Page 51 of Sinful Promise

“Alex.” Roman’s voice warns him not to say more.

“Well,” Alex says with a shrug, sipping his vodka, “she is. We team up for work from time to time.”

Dinner is announced, and we leisurely stroll to the dining area. Roman motions for me to sit first. I slide easily over the cream-colored leather.

The chef, wearing a white coat, comes to the table and describes what he’s prepared for us. It all sounds foreign and delicious. The chief steward places a dinner plate in front of me. The lobster takes up the entire plate. It’s huge and intimidating.

“You eat it like this,” Roman says. He uses what looks like a nutcracker to crack open the claw. “This is the sweetest, most tender meat.” He pulls meat out of the claw with his fingers. “And you dip it in butter like this.” He dips the white meat into a ramekin of butter.

He lifts his fingers to my lips. I lean in and open my mouth. He feeds it to me. This feels so sexual that I’m almost embarrassed. The lobster meat is sweet, and the butter coats my tongue.

“Oh, my,” I exclaim after I’ve chewed and swallowed the meat. “That was so amazing.”

“Well, if you like this, you might want to try oysters,” Irina adds as she skillfully cracks her lobster and eats.

We have fingerling potatoes and creamed spinach as side dishes. I’ve almost finished eating my lobster when I notice we all have a chilled plate of Caesar salad next to our dinner plates. I grew up with dumplings and boiled potatoes all my life, never knowing these delicacies existed.

“This is a great trip, Roman.” Irina smiles at him. “I’m glad I came.” The way in which she says that last bit leaves me to wonder why she, specifically, is here. I have a feeling there is more to her than meets the eye.

20

ROMAN

Ienjoy introducing Dasha to new foods and watching her eat to her heart’s content. She needs to gain a few pounds. Dinner conversation flows well, and I get a chance to catch up with Irina on things that aren’t work-related. She’s observant and hasn’t missed the fact that I’m infatuated with the little bird next to me. And yet, she’s discreet enough not to bring it up at the table.

After dessert, we adjourn to the movie theater, which also functions as a library. I watch Dasha’s face light up when she sees all the books, a personal collection the family has accumulated over the years.

I fire up the big-screen TV and surround-sound speakers. Irina insists on watchingThe Accountantfor the umpteenth time, no doubt because she thinks Ben Affleck is hot. Alex and I like the movie because it’s about a guy laundering money for the mob. Dasha has never seen it and hides her eyes when the boys suffer physical and mental abuse from their father. We’re in a recliner for two, so I lean over and tell her it all comes together at the end. She nods, and I slide my arm around her to protect her from reliving past trauma.

We enjoy the movie, and afterward, we make our excuses and head upstairs to our cabin.

“Thank you for a wonderful evening,” she says as we climb the stairs.

“My pleasure. I hope it stopped raining.”

We enter the bedroom, and I walk to the sliding doors, peering out into the darkness. No rain. It wouldn’t matter, anyway. This part of the deck is covered. I open the doors, kick off my loafers, and step outside. A crisp breeze blows in off the water, and I turn to say something to Dasha.

She’s gone. Damn it! I could have sworn she was behind me a second ago. I panic, fearing we have intruders, until I realize the cameras haven’t sent an alert to my watch.

I remind myself that the likelihood of Andrian finding our location is slim. The ring with the tracker has been destroyed, and the last possible ping would have been when we were waterskiing. There is no way Andrian is giving up so quickly, and I wish we could stay at sea indefinitely.

Dasha walks toward me in a black, lacy, see-through teddy.

“There you are,” I say, relieved to see she’s okay.

“I thought you’d want to be outside now that the rain has stopped,” she coos.

Damn, she takes my breath away. My staff deserves a bonus.

I reach out and pull her into my arms. “You’re so beautiful. I can’t wait to buy you jewels and more sexy clothes. This is a great beginning,” I add, touching the silky material that barely covers her nipple. I kiss her lips, at first gently, then with need and urgency as I ravage her mouth with my tongue.

I feel her hand on my cock and groan against her mouth.

My cock is restrained by my jeans, and she unfastens the zipper. I let the jeans fall and step out of them as we hurry toward the huge sofa lounger on the deck. She pulls my shirt over my head and tosses it into the salty air as we tumble onto the sofa.

She moans as I place my hand over her pussy and massage it through the fabric. My cock twitches in response. I bend my head, licking her nipple, and the texture of the lace makes me want to thrust my cock in her and take her hard and fast.

This is still new to her. I need to take it slow. She scoots back on the furniture, and I slip my head between her legs.

---