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The click of a gun reminded me who I was dealing with. Len was a killer, but he wasn’t stupid.

“You gonna shoot an unarmed NHL player right here in your store?” I asked, grinning.

Len held his hands up in mock innocence. “No one’s shooting anyone. But we do keep weapons here for our own protection.”

I laughed bitterly. “Ironic since you’re the one people need protecting from. Did you get a thrill out of sending your guys to beat up a guy with a bad hip who’s spent his life in a kitchen?”

Len’s eyes showed satisfaction, despite his effort at a contrite expression.

“I heard what happened to your father. That was unfortunate.”

Lyov shook his head next to me. Anger was practically radiating off of him. He was only 6’2’, shorter than me, but he could hold his own in a fight. We’d thrown down ourselves a few times.

“You made a mistake, Len,” I said. “You should’ve come to me about the money first. I would’ve repaid it.”

“I’m not a fuckin’ nose wiper, Niko. People know the deal when they sign with me.”

I pulled out my cell phone and held it up. “I’m about to call the cops and complain about your business dealings. You ready for an investigation?”

Len’s eyes narrowed. “You’re making a big mistake.”

“I don’t think I am,” I said, forcing my voice to stay calm. “Put the motherfucking guns on the table. Let’s settle this like gentlemen.”

“Go back to your ice skates and bitch fights,” Len said with a sneer. “You’re out of your league.”

I looked at the screen and pressed a button. “You fucked with the wrong family this time, Len.”

“Put the guns on the table,” he said in a rush. I pressed a button to end the call as the two men at his sides each set a handgun on the beat-up table.

“All of ‘em,” Lyov said.

The scrawnier guy looked at Len, who nodded slightly. A third gun came out from beneath the table. A second later, the stocky guy got up and bolted for a back room. Lyov was on him, pounding his head against a concrete wall.

Len didn’t look scared as I approached, I had to give him that. But he should’ve. I’d never felt such fury in my life. It ran through my veins, molten and urgent. The image of tears on my father’s swollen face would never leave me, and this was the man responsible for it.

I pulled Len up from the chair, shoving him against a wall. The scrawny guy tried to jump me, but I kicked his gut so hard he hit the floor.

“You and me now, Len,” I said in a low tone.

“You’ll regret this,” he said, trying to sound menacing.

I smiled and got in his face. “No, I won’t. If you ever do business with any member of my family again, I’ll be back to cut your throat. I promise.”

He tried to push me off of him, but it was no use. I punched him with everything in me, never letting up. It only took a few seconds to draw blood, and he was too stunned to fight back. No one ever challenged Len in this neighborhood. He ruled with fear. It was about time for him to be the one feeling it.

The skinny guy jumped me from behind and Len got in a few blows on my face. I tasted blood and spit it in his face. When I landed a punch to Len’s jaw, a crack sounded and he howled like a wounded animal. I was fucking enjoying this. The more he hurt, the less I did.

I didn’t know how much time passed before the three men were all at our feet and Lyov was looking at me expectantly. I nodded and reached into my coat for an envelope.

“There’s your motherfuckin’ money,” I said, panting with exertion as I tossed it on Len’s chest. “20K. Don’t ever mess with my family again. I meant what I said. Money buys power, and I’ve got more than you do now.”

I turned for the door and Lyov followed. We glanced at each other and grinned when we hit the sidewalk. It was like old times, though the stakes were much higher this time.

“Your nose is gushing blood like a fucking hose,” I said.

“You don’t look so great yourself.” He reached for my shoulder and squeezed it. “Hey, Niko? Thanks for coming.”

“Anytime, man. I’m glad you called me.”

He wiped a sleeve across his nose and laughed. “I don’t know if I’ve got the balls to handle that like you did. I was planning to jump Len when he was on the way to his car.”

I shrugged. “Hopefully he got the message. You’re gonna need to get everyone into secure places. Even Anna and Alexei.”

He nodded. “Sure. I’m on a break from school, so I’ll get it done. I’ll stay with Mom and Dad and Alexei for a while, just to make sure they’re safe.”

I clapped him on the shoulder and he groaned from the pain. “I’ve gotta get to the airport, man.”

The smells of car exhaust and hot dogs reminded me that I was back in my hometown. But Chicago felt like my home now. I was torn between wanting to get back there and wanting to stay here and protect my family.

There was no choice; I had a game tomorrow night. And if I was going to play worth a shit, I needed to see Sadie first.

I hailed a cab, my bravado gone as soon as I stepped in and closed the door. A few tears slid down my face as I thought about visiting my dad. Never had I felt so helpless. Rage over what Len had done to him was still coursing through my veins. And now there was fear that Len would seek retribution against my family. I’d meant what I said about cutting his throat if he hurt my family – I would. But by then, it could be too late.

The emotions threatened to drown me, and my mind went to Sadie. I needed the soothing feeling she’d given me by blowing on my eyebrow when I was bleeding. The knowledge that she cared about me. The grounding presence of the strong, sexy woman who was a fighter and a survivor. I needed it more than anything. I just hoped she’d forgive me for not calling her for a week. It hadn’t been because I wasn’t thinking about her. It was the opposite, actually. She was constantly on my mind, and I didn’t know how to handle it. How could I kick ass on the ice when I had all these soft, sensual thoughts in my head?

Fuck it. I needed her. But tonight I was feeling anything but soft.

Sadie

The one upside to living on the top floor of my building was getting to listen to the rain. I loved the sound of it hammering on the roof while I wrote on my laptop on the couch in a nightshirt with my feet curled up beneath me.

Tonight the rain was loud, because we were getting an icy December storm. The accompanying wind kept blowing the branches of a tree against one of my windows. I was glad I’d stayed in tonight. Dell had invited me over for dinner, but I’d told her I had work to do.

It was sort of true. Writers always had work to do. None of mine was pressing, though. I just didn’t want Dell to pull me aside and ask about Niko. He hadn’t called, he wouldn’t call, and I didn’t need to see Luke cuddling Dell like they were about to be separated for a year or something.

I was bad company anyway in this crabby mood. Getting a taste of Niko had ruined my resolve. Now I could openly admit that I wanted so much more with him. The way his lips had softly caressed my skin at the same time he fucked me harder than anyone ever had … well, I could see it being habit forming. And waking up wrapped in his Niko-scented bed sheets … I wanted more. More of that, more of him, more of everything. Being ignored by him hurt more with every day that passed. I’d been nothing but a quick, easy fuck to him, and now I was a blubbering mess over it.

It had at least inspired me to write a column about men being the more egotistical sex. It wasn’t even a contest. Niko had longer relationships with rolls of toilet paper than he’d had with me.

A gust blew the branches against the window and I looked up at the knocking sound made by the limbs hitting the window. A few seconds later, the noise sounded again, though the wind had died down.

There was someone at my door. I glanced down at my nightshirt. It was almost ten o’clock, who could possibly be knocking on my door at this hour?

I cracked the door open just as far as the chain lock would allow.

“Sadie,” Niko said, urgency in his tone.

“Niko?”

“Can I come in?”

I considered saying no after being ignored by him for nearly a week. But he was breathing heavy, and drips of water sounded against the hallway floor. He’d been out in this crazy storm, and I had to let him in to get dry and warm.

I pushed the door closed, unlocked the chain and then opened it. I wasn’t prepared for the sight that greeted me. Niko had a fat lip with fresh-looking blood on it, a swollen black eye and a messy butterfly bandage over his eyebrow. His black leather jacket was soaked. Water dripped from the ends of his dark hair and ran in streams down his face.

He stepped in and closed the door behind him.

“Niko,” I said softly. I was overwhelmed by the questions I had and my need to tend to him. Where to start? Maybe with why he hadn’t called?

He put his large palms on my face, gazing down at me.

“I’m so fucking sorry, Sadie. I should’ve called. I don’t know how to handle needing someone. But I do. I need you.”

His dark brown eyes were imploring, and I reached up to brush a wet lock of hair from his forehead. It was my silent answer to him. I didn’t know how to handle needing someone, either.

When he pressed his lips to mine, the last of my anger dissipated. The slight tang of his blood hit my taste buds, and I wrapped myself around him tightly. I was half his size, where was this protective feeling coming from? I didn’t know, but it took me over. I wanted to drink him up and soothe his pain – let my tenderness make up for the hurt someone else had caused him.

But tenderness wasn’t on his agenda. He ran his fingers up the back of my neck and into my hair, pulling on it roughly as he picked me up and turned me around. He pressed my back into the door, water soaking through his jacket into my nightshirt as he ground his hips into mine.

I slid my fingers into his hair, wetness seeping through to my skin when I pulled on it. Niko’s groan against my chest told me this was what he needed. I pushed the jacket back from his shoulders and it dropped to the floor in a wet heap. His t-shirt was wet, too, and I worked that off while he kissed my neck, biting just beneath my ear in a way that lit my entire body up.

He pulled the nightshirt over my head and dropped it, his hands on my skin in an instant. He touched me everywhere, not missing an inch. We were moving slowly as he led me in small steps toward the kitchen, but then he swept me up in an instant and carried me the rest of the way to my table, where he lowered me in a sitting position and pulled my panties off.

His eyes were filled with something I’d never seen there before. They burned me with their intensity. As he lowered his soaked jeans and stepped out of them, his gaze stayed fixed on me. He bent to fish through a pocket and pulled out a roll of condoms, ripping one from its wrapper and rolling it on.

I was breathless. The need I felt coming from him was overwhelming. It didn’t seem to be just sex. Whatever he needed, I wanted to give it to him with everything in me.

A line of fresh, bright red blood stood out on his lip, but he was oblivious. He drove himself into me, setting my ankles on his shoulders. My loud cry was all pleasure. Niko did things to me no man ever had, and all I ever wanted was more.

His large hands wrapped around my shoulders, allowing him to pound into me deeper than anyone ever had. It was so good, just lying there and letting him use my body to work out his emotions. I gripped his forearms, my nails digging into his skin to urge him on. His eyes were dark and hungry as he looked down at me, and within a few more seconds, I arched my back off the table and screamed his name.

When the wave of my deep orgasm lowered a little, I let myself fall down to the table. Niko pulled me up by the hands, winding his fingers into my hair and pulling me close to him for a long, deep kiss.

I was ready to collapse into my bed with him, but as soon as I slid down from the table, he turned me around and laid a hand on my back. Reading his cue, I bent down and rested my elbows and forearms on the table. There was no way I could come again so soon, but I still wanted more.

His guttural groan when he slid into me made me feel sexier than I ever had. He held on to my hips and fucked me with the same intensity again, never letting up. I moaned with every thrust because it felt too good not to. The icy raindrops pelting the roof made the only sound in the room besides our mingled groans of satisfaction and the sound of his skin slapping into mine.

When his fingers spread my ass cheeks open, I let out a broken cry of desire. This was my dream, in more ways than one. He pushed one wet fingertip in, following with another one soon after. As his fingers worked in the same rhythm as his cock, my thighs started to shake with the building wave of another deep orgasm.

Niko pulled up on one of my shoulders and I stood, sure my legs would fail me as he continued pounding into me. As soon as his fingers slid between my legs, I came apart in his arms, tears stinging my eyes from the power of it.

He pulled his fingers from my ass and gripped my hips with both hands, groaning in my ear as he thrust into me one last time. He held himself tight against me for a few seconds, his breathing heavy and broken against my cheek.

When he relaxed his hold, I turned as he tossed the used condom to the trash. He surprised me by bending and sweeping an arm behind my knees. He picked me up and carried me to bed, lowering me to the mattress and climbing in beside me.

We’d barely spoken, but I knew Niko had just shared a very raw part of himself with me. I didn’t want to mar such a perfect moment with questions about who’d hurt him, so I relaxed into his body, pressing my back to his chest. He pulled the covers over both of us and kissed me softly on the neck. I felt myself slipping into sleep, and as I let myself fall, I hoped this wasn’t another dream.

Niko

A faint beeping noise was trying to get my attention, but I ignored it. Fuck that. I was really warm and still tired. I needed to sleep.

The sound only got louder, and I soon came to the foggy realization that I was in Sadie’s bed. I was warm because we were wrapped around each other beneath the covers, both still naked. I felt too good to move right now, but the alarm on my phone was being an asshole.