Jane grinned happily as she sat crosslegged on the floor of Vlad's study in front of his open safe with a pile of VERY incriminating papers piled in her lap. She could hardly believe the code she'd managed to oversee while being forced to trail Vlad everywhere he went actually worked and that her Russian lover felt comfortable enough leaving work in there with his ex-cop girlfriend staying in the same house. Well, he certainly had made spying on his criminal enterprise a whole lot easier the past few days. After the whole kicking-him-in-the-junk and beating-him-up-with-a-toilet-chip incident, followed by the sneaking out of his fortress to confront an attempted murderer by herself snafu, Vlad hadn't been feeling too trusting of Jane. So he'd decided she was to be babysat by Boris at all times. And when not with Boris, she was to be accompanied by Vlad. She wasn't even allowed to pee alone for those few days after she'd confronted Gruber. But the one thing Vladimir Stinikov, impenetra
Jane stared defiantly at Vlad, daring him to say something. He eyed her outfit of black skinny jeans and black T-shirt with the caption "private dick" emblazoned on it with faint distaste. In concession to her wedding day, she had brushed her straight dark hair and added a light layer of make-up, including blue eye shadow, which brought out the angry sparkle in her eyes, and nude lipstick.?She also added a silver skull ring to her middle finger.Vlad looked his usual detached sexy in an even-more-expensive-than-usual dark grey suit with a blue silk tie. "I told Boris to take you shopping this morning," he said, cold anger evident in his voice. "Yet this is what you wear."Oh goody, she had pissed him off again. The cold fa?ade that habitually frightened everyone else in his world didn't stop her from doing everything in her power to annoy him. Especially on her forced wedding day. Because, though she would like to deny what was about to happen, she was under no illusions that once th
Though her wedding ceremony hadn't been the happiest event of her life, Jane found herself several hours later partaking in what would pass for their reception with surprising enjoyment. She sat at her new husband's side eating a sampling of each new Russian dish that was placed before her in one of the city's most exclusive restaurants. The owner, Vladimir Sitnikov, had closed the establishment to the public on the occasion of his wedding and invited only his closest friends and soldiers. Some of the food she enjoyed and some she pushed away after one bite.Jane knew that she would have to impress the men that surrounded Vlad, and among the Russians there was only so many ways she could do that. Strength and vodka. Since she wouldn't be winning any arm wrestling competitions in the near future, she ended up downing shot after shot of vodka in honour of her health, her beauty, her fertility and whatever else the jovial foul-mouthed men could come up with. After a few hours of revelry,
"Oh my god!" she groaned the next morning, rolling off the bed with a thump, and run-crawled to the bathroom. She got the lid of the toilet open just in time to discover that vodka is not nearly as smooth coming back up as it is going down."Burns, does it, malysh?" said a darkly amused voice from the doorway."Fuck you and your 'molysh' bullshit," she replied between bouts of nausea. "I'll give you a pet name that'll make even your goddamned mafia ears burn."She glared at him from underneath her bangs. Then she laughed weakly, imagining what she must look like: sweaty, pale and shaking with nausea in day old clothes. "I make a hell of a bride," she said with a watery grin before vomiting again.With a muttered comment in Russian, he went to the sink, ignoring her weak slap at his leg to get him away, and wetted a facecloth. He bent over her and, lifting her dark hair, pressed the cool cloth against the back of her neck. She sighed in relief, her body beginning to relax now that
Vlad ushered her into the passenger side of his sleek Mercedes and then slid into the drivers seat. Throwing it in gear, he roared down the driveway. Jane wondered where they were going that he would drive himself without his usual armed escort. She was glad though. Strangely, she felt that she wanted to keep this more light-hearted Vlad to herself today.Jane started to get excited when she realized they were heading toward the marina. She turned to him with a broad grin. "A boat!" she announced.Vlad chuckled, "Yes, detective, a yacht."Jane clapped her hands together, unable to contain her enthusiasm. "I've never been on a boat before!"Vlad looked over at her, taking in her flushed, happy features and couldn't help himself from reaching out for her hand and squeezing it. "It will be my pleasure then to be the first to take you out."Jane sighed happily as Vlad maneuvered the Mercedes into a parking spot. "I suppose marrying a rich man will have its perks after all. I get half
Vlad had hoped that their time on his yacht would be the beginning of a peaceful marriage. Knowing Jane as he did, he should have known better. The woman was built for battle and made a point of letting him know she thought of their marriage as a mockery, despite weeks of passionate nights where he proved to her that they were very much married. He was rapidly reaching the end of his patience with his conflicted younger wife, who would show caring one moment and then bare her murderous claws at him the next.Vlad entered the dining room at the usual time. Jane, who was beginning to learn his preferred schedule, stood waiting for him. As usual she didn't look up or acknowledge him. But she was present, which was progress. Unfortunately, she made the mistake of ducking his affectionate greeting and turning her back on him. Vlad's normally cool temper soared into a rage. No one turned their back on him while he commanded their attention, least of all his wife.Vlad gripped her arm tight
"You will learn Jane," he said huskily, approaching her from behind. She tried to twist her head around to look at him, but her silky hair fell forward blocking her view. "Until I'm certain you are going to be an obedient wife who will not attack her husband with little provocation.""Fuck obedience," she snapped, anger flaring in her once more.Vlad chuckled. "Yes, Jane. I intend to fuck the obedience into you. It seems to be the only way to keep you in check. Now be a good girl and stop talking before you make things worse for yourself."Jane's opinion of him became louder and angrier. Vlad brought his hand down on her ass cheek in a hard smack, causing her to jump. Instead of quieting her though, her objections became louder until she was insisting he untie her so she could attempt to 'kick his ass' with more success than she had minutes before. Vlad reached down and picked up her thong from the floor. He tore the delicate fabric with ease and then reached over to pick up a cloth
As Jane drifted around the ornate dining room, every muscle in her body denoting restlessness, she failed to notice her husband standing in the entrance way watching her. Vlad had known this would be an inevitability. Jane had been raised from birth in an atmosphere of busy work and hard labour. When she'd moved to the city she had turned her relentless drive to police work. Then to PI work.He wished that she could just devote herself to being the pampered wife of a wealthy man. Unfortunately, even Vlad couldn't picture her spending her days shopping and redecorating the mansion. Jane would never be happy playing it safe and living under constant guard where his enemies couldn't reach her. Which was too bad, because he could not allow her to put herself in danger. At least she had settled down a little more, since their dining room battle several days earlier, and stopped fighting him at every turn. At least physically."Lovely as always," he said, stepping into the room and drawing
Vlad looked down at his wife while she worked quietly. She sat crosslegged on the floor on top of his expensive rug in front of the roaring fire she had insisted he light for her. He'd demanded a kiss in return for the favour. When she had laughingly refused, he had, like the thief he was, stolen it from her and then proceeded to steal so much more. It amazed him yet, this intense feeling he felt for his wife. He knew it was love, yet he couldn't bring himself to say it. What he felt went beyond the calf-like love he witnessed in others. He had wanted to possess Jane in a way that would bind her to him for eternity. Even now, he felt anxious that she wasn't as much his as she should be. He could make men bleed without thinking twice. He took anything and everything he wanted, leaving destruction behind him if he encountered resistance. Yet Jane had defied him on numerous occasions and he could do nothing but claim her again and again. She was a strong woman, not to be broken easily
She's still alive, Vlad told himself over and over again as he sat waiting for Petrov to appear. They wouldn't murder the only leverage they have over you. They need us both alive.Intellectually, Vlad knew his words were true. But inside, his thoughts were black and murky with rage. He couldn't erase the vision of Petrov grabbing Jane from behind and lifting her off her feet. She had screamed Vlad's name and reached for him. He had been helpless to get to his woman while she was afraid and suffering.Vlad contented himself with imagining every way in which he could torture Petrov while still keeping him alive. He wanted Petrov to understand, to truly understand the colossal mistake he'd made in touching Jane. Vlad had been willing, for friendship's sake, to let the boy leave the city unharmed, though it might weaken him in the eyes of the organization. Instead of accepting his generous offer, Petrov had declared war.The enforcer had sacrificed his life the moment he moved against
King took her hand in a firm grip. When Jane winced involuntarily, he frowned, gripped her wrist and pulled her closer when she tried to pull away. Jane glanced back at Boris. When he didn't react with murder and mayhem, she allowed Tyson King to turn her hand over in his and examine the palm. He gently touched the grazes where glass had pierced the skin. King dropped her hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Mrs. Sitnikov. I've heard about you and have been eager to make your acquaintance."Somehow, Jane didn't find that comforting. Especially not when King indicated the man standing to his right. "Daniel Mercer is head of my security. He'll be working with you on getting your husband back."Jane was about to protest any interference when she got a good look at King's head of security. There was no way to describe his eyes except dead as they calmly took in every detail of her and Boris' appearance. His face was hard as rock. Even the sexy waves of sandy brown hair and trimm
"Jane, come to me, pchelka!" she looked around and saw Boris reaching for her, his large arm thrust under the car.She reached out and put her hand in his, trusting him completely. His hand immediately engulfed hers and with a grunt of pain he pulled her bodily from under the car. Jane winced as her sweater rode up and the bare skin of her side scraped across the pavement. She bit her lip to keep from crying out. She suspected Boris was shot and he was still trying to help her. If he could suck it up then so could she.Boris pulled her into a sitting position next to him. His other hand was pressed tightly to his shoulder where blood was seeping from between his fingers.They heard the screech of tires. Jane tried to crawl up the car to look over the hood. Boris yanked her back against his body and swore as the SUV pulled out into traffic and passed them. A man was leaning out the window with a gun.Boris grabbed Jane around the waist, stood with her in his brawny arms and lunged a
"My ass hurts, asshole," Jane said grumpily the next morning while Vlad led her to their car. "I can't believe you lied to me."Vlad shrugged his shoulders, supremely unconcerned with her discomfort as her sore ass came into contact with the plush leather seat of his Bentley and her breath rushed out in a pained hiss. "You lied to me first when you ignored your promise to release me. Besides I merely said I would not beat you. I consider that light spanking as foreplay to our second round of lovemaking last night. Admit it, you enjoyed it just a little."Jane glared at him, put her sunglasses on and stared steadily out the opposite window from where he sat. He laughed huskily and reached around her to draw a seatbelt over her chest and hips. Once she was safely buckled in, he did the same for himself. Despite her objections Jane had enjoyed the way her husband had taken her forcefully after relieving his anger on her rounded derriere. Something about the combination of pain and pleas
Jane climbed his body, and pressed her lips against his in a passionate kiss. She wasn't eloquent, she didn't know how else to tell her criminal mastermind of a husband that she had fallen in love with him despite herself. His words had pierced her heart, ensuring the final thrust in her capitulation. She belonged to him now of her own free will. His lips devoured hers in return, sealing their incredible attraction to each other with a promise of forever.Jane tore her lips from his and began kissing her way down his body toward his cock, which stood eager for her attention. Her lips closed over him with an ecstatic moan, encasing the tip in the velvety softness of her mouth. She ran her tongue around the head, paying the indent particular attention. Vlad groaned and thrust his hips up, forcing more of the stiff flesh into her mouth. Jane enthusiastically complied, bringing her hand up to fist the base and sinking down the shaft as far as she could go. "Fuck!" he groaned, fighting t
Vlad bent down and swept her off her feet. Jane laughed crazily and grabbed hold of his neck as her feet left the ground. He had one arm around her back and the other tucked under her jean clad legs. Her booted feet stuck out in front of them as he strode up the steps, into the mansion and past Boris, who calmly closed the door and disappeared into the shadows."Here I thought all those muscles you like to hide under your suits were for show," she smirked.Vlad ascended the stairs swiftly with his wife held tightly in his arms. "I will smack that beautiful ass for suggesting such a thing.""Bring it on, Russian!"Vlad let her legs slide to the floor once they were in their bedroom. Now that they were alone, he allowed his eyes to roam over her with unconcealed lust. He took his jacket off and began unbuttoning his shirt. Nodding toward her, he said, "Clothes off. Now, Jane."She didn't need to be asked twice. She unbuckled her skull-studded belt and shoved her skinny jeans down he
Vlad was leading Jane from the restaurant with a hand under her arm when the blond man he'd been talking to stepped in front of them, blocking their path. They stopped walking. Vlad didn't give any outward impression of annoyance, but Jane felt the subtle shift in his body as he moved her slightly back, away from the other man whose sharp eyes were taking the pair in."It seems that I must congratulate you on the recent occasion of your marriage, Mrs Sitnikov," the man drawled, his cold blue eyes sliding from Vlad to Jane. "I was sorry to have missed the invitation."Jane didn't like his tone of voice. He seemed insolent, something she hadn't experienced in any of Vlad's men thus far. "If you know my husband at all," she replied, her brown eyes just as cold, "then you know he acts quickly when he wants something and doesn't require the approval of others."The emphasis she put on the word others left no doubt that she meant 'subordinates'. The man stepped toward Jane, but Vlad stopp
Jane rolled over in her bed and tried to get comfortable underneath the layers of homemade quilts. Where once she would have hated the thought of everything in the room and house, now she found the familiarity comforting. Even the creak of bedsprings took her back to her childhood spent in that same room. Oddly, visiting her family seemed to ease the worries she had struggled with all of her life. She had resented her family and the lifestyle they led. Now, coming home, she saw everything in a different light. It wasn't for her, but she didn't hate everything Amish anymore. Especially now that they seem to be in favour of indoor plumbing.She missed Vlad. More than she thought possible. More than she had ever missed anything, ever. This was her third night away from him. And she was done. She wouldn't spend one more night out of the arms of her husband. Their marriage may have been forced on her, but she found now that she badly wanted it. She couldn't imagine not having Vlad in her li