Expose' (Born Bratva Book 3) (18 page)

Kodiak

As soon as she steps out of the restroom, I know she got into it with Becky. I debated going in after her when I saw Becky follow her, but I wouldn’t be doing her any favors by doing that. Logan is stronger than people give her credit for and if I didn’t think she could handle it I would have intervened. In my world I can protect her, but she has to earn her own respect as far as the females are concerned. Logan is stronger than she thinks. And she’s a hell of a lot stronger than Becky gives her credit for. In fact, if I was a betting man, I’d say it’s Becky who should be worried, not Logan.

I cross my ankles as I lean up against the wall and tease her, “Damn, did I miss out on a good cat fight?”

“Oh, you would love that, wouldn’t you? Nope, no cat fight, but you missed an epic verbal beat down. Feel free to enjoy the security feed at your convenience.”

“Hell, yeah. I love the idea of you getting all jealous over me. Did you set her straight?”

“Don’t push it, Kodiak.” She gives me a sideways glance and I know she can’t resist saying something about what went on behind those closed bathroom doors. “Yeah, I set her straight.” The grin she’s giving me is sexy as hell.

“Ooh, somebody is jealous.” I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her into me. “I’m flattered such a classy lady would stake a claim on little ol’ me.”

“Little ol’ you, huh?” Her eyes trail down to my zipper and the erection that’s got a mind of its own, as usual. “Hardly. Well, I figured I may as well tell you before you hear it through the grapevine. These people tell you when somebody farts around here.”

“Goddamn right. They better tell me, they get paid well to be my eyes and ears. Even trivial things can end up being a big deal in this business. Don’t ever forget that, Logan. I’m all about knowing what motivates people. Nothing reveals the measure of a person like the incentives that drive their actions.”

Logan’s obviously changing the subject when she doesn’t acknowledge what I’m saying and steers the conversation back to the bathroom brawl. She’s still hiding something, but I’ll find out what it is; it’s what I do.

“I did set the bitch straight after she told me you’d get tired of me. She made it sound like she’d be there waiting for you to get bored so she could pounce on you and, yeah, it pissed me off.”

“Well, that’s never going to happen,” I assure her. “There are too many layers to you, so much undiscovered territory to explore. Plus,” I say with a smirk, “you’re my own little sacred virgin—all mine.”

“Anything else you’d like to add to your I’m Smitten with Logan list?” she asks as she punches me playfully. “I told her she was just embarrassing herself by chasing after you when you don’t want her. I mean, who does that? Nothing is more degrading to a woman than to chase a man who doesn’t want her. It’s almost embarrassing to watch—really, it’s a slap in the face to women everywhere.”

“How so?”

“Because it sends the message that all women are needy, that we have to have a man to be complete.”

“Are you sure you aren’t born Bratva? You sound like my mother and Roksana.”

“Maybe in another life I was a gangster’s wife.”

“I’ll kill him,” I say with an exaggerated scowl.

“Only you would threaten to kill an imaginary man.”

“No, my dad would, too. Anyway, back to your little cat fight; you’re correct, I don’t want her. Do you want me to fire her? Just say the word and she’s out of here. If getting rid of her will put your mind at ease, I’ll let her go. There are too many real problems going on around here to be bothered with petty drama caused by bitches like her.”

“No, don’t. It would just send the message that I can’t fight my own battles. I also would never want to be the reason someone loses their job.”

I pull her closer and slide my lips along her neck, stopping to nuzzle the sweet spot behind her ear. “You’re amazing, you know that? Only you would be kind enough to not have your enemy fired. How about I just wrap you up and take you home, hmmm? So I can get all up in that tight little pussy of yours and reassure you that I don’t want anyone but you.”

“Oh, my god, Kodiak,” she gasps, “You are so candid about sex.”

I lean in and whisper in her ear, “Yeah, and it gets you all slick and wet, doesn’t it...” I get even harder as the blush creeps up her cheeks and her eyes are cast down shyly.
I’ve got my very own demure little princess…and she’s hot as hell in bed. Who knew?

I keep my eyes on her but yell out to Lukyan. “Go get the car, we’ll meet you out front in a minute.”

“Sure, boss,” he answers. Logan laughs and says, “Aren’t you going to tell him ‘That’s my dad’?”

“It won’t do any good, plus, I’m busy staring at you, my beautiful little runner.” I run the back of my hand down her cheek and slide my hand around her neck. “You better not ever run away from me or I’ll send Lukyan to duct tape you and bring you back.” I squeeze lightly as I wink at her.

“You’re crazy.”

“Crazy enough to do it.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

“Come on, I’ve got something I want to show you.” I pull her over to the bar and smack the top of it to get the bartender’s attention. “Give me that caged bottle of Grey Goose Magnum.” He pulls the bottle off the top shelf and hands it to me. “Thanks, Bogdan. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Logan eyes the caged bottle of vodka when I hand it to her. “Hmm, Grey Goose Magnum,” she murmurs, pleased with my choice. The drink preference of the Russians is vodka, always has been, and always will be. Clearly she’s been brushing up on all things Bratva
and
Russian customs. Is she interested because we’re together now or is it something more? I listen intently as she gives me the rundown of her findings.

“This bottle of vodka would run around $160.00. The fact that it’s in a Swiss-designed bottle and housed in a silver cage jacks the price up to over $800.00. Are you sure you want to drink this, Kodiak? This is a limited edition.”

“A limited edition vodka for my limited edition girl.” I reach over and give her a quick peck on the cheek. Her eyes sparkling up at me is all the reward I need.

Life. Is. Good.

I palm that dip in her back -- you know, that place on a woman’s lower back where it dips right before her ass juts out. I slide my fingers under the draped fabric of her dress and stroke one of the sweet dimples that hides at the base of her spine. I love to hold on to her hips and press my thumbs into those little indentations when I take her from behind. Never fails to turn me on. Someday soon, I need to mark her as mine. Put some ink right where I can see it when I mount her from behind. I make a mental note to get my tattoo guy to work up a sketch.

I hold the door open for her and place my hand on her lower back to guide her as she steps out ahead of me. Even Lukyan cracks a smile at me as I tend to my girl. Ladies first and all that. Glazov raised me right, after all. But all gentlemanly shit aside, I’m more than a little excited about taking her home and slowly undressing her, then fucking her like a mad man.

We step out onto the sidewalk and all hell breaks loose. I hear the gunfire before I see the dark sedan cruising slowly down the street. Instinct sets in as I duck down and pull Logan around the corner of the house with me, shielding her with my body. Everything seems to move in slow motion as I listen to the barrage of bullets. My senses are on hyper-alert and, driven by instinct, I go for the gun in my ankle holster. Why the fuck can’t I reach it? As I fumble for the gun, the cool night air that felt fucking awesome when we stepped outside feels colder. With Logan’s slender body pressed onto the concrete beneath me, I feel an overwhelming need to shield her from harm. At the same time, my awareness is eerily focused on the sounds around me; it’s like I can hear the fucking crickets chirping.

Mere seconds of time seem to last forever as the once serene atmosphere deteriorates into organized chaos. I lift my head and have to squint to focus on the bodyguards that swarm the sidewalk. They’re wielding submachine guns, some sprinting into the street with a weapon in each hand as they spray the passing car with bullets. The clanging sound of bullets hitting metal reverberates in my ears as I will these intruders away from us. Finally, after what seems like an eternity but was probably only a few seconds, the car speeds off, covered in pock marks from the Bratva bullets that reached their target.

I pull away from Logan to reassure her that everything’s okay. She’s not used to violence and mayhem like I am. “Baby, everything’s okay--” The front of her beautiful dress is soaked in blood. “Oh, God, baby, no no no no – You’re bleeding!” I try to touch her face but for some reason my arm won’t cooperate.
What the fuck?

Her hands grip my shoulders as she reaches for me frantically and cries, “It’s not my blood!”

What the fuck does she mean, it’s not her blood?
I frown when I try to make sense of what she’s saying. I hear shouts from behind us that another car may be coming our way and there’s chaos once again as my men scramble into position. I should join them, or at least pull my gun from my ankle holster to fire at the bastards who did this. But all I can think of is Logan.
Logan’s been shot. My baby’s been shot. I should do something. Fuck, I can’t think. What…what am I supposed to do?

I feel Logan’s body slam into mine as she throws herself on top of me, frantically pushing me into the same brick wall where I had held her down only seconds ago. Or maybe it’s been a few minutes, I can’t remember.

Things are suddenly so much quieter as I watch my men duck behind cars and fire at the car as it careens down the street.
Why the fuck are my guys using silencers at a time like this?
Gunfire is usually so much louder than this. Can’t think about that now, though. I just want to feel Logan’s soft, delicate curves draped over me like a blanket and fill my head with her scent as it wafts all around me, soothing me even as she screams, “Oh, God! Lukyan! Lukyan, he’s been shot! Somebody, please, somebody help him!”

It’s the last thing I hear before the darkness overtakes me.

Logan

My body is thrown against the side of the building as Kodiak pins me with the weight of his body, shielding me from the barrage of bullets flying around us like something out of a Wild West movie. Neither of us saw the drive-by coming until it was too late. In seconds, our world was transformed from one of playful banter and verbal foreplay to chaos and mayhem and blood.

As Kodiak’s body presses into mine and he pushes my head down, I notice something shimmering in the landscaped flower bed by my feet. The colors of the blooms barely register as I struggle to comprehend what’s happening around me. The bottle of vodka is on its side, unbroken, pristine in the midst of the madness all around us. I feel hysterical laughter bubble up in my throat because, even as automatic weapons roar all around me and men shout to be heard above the cacophony of gunfire, the damn vodka is safe and sound inside its gilded cage.

More Bratva soldiers rush out of the house and return fire as the car speeds by. I can’t help but wonder who’s behind those tinted windows, and more importantly, who took out a hit on my Kodiak. Maybe I’m better off not knowing. Maybe I’m better off taking a lesson from the caged vodka here, and just be happy to be tucked away in the Glazov mansion so I can’t be executed outside a boutique at the mall one day when I least expect it.

Finally, after what seems like forever, Kodiak pulls away from me. His face is ghostly white as he starts yelling incoherently that I’m bleeding. He passes out on the ground next to me as I try to tell him that it’s not my blood, before I even realize that I’m covered in
his
blood. Voices are shouting about another car approaching. I throw myself on top of Kodiak and try to cover as much of him as I can with my smaller frame.

Lukyan will know what to do. Lukyan will know what to do and where to go. He won’t let Kodiak die. I have to find Lukyan. He has to save Kodiak.