Page 45 of Savage Reign

He shrugs. “For fun.”

“Come on. That was fun for you?”

“I’ll admit, aligning myself with the Syndicate was part of my reason, but I was fresh out of jail, and a little shoot-me-up action didn’t sound all that bad. I also wanted to make Anatoly Petrovich pay for all the shit he’d done.”

“I thought of you for years afterward.”

The words are out before I can stop them, hanging in the air between us. Nikolai stills, his grip firm and his gaze sharp. I immediately wish I could take it back.

“Did you?” His voice is laced with an edge I can’t place.

“It’s not what you think.”

He doesn’t speak right away, but I feel the intensity of his focus like a physical weight. “Then explain it to me.”

I exhale, my tongue darting out to wet my lips. “It was the scariest thing I’ve ever been through, but I survived it because of you. And you made me feel safe,” I admit. “Even if everything you’ve done since then has been totally fucked up.”

His grin returns, wicked and self-assured. “And after?” he prompts. “You fantasized about me, didn’t you?”

Flustered, I splash water at him. “I didn’t say that!”

“You didn’t deny it, either.”

I groan, trying to twist away, but he holds me in place. “Fine! But it wasn’t by choice… it just happened sometimes.”

Like when I touched myself.

How could I have admitted all this to Nikolai? I didn’t even have a drink tonight, but it feels like my lips are extra loose. It must have something to do with being relaxed in the water.

“I’m flattered, moya sladost.” His fingertips skim along my waist again, dipping beneath the edge of my bikini, sending a shiver through me. “You’ve got my attention. Now, what are you going to do with it?”

I inhale sharply, trying to ignore the flutter low in my stomach. “I didn’t ask for your attention.”

“No? Then what’s this?” His finger slides under the side strap of the bikini bottom and, with a flick, snaps it against my skin.

Need pulses between my legs like a fever, and I release a little moan that I try to disguise with a cough. “It’s your girlfriend’s bikini. I had no other options.”

He shakes his head, his gaze heavy on me. “I’m going to let you in on a little secret…” He leans forward to whisper in my ear. “Eva’s not my girlfriend.”

I wave a hand in front of me. “Fuck buddy, whatever. Same thing.”

He exhales with a short laugh as if I’m trying to be funny. “I didn’t like Emil’s eyes on you in this excuse for a swimsuit.”

To make his point, he slips his finger beneath the thin band of my bottoms again, his palm brushing along the curve of my ass. A sharp hiss escapes me, and I struggle to hold on to my thoughts, but his touch makes it impossible.

“You’re the one who assigned him to watch me,” I hiss, clinging to whatever control I can muster. “Don’t get angry when he’s doing his job.”

His rough palm curls over my hip, firm and possessive. If steam could rise from the pool, it would. My blood feels like it’s on fire, my pulse hammering in my ears as he leans in close. His breath ghosts over my skin as he murmurs, “It didn’t look like he was doing his job to me. Seemed like he was enjoying the view.”

“Would you listen to yourself? You sound like a caveman.”

“I’m possessive of you. Is that so wrong?”

I should say yes, or better yet, I should push him away. While I debate with myself, his fingers trace over my hip, lingering along the edge of my bikini bottoms, the deliberate caress leaving my mind blank.

“You don’t own me,” I whisper, but the words lack the conviction I want them to have.

He leans in, his lips close to my ear. “No, I don’t own you, but I want you.” His hand skims up my side.

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