From Russia With Claws (18 page)

By the time she entered the garage, she was sweaty and winded. Popping the trunk, Galina dumped the tarp and its contents into her car. She leaned against the side of the Mercedes, feeling her body shake with exertion and adrenaline. Galina placed her hands against the cool metal, taking comfort from the solid mass, letting it ground her.

When she felt less shaky, Galina leaned forward to check her reflection in the side mirror. She pushed her hair back in place, brushing bits of grass and twigs from her dress. She cleaned her shoes with a rag she found on a rolling toolbox in the corner of the garage. Feeling better, she squared her shoulders and made her way back to the party.

Papa grabbed her elbow as soon as she came through the front door of the house. “Have you seen your sister? She should have been down by now.” There was a dull note of panic in his voice.

She grasped her father’s hand, trying to soothe him. She understood his concern; the last engagement party they’d thrown hadn’t ended well. Papa was wary if he didn’t have eyes on Irina at all times.

“I bet she’s just preparing herself to be the center of attention in front of all of these people. She’s still supposed to be in mourning, Papa. I’ll go check upstairs for her.”

He patted her hand, leaning in to give her a kiss on the forehead. Galina waited until he toddled back into the main party before she climbed the stairs. She stopped in front of the door to her old bedroom. If Irina had her door locked, Galina would need the key she kept in her jewelry box.

She turned the handle to her bedroom, but it was locked.

Galina felt like her stomach fell through the floor. Who was in her room?

She didn’t bother to knock. Long ago, she’d learned how to unlock her door—she used to lock it every day before leaving for school so her family couldn’t snoop while she was gone. She’d had to figure out a way to get back in without climbing in and out of the second story window.

Pulling a bobby pin from her hair, she stuck it in the hole in the knob and popped the lock. She opened the door and stepped inside. Her room hadn’t changed in all the years since she left. It was a testament to her growing up and teenage taste. Except for her brother Nikolai and Konstantin locked in a very intimate clinch in the middle of her bed.

“Jesus!” she yelped, slamming the door shut behind her.

“Shit!” Konstantin shouted, pulling away from Nik.

Galina clapped a hand over her eyes. “Have you lost your fucking mind? There’s a room full of people down there who will happily kill the both of you if they knew what you were doing up here.”

She heard Nik laugh. She wanted to argue more, but she turned to give them a moment. Ignoring the boy band posters on the walls, she pulled out the top drawer of her nightstand and snagged the key she had to Irina’s bedroom.

“I am going to try to find where Irina’s gone off to. When I get back, I expect you two idiots to be fully clothed and someplace else!”

“She was asking for you,” Nik said, still laughing as he disengaged himself from Konstantin who didn’t look embarrassed in the slightest. “I think she’s in her room.”

Slipping out of her bedroom, she continued down the hall. When she tried the door to Irina’s room, Galina wasn’t surprised to find it locked. She used the key to unlock the door, pushing the door open and immediately wished she hadn’t. Viktor and Irina were locked together, clearly celebrating her engagement to another man in a very interesting way.

“Oh, come
on
,” she said, pocketing the key and shutting the door behind her. She turned the lock again to make sure they weren’t interrupted. “What is
wrong
with you people? People who should not be having sex in Papa’s house should stop having sex in Papa’s house. Do you guys have
no
sense of self-preservation?”

She saw Irina’s shoulders shaking and realized her sister was laughing. Had she lost her mind completely? Viktor moaned and dropped his head to Irina’s neck. If Papa or Andrey or Alexei came upstairs they were all going to be epically fucked.

Galina crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at the two of them. This was not happening to her. This just couldn’t be happening to her. “Could you at least pull out of my sister, so we can discuss how we’re going to get out of this colossal shit storm you have created?”

“We can’t,” Irina said, looking helplessly over her shoulder at her. She looked like she was going to laugh again.

“What do you mean, you can’t?” Galina demanded.

“Viktor knotted me,” Irina told her calmly. “I’m locked on. He can’t pull out.”

Galina wanted to slap herself. This could not be happening. Not today. Knotting was part of the wolf side of mating. The male’s member swelled—knotted—so that it was impossible for him to pull out until he’d finished ejaculating. And that could take a very long time. “Holy shit. How long ago?”

“Just a few minutes,” Irina said. “So we could be stuck like this for—”

“Hours!” Galina hissed, feeling the rage she’d been holding back all day bubble to the surface. “You could be stuck like this
for hours
. You asshole!” She picked up the nearest thing to hand—a Kleenex box—and chucked it at Viktor’s back. “A whole house full of very hostile guests and you pull this? I thought you guys were able to control it! This is some crazy higher level mating shit!”

“Your voice is helping,” Viktor groaned. “Keep talking.”

“You bet your ass I’m going to keep talking.” Galina began to pace, needing to do something with her pent up energy. “Are you mentally deficient in some way? You are balls deep in my sister at her engagement party! This is a whole new level of stupidity!” She fixed Viktor with an angry glare. “I can’t believe we trust you with our lives! Seriously, we’d be better off with an idiot five-year-old for a fucking bodyguard.”

“Hey!” Irina protested, obviously offended on behalf of her paramour.

“No, no, this is good,” Viktor interrupted, pulling away from Irina a bit. “It’s working.”

“Papa is having a damn litter downstairs in the front parlor, worried that you might be pulling an Elena. I can only imagine what he would do if he came up here and found you two like this.” Galina threw up her hands in utter exasperation. “I just can’t even anymore! It’s like I’m babysitting a couple of hormonal fifteen-year-olds who don’t have the sense that God gave a duck!”

“You’re the one who didn’t think Papa would go through with this engagement!” Irina whisper-shouted.

“I didn’t think
Andrey
would go through with it!” Galina growled before she could stop herself.

Everyone in the room went quiet. Irina wore a stricken expression. “Oh, Galya,” she said, opening her arms as if she wanted to give Galina a hug.

Galina looked at her in horror. “I am not hugging you while you’re still…
attached
to him. That would just be weird and there isn’t enough therapy on earth that could fix it.” She waved away Irina’s sympathy. “I’m fine. It’s just not what I expected.”

Viktor pulled free of Irina. Galina turned around, not needing or wanting to see any more of him than she had already. “Clean yourselves up and then get your asses downstairs. I’ll cover for you with Papa. And lock the door behind me. Morons.”

When she was back in the hallway, Galina pressed her forehead against the wall, striving for a calm she did not feel. Everything had turned out wrong. Irina was tied to a man she didn’t love. Alexei was probably going to take over the family and run it into the ground. She would be married off to some inbred dimwit that Papa deemed worthy for her. It was enough to make her want to scream.

She was never attending another engagement party as long as she lived.

Galina ducked into a bathroom and washed her hands to give herself a bit of space to collect herself. Checking her make up in the mirror, she put on her iciest expression. She could do this. She could watch Andrey suck up to her father and watch her sister be trapped in another loveless marriage. She could raise a glass and toast their misery.

Gripping the edge of the marble vanity with shaking hands, Galina lowered her gaze from her reflection. She just had to get through the next few hours and then she could fix everything. She hoped.

When she found Papa and informed him that Irina would be down in a few minutes, he looked relieved. He collected Andrey and the two men went to wait for Irina at the bottom of the stairs. Her duty done, Galina tucked herself into a corner close to the door so she could make a quick escape should she be unable to keep her fake smile plastered on her face.

Her sister appeared at the top of the staircase, utterly breathtaking in her green dress and emerald necklace. Unfortunately, Irina wore an expression that said she’d rather lose her arm in a garbage disposal accident than be tied to Andrey. But she eventually managed to hide her feelings behind a blank mask as she descended the stairs to meet her betrothed.

Galina watched as Papa placed Irina’s hand into Andrey’s and realized she couldn’t stay at the party another moment. She’d done her daughterly duty: she’d made sure everyone saw her face, she’d congratulated Andrey publicly, she’d stood by her father, and she’d gotten Irina downstairs. There was nothing left for her to do except watch her sister and Andrey mingle.

And that she just couldn’t bring herself to do.

She slipped out the front door and into the night.

Engagement Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means

G
ALINA
S
AGGED
I
NTO
H
ER
C
OUCH
with a sigh. Even the bath hadn’t relaxed her after that heinousness that called itself an engagement party. She’d managed to drive off the property and make it a few miles before she had to pull off to the side and beat the ever-loving shit out of her steering wheel.

Now she just wished she could get the image of Andrey lowering his lips to Irina’s out of her head. Galina stretched out and snagged a blanket from the back of the couch. She was wearing her comfort pajamas: a black tank top and her fleecy Stewie pajama pants, washed so many times that they felt like silk on her. She only busted them out in times of dire need. The present moment certainly counted.

If only she could fall asleep. But her mind skipped from the party to Nik and Konstantin, then back to the bricks of Bullet, only to circle back around to Viktor and Irina in their mating clinch. That was something she was never going to be able to unsee. Why didn’t someone make bleach for the brain?

Galina picked up her battered copy of
The Three Musketeers
—her go-to book when things were just too complicated in real life. She loved the swordplay and the intrigue and the fact that Athos was all tortured and had made some really bad decisions in his love life. She could totally relate. He’d been her first book crush when she’d read the novel for the first time over a decade ago. She needed some quality escapism right now.

She’d just reached the part where the Musketeers were dropping off one by one in their quest to get to Buckingham, when her doorbell buzzed. She padded to the front door, expecting a neighbor on her floor looking to borrow something.

Galina was not expecting to see Andrey Lupesco, still in his sharp engagement party suit, standing at the threshold. It was obscene how good he looked. She swung the door shut in his face, but he caught it with an outstretched hand.

“Galya,” he began, but she cut him off, already walking away.

“You don’t get to call me that anymore,” she snapped. “And how the hell did you get past my doorman?”

He stepped inside her apartment, closing and locking the door behind him. “He remembered me. Also I gave him an absolutely ridiculous amount of money so he wouldn’t spoil the surprise I had for you.” His black hair hung in his eyes.

“I am so getting him fired.” She put her hands on her hips.

“Sweet, please,” he began, taking a step toward her.

Galina held up a hand to stop him. “And don’t call me that either. I am not your sweet, I am going to be your
sister-in-law
.” She gave a short, broken laugh, the events of the day hitting her all at once. She felt unhinged, like she could fly off the handle at any moment. She put her back to him as she tried to get herself back under control.

His hand touched the middle of her back and she shrugged him off. He did not get to touch her. Without turning around, she said, “I found your shipment, by the way. Alexei had it, but it’s sitting in the trunk of my car. So, you know,
woohoo
.” Galina waved her hands in the air, imitating excitement.

“Galina.” Andrey’s voice was quiet but compelling. “Look at me.”

Galina felt her lip tremble. She was furious with him. But she wasn’t entirely sure she could face him without falling apart and she did not want him to see her like that. He had no right to it. “What?”

“
Look
at me.”

Galina blew a stray hair out of her face and spun around. Rage flared inside of her as she looked at him, standing there with his eyes and his mouth and his stupid hair and those hands, and she couldn’t hold anything in any longer. “What the hell do you want from me, Andrey?” she shouted, spreading her arms wide. “I thought you were going to give me time to find your damn drugs—I thought you were just dating Irina to keep Papa happy!”

“I was,” Andrey snapped. “And then your father—well ahead of the mourning schedule, I might add—suggested I marry Irina as repayment for my missing shipment. I don’t know how he found out about it. None of my people would have told him. So tell me, how the hell am I supposed to say no to him without giving offense? I’m not engaged, I’m ambitious, and I sure as hell couldn’t tell him that I’m already fucking his youngest daughter!”

Galina didn’t want to hear his logic right then. She was angry. “You knew Irina had feelings for Viktor—they’ve knotted for chrissake—and yet you went along with it anyway!”

“Wait, back up a second. They knotted? When?” Andrey’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Galina mimed checking her watch. “Oh, maybe about five hours ago. You know, at your
engagement party
. I got to walk in on it, which was so awesome for me. And that was after I interrupted Nik and Konstantin engaging in the love that dare not speak its name in my old bedroom!” She was shouting at him now, stepping forward for emphasis with every point.

She threw her hands up in the air in surrender. “I just don’t care anymore! Alexei was busy doing his best Charles Manson impression watching you and Irina next to Papa, Nik’s determined to get himself outed by hooking up with the help of a rival family right under Papa’s nose, and Irina and Viktor, well, I just don’t even know when it comes to them. It’s like all of them want to get killed!”

Galina stopped her rant, panting with rage. It boiled beneath her skin. How could they all be so stupid? Didn’t they see what they were risking?

“And what about me, Galina?” Andrey’s gaze roved over her, so powerful she felt like he was actually touching her.

“You?” She met his eyes. “I want to slap the shit out of you.”

He took a step closer to her so they were almost touching. “Go ahead. Hit me.”

Galina clenched her hands into fists. “I’m not going to hit you.” She wouldn’t look at him.

He lightly touched her cheek. She held herself stiff. His fingers were gentle against her skin, stroking lightly. “You can if you want,” he whispered, putting his head close to hers. “I probably deserve it.”

She shoved him away. “Damn it, what’s wrong with you?” Galina raked her hair back. “I don’t want to hit you!”

Andrey moved forward, crowding her. “What do you want?” His voice was a deep rumble that Galina felt all the way in her bones.

She inhaled sharply. Slowly she met his eyes, every nerve ending alive at his nearness. “You,” she said simply. “I want you.”

Andrey’s eyes lit up, seeming to glow silver. His hands came up to cup her face, his thumbs brushing against her cheekbones. He held her gently, as if she was made of the most delicate porcelain. “I’ve wanted you since the moment I saw you watching me beat Sergei.”

He lowered his held to hers, kissing her gently. Galina closed her eyes, reveling in the sweetness of his lips on hers. Andrey took his time, drugging her with long, slow kisses. He coaxed her mouth open, sliding his tongue inside her mouth to twist and lick along hers. She sighed into his mouth, slowly relaxing into him. His hands wrapped around her waist, drawing her closer and closer still, until her body was pressed up against his.

Galina clutched at his arms, unwilling to let him go. His tongue traced the confines of her mouth, licking along the edges of her teeth, flicking against the underside of her tongue. His hands slid up her back, his fingers tracing the line of her spine up to her neck. He found the knot of her hair at her nape and pulled it loose, letting her blond hair tumble about her shoulders.

Andrey broke their kiss to stare at her with hooded eyes. “Galina.” He whispered her name like a man at prayer, with a sort of reverence that made her breath catch in her throat. “I’m sorry.”

Galina blinked, her eyes feeling suddenly full of tears. She shook her head, unsure what he was apologizing for. They didn’t have any kind of commitment. Aside from great sex and an innate compatibility, they had no ties to one another. She had no real reason to be angry with him about his engagement to Irina. She knew this logically. It was the rest of her that had the problem.

Smiling, Andrey traced her lower lip with his thumb. Galina nipped at it playfully. He stopped, tilting her head up further with his hand under her chin. “I’m sorry that I made you think there could ever be any other woman for me. It’s you. It’s
been
you—probably since that day at your father’s house when you shoved your brother off me and cleaned me up.” He lightly kissed each corner of her mouth. “You’re the only one I could ever want.”

Galina wrapped her arms around Andrey’s neck, a tear falling down her cheek. He wiped it off with a gentle finger, then put it in his mouth, tasting the salt of her tear. “Are you sure?” she asked, a quaver in her voice. “I’m kind of a lot to take.”

Andrey smiled, his white teeth sharp and perfect. He bumped his forehead against hers. “I can handle it.” He began to kiss her cheeks, her eyelids, the tip of her nose. “I want everything. Your mind.” His hand slid down to cup one ass cheek. “Your passion.” His other dipped down to the waistband of her pajama pants. “Your humor.” He slowly pulled down one side of her pants. “Your laughter.” He lowered his head to kiss her bared hip. “Your love.” He nuzzled up the hem of her tank top. “Your rage.” His hand moved from her ass to slide up her side, pushing the shirt up as he went. “Your body.” His breath ghosted over her flesh, turning her to liquid fire. “Everything you want to give me, I’ll take.”

He pulled her tank top over her head, laying her breasts bare to his eyes. Andrey lifted his head to hers so he could see her face. “I was yours the night of the ballet.”

Galina stared at him for a long moment, searching his face. She wanted him more than any man she’d ever had, but it was more than that. Somehow, amidst all of the stupid shit with Sergei and her family, she’d fallen in love with him. And she didn’t regret it.

“Then you’ve got me,” she whispered, holding on tightly to his shoulders. “All of me.”

Andrey’s grin spread his face like light across water. He claimed her mouth, licking inside it as he lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom. He put her on the bed, following her down to the mattress, his mouth never leaving hers. Galina felt like she was going to combust from the heat of his mouth on hers, and from the delicious way his rough hands felt as they moved over her smooth skin.

She buried her hands in his hair, digging her fingers into his scalp as he made her wet with wanting. Gasping against his mouth, she raised her hips to rub along the length of him resting on top of her. He broke their kiss, groaning, “You feel so good.”

“Undress,” she said. “I want to feel your skin on mine.”

He grinned, skimming a hand over her breast. She arched up into his hand, feeling her pussy clench in anticipation. Andrey’s dark head lowered to her breast as he cupped it in his hand, pushing her peak up to his lips. Galina cried out, feeling spasms across all her nerves. His mouth lit a fire in her chest that spread to her clit. She throbbed, spreading her thighs so she could rub against his leg.

His tongue teased her nipple, laving the stiff flesh. He closed his mouth around it, capturing it in his teeth to worry at it lightly. Galina hissed, bucking against him, fingers grabbing fistfuls of his thick dark hair. Her fast breaths forced more of her breast against his mouth and he greedily devoured it with tongue and teeth.

Galina moaned, writhing against Andrey, wanting more, wanting everything he could give her. “Please, Andrey,” she begged, voice shaking. “Let me feel you.”

He pushed away from her so he could undress. He stripped quickly, and Galina watched greedily as more and more of his flesh was exposed to her wide eyes and desperate hands. He put a knee on the bed and Galina surged up from the bed to grasp his cock in her hand. She licked the sensitive head, then wrapped her mouth around him and sucked hard. His hips bucked against her as she took more of him into her mouth, her tongue pressing firmly against the underside of his sensitive shaft.

Galina shifted so she had unfettered access to him, and swallowed, feeling him go deeper. She opened her mouth wider, her lips stretching around him as his hardness scraped against the back of her throat. His length made it hard to breathe, but she was committed to this; she wanted to feel him at the back of her throat—to feel the ache and burn the next day. She’d heal quickly.

Andrey dragged in great lungsful of air as Galina sucked, her head bobbing up and down. She felt his hands on her head, guiding her but not holding her. She moved, her tongue tasting the salty taste of him as he swelled inside her. She couldn’t really use her tongue with this much of him down her throat but she did the best she could with her mouth.

He pulled out of her suddenly with a groan. Galina let loose, surprised, and wiped at her streaming eyes. “I want to come inside you,” Andrey murmured, pulling her up to sit on the bed.

Galina nodded enthusiastically. “Yes.”

“First, these need to go,” he ordered, pulling off her pants and underwear in one swoop and throwing them to the floor.

He pulled Galina to him, pressing her back against his chest. His hands splayed over her breasts, pinching and teasing as he licked at the back of her neck. She groaned as her sex swelled, feeling full and wanting. As one hand played with her nipple, the other crept down her stomach, fingers searching for her cleft. Galina spread her legs wider, crying out as his fingers rubbed over her clit, teasing the throbbing nub. “Andrey!” she gasped, moving against his hand, desperate for more friction, more sensation.

One finger plunged into her, burying itself in her folds. Galina ground down on his hand, already so wet and ready she ached. “Oh God,” she gasped, feeling her climax approach as Andrey’s finger pressed into her spot. Her knees trembled and she leaned against his strong chest. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could hold herself upright.

Andrey growled against her neck and pushed a second finger inside of her. “Please,” she keened, unable to do more than plead for release. In response, Andrey bent her down until she braced her hands on the blanket. He grabbed her hips, roughly lining himself up with her entrance and pushing inside her with one stroke.