Made in Vengeance

CATALINA

I woke up with a start.

I wasn’t sure what woke me up. A nightmare or a noise?

My eyes sprang open, and I took in my surroundings. It was still early. I couldn’t have been asleep that long, but it felt like I had been, and it took me a while to get out of the disorientation.

Mikhail was no longer in bed with me. I tried not to feel left out. The handcuffs were also removed, and it took me a moment to realize someone else was in the room with me.

I gasped and sat up in bed with a start.

Nikolay was sitting on the recliner nearby, the pair of handcuffs in his hands and an unreadable expression on his face.

We stared at each other.

The thing with Nikolay was I could never tell what he was thinking or how he was feeling.

A bomb.

He always felt like a bomb, and most of the time, I wasn’t sure if he was inactive or if he was moments from exploding.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

One side of his lips lifted. “Yeah.”

I frowned. “You were just … watching me sleep?”

He was full of smiles now. “Oh, yeah. It’s one of my favorite things to do.”

“Sounds boring. And creepy.”

He stood up to his full height, stretching a little. I resisted the urge to run away when he made his way over to me. Knowing him, he probably got off on the chase.

“Creepy?”

I nodded. “Oh, yeah. I thought you might have something better to do.”

“Nothing better than watching my girl.”

My eyes lightened at that. “Is that what I am? Your girl?”

He nodded, bringing his face closer to me. “Oh, yeah, baby girl. That is exactly what you are.”

He leaned forward, forcing me back until I was lying on my back in the bed, and he was hovering above me.

I looked off to my side shyly as he took me in. I had a feeling his sharp gaze missed very little. Every time he turned his attention to me, I felt naked … exposed.

“Look at me, princess,” he said softly, playing with a long strand of my hair.

I turned my eyes to him, taking in the golden flecks reflected in his green eyes, long, dark eyelashes, and perfect face.

God, he was so handsome.

“Leave it to you to get Mikhail out of his funk.”

My hands moved up to the collar of his shirt, playing with it. “I found him in the basement.”

His gaze hardened a bit. “And you know not to go down there again.”