Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 100416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Keira went so still, it was as if she’d melded with one of the shadows. “What do you mean by that?”
He wasn’t a man who normally fumbled for words, but he didn’t want to say something to damage the fragile moment they had growing between them. “When I first decided to marry you, I didn’t quite fathom what it would be like to be with you. There are quite a few things I never planned on or anticipated when it comes to you, Keira. I enjoy spending time with you. I find it fascinating the way your mind works—it’s as twisty as mine is.” He leaned closer and lowered his voice. “And I will spend the rest of my life counting down the time until I can have you coming on my cock next.”
“Okay.”
He wasn’t deterred by the panic blossoming in her hazel eyes. He’d just changed the game on her without warning—panic was a natural reaction. “I think we’d both enjoy adding a bit of romance to the mix.”
She opened her mouth, seemed to reconsider what she’d been about to say, and closed it. Keira frowned. “Seducing me is just another game.”
If he said yes, she would dismiss it out of hand—and rightfully so. What they had wasn’t a goddamn game, even if neither of them had been willing to admit as much up to this point. Asking her to be the one to take that first step with no guarantee of his returning her feelings was cruel, especially after the hits she’d rolled with time and again. Dmitri squeezed her hand where it was laced with his on his thigh. “Nyet, moya koroleva. What I have with you isn’t a game. It’s as real as anything.”
The hope written across her face kindled an identical feeling in him. Her smile was a little shaky, but it was genuine. “You want to date me.”
“I want to romance you.”
Her smile widened. “And how, exactly, does a gentleman-murderer romance his wife?”
If he could love any woman, it would be this one. Nothing seemed able to break her, and she came back swinging every time something—or someone—knocked her down. Today hadn’t been easy on her, and if he hadn’t had her clinging to his hand less than an hour ago in that art shop, he wouldn’t know that she’d been on the verge of cracking as she stood down her demons. And still she managed to flirt with him.
Dmitri reached down and hooked the bottom of her chair with his hand and dragged it closer to him. “It begins with an intimate dinner in a small restaurant.”
“Does it, now?” She made a show of looking around. “Seems like you have that box firmly checked.”
“What’s the point of a good plan of attack if it’s not realized?”
She leaned in until her hair brushed his arm. “What’s the next play?”
It was only then that he realized she’d changed something about her clothing from the last time he’d seen her. The blazer had hid it from him before, but with her current angle, he could clearly see that she’d taken off her bra, and the lace of her top did nothing to conceal her.
He went rock hard even as he narrowed his eyes. “Moya koroleva, you have a habit of leaving off a necessary part of your wardrobe whenever it suits you.”
“Hmm?” She ran her finger down the edge of her blazer, pulling it away from her body so her hard nipples flashed at him. “I got a little warm, so I took off my bra.”
He adjusted her blazer, letting the backs of his fingers caress her through the lace. “It’s November.”
“Is it?” Keira fanned herself. “So hot.”
“You’re incorrigible.”
“That right there is a ten-dollar word.” She arched her back a little, pressing her breast against his touch. “I suppose now isn’t the time to tell you that I’m not wearing panties, either?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Keira might be emotionally spinning, but the look on Dmitri’s face grounded her just as effectively as his touch. He wanted her. He wanted her right there, in that chair, in the middle of the fucking restaurant. He wouldn’t put her in that position, but the desire in his gray eyes had an answering tide rising in her. She recrossed her legs, letting her skirt slide up a bit. An invitation.
He saw it just like she’d hoped he would. “You’ve been a very bad girl, Keira.”
“I don’t suppose you’ll put me over your knee and spank me for it?”
His lips curved. “I think you may like that too much to be an effective punishment.”
Her Russian was flirting with her. Of all the sides of Dmitri, this sly, flirtatious one might have been her favorite. He seemed to save it only for her, and if it was just another part he played, she didn’t want to know it. It might be a comforting lie to think he was giving her a piece of himself exclusively, but it was comforting nonetheless. “Careful there, Dima. Punishment can go both ways.” She loved the way his eyes flared every time she used his pet name. Another intimacy between them. Another bridge connecting them in a way she never would have guessed was possible.