Page 40 of Diamond Don

“What if I refuse to tell you?” he asks, knowing the answer.

“Then, I will stop.”

I start buttoning up my blouse again, smiling at him.

Nik rises from his stool in one fluid movement, unceremoniously releasing my foot. In the next heartbeat, he is by my side. He grabs me, lifting me from my seat. Wordlessly, he walks over to the kitchen counter and sets me down.

Brusquely, Nik spreads my legs wide so he can stand between them. Before I can react, he drags my hips forward until his erection presses against the bottom of my underwear. Next, he grabs me by the neck, pulling my head close to his. His forehead touches mine, and our breaths mingle. The Russian smells as manly and irresistible as I recall. His scent makes me crave his taste even more.

“I warned you not to toy with me, milaya. I’m starting to think you want me to punish you.”

“Turnabout is fair play.”

Nik shakes his head. “You started this. You teased me first, playing with me.”

I don’t back down. “I don’t care who started it. You took it to another level. You spanked me.”

He pulls me even closer. “And you loved it. There’s no point in denying it. I felt how wet you were through the silk of your panties. I can still hear your breathy moans as you begged me to keep going.”

“That’s not the point. You meant to leave me hanging. I can’t let you get away with that.”

Nik smiles. He looks so handsome that I want to claw the clothes off his body until I can see all of him at last. “Is that what this is about? If you’re sexually frustrated, milaya, then may I once again suggest you avoid starting something you can’t finish?”

“Well, I am finishing this. We’re done here. Let me down, Nik,” I mutter through gritted teeth, pushing against his chest. It’s pointless. He’s relentless, and it’s like trying to move a mountain.

“We are done when I say we are done. We can’t carry on like this, with one upping the ante over the other repeatedly,” he says in a pacifying tone, running a hand through his gorgeous black hair.

“Funny you should say that now that we both know I have the upper hand—great timing on your part. Well, guess what? You can’t control me. I’ll do whatever I please whenever it’s convenient for me. And there’s nothing you can do about it,” I say, punctuating my words with my index finger against his chest.

Nik grabs my poking hand, before grabbing the other and holding both behind my back.

“Are you sure about that? Because I think you’ll find out there’s plenty I can do about it. You don’t want to fight this battle of wills, Kat.”

“I’m so freaking tired of you telling me what I want or don’t want. You think I won’t stand up to you? Try me, Nik. Just fucking try me.”

He doesn’t immediately respond, and we stare at each other for a while, both furious. Our breaths come out in pants, still mingling with each other. I smell the wine and him, and, even against my wishes, it makes my mouth water.

Nik’s hand behind my back, still restraining both my hands, drags me closer to his body. I can’t tell if he moves first or if I do, but his other hand grabs hold of my shirt, pulling me close before slipping underneath the fabric to touch my stomach.

My ankles lock behind his legs, and I pull his hips to mine, craving the friction of his erection between my legs.

We both groan in unison. We are so close that I can no longer tell my thundering heart apart from his. Our gazes connect, and I realize that things are about to slip out of my control. But an unexpected noise originating at the kitchen entrance startles me. I almost jump down from the counter, but Nik stops me, holding me tightly against his body.

A heartbeat later, it comes to me—it was somebody clearing their throat. His man. I completely forgot we weren’t entirely alone.

“What is it?” Nikolai practically barks over his shoulder. I can’t see the person who interrupted us with Nik blocking my vision.

“Nikolai,” a male voice replies. “Lucien is here to see you.”

Nik closes his eyes for a second. After taking a deep breath, he opens them again. As he studies me, his eyes harden.

“Tell him I’ll be there in a moment,” Nikolai says to the man behind him.

“Sir,” the man replies. His footsteps echo in the kitchen as he leaves.

Nik closes his eyes again, pausing for a second. After a moment, he sighs. He picks me up from the counter and gently sets me down.

“I have to go,” he says. “You should finish your meal. Then try to get some rest.”

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