Page 15 of Stolen By the Bratva King

“I know. I want you to feel comfortable and enjoy your time. My home is yours.”

I say nothing at first, but when I turn around a few seconds later to reply, David is already turning and walking away. “Let me know what food and drinks you like, and I’ll have them sent up.”

I take a deep breath. I just need to splash cold water on my face or something, to pacify the blazing flames on my cheeks.

I can handle this. I remind myself this is for my career. I’m on location, traveling for work, just like David explained before.

The risk will be worth the reward in the end. Now all I have to do is convince myself that I can trust the man associated with the biggest Russian mafia ring in the city, and that includes getting in a bed with him.

6

Hazel

The shower is still running through the closed bathroom door. I take a deep breath and steel myself, opening the drawer where I’ve placed a few of my clothes. I have a pink silk spaghetti strap nightgown that stops at my upper thighs with white lace around the bottom hem.

I stare at it, debating whether I should put it on, or just throw on a large T-shirt and a pair of shorts.

When I hear the water turn off a few seconds later, I make a last-minute choice to just be brave and confident and stick with the cute nightgown.

Why not? It seems like all the other decisions I’m making lately are on a reckless whim anyway, what’s adding one more going to hurt?

I go behind the dresser and change into it, tossing my dirty clothes into a hamper David put next to the closet door for me to use.

I glance at the bathroom door and when I hear the knob turning, I sprint to the bed and jump in, throwing the covers up over my body, my pulse racing.

David emerges a few seconds later wearing nothing but a towel. Great. This job is going to be the end of me. My self-control is already wavering, and my heart is a wild animal inside my chest.

David casts a cheeky smile over me and strolls to the dresser on the other side of the room.

His back is facing me as he opens it.

I’m not even breathing when he lets the towel drop to his ankles. My jaw drops when I get a full view of his naked ass. It’s firm, and the muscles in his broad back are sculpted like he was chiseled straight from a piece of marble.

I suck in a deep breath. David laughs. “Do I make you nervous?”

“I just… wasn’t expecting that,” I admit.

He reaches for a pair of boxers and steps into them. He picks up the towel again and turns around, scrubbing the towel through his damp hair.

He looks at me. I will myself to look anywhere but at the bulge in his boxers, but it’s beckoning me, and I can’t help it. I sneak a little glance.

When our eyes lock, there’s a possessiveness in his expression that makes me weak.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” he says. “We’re both adults here.” He hangs the towel up in the bathroom and waltzes over to the bed.

I gulp. I keep my eyes trained on my lap.

“You should count yourself lucky. I normally sleep naked.”

I pull the sheets up around my chest and slink away from him as he gets into the bed. His weight makes the mattress shift, and I almost roll over against him.

“Yeah, well, thanks for wearing boxers at least. Even if they leave little to the imagination.”

“Are you saying you like what you see?” he asks.

My face is on fire. “Excuse me?”

He eyes me with a wolf-like hunger. “You are one to talk, wearing that nighty.”

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