Page 28 of Merciless Sinner

Again, she smoothly accepted his instructions without breaking the smile across her face as if she’d been trained for this kind of thing. “Of course. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Sokolov.” She quickly made her way across the dock while he watched, unwilling to turn back to Viktor until he saw her safely tucked in his car.

“Is that the woman from Ronin’s party?”

Alex bristled at Viktor’s question. Fuck. How could he not have anticipated this might happen? Viktor and Ronin weren’t close, but they often shared business opportunities with each other and if the Russian had been in town at the right time it made sense Ronin would have invited him. Ronin had a thing for Russian women and Viktor always had a steady supply…

Tomorrow he’d planned to nail Viktor in their business negotiations with the knowledge of some of the man’s backdoor US holdings as his upper hand. Now he’d have to scramble for another tactic. One that would ensure not only Harper’s safety from his psychotic stepbrother, but also get her out of the crosshairs of Viktor’s incessant need to play games with people’s lives.

He wasn’t even supposed to be here tonight. He’d texted to say his flight from DC had been delayed, but to enjoy the party without him.

Fucker had played him.

But why?

Chapter Thirteen

Alex

Harper stood at the door to her apartment, legs trembling. Her nervousness in the face of letting him inside her home charmed him. He’d given her the choice of his place or hers and she’d chosen hers despite whatever reservations she might be having. If she so chose, she could still say good night now, but they both knew she wouldn’t.

The sexual tension between them had multiplied as the night went on and his sudden need to get the hell off that fucking yacht and somewhere private so he could show her every filthy thing he wanted from her was met with an equally intense molten desire from her.

That sweetness of hers was going to be the death of him. With every quake of a lip or flush of pink along her smooth skin, more blood rushed directly to his cock. How she’d maintained that innocence through the crap life had given her he didn’t understand. Most women would be bitter at least if not broken.

Harper was not broken. A little lost maybe. But she was forging her own path anyway and he couldn’t help but admire that.

On the short drive back to her place his thoughts kept wandering back to that first night at the Glass Kat with Jeremy. He didn’t know when she finally realized that he’d not climaxed during their scene, although he’d come so damned close just from watching her. To ensure detachment on his part, he’d allowed Jeremy to take her first and his friend had fucked her until she’d practically collapsed.

It had been a while since he’d invited Jeremy into a scene with him, and he’d almost forgotten just how voracious the man could get.

It had taken a lot of control on his part to go through with it. Her easy and incredibly natural responses to his touch and his control had gone straight to his head and his possessiveness had reared its ugly head. He’d wanted to haul her out of the Kat and back to his place, tie her to the wall of his bedroom and use her to within an inch of her safeword.

So much for detachment.

Alex grit his teeth and shook the memory from his mind. It wouldn’t do either of them any good for him to get too worked up over this. The critical part in all that came after, when she started thinking about it. She’d realized his lack of release and not only did it bother her, but she’d fixated on it.

It wasn’t beneath him to admit how much satisfaction he got from that. His denial had given him something far more important. Her true interest. And that interest felt special. Like a gift freely given that he couldn’t wait to ravish and defile. Only something about her current fragile appearance told him now was the time to go easy on her.

He’d already pushed her boundaries to the max for one night. First the party, then the public scene. He swallowed a shit-eating grin. He didn’t deserve all the sweetness that she gave him. Not that that had ever stopped him before.

However, he was willing to wait a little while longer if that’s what it took.

When she’d mentioned in the car that he’d not gotten off yet, he calmly reassured her that it wasn’t important. And he’d meant it. His balls might ache with the fierce need to get inside her, but denial wasn’t just an effective tool on a sweet and giving woman like Harper. Putting off his own release would only make it even better down the road.

Now, standing here at her threshold, he saw the obligation shining in her eyes when she hesitantly looked at him. Fuck it. The longer he let her stew the more they’d both anticipate their time together.

She entered ahead of him and flipped on the lights. Her apartment was small as most rentals were in this part of the city, but the appearance surprised him. Instead of the soft, girly furnishings he’d expected, he found modern and cozy in cool neutral tones that bordered on minimalism.

He glanced around, taking in the ultra-conservative furniture so different from what he expected of a woman whose chosen career was born in creativity. Not that he’d visited her place of employment. He’d just assumed…

“Can I get you anything? Some wine perhaps?”

“Yes, wine would be nice.” He’d take whatever she offered for now. The desire to observe her in her own environment piqued his interest. Everyday life had a way of revealing a lot about a person. Where they lived. How they lived. Where they came from. It was all a part of the equation.

“Pinot Grigio okay with you? I haven’t had much time lately for shopping.”

“Sure.” He had no expectation of finding a secret wine cellar in her tiny home. And it didn’t surprise him that her own care was an afterthought. Owning your own business took a great deal of time and energy. It also made him wary about the clash of their schedules that would surely be a problem. He’d work that out for her though.

He followed her into the kitchen, blinking at the sudden change of atmosphere. This was obviously where all of her decorating efforts had been concentrated. Wood gleamed from the countertops to the cabinets only giving way to the translucent colored glass that comprised each cabinet door.

---