Page 5 of Finding Alexei
I flip the lights on and wince. Based on this guy’s car, his taste in clothing, and the way he whipped out his gold card like it was nothing to buy a stranger $70 worth of crap, he has money. Probably lots of it. I have almost none, barely enough to pay my rent and eat. And the decor shows it. Everything I own is secondhand. My brown couch sags in the middle, my dining chairs are mismatched, and my curtains are too short to fully cover the window.
I huff out an exhausted breath and set the baby carrier holding Ella onto the floor by the couch.
Alexei follows me around like a hulking lion of a man, his deep blue gaze seeing everything.
He’s angry. That much is certain.
“It’s freezing in here,” he says, frowning.
His voice is irritated, but it still manages to rip through me like lightning. It’s deep, rich, and sexy. It doesn’t matter that I don’t want to notice things like this about him; I just do. He’s spellbindingly gorgeous with this commanding presence, and I hate that he’s seeing me at my worst.
“I turn off the heat when I leave for the day.” I cross the room and adjust the thermostat. But rather than the heat humming to life like I expect, nothing happens. I try again, cursing under my breath. “Shit.”
“What’s wrong?”
I shake my head. No way I’m giving him the satisfaction of knowing I might not have paid the heating bill in time. I thought I had a few more days.
“Your heat doesn’t work?” He crosses the room to inspect the thermostat. He switches the bags he’s carrying to one hand while he fiddles with the settings, but nothing happens. The thing is ancient, and I’m not all that surprised.
Why didn’t he just drop me off and leave? Why didn’t I just take the bags out of his arms and thank him for the ride and the supplies? Why is he still here?
He still hasn’t set the bags down yet, like he isn’t sure where to place them, or maybe he doesn’t want to touch anything here. Probably the latter. I wouldn’t either if I were him.
I cross the room and reach for the bags, but he doesn’t release them. He just gazes at me with those blue eyes, darkened to the color of midnight right now, eyes that see too much. His scent is intoxicating, and I can’t help but breathe it in every time he’s near, a faint combination of leather, spice, and mint that makes my knees weak. It’s been way too long since I was with a man. About as long as it’s been since I ate my last home-cooked meal, if my math is accurate.
As if on cue, Ella starts to whimper softly, squirming in her seat. The chilly temperature is probably bothering her.
I’ve been doing my best to hold it all together, not only for my sanity, but also for Ella’s sake, but in this moment, I’m struck with sheer panic. What the hell am I going to do now?
Alexei doesn’t give me a moment to even process the answer to that question. He simply struts over to the baby carrier and lifts it as though it weighs nothing at all. The damn thing hurts my arm every time I carry it.
“You guys are coming back to my place. We’ll get this all sorted in the morning.”
I cross the room to stand toe to toe with him and place my hands on my hips. “I’m sorry, but I don’t know you from Adam. I’m not going home with a complete stranger.”
“You don’t have much of a choice. I’m not letting you and the baby stay here and freeze tonight. In case you didn’t notice, it’s below thirty outside, and it’s not much warmer in here.”
“Not letting me?” I sputter.
“That’s right. Now, get your shit. It’s way past her bedtime.” His gaze flicks to Ella, whose whimper has turned into a full-on cry.
I sigh and reach for her, lifting her out and bouncing her in my arms. As I expected, it does nothing to calm her.
“Let me have her.” He takes the baby from me and gently rubs small circles along her tiny back, having dropped the bags right on the floor. “When’s the last time she’s eaten?”
I check my phone for the time. It’s almost one in the morning now. Mrs. Henderson said Ella had her last bottle at ten. “Almost three hours ago.”
He nods. “She’s due soon, but let’s see if we can have her hold out until we get to my place. Then we’ll put her down to sleep.”
He continues patting her back, and when she lets out a huge burp, Alexei smiles. “There we go. Was that the problem, princess?”
She stops crying briefly, blinking as she searches for the source of the deep voice.
