Page 34 of Escaping the Bratva

V is already shaking his head before I finish. “This wasn’t a robbery. This was personal.”

I can feel the tension running through his body. He looks like he wants to kill someone.

Our earlier conversation runs through my head. This is the reason he wants me to have a bodyguard.

“Grab your clothes. You're coming to my house.” His eyes narrow on me, as if expecting me to argue, but there’s no way I’m staying at this apartment knowing someone could come back. I walk to my bedroom and quickly pack an overnight bag. I also grab all the things Teddy might need and put him on a leash.

I come back to the living room with all my stuff. V is standing in the middle with his arms crossed over his chest. His jaw twitches as he continues being lost in his thoughts.

I clear my throat and it seems to break him out of his trance.

“Let’s go,” he says, before grabbing my bags and leading me out the door. V seems to be on high alert as I get Teddy into the huge ass SUV and then climb into the passenger seat. I have to do a little jump just to get my ass into the seat. Leave it to V to be over the top with his vehicle choice. Once we’re all safely inside, V drives towards his house. I let my head rest on the cool window as he drives. For the first time since I opened my apartment door, I feel my heartbeat slow to a normal pace.

“Do you think they’ll come back?” I ask.

His hands tighten on the steering wheel. “Not if he’s smart. He’s trying to send a message, and I heard it loud and clear. It was probably the tabloids that set this off.”

I’d let myself forget about the tabloids for a moment, and now I’m glad we didn’t call the police. That would give them more to write about. By the time we pull up to his house, it's getting late. I can hear the sound of the water from Elliott Bay nearby, but we are a couple blocks away so I wouldn’t be able to see it, even if it wasn’t dark out. Once we’re inside, V disarms the alarm system that I hadn’t noticed before, probably because I’d been too preoccupied with getting our clothes off. I let Teddy off the leash, but he stays next to me.

“I have a backyard so he’ll have a spot to run around.”

I nod, and I’m once again amazed by the beauty of his house. I guess I could buy a place like this if I really wanted. God knows I have enough money, but I’m not home enough to really enjoy it.

“I should probably take a shower,” I say, breaking the tension. He nods, and I climb the steps to where I assume the bedroom and bathrooms are. I find an empty room and set my bag down. I pull out my pajamas and take them into the en suite bathroom to shower and wash the stress of the day from my skin. Once I’m fully clean, I change into my pajama bottoms and tank top. I walk back out to the bedroom to see V standing in the middle of the space.

“You’re not sleeping in here,” he says.

“Okay…where am I supposed to sleep?”

“My room down the hall on the left.”

“I’m fine here—”

“You’re not sleeping down the hall when someone just broke into your apartment,” he booms.

I bite my lip to stop myself from going off on him, considering he has just given me a place to stay. He walks out of the room before I can respond, and I hear his footsteps on the stairs. With a sigh, I follow the instructions he gave me and walk into a room that is definitely his. It's full of dark blues and grays. His bed is perfectly made and everything is in it’s place. His expensive watch sits on the bedside table. The entire room smells like his cologne. I see that he has already set my bags on the carpet beside the bed and put the dog bed down next to, what I assume, is supposed to be my side. Teddy trots over to it and does a few circles before lying down. I consider waking him up so I can grab a towel and wipe the blood from around his mouth, but my body is exhausted. After a full day of work, the havoc with my condo, and the warm shower, my limbs feel heavy. I snuggle under the blanket and let sleep overtake me.

I open my eyes and the bedroom is pitch black. It has to be the middle of the night. Strong arms wrap around my waist and I smell vodka on V’s breath as he holds me, his body pressed against mine. I can feel his hard dick through his pants, and I’m guessing that’s what woke me up.

“Sleep,” he grunts out. I don’t need to be told twice as I snuggle closer to him and fall asleep once again.

*****

A loud noise makes me jump from my sleep, but I relax again as I realize it's just my alarm. I reach out to the bedside table to turn it off when I realize it's not there. I look around the room, and it takes a minute to remember where I am. V’s bedroom. As if sensing I’m thinking about him, he rolls over on the bed.

“Fuck, that’s loud,” he mumbles. I search the bed until I pull the phone from underneath my pillow and turn it off. Five thirty am. I’m not always up this early, but I always set my alarm for the same time. I’m taken by surprise as V grabs me around the waist and tugs me on top of him. I yelp as my chest hits his. Teddy lets out a bark, and a laugh escapes my lips.

“You can’t go to work today,” V says. His voice is so damn sexy when he’s sleepy like this.

I arch my eyebrow. “Why not?”

“The bodyguard I have for you won’t be ready to work for a couple days, and I’m not risking you going out alone.”

I’m reminded of how my condo looked last night, and my smile falls. He grabs my chin between his two fingers and lifts my face up.

“It’s going to be fine,” he reassures me, and for some reason, I believe every word he says. I’m reminded of how different a person V is now. In college, he was just a boy, but now, he’s all man. Every single inch of him gives off that strong masculine energy that I can’t help but be drawn to.

“I know,” I tell him. I push up from his chest so I’m straddling his hips. I’m hyper-aware of the fact that his dick presses against my pajama bottoms.

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