BAD APPLE: The Complete Series (Parts 1-5) (29 page)

Misha

My heart is in my throat as I gingerly extricate myself from Irina and the warmth of our bed to grab my phone and pad out of the bedroom.

“Vadim.”

“He’s still holed up at home. Nothing yet.”

The news has my blood boiling, but I manage to wrestle myself back onto the leash and grind my teeth instead of yelling and cursing at my brother.

I’m half crazed with the need to know what the hell is going on, and while I feel some amount of guilt for fibbing to my wife, I’ve promised myself I wouldn’t do what everyone would expect and go crashing and stomping like a lunatic.

One thing I knew when Tony was giving Irina that little speech of his was that part of his statements were true. I’m this close to going nuts and running off on a wild goose chase just to know.

That voice…

I could put my hand on a stack of Bibles and swear that’s the voice of my little one, but the truth is, I could just be grasping at straws. Knowing this and acknowledging that losing control right now would put Irina in danger is the only reason I allowed Vadim and Leo to take care of this while I am personally going to stay and safeguard my wife.

It’s taking everything in me not to go over to Tony’s and beat the truth out of him one punch at a time. I want blood now, whether this story is true or not.

I want someone to suffer for trying to push me back to a place I have no business being in. I was out of control when I lost my child, and I came so close to going back to that dark place when Irina left me.

This, I know, is a very important time for me. I’m on the verge of losing it, and the only thing keeping me stable is my angel.

“I want to know, Vadim.”

“Christ. You think we don’t? I caught Leo, fucking Leo of all people, trying to sneak into his house last night, man. He had pliers and knuckles in his back pocket, bro.”

“Leo? Calm, collected, violence-is-a-last-resort Leo?” I ask incredulously.

Leo never gets angry to the point of losing his temper. At least, it’s so rare that we all forget that of the three of us, he’s the one to truly fear.

“Yup. He’s hanging on by a thread, Mish.”

I hear the worry and fear in Vadim’s voice and plop down at the kitchen table with a sigh. This is going to take all night if Vadi is worried.

“Tatty?”

“Yeah, man. He’s so lost over that chick, it ain’t funny. To make matters worse, I think she may feel the same way but is too scared to even give him a chance. He’s already buying designer babywear and designing a ring, dude. Fucking lost already.”

“She needs time, Vadi. Luka did a real bitch deal on that woman.”

Vadim snorts and gives a wry chuckle.

“Ya think? It’s not every day you walk in on the guy you love going down on one of your cousins before finding out you’re carrying his kid. I wouldn’t blame Tat if she never spoke to him again.”

“Hmm. That’s the problem, man. He’s been around her a lot lately.”

“And it’s driving Leo nuts.”

I know my little brother. He’s had shit luck with women in the past, and I would have bet my balls he’d never allow himself to fall for another woman in this lifetime.

I guess I should be happy I never made that bet, because from what I’ve seen, Leo means business with Tatiana and the kid he already considers his.

“Dude, start planning some fake sympathy for Irina when her brother goes missing one day, because I swear to God if Luka keeps trying to get at his little family, that man’s gonna end up in a landfill or a ditch somewhere in the southern swamps,” Vadim warns, making me grin a little at the thought of the one we call Monster slipping his leash.

“Christ. Just keep a fucking eye on him. You talk to Nikita yet?”

I hate to ask since I already suspect that Vadim had fucked himself with the way he handled Nikita. Heck, I’m pissed at him for being secretly married for years and living in misery while I just assumed my brother was a rat bastard, bed-hopping Lothario.

“Misha.”

“No, don’t give me that bullshit ‘I’m okay’ line, Vadim. Anyone with eyes can see how deeply you love that woman and how madly she loves you. I know you and your sexual lifestyle, Vadim. We went to the club together for a long time, and I know how dominant you are, little brother. If you’re going to deny that she’s already under your protection and power, I will call you a liar.”

He’s quiet for several minutes before his sigh reaches me.

“She won’t answer my calls and the last time I went to her, Liza literally kicked me in the balls and tried to bite my right ear off. Christ, that woman is vicious.”

The mental image makes my lips twitch, but I smother my laughter and roll my eyes.

“Nikita?”

A growl echoes through the line.

“She’s spending a lot of time with Lincoln Leonides lately. They went to dinner last night and the fuck took her to a movie afterward. Not that I am complaining since I know my woman. She does not eat popcorn due to the ‘germ-infested cesspool’ that is the popcorn stand, and she’s not at all impressed with the state of the floors.”

I do laugh then, just thinking about Nikita in her designer heels, cringing with every sticky step she takes.

“You do know her well, and you seem able to take her to a place where none of that control is in her hands anymore. I loved seeing her so relaxed that she actually shared a cup with Irina. She was…happy.”

With Vadim. Because as the dominant in their relationship, he made her feel secure enough to cede all of that control.

“
Da
. And now I’ve driven her into the arms of another man, Misha.”

“I’ll tell you the same thing I told Leo. Do not take this lying down, Vadim. Take what you want and fuck whatever anyone else thinks, because at the end of the day it’s about owning that part of you that depends on the love of your woman. It may sound weak, but I feel stronger even knowing that Irina’s carrying my balls and likely my dick around in her ugly little handbags. I belong to her. She belongs to me and we’re happy. Take Nikita. Storm her defences. Hell, I’ll help you drug her and get on a plane to Vegas if that’s what it’ll take, little brat. Just don’t give up.”

Not now that he’s finally free of his wife. We drank and spoke late into the night after he left his wife, and I have come to understand so much about Vadim.

He’s kind and caring and a genuinely good person. He’s been living for years with Ashley, unhappy and bitter about life and love. Now that he’s fallen, he deserves to have the happiness he’s missed for so long.

“You’ve actually met Nikita? The woman has sharper teeth than Liza, and her kicking accuracy is way better. If I go near her now I may end up shooting blanks. If my dick survives and doesn’t shrivel up.”

“Be a man, Vadim, and take what you want. Leo has decided to seize happiness as well, and I’d venture a guess that if you asked him, he’d tell you going after Tatiana, even with all the roadblocks ahead of him, is preferable to loving her from a distance. Hell, I feel the same way and I should know. Irina walked out on me twice!”

He actually laughs, the fucker, and sighs loudly.

“
Da
. But how to get her out of Max’s house…”

“I have no doubt you will succeed in this. Do you need the cabin?” I ask, gearing up to assist him in anything he needs.

“I will help you with this situation first and then go after Nikita. And yes, the cabin sounds good, just do not tell anyone. Elizaveta would chop me into tiny pieces if she should get wind of this.”

Tiny pieces? Heck, he’d be so fucked, they’d never find his body. We’re Russian, we know how to handle things.

“Fine. We do this first and then you sort out this mess with Nikita. Mama’s already asking about her, and I can only give so many excuses before she catches on.”

“Shit. Just keep her off my back while I keep Leo out of prison and Lincoln Leonides off my woman.”

“Fine.”

He’s gone with a curse, and instead of going back to my warm bed and luscious wife, I remain where I am, pondering what will happen next.

I’m desperate to know if that little girl could miraculously be mine, but I have my family to care for now and will never endanger Irina and my unborn child to go tearing into the hopeful realm of dreams again.

For now, I have just what I want. I hope that will be enough if this turns out to be a lie, because even now I feel like that part of my heart that died years ago is slowly starting to beat again.

Leo

I’ve officially turned into one of those stalker-type guys who peeks into windows and takes long-lens shots of my target.

It’s gross—creepy, at the very least. That doesn’t mean I can stop myself. In fact, I feel so powerless to control the urges streaming through me as I watch Tatiana flop onto the sofa with another pint of dessert that I’m moving before I know it, leaving the apartment I rented across the street and running into her lobby in mere minutes.

This is what my life has become. I’m a fool for her, completely obsessed with the thought of being near her, seeing her smile, holding her hand…

Shit, I’d settle for holding her hair while she puked as she does every morning at this point. I’ve been hard for her since laying eyes on that blonde beauty, and the only reason I never made a play, despite my usual attitude towards just taking what I want, was that she was ‘in a relationship.’

That makes me snort before a feral growl rumbles forth. As foolish as it may sound, I’ve got myself convinced she’s been mine and only mine since that first moment when her eyes met mine.

Now that that fuck Luka is semi-out of the way, I’m gonna do just what Misha told me to. It’s time to claim what I love, what’s mine, and there’s no reason not to anymore.

She may argue. She may fight. She may cry. In the end, she’ll be mine, though, and so will the kid, because I’m Leo Novac and I never quit, no matter the obstacles.

When I get to her door I have a moment of clarity and start sweating like a pig at the thought of Tatiana kicking my ass out of the building. I’m nervous as fuck and ready to hyperventilate when just the thought of Luka getting near her again steadies me like a rock.

You do this, Novac. Stop being a pussy and get your girl or you’re just begging that rat fuck to claim what shouldn’t be his.

I pound on the door like a madman.

“What! Stop that!” she yells, ripping the door open to glare before she sees me and goes pale, her lips compressing in a way that makes her impossible to read.

See, this is my problem. I can read anyone else in seconds, but Tatiana, the one person I would kill to be able to read, is like a closed freaking book.

I never know what she’s thinking or feeling and it drives me nuts because I’m not exactly adept in most social situations, and trying to guess how to handle this little package is like driving with my eyes closed.

“Leo?” she stutters, her arms immediately crossing over her chest to hide the nipples peaking at me through the threadbare white tank. The action, instead of cooling me off like it should, since I guess she doesn’t want me looking at her, revs my libido more.

The woman has great tits—full, round…

With pregnancy? They’re fucking phenomenal, and I’m almost rabid with the need to rip her clothes off to get my mouth around her nipples. What color would they be? Have they grown since her tits started swelling?

Shit, Leo. Stop and focus,
I caution, swallowing and dragging my eyes up. I have to because just the sight and thought of getting my mouth on her has my dick going hard as a brick for her.

“Hey, uh, you okay for company?” I ask, trying to act civilized.

“Er, uh, I guess? I’m just, uh, eating a salad and watching the news.”

I hold back a snort and nod, pushing past her gently and avoiding the television that shows
The Bachelor
, then find the almost empty pint of vanilla mousse that’s staring us both in the face.

Tatiana colors a little and dashes for the remote, tossing the tub at the poor plant in the corner before turning to me with an apprehensive smile and a questioning look.

Fucking adorable.

“I’ve ordered us each a steak and one of those Italian desserts you like so much. Should be here in a few minutes.”

I sit, making myself comfortable, and narrow my eyes when she bites her lip and toes the floor, looking uncomfortable and nervous. I hate this. Normally I’d tell a chick what I want and just run with it. I’m not this guy who’s awkward and walking on eggshells all the time, and I sure as fuck am not the guy who lets a woman tell him how things go.

I’m not a caveman by any stretch of the word, and her feelings and voice mean something to me. But far as I can see, letting Tatiana make decisions has gotten her hurt and feeling like less than she is.

It’s my job to make sure that shit stops right now, and the only way I know how to do that is to take control. I just hope she can go for that, because no amount of anger on her part will sway me here. She’s mine and I’m claiming.

“Stop chewing that mouth to shreds and come on over here, sweetheart.”

“Um…”

I ignore her hesitation and grab her waist, hauling her down into my lap with a grin and the presence of mind to close my thighs over my dick before it scares the piss out of her.

“Leo.”

“Hush, Tat, just hush for a second and let me talk. I’m nervous as fuck and terrified to say the wrong thing in case it upsets you, but I gotta tell ya that I’m sick and tired of standing on the sidelines while you hurt. Luka is an asshole. He’s no good for you and he’s not ready to be a dad. I am. I want you. I want everything I know we can have together.”

“But—”

The hard kiss I give her shuts her up, and by the time I’m done my dick’s trying to grow through my thigh and she’s breathing loudly, her face and chest flushed enough to let me know she liked my mouth on hers.

“I know you don’t love me. Shit, you’re probably so confused by the way I’ve handled this shit, but I can’t stand by and watch that asshole come at you anymore when I already think of you and the peanut as mine.”

“Shut up, Leo.”

“Tat—”

“No,” she says harshly, pushing away from my chest just enough to look up at me and shake her head. “I’m pregnant with another man’s child. Stop trying to argue and listen to me. This is Luka’s child, no matter how much I want to forget that I was stupid enough to think I loved him. He’s not a bad person, he’s just a bad boyfriend. At the end of the day, I could never deny him this baby because it wouldn’t be right.”

Goddammit. I hate how true that is and start envisioning a freak accident to get rid of my enemy when she suddenly smiles and grabs my hand to lay it across her tiny bump.

“I’m not ready to say I love you yet, not because I don’t think I do.” She laughs, slapping my head. “You’re stalkerish and weirdly quiet all the time, and I don’t know what to do with you half the time, Leo, but you’re always here for me. Right now, that’s more than I could have asked for. I’ve wanted you since you tried to beat the hell out of Luka and looked at me like I hung the entire solar system.”

I smirk at the memory of breaking Luka’s nose and taking out one of his teeth. There’s a lot to be said for New York alleys and fists that feel no pain.

“That little wimp told you?”

That gets me one of her tinkling laughs and I feel my chest expand at the fact that I did that. I made her happy.

“Told me?” she snorts, wiggling dangerously close to the bat in my jeans. “He went crying to his mama like a little pansy. Katya told him to take his licks and stop acting like an ass. Then she called me and spent an hour begging me not to hate him even though I’m too good for him right now. She also told me that any man who’s crazy enough to jump one of her boys must really love me.”

I get another smile, this one dazzling, before she leans in and kisses me softly.

“But I’m not too sure how this can work, Leo. I’m pregnant with Luka’s child and—”

“And that doesn’t matter,” I insist when the thought of her pushing me away has my heart stalling. “You’re it for me, woman. You’re funny and beautiful and viciously outspoken. I love everything about you, down to your need to just blurt out obscene shit in public. I…”

How do you tell a woman that living another day without her would do worse than kill me?

“I know, Leo, and I feel the same. I come home feeling good because I know you’ll be at that window across the street watching over me.”

Busted.

“About that,” I mutter, blushing like a schoolgirl when she just laughs and bites her lips.

“Shush. I like it. It’s stalkerish but it’s also just one more way that I know how much you care. You’re never far away and I need that right now more than I need anything else, so I don’t feel so alone. I want you. I do. I just…what if I start getting all fat and gross and it turns you off? I mean, I could kick your ass and threaten to cut off your mangina if this was still your baby, but I don’t have that option seeing as I’m about to get nasty carrying Luka’s kid,” she says quietly, looking away as one lone tear escapes and starts tracking down her cheek.

Ah. I get it now. Goddammit. I should have been here sooner instead of watching her from afar and letting her stew with all this garbage. Doesn’t she know that she could gain a hundred pounds and still be the sexiest woman in my eyes?

“Tat, I could never look at you and not see the most beautiful woman in the world.”

“You say that now! I’ve read those books, those terrible books. One came with pictures, Leo. Do you know what happens to a vagina when you’re in the later stages of pregnancy? It looked like that woman was smuggling a fucking puffer fish in her pants! Who wants to hit that shit? Who? I took one look and my freaking stomach turned immediately. You think I want you going downtown?”

Down, boy! Now is not the time to be sniffing it out. We’re having a meaningful—if ridiculous—conversation here, and Irina told us that listening is the first step towards getting the goods.

Or something. I kinda tuned out halfway through when she started rhapsodizing about Misha and his dick. Fucking female has no boundaries. Gross.

“I swear to God, Tatiana, if you let me go downtown just once I will die with a fucking smile so big, my lips will meet at the back of my head.”

Another slap and one of her hormonal glares has me shutting up instantly, and I see her take a deep breath before she turns back to me.

“The point is that you never signed up for any of this. I’m going to get fat coochie, milky tits, and swollen ankles. I read about hormonal breakouts.” A shudder. From us both. “There’s all this really gross shit that happens to some women.”

She’s crying so hard I feel my heart squeeze as I fight a laugh and pull her closer, my lips in her hair as I rub soothing circles over her back.

“Sweetheart, first of all, everyone gets zits.”

“Not
you
!” she wails, giving me a filthy glare.

Okay, I concede the point. I’ve never had a zit a day in my life. Mama says it’s good genes, but I, Papa, and the brothers know that it’s down to Papa feeding us small doses of vodka when our balls started dropping.

“And you’ll get bigger but that’s good, because I’ll know you’re healthy and taking care of our kid right. And don’t even get me started on the milky tits thing, because I haven’t come in my pants since I was, like, fourteen and saw Mrs. Fielding’s boobs when she leaned over my desk. I like knowing that I’ll get to see and touch you through every change your body goes through. I’m even more thrilled at the thought of getting my seed in your womb,” I whisper, craving that so much, it’s like a physical need clawing at my mind.

I want every single thing I can get with this woman, and yeah, I may be a total sap and pussified, as Vadim calls me, but I’m ready for it all. I want it all. With her. Only ever with her.

“Yeah?”

“Oh yeah,” I purr, risking a black eye when the need to cup her breast becomes too much to resist.

I almost lose it and groan when the hefty weight fills my palm and her nipple beads.

“I want to raise this one, even just as his stepdad, and give you at least two more. I want marriage and babies and Sunday dinners with our whole family while Papa hogs the kids and Mama tries to fatten us all up. I want Max to have cousins—”

“Have you heard from Lena?” she interrupts excitedly, making me roll my eyes and grin.

“Yeah. Feliks finally found out what she was doing with the Romanovs and dragged her home with him. He spanked her ass. I think. I don’t wanna know what the fuck those two freaks do in the bedroom. But yeah. He got her taken care of, and as far as I know, from what Mama told me, Feliks got the FBI what they needed and told Lena in no uncertain terms that she was his. They’re talking Vegas and a house beside Mama so Max can visit her daily.”

I love that, knowing that from all this mess, Misha accomplished one thing that he wanted to. If I know Feliks, and I do from some of the nasty, way-too-personal shit he insists on telling me daily, he’ll have Lena pregnant and too tied up (literally) to get into any more trouble.

“About us—”

“Can we take things slow? I need some time to get used to the idea of being in another relationship and—”

I pin her to the sofa and come over her, shoving my hips between her legs and grinding my dick into her.

“No. No slow. No dating and all that other shit that normal people do when they’re trying to score and fuck each other. You and me and this peanut, we’re it for each other, so you may as well know now that I called Mama earlier and told her we’re engaged.”