The Underworld Series, page 44
I tightened my arm around her, cursing quietly under my breath.
“No, it’s okay. I was thinking about when I went to the bathroom. Ivan waited outside for me. There were these two women in the bathroom and they were talking about you. I could hear their whole conversation. They were talking about how there were rumors that you were gay because you hadn’t been seen in public with a woman in years. But then one of them said she knew one of your ex-girlfriends. She said you were always an asshole and would call her the wrong name. That’s when I knew for sure they were talking about you,” she giggled. “She made a comment about how you never told anyone your real name. Then the other one mentioned the guys and said how much she’d like to take a ride on one of them. Ivan told me I had five minutes, but of course I told him I could be out in three, so I couldn’t wait for them to leave. I walked out and told them I could introduce them to the guys, but that I knew for a fact they appreciated boldness so they should introduce themselves as I washed my hands.”
I clicked my tongue. “You know they can’t talk to people when they’re working.”
She giggled. “Why do you think I told them to introduce themselves?”
I kissed her neck. “You’re a little bit evil, solnishko.” I smiled against her neck, biting gently. I felt her sigh as she was lost in her thoughts. “Those two scenes are what you’ve been thinking about instead of sleeping?”
She nodded her head, sipping the tea. “I can’t get rid of the feeling that something is familiar about those two scenes and I can’t figure out why smelling her perfume in the elevator made me think of that. I’ve never seen her before today. At least, not that I know of.”
I thought for a moment. “We can ask Stephen about it tomorrow. He has experience with hypnosis and how certain things can trigger memories. He might be able to help you connect it.”
“Why am I not surprised that he’s the one that can mindfuck you?”
I laughed. “I know, right? You don’t know if he’s just really quiet or if he’s thinking of fifty different ways to kill you.”
She laughed, leaning her head back against my shoulder, giving me complete access to her neck. I kissed down her neck as she said, “I said almost the exact same thing to Misha and Andrei the other day.”
We stood in silence for a few minutes while she kept sipping her tea. She finally yawned and I felt her body relax. “Better?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m sleepy again. I made that tea, like, triple strong, so I apologize in advance if I sleep until noon now.”
I took the mug from her, setting it down on the coffee table. I picked her up, her head resting against my shoulder. “You can sleep as long as you need to, my love. You’re so much better now, but your body still needs time to heal. It doesn’t help that I’m practically addicted to you now.” I kissed her forehead as we walked back to bed.
She sighed, making the quiet cooing noise that she only made when she was super sleepy and happy. “I don’t mind that part. I love that part, actually. You take all the pain away for a bit.”
I laid her down on the bed. She moved over, so I could climb in behind her. I wrapped my arms around her as she snuggled back into me. I loved that feeling of having her in my arms, wanting to be as close to me as possible. I held her tightly, knowing she was asleep again almost immediately. I smiled to myself, thinking about how much I loved her as I drifted off to sleep once again as well.
I woke up late the next morning. Sephie was still sound asleep on my chest. It never seemed to matter how we fell asleep each night, that’s inevitably where she would end up. It seemed to be her favorite spot and I was not going to deny her. I ran my hands through her hair, expecting her to start to wake up. She didn’t move. Guess triple strength tea really does do the trick.
I laid under her for a while longer, running my fingers through her hair and over her body, enjoying the peace. I didn’t have anything scheduled until after lunch, so I could afford to spend extra time with her this morning. I felt her fingers start to play on my chest. I smiled, knowing she was having happy dreams, at least.
My mind wandered to our conversation earlier and her experience after smelling Vanessa’s perfume. As far as I knew, she hadn’t thought about the attack or the night of the ball for at least a week, if not longer. Once she was able to kick her uncle’s voice out of her head and she broke the loop of the night of the ball, she hadn’t given it much thought. It seemed strange that both incidents would come back over something completely unrelated.
Why had Vanessa come back? Sephie was completely right, Vanessa did try to touch me when she came into my office. I’ve never felt so repulsed in my life. The thought of any woman other than Sephie touching me makes my skin crawl. I couldn’t get away fast enough from her. She sat on the edge of the desk and all I could think about was how she was in Sephie’s spot. I couldn’t stop thinking about Sephie sitting on my desk. I wasn’t even listening to what Vanessa was saying. Her voice was always annoying to me on a good day. And my God, the smell. Her perfume was strong when worn correctly. It was unbearable when she wore it. I didn’t even tell Sephie, but I threw out the clothes we were both wearing that night. Somehow, I don’t think she’ll mind.
I did eventually catch a few things that Vanessa was saying before Viktor and Ivan walked in with Sephie. She said she’d heard I was back and wanted to make sure I was okay. She said she cried for days when she heard I had been killed. Right. Where would she have heard I was back from? As far as I knew, she wasn’t connected to anyone else in my organization. I always checked out a woman’s background before I dated them. Except for Sephie. I didn’t care when it came to her. My usual rules were thrown completely out the window when it came to her. I should have one of the guys put somebody on Vanessa for a few days. Something doesn’t feel right about her just “randomly” showing back up, after almost two years.
I felt Sephie snuggle into me more, still sound asleep, making her cooing noises. I held her tighter against me, glad that she had broken me from my own thoughts. Regardless of whether she was aware of it or not.
I checked the time. I’d been laying there watching her and thinking about everything for over an hour. I needed to get up, so I wouldn’t be late to my meeting with Armando and a few other business owners in the city. We were all working toward the same goal, so I didn’t feel like Sephie’s presence was imperative. All the business owners that were coming were close associates of either Armando or myself. They knew we could help them make even more money. I wasn’t worried about deception with them.
I gently picked Sephie up off my chest enough that I could slip out from under her. She stirred just slightly, making me hopeful she would wake. My hopes were dashed when she rolled over and curled up in a new position. I smiled at her, pulling the blanket over her so she wouldn’t get cold without me. She always said I kept her warm at night. I carefully crawled back onto the bed and kissed her cheek before leaving to get dressed. I wasn’t looking forward to being away from her, but I wanted her to sleep. Clearly, she needed it. I would have one of the guys come up and wait for her to wake up, so she wouldn’t be completely alone.
She still wasn’t awake when I was ready to leave. I left her a note, hoping that she would see it and put pants on before walking out of the bedroom. Not that I didn’t trust my guys, but some things were reserved only for me and I liked it that way. I kissed her once more before quietly leaving for my meeting.
I met Viktor and Ivan in my office. “Where’s the princess?” Ivan asked, a look of slight concern on his face.
“She had trouble sleeping last night. I want her to talk to Stephen today. She said smelling Vanessa’s perfume took her back to the day of the attack on her and Misha, as well as the night of the ball,” I said. Both tensed, looking seriously worried now. “I know. I had the same reaction. She said it wasn’t that loop she was stuck in on the plane. She said it triggered a memory of listening to two other women in the bathroom earlier in the evening.”
Ivan chuckled. “Did she tell you what she did to those women?”
I laughed, nodding my head. Ivan just shook his head. Viktor looked lost, “What happened?”
Still smiling, I said, “She overheard these two women talking about me and the rumors about me. One of them apparently knows an ex of mine, so she confirmed the rumors were untrue, but did say I was an asshole that couldn’t remember my girlfriend’s names. That’s how Sephie knew for sure they were talking about me.” I paused to laugh. “The other lady apparently wanted to take a ride on one of you. They didn’t know Sephie was in there, but because Ivan was waiting for her, she didn’t want to wait for them to leave, so she came out and offered to introduce them to you guys.”
“But then she told them that she knew that we appreciated boldness, so they should introduce themselves instead,” Ivan finished, laughing.
Viktor, still somewhat confused, asked, “Doesn’t Sephie know we can’t talk to people while we’re working?”
“Oh, she knew. That’s exactly why she told them to introduce themselves,” I said.
Viktor cursed under his breath, laughing along with us. “She’s a little bit evil,” he said, laughing his deep belly laugh.
“That’s why she couldn’t sleep last night. She said she just kept going back to those two scenes, so she got up and made herself some tea. She said she made it triple strength, so it’s not surprising that she’s still sound asleep upstairs. One of you go upstairs and wait for her to wake up. Or send one of the other guys,” I said. “And I want someone on Vanessa for a few days. It doesn’t make sense that she came back after all this time. That wasn’t random. I need to know who told her to come back.”
Viktor nodded, “Already on it, sir. We had her followed when we tossed her from the building.” He pulled his phone from his pocket to send a text, presumably to one of the other three to go wait for Sephie.
“Well done. Thank you.”
“I told Misha and Andrei to battle it out and decide who would go upstairs. Stephen is in the lobby waiting for your associates for the meeting.”
“Perfect. I know she’s safe up there, but I haven’t been away from her in a few weeks and quite frankly, I don’t like it,” I ran my hand through my hair. I knew they would understand my obsessive need to make sure she was always protected.
“Honestly, Boss, I’m surprised you were able to leave without her waking up. She’s just as attached to you as you are to her,” Ivan said. “If it were anyone else, it might make me want to puke, but you two are fucking adorable.” He grinned when he said it.
I glared at him but laughed. “We are fucking adorable.”
We were still laughing when Stephen stuck his head in my office. “Everyone is here, Boss. They’re all in the conference room. Where’s Sephie? Is she okay?”
I nodded, still occasionally surprised at their concern for her. “She’s fine. I want you to talk to her later, though. Vanessa’s perfume triggered memories for her of the day she and Misha were attacked, as well as the ball. We can’t figure out why.”
He looked surprised. “She didn’t have nightmares again, did she?”
“No. Well, not the same one as she was in on the plane. Different memories. The fact that she’s thinking about the day she and Misha were attacked is strange to me. She never seemed like that bothered her, at least mentally like the ball did. And I have no idea why smelling perfume would trigger the memories.”
Stephen exhaled. “Could be a number of things, honestly. We’ll talk about it later and get to the bottom of it.”
I put my hand on his shoulder as I walked out of the office, on my way to the meeting. My mind was on Sephie, not at all on this meeting I was walking into.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Sephie
I woke up curled up under the covers. I didn’t even need to check the bed to know that Adrik was gone. I only needed covers when he wasn’t in bed with me. He was like having a personal heater next to me all night long, so covers were never needed. It’s partially why I loved laying across his chest so much. It was the warmest option. Bonus points that he always ran his fingers through my hair when I was on his chest.
I stretched my legs out, feeling the soreness from our night before. The day before too. The two days before. I was beginning to lose count, honestly. We couldn’t get enough of each other right now. I hoped it never ended, honestly. I loved every second of it, especially now that he didn’t feel like he had to hold back as much. I was surprised at how much his need for me and his absolute lust for me turned me on.
I rolled over, noticing the closed bedroom door. He left me a note.
Sephie,
Triple strength tea works better than expected. I’m sending one of the guys to wait for you to wake up, so maybe put on pants before leaving the bedroom. I have a meeting this afternoon. You know where to find me. I miss you already.
Love you, A
I laughed, grateful that he told me to put on pants. Definitely would not have thought of that. I got up, found appropriate clothes, and went to the bathroom to splash some water on my face. It was just past noon. Triple strength tea really does work.
I walked in to find Andrei and Misha both sitting on the couches, discussing something that sounded very serious.
“Let me guess, you guys had a draw and couldn’t decide on who would come up here, so you both came?”
They both laughed, nodding their heads. I looked at Misha, “We’re going to need to work on your strategy, young grasshopper. You’re too predictable, but at least you switched it up just enough that you forced a draw this time.” I winked at him.
“How are you feeling, spider monkey? Did the nightmares come back last night?” Andrei asked.
“No. Well, not exactly. Not the same one as you’re thinking of,” I said, sitting in between them on the couch. “When I first smelled Vanessa’s perfume on the elevator, I had a flashback to the day that Misha and I were attacked.” I looked to Misha. “I could clearly see you a step ahead of me and the moment when you looked back to stop me right before we were both hit from opposite directions.”
He looked puzzled. “Why would you think about that moment after smelling her perfume, gazelle?”
“I’m not sure. It’s that same weird familiar feeling that I had about the guys that attacked us. Like there’s some connection there that I’m not seeing. When I was on the elevator, I tried to not think about that day. So, instead, my brain jumped to the night of the ball.”
Both guys cursed under their breath. I smiled at them. “No, not what you’re thinking. Adrik had the same reaction. Ivan had escorted me to the bathroom earlier in the evening. He told me I had five minutes, or he was coming in after me. Of course, me being me, I told him I could be out in three. When I was in one of the stalls, there were two women who came out and were at the sink. They were talking about Adrik and about the rumors he was gay. One of them said she knew one of his exes, that he was an asshole, and that he never remembered her name. That’s how I knew for sure they were talking about him. One of them, the one that knew his ex, made a comment about him never telling anyone his real name. The other one made a comment about you guys and how much she’d like to take a ride on any one of you. I was hoping they would leave before I came out, but, of course, they lingered. I wasn’t going to let Ivan win, so I came out. They immediately recognized me. I just smiled and told them that I could introduce them to you guys, but that I happened to know that you guys appreciated boldness so they should introduce themselves. It was just under three minutes, in case you were wondering.” I laughed.
“Spider monkey, you know we can’t talk to anyone when we’re working, right?” Andrei asked.
“Of course, I know. That’s why I told them to introduce themselves.”
They both started laughing. Misha gave me a high five. “You’re a little bit evil, gazelle.”
“I don’t think any of you would’ve been interested, if I’m being honest. They both looked like the type to look like a completely different person without makeup. Somehow, I don’t think that’s the type of girl any of you go for. I could be wrong though. It’s happened like once before.”
They both turned up their noses, shaking their heads no.
I crossed my arms over my chest. “I rest my case,” smiling at them both.
“Why would smelling Vanessa’s perfume make you think of those two instances?” Misha asked, puzzled.
“I don’t know. Adrik wants me to talk to Stephen later, because, OF COURSE, he’s the one that would know how to mindfuck someone.”
We all laughed. Poor Stephen really was just a nice guy, but he was so much quieter than the rest of them that it made him stand out.
“Are you hungry, spider monkey?” Andrei asked.
“Don’t ask stupid questions, Bubba. Of course, I’m hungry. And, of course, I want someone to bring me some Vinny’s,” I looked at him, a devilish grin on my face.
Misha pulled his phone out of his pocket. He gave orders, in Russian, then ended the call, putting his phone back in his pocket.
“They’ll be here shortly.” His wide smile stretching across his face. His black hair was getting longer on top, so it would fall over his eyes frequently, causing him to brush it back out of his eyes.
“You guys are so good to me.” I got up to get some water from the kitchen. “Anybody else want some water?” Both hands shot up. I grabbed three water bottles from the fridge and returned to the couch. “Who knows what the meeting Adrik has today is about?”
“He’s meeting with business associates of his, Armando, and a few business associates of Armando’s as well. They’re all people he regularly does business with. They’ve been working on a project for a while now,” Andrei said.
