Page 20 of Stolen By the Bratva King

Iturn the key in the lock and step into the foyer of the condo. It’s quiet and at first, I think that Hazel might have skipped out on her end of the bargain. My heart sinks a little at the idea of her ditching me.

I set the keys down on the side table when I’m distracted by the muffled sound of heavy breathing. I stop walking, my heart jumping into my throat.

“Hazel?” I place my hand on the back of my gun clip, ready to pull it out. The noise comes again, louder this time, as if someone is moaning. In pain?

Adrenaline surges through my bloodstream and I spring into action, barreling down the hallway without a second thought toward the noises coming from the bedroom.

A million scenarios play out through my brain of Hazel in the bedroom alone, trying to fight off an intruder. I knew I shouldhave insisted that someone stay with her while I went out to conduct my meeting with Oleg.

Oleg!

Is he responsible for putting her in danger? My jaw clenches with a fresh wave of rage, and guilt. There were no signs of forced entry coming into the house. I keep my address private, even from my most trusted captains, which Oleg is definitely not on that list. Did he follow me here? If so, how did he get in? We’re on too high a floor for him to climb up and crawl through a window.

It seems unlikely that he’s in the bedroom with Hazel, but I’m thinking the worst, and hoping he isn’t that stupid to cross me after what just happened.

Hazel definitely isn’t crazy enough to let a strange man into the condo, especially when she knows her life is at risk since the gunfight at the warehouse.

I burst through the bedroom door, the intense need to protect Hazel fueling all my movements. I lift my gun and point it around the room, eyes scanning for any threats I might need to take down.

Hazel is laying on the bed. She’s alone. Her cheeks are pink, and her hair is askew, tumbling over her shoulders.

The bed is unmade, and most of her body is under the sheet. Her knees are bent and pointing up toward the ceiling, her legs spread wide open.

One hard nipple pops out from the sheet and when she jerks her head up and spots me, her eyes go from glazed and relaxed to wide and wild, snapping in my direction.

She’s panting hard.

I rush over to the bed, shoving the gun back beneath my pants again. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

My eyes move over her. She’s trembling. Her eyes are as wide as the moon, and she can’t seem to catch her breath. Her pink lips are parted. She stares at me, stunning, and stunned.

Her legs immediately snap shut but I can see through the thin fabric that her hand is between her thighs.

“What’s going on?” My eyes skim from her legs to her face and that’s when I realize what’s happening.

Guilt and embarrassment crawl across her face and I realize the initial pinkness of her cheeks was coming from pleasure, not pain. And now the color is blooming to a dark crimson.

She yanks the bedsheet up around her naked body and snaps, “I’m fine. What are you doing back so early?”

The thoughts in my brain go cloudy, and I’m being strangled by my own desire. I tread across the room, setting the gun on the dresser. I need a minute to catch my breath.

“I’m sorry, I thought you were hurt. I heard noises coming from in here.”

“Privatenoises,” she says, and I can hear the humiliation in her voice. She avoids my gaze. “You invaded my privacy.”

I turn around and start walking back over to where she’s still lying naked under that flimsy sheet. She’s still breathing hard, and her eyes are glazed with lust and confusion.

“I can make it up to you,” I tell her through the pounding in my skull.

She gives me a skeptical look. “In what way?”

“I can help you finish.”

Her breathing gets rapid again, and her eyes are frantic. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” I stare at her, watching a flint of longing go through her eyes. I stand my ground, waiting.

She licks her lips, and her fingers brush over her collarbone. She’s shaking, peering at me as if waiting to call my bluff, but I’m serious. That kiss is still heavy on my mind, and I can’t block it out.

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