From Russia With Claws (21 page)

Nik let go of her hand and stood. “Special Agent Gregory, we are more than happy to cooperate with the FBI, but perhaps we could do this some other time.” He pulled a small case out from his jacket pocket and handed the other man his business card. “
After
we’ve buried our father.”

“Of course, Mr. Sudenko.” But Agent Gregory didn’t take his gaze off of Galina.

Konstantin emerged from the living room to escort the FBI agent to the door. Nik followed them.

Galina sat in her chair, staring into her coffee cup. The image of her father’s car engulfed in flames would not leave her. Her hands gripped the white ceramic, her knuckles going pale with the force of her grip. If she just held on long enough, maybe her hands would stop shaking.

Andrey wrapped his arms around her shoulders, his spicy scent filling her nostrils. His hands slid down her arms until they came to rest over hers, urging her to release the coffee mug. “Galya,” he whispered, his mouth against her ear. “What can I do?”

Standing up, Galina pulled Andrey out of the kitchen and down the hall until she came to the powder room. Yanking him inside, she closed the door behind them, turning the lock. There wasn’t a lot of room to maneuver between the pedestal sink and the commode, but she didn’t care.

“Gal—” he said, but her lips stopped his words.

She kissed him, her mouth ravaging his. She didn’t want words, she didn’t want logic. She wanted sensation, physical relief. Andrey’s hands stroked her neck, his thumbs resting against her jaw. Her tongue slid inside his mouth, licking at his teeth, the roof of his mouth, the inside of his cheek. She could feel the fabric of her panties clinging to the warm wetness between her thighs.

Yanking his belt open, Galina unbuttoned his trousers, plunging her hand down the front of his boxer briefs. Andrey was half hard, and as she stroked him, Galina felt him stir to life. She worked him with the palm of her hand, her thumb twisting over the head of his cock. His hands grabbed her waist, turning her to face the mirror.

His gaze locked with hers in the flat glass. “Tell me what you want.” His voice filled the small room, intimate yet almost overpowering.

“Make me hurt. Make me feel.” Something, anything. Galina could feel the yawning emptiness spreading inside of her, the fear and the loss. Papa may not have always understood her, but he had done his best for her, even if they quarreled over what that best was. She needed to know she wasn’t alone in the dark.

Andrey lifted her skirt, bunching it around her waist. His eyes stayed locked on her reflection, gauging her response in the mirror. Pushing her ass against him, she braced her hands on the sink.

He ripped off her panties, the lace tearing with a snarl. Andrey bent her over the sink, one hand in her hair to keep her head up so he could watch her expression in the mirror. With a quick pump of his hips, his cock filled her. She inhaled at the stretch, at the sweet ache that came with him inside of walls.

Andrey didn’t give her time to adjust. His free hand dug into her hip, fingernails biting into her flesh so hard he drew blood. She bit her lip to keep from moaning with how good it felt, how much she wanted the pain to go along with the pleasure of him pounding into her. She canted her hips, eyes sliding closed.

He yanked at her hair, jerking her head even farther back. Galina’s eyes flew open. “Look at me,” Andrey commanded her. “I want you to see what you look like when I make you come.”

When she nodded, he let go of her hair. Her eyes never wavered from his reflection. Andrey’s hand slid between her thighs, finding her throbbing clit and stroking it slowly with his finger as his pace increased.

Galina’s mouth opened on a soundless cry as Andrey ruthlessly worked her body, his fingers and thumb roughly bringing her to the edge of release before backing off again. He leaned into her, forcing her even farther forward as his cock speared her over and over again. Every time her eyelids dipped closed, Andrey thrust into her, reminding her of his command. She panted, aching for a release he denied her over and over again, until her muscles burned with the tension of her frustration.

He refused to let her set the pace, to dictate anything about their coupling. Galina could only grasp the black porcelain sink and wait until he’d decided she’d had enough, watching his blue eyes sparkle with hellish glee in the mirror. Her nipples were diamond-hard as they moved against the lace fabric of her bra, sending jolts of pleasure to her clit. She wanted to scream with how good he made her feel, how alive in this instant, but kept silent, eyes on his face.

Increasing his rhythm, Andrey teased her, his thumb rubbing almost painfully against her wet flesh. Her orgasm built within her, a hunger that wanted to consume everything it touched. Andrey’s fingers moved faster, in time with his thrusts and she came with a force that made her forget to breathe. Her walls contracted around his cock, urging Andrey deeper.

Her climax spiked, but still Andrey worked her clit, refusing to grant her relief. His every touch brought her closer to frenzy. With his eyes boring into hers in the mirror, she writhed in his grasp. His fingers dug into her hip so hard she’d have bruises.

Tears spilled down her cheeks. It was too much, all of it. Her father’s death, her sister’s loss, her feelings for Andrey. She gasped around the pain in her chest, not knowing how to make it all fit together inside of her, how to make sense of both the sweetness and the sorrow.

Wrapping his arms around her waist, Andrey gave one last thrust. Galina felt his cock pumping his seed deep inside of her. She grabbed his arms, knuckles going white, and wept for everything she had lost.

Pulling her close, Andrey nuzzled her neck, holding her as gently as if she were made of spun sugar. “Was this what you needed?” he whispered, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

She nodded, taking a shuddering breath that sounded close to a sob. She closed her lips over the sound.

“I’ve got you, Galina,” he said softly, something that was meant to be heard only by the two of them. “And I will never let you go.”

Closing her eyes, she turned in his embrace, putting her face against Andrey’s chest and letting her grief roll through her like the tide.

That’s One Way to End an Engagement

G
ALINA
S
AT
A
T
H
ER
D
ESK
at work and rubbed her eyes. The last week had been a whirlwind of preparations, meetings, and family obligations. Being at work, even late at night as she so often was of late, was a reprieve of a sort.

Papa’s funeral had gone off without a hitch, primarily because Alexei hadn’t bothered to even show up. She and Nik had done the heavy lifting, since Irina was lost in the ozone and Alexei was MIA—although Galina suspected if she checked with the local hookers she’d find her brother coked up and balls deep in some unfortunate woman.

She massaged her temples, a headache threatening. The memorial for her father had been tasteful and beautiful, Galina had made sure of that. All of the heads of the other families had shown up and offered condolences. Nik and Galina formed a united front, assuring everyone that the businesses would still be taken care of and that there would be no interruptions in the day to day workings of the organization.

Andrey had backed her wherever he could without being obtrusive. As Alexei’s absence from meetings was noticed and commented on, Galina’s handling of the family business was impressing the men running the show. Nik was beside her the entire time, but Galina knew that all eyes were focused on her. She had to succeed.

“Alexei’s been seen out and about these past few days.” Andrey’s voice was low, disapproving.

“And we were having such a nice conversation,” Galina said with a sigh.

Andrey wrapped his arms around her. “He hit all the major bars and clubs two nights ago, acting like a big man and throwing money around. He wants everyone to know he’s the one running the Sudenkos. He’s making a giant ass of himself.”

“I just have to hope it’s enough,” she told him, leaning her head against his shoulder.

Galina slid into the chair on the left side of Alexei, ignoring his warning glare. Nikolai took the seat on his right. They’d decided to show a united front to the other families in the wake of Papa’s death. She didn’t like it, but she understood the need for it, at least for right now. The Sudenko family was vulnerable during this shift of power. There could be no public display of dissension in the ranks.

She felt Andrey’s presence as soon as he crossed the threshold and was grateful for the millionth time for her wolfsbane perfume. He took a seat at the end of the table, directly opposite Alexei. Galina had to bite back a smile. The significance of Andrey’s position was not lost on her.

Nor was it lost on Alexei. He practically snarled when he saw Andrey. Nik put his hand on Alexei’s arm and leaned over to whisper something in his ear. Galina simply nodded at Andrey, as she would any other head of a family. He looked delicious in his navy suit and silver tie. She wanted to order everyone out and have her way with him on the conference table.

That would definitely be an interesting meeting.

As the other family heads filed in and took their places around the large round table, Galina tried to gauge the mood of those assembled. The men seemed stunned, as if surprised to see Alexei seated in Papa’s place. Perhaps they hadn’t believed the news reports, or they were unsure of what the future would bring with a new leader. Regardless, there was a sense of shock surrounding everyone in the room.

Alexei stood, welcoming the other leaders. He introduced Nikolai, but ignored Galina, not bothering to mention her presence at the table. She gritted her teeth and nodded calmly to the others, all the while imagining what her brother’s blood would look like on her claws. It helped soothe her.

“As you know, I will be taking over as head of the Sudenko family after the unexpected death of my father,” her brother began. “Let me just say that business will continue as usual. I’m not interested in making sweeping changes to my father’s organization.” The murmurings of the other men in the room interrupted him.

Alexei smiled, his lips stretching in a horrifying approximation of a grin. “However, there is one thing I do need to address.” His gaze swept the assembled group. “I am afraid that the engagement between my sister, Irina, and Andreyev Lupesco can no longer continue.”

Galina stared into space, shocked at her brother’s announcement. He certainly hadn’t run it by her, and from the look on Nik’s face, he was as much in the dark as she was. Indrawn breaths and mutters filled the room. Galina risked a glance at Andrey, seated across the table, and wished she hadn’t.

His face was thunderous. His eyes gleamed gray, like the barrel of a gun. His lips were pressed in a thin line, his jaw clenched in rage, frightening in his utter stillness. His gaze never left Alexei’s face, and there was a leashed energy gathering around him. Galina looked at Alexei nervously. Her brother sat back in his chair with a small smirk on his face.

Was he trying to provoke Andrey? To what purpose? What was this nonsense about canceling the engagement? Galina wasn’t going to complain; it certainly saved her trying to figure out the problem of extricating her sister from marrying her boyfriend. But this was an insult that Andrey couldn’t possibly let stand.

Andrey slowly rose to his feet, planting his fists on the table. Galina found herself wanting to back away from the table as quickly as she could at the dangerous look in his eyes, but she kept still by telling herself that at least the look wasn’t directed at her. She swallowed, suddenly nervous, her gaze skipping to Nik and then to Alexei.

Black hair fell into Andrey’s eyes as he let out a low growl. The sound made the hair on her arms stand on end. It was a challenge and a warning, an Alpha letting the other members of the pack know that he was angry. The points of his jaw jumped as he clenched his teeth even tighter. His brows were pulled down low over his eyes, hiding the silver in shadow.

“You would do this?” Andrey snarled, his voice soft but threatening.

Please just shut up, Alexei
, Galina thought, trying to will her brother to silence. Andrey had never looked more dangerous. She was fairly certain that if he wanted to rip out her brother’s throat at the table, no one would stop him.

“You made an agreement with my father,” Alexei said, as if that explained everything. A few more whispers went around the table. It was bad form to not honor the agreements made by the previous head of the family.

“I made an agreement with the Sudenko family!” Andrey snapped.

“I
am
the Sudenko family!” Alexei shouted back, jumping to his feet.

Oh, he did
not
. Galina would have dropped her head into her hands at this display of stupidity from her brother, but she didn’t want to appear disrespectful at the negotiation table. Nik put his hand on Alexei’s arm and had it shaken off. The other heads of the families of the Organization had pushed back from the table.

“Then I challenge
you
.” Andrey leaned forward to punctuate his words. “Now. Here.”

To his credit, Alexei didn’t blanch at Andrey’s words. That just proved how dumb he actually was, at least to Galina’s mind. She had no doubt Andrey could take her brother in a fight, in either human or wolf form.

“Irina needs to be here,” Galina whispered to Nikolai.

“Do it.”

Galina excused herself from the table, not that anyone was listening to her. She trusted Nik to keep anything from erupting in the conference room and to let Alexei and Andrey know that Irina was on her way. She was the one they were basically fighting over; she had to be present by the rule of law.

Irina picked up on the second ring. “Galya? Is the meeting over?”

“Nope. You need to grab Konstantin and get your butt over to Papa’s house right away. Alexei’s called off your engagement. Andrey’s just challenged him.”

“As in ‘outdoor werewolf gladiator’ challenged? Wait, don’t we want the engagement canceled?” The sound of Irina slamming drawers closed carried over the line.

“Yes, but not like this. Alexei basically whipped it out and wanted to measure. Andrey can’t just walk away from that. So you need to hustle since you’re the bone of contention—so to speak.”

“Gee, thanks.” Irina’s voice was so icy, Galina could have chilled vodka with it.

“Sorry, sis. Now get a move on.”

Nik was waiting for her when she finished her call. “They’re prepping the yard now.”

She nodded. “Irina and Konstantin are on their way.” She noticed the faint rush of color to her brother’s face. “When all of this ridiculousness is over, you and I are going to have a nice, long talk.” Galina began to walk. Nik kept pace with her. “What the hell is Alexei thinking? He can’t afford this right now.”

Her brother shook his head. “Wish I knew. He said nothing about breaking Irina’s engagement before. I mean, I know he wasn’t in favor of it—he made that
very
clear when he was arguing with Pop about it—but I can’t believe he’d go against Andrey directly like this.”

Galina didn’t say anything; there was nothing to say. “He’s up to something.”

Nik didn’t look so sure. “I don’t know, Galya. Alexei hasn’t been what you’d call a model of restraint. And he
hates
Andrey.”

“And he’s a little too focused on Irina,” Galina muttered, pulling Nik closer to her.

“What are you talking about?”

She raised an eyebrow at him in disbelief. “Come on, Nik. You can’t tell me you haven’t noticed how twitchy he is around her. He threw away all of her clothes and told her to paint the world with all the colors of her soul! He watches her all the time. I think if he could have, he would have spent the two months of mourning at her house for as often as he came by to check on her.”

Nik gave her a dubious look. “Aren’t you exaggerating a little?”

“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Galina pushed the door open that led out to the back of the property. The whole place was fenced and incredibly private, which came in handy when there was a challenge in the offing. As they crossed the yard, she said, “But if you don’t believe me, ask Irina. Or just watch Alexei when the two of them are together. And then tell me there isn’t something wrong with him.”

Alexei was already at the circle, removing his cufflinks and rings. Galina looked around for Andrey, but she didn’t see him or his retinue. She hurried over to Petyr to try to get an idea of what the others thought of the challenge.

She didn’t have to wait long. “Ilya isn’t even in the ground and his son dishonors his orders,” he was saying to the older man beside him. When he saw Galina, he waved her close. “My dear, you should not be here.”

“Hello, Uncle Petyr.” She gave Papa’s oldest friend a hug and nodded at the man on the other side of him.

“Ah, your father, he would not stand for this,” Petyr continued. He put a hand up to Galina’s cheek. “This is shameful, the way your brother is behaving.”

“No arguments there, Uncle.” She shook her head, as if in regret, but inside she felt hopeful. If Alexei kept on in this vein, he would quickly demonstrate why he shouldn’t be in charge of anything more complex than a tea party. As much as she hated that Irina had been dragged into this mess, she was glad that Alexei was doing his best to prove why Galina would be a better choice for the next head of the family. “Papa would not be pleased.”

“Where is Lupesco?” Alexei shouted to no one in particular. It was machismo, one step removed from beating on his chest like Tarzan. Galina sighed. Her brother was looking for a fight and he was anxious to get it over and done.

She carefully stepped over to Alexei. “Irina is on her way,” she told him, knowing that Nik would have already passed along that information. “You can’t get started without her.”

He greeted her reminder with a snarl. She raised her hands and shrugged, not wanting to antagonize him further. The delay was brief before Nik and Konstantin were escorting her sister toward the assembled group. Irina looked pale and tired, a woman in the midst of grieving. Galina was sorry for having to call her here. Irina should have been able to stay home and grieve for Papa and Viktor for as long as she needed, not come here and be paraded around in her sadness.

Before she could greet her sister, Alexei had rushed past to enfold Irina in a gentle hug. His hands lingered on Rina’s back, stroking up and down in a very non-brotherly sort of way. Galina caught Nik’s gaze and raised her eyebrows. There was no way he could ignore or explain that away; Alexei’s behavior toward Irina was not the way a brother treated a sister.

“I’m going to end this farce of an engagement,” Alexei was murmuring into Irina’s ear, his arms tightening around her as she tried to pull away. “You deserve better than a thieving mongrel.”

Nik interrupted this heartfelt talk smoothly, gently extricating Rina from Alexei’s hold, a worried look on his face. Galina wanted nothing more than to smack her oldest brother, hoping to knock some sense into him, but knew it would be useless. Alexei always did what he wanted to do and left other people to clean up his messes, whether it was grand theft, assault, or dead girlfriends.

Galina blinked, wondering why she hadn’t put it together before. All of Alexei’s past girlfriends and conquests had all been similar in coloring and height to Rina.