Sergei (23 page)

"You're ridiculous! You know that?"

"Yes."

She still hadn't calmed down by the time he had finished his walk-through of the ground floor. Arms crossed and foot tapping, she glared at him as he made his way to the staircase. "Are you done?"

"No." Deciding to really rile her up, he glanced over his shoulder and said, "Unless you're waiting on Kevan to appear at the door to arrest me again, I suggest you come upstairs with me."

"What in the world makes you think I want go upstairs with you?"

He waved the bag over his head. "I've got your dessert right here—and you've got mine hidden away under your skirt."

She didn't come right away, but that was fine with him. Sergei placed the bag on the ottoman and stripped the bed of its extra covers and pillows, taking it down to the top and fitted sheets. He tossed a strip of condoms onto the mattress. Picking up the antique dressing mirror she kept in one corner, Sergei moved it in front of the bed and then toed off his shoes and removed his shirt and tie. He was peeling out of his pants when Bianca finally appeared in the doorway.

With a loud huff, she said, "You can't fix everything with sex, Sergei."

"Not everything," he agreed, "but this? Yes."

"And what is this?"

Clad in only his boxer-briefs, he held out his hand. "Come here, Bianca."

She hesitated only a moment before crossing the floor. Somewhere along the way, she had removed her shoes so her footsteps were muffled and nearly silent. She frowned at the mirror he had moved. "Why is that here?"

Grasping her hand, he dragged her close and threaded his fingers through her hair. He bent down and nuzzled her neck before peppering soft kisses on her silky skin. "I'm going to show you how sexy you are to me."

"What?" Anxiety made her voice wobble.

"You're such a strong woman, but I know you have your weak spots, Bianca. Tonight, Lidia found it, and she hurt you with it." Touching his forehead to hers, he said, "I am so sorry for that."

She gulped loudly, no doubt choking down the pain of being bullied about her weight. "I try not to let that sort of thing hurt me, but sometimes…"

"I know." Cupping her face, he kissed her tenderly, pressing all the love he held for her into the gentle mating of their mouths. He might not have been courageous enough to tell her how he truly felt, but that didn't mean he couldn't show her tonight.

Breaking the kiss, he carefully turned her to face the mirror. As if unwrapping a package on Christmas morning, he took his time undressing Bianca. She stood silently as he dragged down her zipper, unhooked her bra and pushed those lacy panties down her thighs.

Standing behind her, Sergei caressed her naked curves with his much bigger hands, all the while marveling at the pretty picture they made together. Nuzzling her neck, he nipped at her sensitive skin and whispered a promise. "By the time I'm done with you tonight, you will never again doubt how sexy and beautiful you are."

*

Oh sweet Lord.

With my legs trembling and my insides wobbling tremulously, I met Sergei's undeniably needful gaze in the mirror's reflection. Although still wounded by Lidia's attack, I couldn't deny what I saw right in front of me. Sergei moved his hands over my body like a sculptor admiring his finest work. He peered at me as if he couldn't get enough of me.

Leaving me just long enough to retrieve the bag holding my dessert, Sergei returned to me and produced a small plastic box. He popped open the lid and let me see the triangle-shaped slice dotted with cherries and smothered in a light, fluffy cream. What was he planning to do?

He knelt in front of me and put the box on the bed behind me, just within his reach. Trailing his finger through the whipped cream, he used the blob he had gathered to paint my nipple. The cold cream made the peak pucker tightly. The starkly white cream looked so bright against my darker skin. Mouth agape with the shock of being adorned with my dessert, I stared at Sergei in disbelief. "What are you doing?"

"I'm having my dessert."

"But—oh!" I rose up on tiptoes as Sergei flicked his tongue against my nipple. He suckled my breast and licked away all traces of the cream. Heavy and aching, my breasts responded to his lightest touch. He pinched my damp nipple while painting the other one with more of the fluffy white concoction.

Sliding my fingers through his hair, I let him use me as his dessert plate, smearing my body with dabs of the whipped cream and licking and sucking it from my skin. When he tired of that sensual play, he gathered one final dollop on his finger and pushed it between my lips. "Suck it clean, Bianca."

I did as ordered, sucking hard on his rough, thick finger all the while imagining another thick, long part of him that I wanted to put in my mouth. He must have seen the flash of interest because he chuckled and placed a noisy kiss on my belly. "Soon,
milaya moya
, but you first."

Setting aside the dessert, he dragged me onto the bed and climbed up behind me. He maneuvered me into a kneeling position, grasping my inner thighs and pushing them apart. Cupping my pussy in his big hand, Sergei made sure I was watching him in the mirror. He opened the petals of my sex like a gardener coaxing apart some delicate hothouse blossom.

Brushing his lips across the shell of my ear, he murmured huskily, "You have the sweetest pussy I've ever tasted."

"Oh God." I drew in a shaky breath and tried to slow down my racing heart.

"Look at how pink you are," he said and showed me exactly what he was talking about as he glided his finger through the shiny nectar leaking from my core. "And so fucking wet." He bit down on my neck, marking me as his. "I can't wait to get my tongue right here again."

His long finger slipped inside me. My passage fluttered around him, gripping at his finger while I bucked my hips. "Sergei…"

"I've been with a lot of women, Bianca." He wasn't saying it to brag or hurt me. He seemed to be making a point. "You're the first one that ever made me so hard that I ached. You're the only one who ever tormented my dreams." He slid another finger inside me and started to thrust up into my slick heat. "This pussy is the only one I want."

Gripping his forearm, I rode his big fingers and never once broke our shared gaze in the mirror's reflection. His other hand snaked around my front. He put those fingers to good use by strumming my clit while he continued to thrust up into me. My body was on fire now, and I stood no chance against his sensual onslaught.

"Sergei!" I came hard, my body jerking against his as he used those masterful hands of his to work me into a frenzied state. The power of the climax punched the air out of my lungs. When the last waves rolled through me, Sergei gently took away his hands, and I fell forward onto the bed, my shaking arms barely holding me up.

I realized my mistake a moment too late.

Sergei gripped my hips and held me in place as he delved into my pussy with that wicked tongue of his. It had never occurred to me that a man would go down on a woman from behind, but Sergei showed me exactly why that angle of attack felt so sinfully good.

"Oh. Oh.
Oh!
" Clutching the sheets beneath me, I tried not to scream too loudly as the second climax hit me. Every time I tried to wiggle free, Sergei used his brute strength to hold me exactly where he wanted me. His tongue did things to me that were probably illegal in most states. With the wanton sex kitten inside me unleashed by him, I pressed back against his invading tongue and let him do whatever the hell he wanted because it just felt so amazing.

When I fell forward in a trembling, shuddering, limp heap, Sergei wiped his mouth on my plump bottom and reached for a condom. He sheathed himself in record time and clasped my waist, hauling me back up onto my knees. With only a slight nudge of warning, he thrust into me and slid home, burying that shockingly long cock inside me.

"Ah!"

"Take me, Bianca." He retreated and pushed forward again. "Take my cock."

Watching Sergei make love to me in the mirror was an experience I would never forget. He gazed down at my body with such appreciation and adoration and ran his hands over my skin as if he wanted to memorize every last inch of me. The glistening, rippling muscles of his chest, arms and legs enthralled me. He was utter perfection in the male form—and he wanted me.

Making love to me like this had demolished those lingering walls I erected around myself. It didn't matter what the rest of the world thought about my dress size or the number on my bathroom scale. Sergei thought I was beautiful and perfect. He made me feel feminine and desired. He reinforced my own belief that I was fine just the way I was.

A long time later, we came together, me first and him a few strokes behind. Limbs tangled atop the bed, we clung to each other while trying to breathe normally again. My body throbbed, and I shivered every time Sergei's callused palm glided over my belly and along my thighs.

"Are you convinced?"

"Yes." My throat was so raw that I winced.

Sergei chuckled with amusement and kissed my neck. "We'll be lucky if your neighbors haven't already called the cops after all that screaming."

Blushing, I buried my face against his chest. "Sorry."

"Don’t ever apologize for that. It makes me feel good to know I can make you lose control like that." Kissing my temple, he murmured, "I am sorry about what happened at Samovar. I'll speak to Lidia and let her know that was unacceptable. For my own part, I promise I won't ever doubt you again."

"I'm holding you to that."

"Do you believe me now, Bianca?"

Smiling, I snuggled closer to the man who had made me feel so beautiful and desired. "Yes."

Chapter Thirteen

When I came downstairs the next morning, my poor wobbly legs barely held me up, and I expected to collapse at any moment. Sergei's sensual therapy had cured me of any lingering doubts about my desirability or his attraction to me. This morning, while showering, I had decided to let that mess with Lidia go.

I found him standing at the kitchen island prepping vegetables for omelets. Wrapping my arms around his waist, I kissed his back. "Good morning."

He lifted his arm so I could sneak under for a better angle at kissing him. Our lips lingered together for a few seconds before he brushed them against my forehead and returned to chopping a red bell pepper. "Did you sleep well?"

I smiled and made my way to the coffee pot. "I'm pretty sure I didn't move once."

He laughed. "I don't think I did either. My legs are killing me this morning."

"Mine too!" Pouring coffee into my favorite mug, I said, "Maybe I need to start working out."

"It's not a bad idea," Sergei answered carefully.

I sweetened my coffee with half-and-half and sugar and joined him at the island. I slid onto one of the stools and watched him prepare some green onions. Convinced that he accepted and adored my fuller figure, I confessed, "I've tried losing weight, and I've been successful at it for short periods of time. I get so tired of dieting, Sergei. Counting calories and denying myself entire food groups? Squeezing in two hours of exercise every day with work and Mama? I can't do it."

"So we won't diet or do crazy amounts of exercise," he said matter-of-factly. "We'll make small, sustainable changes."

The way he said
we
made me smile and filled me with such warmth. "Like?"

"Cutting back on the sugar in your coffee," he suggested. "Switching those sodas you drink at lunch for unsweetened tea or water flavored with a lime or lemon wedge would be a good trade. You could try having a salad for lunch a few days a week. We could try some different afternoon snacks."

"Well…that does sound better than rice cakes and soup and never touching bread again," I agreed. "What about exercise? And don't even think about suggesting I start going to Ivan's warehouse of sweaty horrors!"

Sergei chuckled. "First, the only woman allowed in that place is Erin. Secondly, that's much too hardcore for you. Why don't you try walking in the evenings after work? Or we could pick out some fitness DVDs for you to try here at the house. You can work out, say, three days a week to start. When you feel more comfortable, we'll nudge it up to four and then five days."

"I guess I could do that." He was offering me sensible, realistic choices that were quite unlike some of the crash diets and insane exercise regimens I had tried over the years.

"What made you think that being so militant about your diet would work long-term?" He seemed genuinely interested.

"I don't know. I broke out those unhealthy regimens whenever I had a big social function looming. There was a time when I would have done anything to shave a quick twenty pounds off my body. Nowadays, I'm more worried about the business and Mama's rehab. Losing weight is a low priority."

"I don't think it should be your main priority in life right now, Bianca, but I do think it should be a priority to get healthier." He looked at me with an expression that betrayed his fear that he might have overstepped his boundaries again. "I don't care if you lose a single pound,
milaya moya
, but I do want you to be around forever."