Page 53 of Dancing With Distraction

Dmitry leads me to the bedroom, where he begins to strip off. When I don’t move, he stops. “What?”

“It’s just, well, I’m not really in the mood to,” I glance at the bed, “yah know.”

He grins and continues to strip. “I’m not an animal, Victoria. Neither of us slept well last night, so I thought we could try now.”

I took all my clothes back with me last night, so I strip down to my knickers and slide under the cool sheets. He does the same and pulls me over to his side. He grips my knickers between his hands and tears them, tugging them away from me and dropping them to the floor. “We sleep naked when we’re together.”

He wraps his arms around me, and I lay my head against his chest. “Have you always been this bossy?”

“It’s how I was raised,” he mumbles sleepily.

I run my fingers over his hard chest. “Who raised you?”

He sighs. “My father.”

“What about your mum?”

“Katrina died when I was a young boy.”

“Oh,” I whisper, glancing up at his face, “I’m so sorry.”

“Why? You didn’t kill her.”

I gasp. “She was killed?”

He gives a nod. “She tried to leave my father.”

“Oh my god,” I whisper. “Your father killed her?” He nods again, keeping his eyes closed. I push to sit slightly. “Dmitry,” I murmur, and he opens one eye, “that’s terrible.”

He gives a small shrug. “It’s life.”

I frown at his cold words. “It’s not life,” I say, shaking my head. “She was your mother.”

He opens both eyes and tucks my hair behind my ear. “In my world, krasota, it’s life. My father cannot be disrespected. Ever. If she had left and taken me, he would’ve looked weak.”

“What does that matter?”

He smirks. “You have no idea about my world, Victoria. That’s why I’m so drawn to your light,” he whispers. “Don’t ask too many questions. I don’t want to dull those pretty eyes.”

I lie back down against his chest. “Do you still see him, your father? Like do you have a good relationship?”

He sighs again, irritated that I’m ignoring him and being persistent with my questions. “Yes. You saw him at Kat’s.”

“He said he was proud of you.”

“He lives in Russia and only visits here occasionally, usually when he feels there is something that needs to be done. This visit is to push me into marrying Vivian so he can uphold his word to her father.”

His words from earlier play on my mind. “And if you don’t marry her, what will happen?”

“Will your parents come looking for Marcus?” he asks, changing the subject.

I shake my head. “No.”

“They won’t miss him?”

“No.”

“Give me something, Victoria,” he whispers.

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