Page 30 of Frequency of Attraction

Quinn nodded, though she hadn’t known that feeling herself. What had she felt with Vadim that made her open up to him? Safety, she realized. Maybe that came from his size. Or the bottomless eyes that held beauty and pain. Maybe her lone soul did recognize his.

“Thanks for looking at that for me. Let me know what you think.” She gave Quinn a coquettish smile. “I’d invite you over for wine, but you don’t drink and it sounds like you have better plans. Naughty ones.”

Quinn felt her cheeks heat. “I will neither confirm nor deny that. See you later, Elle.”

Elle left with a wave. Quinn sighed, eyes on her empty doorway. With Jerry’s article and the finality she felt hanging around Elle, she wasn’t sure how she’d concentrate at Vadim’s later. Despite the pleasure he generated, she couldn’t forget about the people around her. She was sure her poor sleep and neck headaches were related to the same thing. Quinn ran on a twenty-four-hour clock.

But later, as Vadim used a vibrating toy to spread pleasure through every cell that made up her being, Quinn forgot for a moment that the world even existed. All she knew was bliss and the smell of nighttime in Paris.

As an orgasm emerged and retreated yet again, Quinn had a revelation. She knew how to get back at Jerry.

16

Vadim had been jittery since waking. The day of his FAA checkride had arrived. The tests weren’t until the afternoon, so he had all fucking day to stew about them.

He’d crammed studying into every available minute over the past two weeks. Luckily, his test had been pushed out from the original date. Elle had quit during that time. Chen had changed her, or so she’d shared with Vadim. He didn’t know how to reconcile that with the wild friend from college, so he tucked her confession away to ponder later. He had other shit on his mind.

He took melatonin so he could get good sleep. He worked out. He jerked off. He’d had three perfect flights with Theodore, Tate’s pilot. He was ready. He wanted to get the testing over and spend the evening worshipping Quinn’s body as a reward.

Vadim realized he’d been wandering without destination and had arrived in the hallway between Tate and Quinn’s offices. He had no legitimate reason to be in either, but one would be easier to explain than the other, so he bothered Tate. The sharply dressed man was folding a newspaper with a smirk. He looked surprised to see Vadim. He supposed he had been quieter than normal.

“What’s funny in the news these days?”

Tate took time answering. Vadim raised his eyebrows. It shouldn’t be a hard question to answer.

Tate sighed. “Okay, we were trying to keep this from you, but you were going to find out later today anyway.”

What the fuck was he on about?

Tate unearthed a paper from his desk and handed it over. Vadim was shocked to see his face on the front page, a photo taken from his footballer friend Elian’s Instagram page. Both men were holding beers and flipping off the camera. The picture was years old, in Frankfurt after a big win. He devoured the article that outlined his childhood: block housing, his brother’s run-ins with the law. Then a spun story about all the partying he did as the team’s pilot. That was the title of the damn article. The Partying Pilot. There wasn’t a word about his two years of cosmonaut training. Not that there could be much. The records were sealed. Roscosmos was notoriously secretive about their people and program. The worst part was the final paragraph, surmising just how long it would take for Vadim’s ways to take down OrbitAll.

He skimmed the byline, but he already knew the article had been penned by thatmudak, Jerry.

His nerves about the test disappeared. His gut clenched from different emotions now. Shame. Anger. And what could he do? Not a damn thing. Not like this was the first time he’d been judged on his appearance. Poverty had defined him first, now his body did. People saw what they wanted to see in him.

“I’m sorry,” he said to Tate. “I’m sure an article like this is the last thing you need, with Elle quitting and all.”

“Don’t be. I have not regretted for a second my decision to hire you. I know who you are, Vadim. I might not know who you were, but that doesn’t matter to me.” He gestured at the paper still clutched in Vadim’s hands. “That article is rubbish. You are not a partying pilot from a strained upbringing. You’re a man with rare talent and drive. You belong here.”

Vadim’s throat constricted. He swallowed before replying. “Will I still belong here if I wring his fucking neck?”

“Quinn has handled it.”

“The little blonde offed Jerry?”

Tate laughed, and handed over a different newspaper. “This is what I found funny earlier.”

Vadim took the paper and smoothed it on the desk in front of him. He was looking at a full-page ad, margin to margin. Though it was an attractive ad with nice graphics, it was clearly a “fuck you” from OrbitAll to theObserver. The ad urged readers to sign up for a brand-new newsletter full of up-to-the-minute exclusives about OrbitAll, news they would get first for their loyalty. Even before Twitter. The ad explained that theObserverwould no longer be granted interviews or access to their grounds. Quinn had hinted at big things coming for OrbitAll and the citizens of Victory, including an exclusive event for newsletter subscribers in the coming weeks. Without calling Jerry out directly or asking people to stop subscribing to the newspaper, Quinn had woven in jabs about fact-based news and the motivation driving stories. The little blonde had come fighting from his corner.

“I don’t know what you did to gain my cousin’s loyalty, but you’ve obviously got it. You’re lucky to have her on your side.”

Tate wouldn’t want to hear that Vadim spent three nights a week steeping himself in the scent, sounds, and taste of his cousin.

“I’ll have to thank her.” The little pink toy would be making a reappearance. The vibrator had driven her into a writhing frenzy the last time he’d used it. With her back against his chest, her tits in his hands, and the toy dipping in and out of her folds, he was sure she had come closer than she ever had to that first orgasm. Fuck, he’d almost had one himself just from her reactions.

Vadim rose to leave. “Thanks for being cool about this.”

Tate nodded. “About time for the hotel groundbreaking. You coming?”

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