Only One Man Will Do (14 page)

* * * *

On Saturday morning, Alexandra was awoken by the insistent sound of her phone. It wasn’t the ring-tone she used for her dad, so she almost didn’t bother answering. Then she thought better of it.

It might be Dmitri!

She grabbed the phone off the nightstand and mumbled, “Hello?”

“Good morning, Miss Blackstone. This is Detective Mark Jones. I’ve been assigned to investigate the hit and run accident that resulted in the death of a…”There was a pause as if he was checking his notes. “…a Mister Tom Taylor. Your name was given to me as one of the witnesses. I’d like to ask you a few questions. Can you come around to the station this morning?”

Sitting up, Alexandra spoke, “Of course. Tell me which station it is and I’ll be there in an hour.”

“Excellent.”

After getting directions from the detective, Alexandra got up, showered and dressed. She took her SUV to the station, stopping along the way to pick up coffee for herself and a dozen donuts to share with the detectives on duty.

Doesn’t hurt to come bearing gifts, right? Everyone knows policemen love donuts. Besides, I need to eat something. My stomach is empty and my emotions feel raw. Maybe a blast of sugar will help.

In the noise and confusion of the station, Alexandra felt anxious and overwhelmed. Even sitting and answering the questions the detective asked was difficult, since she had trouble shutting out the other voices all around her.

“For the records, Miss, since I’m taping your responses, what is your name?”

“I’m Alexandra Blackstone.”

“What was your relationship with Tom Taylor?

“It’s my biker gang Tom rode with for the past year or so.”

“Do you ride together every night?”

“No, I don’t ride on weekdays…only on weekends. It’s how I relax from my very busy job running a marketing firm my father founded.”

“Were you very close to Tom?”

“Yes, I’d say we were probably Tom’s closest friends. He spent most Friday and Saturday nights with us. We rode together every weekend it was possible to take our Harleys on the road.”

“Do you just ride aimlessly, or do you have a particular place you ride to?”

“We have a destination most weekends. It’s a place up by Mille Lacs. It’s a farm of about ten acres that has been in my family for a long time. No one else ever goes there, so I’ve been paying the taxes on it for years. Everyone thinks of it as my place. It’s a nice ride up there, and we can party without disturbing anyone if we have campfires late into the night.”

Alexandra began to shift around on her chair, partly out of nerves, but partly out of irritation at the inevitability of the next question.

“Is your gang involved with anything illegal, like drugs?”

“No, we don’t deal drugs. We’re not that kind of gang. Yes, we have kegs and cases of booze, but no drugs up at my place when we’re there.”

The detective’s eyebrows rose as if he doubted her response.

“Honestly, sir, I can’t afford that kind of scandal to be attached to my name. That would have a deleterious effect on my reputation, and that I can’t allow.”

“Does your father know about what you do with your spare time?”

“No, my father doesn’t know anything about my gang. He bought me my first Harley when I was in college so he knows I ride. But he prefers not to know anything else about that part of my life.”

She shifted around impatiently.

“Honestly, I don’t see what any of this has to do with your investigation into the accident that killed Tom.”

The detective cleared his throat importantly. “We’re trying to figure out if it
was
an accident. If it was, we’ll continue to try to locate the driver but without any eye-witnesses, that will slow things down. If there’s any indication that this was a purposeful death, then we need to follow up with any leads we can discover.”

Alexandra leaned forward. “Purposeful death? You mean murder?”

The detective nodded.

“No one would murder Tom! He didn’t have an enemy in the world. He was a totally nice guy who made friends wherever he went. No one ever fought with him because he wouldn’t rise to any bait. When we’d get in bar fights just for fun, he’d usually just sit it out, watching. He’d help any of us who got hurt, but he didn’t like to fight. I can’t believe you think anyone had any kind of grudge against such a nice young man.”

The detective’s eyebrows rose again at her words.

“He was quite a bit younger than you, wasn’t he?”

Alexandra exploded. “What the fuck does that have to do with anything? Yeah, I’m thirty-five and he was twenty-six. Way too young to be dead, for sure. Why aren’t you out trying to find a car with damage or something, instead of pestering me about how old I am?”

A semblance of a grin flitted across the man’s face then he gazed at her steadily.

“We are doing just that, Miss Blackstone and we are interviewing everyone who was at the bar that night.”

“Well, duh. If we were
at
the bar that night, then we had nothing to do with it, right? Kind of hard to drive a car out front while you’re sitting at the bar drinking.”

He nodded. “Yes, I think I’m done with questioning you for now but until this investigation is closed, don’t leave town.”

“Does that mean I can’t go up to my place by Mille Lac?”

“Give me the address and we’ll add it to your file.”

After she did, the detective rose to shake her hand. He didn’t grimace when she clasped his hand firmly, but a flicker of surprise raced through his eyes.

Yeah, that’s right, old man. I know how to shake hands as well as you do! I may not be a man, but there’re some things my father made sure I could do as well as a man. So there, Fucker!

Alexandra smiled sweetly. “So, are we done, Detective Jones?”

He nodded. “For now.”

“Then have a nice day.”

Alexandra made sure to put some extra swing into her hips as she sashayed out of the station. She knew she wasn’t imagining the hush that accompanied her deliberate bump and grind as she walked through a station of mostly men.

Take that, you assholes! Find who killed Tom and leave me the fuck alone!

When she got back to her condo, she decided she needed a ride to clear her mind. She quickly changed into her jeans, an athletic bra and a leather vest. She tied her hair back and jammed her sunglasses on her face. Once she was on her bike, she rode with no destination in mind, just for the feel of the air as it rushed past her face. She chased all thoughts from her mind to concentrate on the feel of the road. It worked its usual magic on her and for a few short hours, she wasn’t upset or depressed…just empty.

When she got back from her ride, Alexandra decided she needed to work out her frustrations with exercise. She ran on her treadmill until she was bathed in sweat. She lay on her bench and lifted weights until her arms burned. She did sit-ups until her stomach hurt and leg-lifts until her legs cramped up. Then she filled her Jacuzzi with scented oil and settled into a very hot bath.

Aah
, she thought as she sunk down into the water, the bubbling water tickling her nose.
The trick is not to think. Just to feel. Not to feel emotions, just to feel the pains in my body from over-use. Now I’ll feel the muscles relaxing from the hot water. She leaned back and concentrated on consciously breathing deeply, in and out…in and out.

* * * *

Dmitri had spent the day changing his travel plans. As he made his way back to the big, busty red-head who had so captivated his every thought, he pondered what it was about her he found so attractive.

I love to fuck her. That’s a given. She’s the hottest, most responsive female I’ve ever had the pleasure to enjoy. Every little touch makes her quiver, which makes her pussy tighten until I can’t control myself anymore. She’s a fucking wildcat in bed!

He shifted around in his seat, trying not to make it obvious he was adjusting himself away from the zipper digging into his throbbing flesh.

But she’s also a very smart woman. No one can put anything over on her. She plays with the big boys in a man’s business and she’s extremely successful.

She can wheel and deal, and beat them all at their own game. Then she counts her money, laughing all the way to the bank. She looks so damn good in a suit that the men she’s dealing with don’t know where to look. I’m sure part of her success is because some of the blood that should be in their brains helping them make decisions, is in their dicks making them wonder what it would be like to fuck her on her desk…like I did the first time I met her.

He smiled, the memories washing over him in waves of remembered pleasure.

And when she’s in her biker queen mood? Jesus! Just remembering those huge tits in a black leather bra almost makes me come! She can out-drink, out-party and out-ride most men. But when she’s ready to get down to business, I want it to be with me…not the other guys in her gang.

Shit! I thought I was just hanging around for a little fun…trying to tame her just to prove I could. I’ve gone and fallen hard for that red-haired wildcat. I can’t imagine wanting any other woman anymore. I don’t know how she feels yet, but she misses me and that’s a good sign. I just hope she misses me enough to give up fucking other men. I won’t share her…I can’t. She’s got to belong to me. That’s the way it has to be.

When he entered her condo, Dmitri looked around for her. Not hearing anything, he walked down the hallway. He peaked into the kitchen, then smiled at his own foolishness.

She never spends any time in there! I’ll just check the bedroom. If she’s not home, I’ll go pick up some extra food for a couple of days, then I’ll come back and wait for her.

The bedroom was empty, but there was a towel discarded on the floor next to the weight bench and empty water bottles strewn around.

She’s been working out recently…apparently with a vengeance. She’s trying really hard to not think about what’s happening.

As he stood there quietly, his brain made sense out of the humming noise he could hear coming from the bathroom.

She’s soaking in the Jacuzzi.

His cock twitched in response to imagining her naked and covered with water. He strode over to the bathroom and turned the handle to open the door.

Alexandra had piled her hair on top of her head and held it in place with a clip. Errant tendrils framed her face and trailed around her in the bubbling water. Her breasts floated in front of her, rising into view and falling below the water as she breathed deeply. Since her eyes were closed, Dmitri allowed himself a few moments to admire her, his eyes drinking in the sight of the woman who dominated his every fantasy, his every waking thought. He sucked in a breath and stared.

Jesus, woman! You own me! I’m giving you this kind of power over me. And I’m glad of it! Oh God, please let her be feeling the same way! I won’t ask for anything else…ever.

He cleared his throat, but the lack of response from the woman let him know the sound of the Jacuzzi bubbling was too loud for her to notice him. He spoke louder than usual, so she would hear him.

“Alexandra? I’m back.”

She opened her eyes and stared at him for a heartbeat. Then she leaned over and turned off the bubbles which made the room eerily quiet. Quickly she rose from the water and held out her arms to him. His brain went into over-drive as it took in the sight of her naked flesh, dripping wet from the bath, shiny from the scented oil, and inviting him to touch it. He went to her without a word and pulled her into his arms.

The angle was awkward because he was out of the tub and she was still in it. But he held her close, his hands roaming on her skin, his nose buried in her hair. Gradually he became aware she was trembling, and the sound he was hearing was her sobbing as if her heart was broken.

I’m such a pig! She’s in pain and all I can think about is how much I want to be plunging into her hotness. No! I want to be all the man she needs. I have to prove that to her right now.

“Oh God,
Sashka
, don’t cry, dear heart. I’m here. I won’t leave you again.”

Her shaking only got worse, so Dmitri did the only thing he could think of. He picked her up out of the water and carried her in his arms, through the bathroom door, and over to the bed. He sat on it and held her on his lap, rocking gently to soothe her. He murmured comforting words to her in Russian, heedless of the fact she wouldn’t understand a word he said. But she must know how he felt. She must know he would gladly suffer any pain with her, do anything, in order to make things right for her.

Gradually she stopped shaking and her sobs grew quieter. Eventually she was quiet in his arms. With great effort, he ignored the insistent bulge in his pants that kept reminding him she was still wet, still naked, still in his arms…on his lap. And that it had been almost two weeks since they had last made love.

She twined an arm up to caress the hair on the back of his head and neck. As she did, she tilted her head back to look up into his face. They gazed into each other’s eyes for a long moment. When Dmitri finally spoke, his voice sounded so unlike his usual gruff tone, even he was surprised. Her eyebrows rose.

“I’m guessing it’s been a very long time since you’ve cried,
Sashka
?”