Page 18 of Saint

Curious, she popped a piece of trail mix in her mouth, courtesy of whomever had packed her bag, and tilted her head, watching Nik take inventory of every item in the duffel. So serious and methodical. He frowned when he found a pack of gum instead of cigarettes, but tucked it inside his jacket, anyway.

“Who are you?” she asked softly.

Nik glanced up, zipping the bag shut. He stood and stowed it in the corner then stretched, lifting his arms straight up. Her attention dropped to where his T-shirt lifted to reveal his taut lower belly and the black strip of hair that disappeared into hisjeans. Her stomach fluttered as she considered where that trail led. And how much she’d like to follow it.

Stop it, Mia,she chastised herself. Without realizing it, her gaze dipped further. He dropped his arms and must’ve noticed she was staring at his crotch. In her defense, there was quite a lot to look at. The man was sporting a very large package. Forcing her eyes back up, she met his dark ones which were filled with amusement. Without answering her question, he dropped down in the seat across from her, lounging back, propping his elbows on the armrests and spreading his legs.

“Seriously,” she continued, twisting to face him. “What’s your name?”

“You know my name—Nik.”

“Nik Saint?”

He arched a scarred brow. “Nik Valentine. My team calls me Saint.”

“Valentine?” She mulled over his answer then made a face. “That sounds made up.”

“Well, excuse me, Miss Carlisle, but not everyone is born into a world of wealth and privilege and has a billionaire’s last name handed to them.”

His caustic response took her by surprise and she tried to backpedal. She had the strangest feeling she’d hit upon a sore spot and that wasn’t what she’d intended. “That’s not what I meant. I meant—”

“I don’t care what you meant,” he snapped.

Mia bit her bottom lip. He could be so surly and, now she realized, overly sensitive.Huh.Was there actually a heart beneath all that ink?

“For what it’s worth,” she said softly, “I like your name. I just wondered what yourrealname was.”

“Go to sleep,” he responded tersely, leaning back in his seat and stretching his long legs out. “It’s a long flight.”

Turning back around in her seat, she tucked her legs beneath her. She hadn’t meant to poke the bear or hurt his feelings, but Nik was clearly annoyed, upset even, and she couldn’t help but wonder why. He had a scowl bigger than the Grand Canyon on his face, and she felt bad. “Guess I’m the asshole this time. Sorry.”

He tilted his head in her direction. “Yeah.”

“Just so you know, I’d trade my last name for a real family in a heartbeat,” she murmured.

When Nik didn’t comment, she closed her eyes and settled in for the long flight ahead.

???

Halfway to their destination, Saint glanced over at Mia and she looked asleep. Good. He pulled out the sat phone and called his contact. It rang and rang. Just as he was about to hang up, Nadia Andreyev answered.

“Slushayu.”

“Allo, Nadia,” Saint said in a low voice.

Silence filled the line and, for a moment, he thought the call had dropped. “Nikolai,” she finally responded. “Nice to know you’re still alive.”

He chuckled and continued the conversation in Russian, just in case Mia was only pretending to be asleep. And if he had to guess, she was wide awake and listening intently. “It’s hard to kill the devil.”

“True.”

“I need your help. More specifically, a safehouse. Preferably one near Perm.”

“What brings you back?” she asked.

“Business.”

“Business…or revenge?”

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