Page 16 of Lenkov

“Looks like your kitten has claws after all,” Vas muses.

I scowl. Vas has done nothing to endear himself. Lenkov sets me on my feet gingerly.

“Doc.” The man who retreated into the background when the drama began steps forward with a worn black bag.

“This is an simple process, young lady. I’ll just need to swab the inside of your cheek.” He pulls on blue latex gloves and removes a test kit.

I allow the doctor to do his job, starring down the older brother to let him understand despite my meltdown, I won’t be intimidated or pushed around. I comply with the doctor’s painless cheek scrape and watch as he caps the swap and seals it away with a label already printed out with my name.

“All done with Mama.”

“I don’t want him near our son.” I point to his brother.

“Excuse me?” Vas frowns.

“Don’t. Let’s get this over with, Doc. Jaycee should just be about to wake from his nap so he won’t ask too many questions.” Lenkov leads us away from the patio.

I smirk over my shoulder and scratch the side of my nose with my middle finger. Yeah, I’m petty, and I want Vas to know it.

***

“CAN WE TALK?” LENKOVwhispers.

Tucking the sheets around Jaycee, I nod and gesture toward the door. Quietly, we stand and creep out of the room with the stealth that only a parent of a child who’s a light sleeper can manage. Cracking his door, I follow him downstairs to the living room.

“I want to call a truce.”

“Oh, were we at war? I hadn’t noticed and thought you were rescuing me from my shitty existence.” I say sarcastically.

“Okay. I’ve been an asshole. When I’m wrong, I can admit it. I was shocked, hurt, and, to be honest, pissed. I suspected you might be the girl from that night back in college. It’s why I started coming around regularly.”

“Why did you even care?” I ask with a laugh. I’m not naïve enough to think he hasn’t been with anyone else.

“I haven’t found what we shared that night with anyone else since.”

“Another virgin?” I ask skeptically.

He narrows his gaze. “The honesty and connection—.”

“We didn’t even exchange names.” I shake my head.

“And it’s the most freedom I’ve ever experienced. Your responses were real, raw, and mine to illicit and cherish. Do you know what it’s like to be wealthy and well-known? You have a target on your back. People don’t care about me. They want the prestige and lifestyle that comes with my last name. Or they’re trying to slide in and extort me for information. I have my guard up twenty-four seven. But that night with you—” He shakes his head. “I built you up in my head over the years. And when I saw Jaycee, it felt like a betrayal.” Running a hand through his hair, he shifts his weight, and I see the man beneath the unyielding tyrant he’d projected. “I’m not asking you to excuse my behavior. I’m showing you where I’m coming from. Our son is my number one priority, and I want to meet on common ground.”

“I’m a real person with flaws and an entirely different lifestyle—”

“I know,” he looks up at me, and I’m caught in the sparkling gems of his eyes. “But you felt it, too?”

“It was a long time ago—”

“That’s not an answer.”

“Of course I did. Why do you think I gave you my V-card? I was tired of having it, but I wanted it to be right, and when our eyes meet across the room, I knew.” I bit my bottom lip, remembering the rush of desire and slickness that coated my panties.

From his perfectly formed lips to his artistically sculpted facial features, he was the man I hadn’t known I’d dreamed of. The minute our lips met, I understood what it meant to want. The other boys I’d dated could hold a candle to him. I went from sleepwalking to wide awake and ready to learn everything he could teach me.

“You were supposed to be my one night of hedonism and selfishness.”

“Why?”

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