Page 5 of Seduced By the Russian

Lisa stayed quiet in her seat, unconsciously holding her breath. She recognized the look in Nikolai's eyes - she had seen it in the eyes of some of the peers at the orphanage she grew in each time she was returned by her numerous foster parents; she saw it in the eyes of her mates at high school each time she walked in sporting a new injury. It was pity and sympathy, two of the most hated human emotions, at least to Lisa. Now, Nikolai would think she was some charity case that needed a swift intervention.

As if reading her mind, the soft purr of the engine brought Lisa back to the car, and she opened her mouth in protest as Nikolai backed out onto the main road and away from her apartment.

"What are you doing?" Lisa protested, annoyance subtly building in her. "Stop the car! I want to go home."

"You call that home?" Nikolai said coldly, stepping on the gas. "I'm changing your lifestyle, so you better stay mute and be grateful."

Lisa thought Nikolai pitied her, but his tone said otherwise. He was bewildered that anyone lived in that sort of manner. But that still didn't give him the right to lord over her. God knows that she had had enough of that leaving with her foster parents.

But deep down in Lisa's heart, she knew that Nikolai was nothing like her foster parents. Only that she had no clue what he was exactly.

"Boss, as much as I hate to admit it, I think she's right. Let's leave her at home."

"No."

"But…"

"Dmitri, enough! Can't you see the state of where she lives? This has nothing to do with what any of us feel. I would rather put up with her than feel the guilt when she dies all alone in her frail apartment just because I hit her with my car."

"Hey, I'm right here, you know?"

Silence.

Lisa wanted to say more than her weak comment about how they spoke as if she wasn't in the car with them. She would have if she hadn't had this strong feeling that this man called Boss didn't like people opposing his ideas. But it still stung hearing him talk about her like some inconsequential being, only causing an interference in his perfect life.

Lisa could tell that from the air of authority about him, how expensive his suit looked, how he regarded the apartment complex with disgust, and, of course, the car. It was a fucking Jaguar!

But how dared he speak about her life like that? Did owning a nice car make him any better?

Suddenly, Nikolai brought the car to a halt by the roadside and got down. Dmitri did the same, walking around the car to Nikolai.

"Take her to the mansion and have the nurse check up on her. Make sure she doesn't go wandering into places she shouldn’t."

It was strange, though. They barely had outsiders in the mansion, so none of the men had any trouble tagging rooms as prohibited. The most they had was hosting a party with all the members of the leadership family in attendance, but it never went beyond the large living room.

Although Nikolai didn't want to admit it to himself, he knew he should stop right here. Personally ensuring she was taken care of was one thing, but bringing a total stranger to the home of the Bratva was a line he never crossed. However, Nikolai couldn't bring himself to close his eyes to a possible new distraction. He didn't know what he was going to do with Lisa yet, because he kept on making spontaneous decisions.

But that was what made the prospects very exciting.

Chapter Three

"Is he always like that?" Lisa asked Dmitri as he pulled into the large expanse of land. Lisa couldn't see anything from where she sat, even though she craned her neck hard. It hadn't occurred to her that none of this could be safe for her, but now that they were in the middle of what felt like nowhere, Lisa was beginning to panic. The only life force they had gone past was by the gate, with men dressed almost identical to Dmitri. And that was about five minutes ago. How big was this place? Were they still on Long Island?

The crunch of the gravel under the tire left Lisa feeling none the better, with her unanswered question hanging in the air and a silent Dmitri intent on driving farther into the space. Now that Lisa thought about it, Dmitri had barely spoken to her throughout the ride since Nikolai left without an explanation, and although Lisa had already figured out that Dmitri hated her, she still didn't know why. Did he think she was going to come in between their weird bodyguard relationship? She was a stranger to them both, for crying out loud!

And no one follows a stranger to the middle of nowhere, Lisa's mind berated as the Jaguar finally came to an end. When Lisa looked out again, she was staring at the classiest yet old-style building ever, standing like an architectural design right out of the Elizabethan age. There was stained glass on the walls, and one of the designs caught Lisa's attention. It was of a bear with blue eyes, staring straight at her as if daring her to make just one wrong move.

It didn't unnerve Lisa in the least. It reminded her of Nikolai, whom she shouldn't even be thinking about. Who the hell left his wounded guest all alone after telling her in no minced words that the only reason he was taking her in was pity? The more Lisa thought about it, the angrier she got.

There was only one visible entrance to the building, a giant metal door that Lisa wasn't sure whether it kept people in or out. Either way, everything about this building screamed beauty, with a tinge of warning. What exactly was her mind trying to tell her? Lisa couldn't fathom it. The stone walls beckoned to her in silent whispers, and at once, Lisa cast her mind to all the things that possibly went on in there.

Who were these guys?

"Get out," Dmitri threw at her casually in a low tone, not sounding different than what Lisa had gotten used to in the short hours they'd spent together.

"You haven't answered my question. Is he always like that?" Lisa didn't know where the courage came from; all her senses knew she had better not make Dmitri angry. Nikolai was nowhere near to protect her, even though he had not exactly promised her protection to begin with.

She was getting ahead of herself.

---