no longer remember what she wanted to say, and oh God, was that his cock was slowly rubbing against the cheeks of her butt?
"Julian..."
"Fleur..."
It was the very first time, the very first time she had heard him say her name, and while it was not classically perfect like the way Philippe had uttered it—-
She loved this more. She loved it the most actually, with the way his thick Russian accent and soft tone wrapped around her name like a possessive embrace.
"Say it again," she begged.
Julian suddenly bit her ear, and just as her body arched, and a whimper slipped past her lips—-
"You're so fucking sexy, Fleur."
He pinched her nipple hard while his other hand went to hold his cock so he could start rubbing it harder and faster against her ass.
"Oh God, Julian."
"I Googled this, too..."
A choked laugh escaped her, but this quickly turned into another moan as he began grinding his erection harder against her butt.
"And a couple of studies suggest that orgasms—-"
Even though she was drowning in the pleasure of his touch, Fleur had enough presence of mind to see exactly where Julian was going, and oh God...dare she?
"—-are the best way to relieve your pain."
Dare she?
"So what do you think, milaya?" Julian asked thickly. "Would you like to give it a try?"
Her lips parted, and she heard herself choke out...
"God, yes."
And so they tried.
And it worked.
It worked so, so well that Fleur asked Julian if they could give it another try, just to be sure the first time wasn't a fluke.
Chapter Eight
First days were always the worst for Fleur, and sleep often offered the best escape from the pain. It usually meant taking prescription pills, but for today at least, that appeared no longer necessary.
Who knew orgasms had such extended effects for pain relief?
A quick check on her iPhone showed that it was already ten in the morning, but she still took care to move slowly as she got up, knowing from experience that jarring movements could trigger period cramps in a flash.
The other half of the bed was already empty, but Fleur told herself not to mind this. Today was the first of December, and Operation Yuletide 2.0 had literally just begun. She still had plenty of time to win a certain Russian billionaire's heart.
After a luxuriously long bath in the Jacuzzi, Fleur changed into her comfiest pair of PJs and finally stepped out of the bedroom...and immediately had the shock of her life.
"Julian?"
He was seated in the living room, a cup of coffee in hand while he had his laptop on the couch's custom-built stowaway table. He looked almost angelic in his white knitted sweater over his jeans, but when he turned to meet her gaze, and she saw his golden eyes glittering oh so wickedly—-