Chapter 68

Nikolai

The only problem with my plan was Hannah's sister. I watched Hannah’s eyes dart back to Emmy, concern written all over her pretty features, and sighed. It was going to be hard to pull Hannah away from her right now, no matter how much I wanted to.
Katya blew out a sigh of relief. “Great! I’ll get the rooms ready.” I think Katya’s impromptu sleepover was as much about her not wanting to be alone as it was giving everyone a place to recover.
“I’ll help,” Hannah offered, and popped up to follow Katya upstairs.
Fuck. How had that happened?
I was staring at the sexy curve of Hannah’s ass as she walked toward the stairs, so I didn’t notice Drago until he was standing right beside me.
“How are you doing, Nikolai?” Drago asked quietly, but I could tell there was genuine concern on his face.
I sighed, not really wanting to have this conversation, but knowing if anyone would understand my state of mind right now, it would be him.
“Pissed, worried. I still can’t believe that motherfucker got away.” Anger and impotence clawed at my chest, which made me all the more adamant about getting Hannah alone and working out my frustrated helplessness on her body.
Drago jaw tensed in unspoken agreement. “I know he can’t last long, not with us and Mikhail’s people after him, but it makes me uneasy that he’s out there. Especially in light of his plans for Katerina.” Drago’s stared at the stairs Katya had just ascended, as if simply focusing all of his attention on her would keep her safe. Maybe it would.
I shook my head. “I had no idea about that.” I felt the need to apologize, though I had done nothing wrong. “I thought I understood the level of my father’s depravity, but this…”
Drago sighed in disgust, still staring at Katya. “It sure as fuck isn’t your fault. Getting rid of your father was a long time coming. He’d a been a cancer for far too long, which is saying something in the Bratva.” He looked back at me. “Keep your eyes open, Nikolai. Especially when it comes to your girl. I know your father’s going down, but I’ll be very uneasy until I know he’s dead.”
You and me, both, I thought, but simply nodded my head in agreement.
It was only about eight o’clock, but my body started to revolt on me. I sat in a chair, and closed my eyes, planning on only relaxing until Hannah came back downstairs.
I felt a hand shaking my shoulder, then a soft hand stroking my cheek and opened bleary eyes to see Hannah hovering next to me. I frowned. “What time is it?”
“Almost midnight,” she replied, still rubbing my cheek. I looked around and saw that everyone was now gone. I pulled her into my lap, hugging her to me as she rested her cheek against my chest.
“Where is everyone?” I asked into her sweet-smelling hair. God, this was exactly what I had needed. Her touch, her scent. Her.
“Well, a bunch of those mob guys left. I guess they didn’t want to stick around for the slumber party.” She paused to chuckle at her own joke, which made me smile.
“Who stayed here?” I had a suspicion I knew who was still here.
“Well, Katya, of course, Emmy, Ivan, and Drago.”
Just as I suspected. Based on her earlier behavior, I didn’t imagine Emmy would have let Ivan out of her sight. He had become her comfort object, much to his evident frustration. I wondered if she had made him sleep with her. How fucking awkward to have to sleep with a sixteen-year-old girl who wanted to use you as her personal teddy bear?
Ivan’s behavior surprised me. He was generally an emotionless bastard, so his tolerance of her neediness shocked me. I figured he didn’t know how to deal with it, but I also knew it wouldn’t last much longer. Emmy was in for a hard fall when he vanished.
And Drago, well, we’d seen whatever the hell was going on with him and Katya, so I was not at all surprised he was still here. I’d bet my left nut that if I went looking for him right now, I’d probably find them together.
“What have you been doing while I was asleep?” I asked curiously.
Hannah sighed. “Mostly trying to pry Emmy away from Ivan. I mean, Jesus, Nikolai, he’s a stranger who is in the Russian mob, but she’s attached herself to him like a freaking barnacle. He’s being a pretty good sport,” she said this with a cringy look on her face, so I didn’t know if what she said was actually true, or just her interpretation of Ivan’s stoicism. “Maybe not a good sport,” she corrected, making me smile again. “His jaw looked kind of clenched and he was frowning a lot, but he helped us get Emmy to lay down for a while.”
“And Emmy let him leave?” I asked, but I knew the answer already.
Hannah lifted her head off my chest, and looked at me, frowning. “How did you know that she wouldn’t let him leave?”
“Look, Hannah, Emmy went through a traumatic as fuck experience. The person who represents safety to her is Ivan, for whatever reason. She’s fixating on him because she still doesn’t feel safe.”
Hannah tilted her head, her violet eyes gleaming in appreciative surprise. “You know, you’re not just a pretty face, Ivanov,” she deadpanned, then smiled again at her own humor. God, she was so fucking adorable.
I needed her.
I lifted out of the chair with her still cradled in my arms and headed for the stairs. “If your goal was to seduce me with compliments—mission accomplished,” I said jokingly, and started kissing the side of her neck, having every intention of marking more of her soft skin.
Hannah laughed. “Do I have to compliment you to get you in bed, Nikolai?” she asked, half shy, half flirtatious. She was driving me fucking crazy. I could feel blood pounding its way toward my dick.
“You don’t have to do a fucking thing to get me in bed, Hannah.”