Page 24 of Bratva Knight

Lukyan just smirked. “Are we interrupting?”

Chapter Eight

Nikolai Volkov

IstaredatTatianathrough my laptop screen, the slightly vacant expression on her face telling me she was reliving that moment between us at Arturo’s birthday party.

I’d been sleeping when she called. The panic that gripped me when I first heard her ringtone had been so severe, it had literally stolen the air from my lungs.

Tatiana hadn’t called me since the night our son died. She never texted, never tried to reach out to me. She actively ignored all of my attempts to get into contact with her.

So when I realised it was her calling, my first thought was that she’d been hurt. I thought that something must have gone so drastically wrong for her to contact me. It had been years of radio silence. Turns out, she just needed someone to talk to. And she’d chosen me.

It made a sliver of hope cut through my heart. Maybe there was still a chance that things could be mended between us, despite what she’d said the night before.

The subject of her mother was a touchy one. The conversation could go one of two ways: she could either laugh it off and switch the topic to something else, or she could just flip out and go off at you. It all depended on what mood she was in, really.

“Are you thinking about it, Tati?” I asked, lowering my voice.

I shifted on the bed, kicking one of my legs free of the blanket as I adjusted the position of my laptop. It had taken me all of two seconds to hack into their home security system. Even though she’d told me she was fine, I still needed to see it for myself, with my own eyes, to really believe it.

Tatiana jolted, her eyes flicking up at the camera. Despite the darkness surrounding her, I could see her perfectly. See those long, golden curls tied up in a messy bun, strands framing her beautiful, delicate face.

She cleared her throat, straightening her spine and standing taller. “No.”

“I am,” I breathed, my cock painfully hard at the memory of her taste. “I think about it every day. So, unless you’d like a repeat, I suggest you put that finger away.”

Her eyes darted to her hand in the air, middle finger still aimed towards the camera, like she’d completely forgotten she was holding it up. Her eyes came back to me and narrowed in defiance. She tucked the phone between her ear and her shoulder and then held up her other hand, giving me both middle fingers with a bright, beaming smile on her face. Tatiana knew very well what happened when she tested me that way, what it would result in, and yet she’d done it anyway.

Was she doing it for a distraction? Hoping that I could help take her mind off the drama with her mother?

I was conflicted. On one hand, I wanted nothing more than to take advantage of the situation and act on the burning, sexual tension still blazing between us. Lust was literally pulsing inside me like a level ten migraine, except instead of being restricted to just my head, it was my whole body. Specifically, my cock. But on the other hand, I was worried about overstepping her boundaries and pushing her away.

The thing at Arturo’s party had been different. I’d been completely consumed by jealousy, possessiveness and rage. The only thing that could have stopped me in that moment was Tatiana telling me to, which I was confident she would do if she didn’t want anything sexual to happen. She was very strong-willed. She had no problem telling someone to fuck off if it’s what she wanted.

I had to tread carefully. The last thing I wanted to do was compromise the little bit of progress we’d made so far. Luckily, I knew exactly how to find out if she was looking for a distraction only I could provide.

"Ty khochesh', chtoby tebya nakazali, lyubimaya?" Do you want to be punished, love?

She stared up at the camera, completely unmoving.

Here we go.

What she responded with would determine where it would go. If she laughed and switched the subject, it was a flat-out no. If she gave me attitude and said something bratty…

She gripped the phone in her hand again, a smirk on her lips as she said, “What are you gonna do, Nicky? Grunt and growl at me over the phone? Ooo, I’m shaking in my boots.”

Excitement surged in my veins. I sat up a little straighter, taking a deep breath to try to hide the eagerness in my voice.

“What makes you think I won’t come down there and put you over my knee?” I zoomed in to her face, watching in rapture as her teeth dug into her bottom lip.

“I’ll just go inside and lock the door.”

I chuckled darkly. I was zoomed in close enough to see a shiver wrack through her body. Was it from the cold, or my words?

“You really think I don’t have a key to your house, Tati? Or that I wouldn’t kick down that door to get to you?” I tsked, enjoying the way her breath hitched.

“You can’t. My dad’s home.”

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