Page 26 of Addiction

His eyes became ice. “Be thankful I didn’t have him killed for trying to spike your drink.”

“See, that is what I mean.”

“I do value human life.”

“Are you telling me you’ve never killed before?”

“I will neither deny nor accept that. I like my reputation very much, thank you.”

“Which means you like people being afraid of you,” she scoffed.

“O-Corp is a massive empire. We can run it successfully only if the wrong people know that they cannot mess with us. Our reputation of being dangerous protects us and keeps us safe. The right people, however, have nothing to worry about,da?” He splayed a hand out casually. “Anyway, who was that man you wanted to hurt, and why didn’t you hurt him?”

“Ugh. He was a mistake, one he insisted on me repeating.” She realized the change in topic as his way of shifting the focus from himself. She was cool with that. She didn’t need to be in on any private details concerning him.

She continued, “And the only reason I didn’t hurt him was because I didn’t want to create a scene here. I am still trying toget my career going, and the last thing I needed was people in my industry watching me have a showdown with Ozan Kaya, the most famous fashion photographer in the Middle East. People would have judged me without even knowing the truth.”

“I can teach you a dozen different ways to hurt someone in a crowd without creating a scene.”

“What?”

The things he said… She never knew what to expect from him.

“Meet me on a training mat,” he said, “and I’ll teach you how to fight properly and to protect yourself.”

God, the last thing she needed was to spend time with him alone. Tonight was enough of a coincidence. Her hormones were already rebelling loudly because he was near, making her react and behave insensibly when she was normally so level-headed. She wanted no more of these butterflies dancing in her belly, of her skin being tingly, and her heart beating erratically. She wanted normalcy, and being with him was far from normal.

“Thank you, but no thank you,” she replied. “I already know self-defence. Rajiv insisted that we learn how to protect ourselves after the yacht incident.”

“I’m impressed, but I’ve seen the video of you hitting that man at my party. He was slightly drunk, and hence, too slow to move. Anyone alert could have shifted quickly or blocked you. And considering that I was the reason you took self-defence classes, perhaps I ought to teach you to do it the right way.”

“Again, thanks. But, no. Why are you here, though?”

“I told you I’d be coming for you.”

Her heart thumped even more erratically to learn that it was not a mere coincidence that he was standing in front of her. That he was here because of her. For her.

He tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. “Did you think I forgot you?”

“One can always hope,” she deadpanned, ensuring her expression gave away nothing of the internal conflict raging inside her.

“Liar.” His voice was all silk as he leaned forward and whispered in her ear. “You don’t want me to forget you. You want this as much as I do, or else you wouldn’t have initiated our first kiss. You’re just too much of a coward to accept it.”

And then he bit her ear lobe. A current of electricity washed over her, and she had to suppress the moan that was ready to spill from her mouth. He moved back and smirked.

God. Why was she not angry with him? She hated him, didn’t she? Then why the hell was she not angry with herself for reacting so easily to him and his touch? What she felt instead was exhilaration and excitement that he was here and he had found her, as promised. Shit. She was losing her mind.

And from the victorious smile he was giving her, he knew exactly how he made her feel. Damn him.

“The only reason I didn’t come for you earlier,” he began, “was because I had to go to Russia for work.”

Why was her heart rejoicing on knowing this? She ought to be afraid that he was pursuing her. He was dangerous. She’d heard rumors of the Oshnovs being a part of the Russian mafia, and judging from what she’d seen and heard in his study in London, she ought to believe those rumors, and stay clear of him. But fear was the last thing on her mind when she was with him. Ugh. What was wrong with her?

She shook her head. “How did you even know where to find me?”

“Are you seriously askingmethat? I have enough and more means.”

“And enough and more arrogance,” she muttered.

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