The Lion in Russia (3 page)

Vries considered that for a moment. “I’m
thinking not so much.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought too. Anything
else?”

Vries felt heat rise to her face. “Well, I
need you to pretend to be after me.”

“After you?”

“You know, like you’re macking me.”

“Macking you?” he said, somehow managing to
look totally dumbfounded despite the intelligence in the classical
lines of his face.

“Will you stop repeating everything I say?
You know what I mean.”

“Sure, I know, but for the life of me I can’t
figure out why.”

Vries began to speak but he held up a
silencing hand.

“No. No. I’m guessing you’re probably right.
I really don’t want to know. You’re getting really good at this.
You sure you don’t want to come back to the Department.”

Vries gave him a pointed look. “You don’t
even want to work for the Department anymore. I can’t work with
people I don’t trust.”

“I tried to tell Clay you were too young for
that last assignment,” he said.

“Young or old, they lied.”

“They all lie. They knew you weren’t prepared
to deal with the reality of what they needed you to do.”

“Are you defending them?”

“Of course not. Just pointing out the facts
of the matter. Besides, you told me you don’t get details anymore,
so that’s not an issue.”

“I only do that because I trust Lelia. No way
in hell would I do that with those people you work for,” she
said.

“I told you the Department wasn’t the right
agency for you from the jump street,” he said shaking his head.

“Yes, you did and I should’ve listened,” she
sighed. “It really doesn’t matter. I like what I’m doing now. How
about you? You only stuck around for Nate. Are you in or out
now?”

Deringer’s face immediately closed down.
“That’s an interesting question,” he said and Vries knew he would
never be more forthcoming than that.

“Well you know whatever goes down, I’m only a
phone call away, okay?”

He nodded, but said nothing more.

Chapter Three

Vries looked around the crowded room. The
elegant dinner party at the home of one of Milan’s top designers
was officially standing room only. The room with its ornate
carvings, plasterwork and other 18th century appointments lent an
air of unreality to the occasion. Hundreds of men clad in evening
garb should have made it difficult to find the man she was looking
for, fortunately for her she knew that wouldn’t be a problem, no
matter the crowd Leo always stood out. Some would say it was the
light hair or just his size, but Vries knew that the man simply had
presence
. Not to mention he was hotter than a two-dollar
pistol. She could just
feel
when he was in the room.

Unfortunately for her current plans Leo was
nowhere to be found. Deringer was another one who it was impossible
to miss, but for an entirely different reason. Oh, he too was
hotter than the hinges of hell, but Vries had never felt any type
of sexual pull toward him. Apparently she was the only woman in the
room who felt that way. He untangled himself from yet another
encounter with an impossibly gorgeous woman. He’d been doing that
all night, and she was beginning to wonder why. It just wasn’t like
Dare to turn down no-strings-attached sex. She watched him approach
her. A white dinner jacket was pretty much standard in this crowd,
but on him it took even the most expensive label to a new level,
add his unique hairstyle and he drew eyes everywhere he went. Not
surprising. She’d met him when he worked undercover as a model more
than a dozen years ago. She looked around the room again. Damnit,
no Leo.

She sighed as she took the glass of champagne
Deringer offered. “Thanks,” she said after taking a grateful sip.
She was parched.

“Doesn’t look like your boy is coming,”
Deringer said as he took up a position beside her. He stood close
enough to portray the look of an ardent suitor, but not so close as
to intimate a consummated affair.

“He’ll be here. Gianni is one of his best
friends. He wouldn’t miss his party.”

“I don’t know why you couldn’t just call him
up and tell him you’re ready to go to bed with him.”

Vries rolled her eyes. “Because I’m not a
Bond girl.”

“Pity.”

“It’s a good thing you’re so pretty.
Otherwise I don’t know how you would ever get a date. That’s not
how it’s done, you have to...” She broke off, surprised by the
sudden grimness of his expression. Before she could question him a
sudden awareness washed over her.
Leo is here,
her spidey
senses were telling her. She moved closer to Deringer who
immediately picked up on her movement and leaned in as though
whispering sweet nothings in her ear.

“He’s dead ahead at high noon, sweetheart.
Looking daggers at us,” Deringer said in not quite a whisper.

Vries followed Dare’s gaze and locked onto
the glacial gray of Leo’s eyes. Deringer was right; he did look
pissed. She took a deep breath as she forced herself to maintain
control when deep inside she had to admit the man scared the living
hell out of her. He began moving toward them with a calm
deliberation that reminded of a scene from
Jaws
. For a
fanciful moment she even thought she heard the shark’s theme music
as Leo cut a swathe through the crowd with the single-mindedness of
an apex predator, his gaze never leaving hers as she stared,
mesmerized and captured in his thrall. She was being stalked and
though she should be terrified, every nerve ending in her body
tingled in anticipation. Desperately longing to know what he would
do. Knowing what she wanted him to do. Even simple autonomic
responses like breathing seemed unnecessary and she just stood
there waiting for him to reach her side. When he took her in his
arms she responded immediately to the warm embrace. His mouth took
hers like a conquering warrior all soft tongue and firm lips
refusing to accept or even consider anything but her complete
surrender. Not that she was capable of anything else. He tasted
just as she’d always imagined he would, masculine and woodsy,
almost smoky though she knew he didn’t use tobacco. It was the way
he smelled too, making him distinctive in a room full of men
wearing expensive designer fragrances Leo smelled only like
himself, and her entire being absorbed the aroma wanting to
synthesize it into her own DNA.

It wasn’t until he raised his head that she
realized that a minor hush had fallen over their little corner of
the room. At the moment she didn’t care. Instead she stared into
his eyes, which were usually a soft gray, but right now his pupils
were so dilated that his eyes were almost black, almost obscuring
the lighter silver ring that encircled his pupils. Though she could
breath she was still incapable of speech.

“Good evening Vries. Surprised to see you
here,” Leo said.

It annoyed her that he could be so unaffected
when it was all she could do to remain upright, and actually she
probably would’ve collapsed had she not still been pressed so
tightly against him. And that’s when she realized he wasn’t
indifferent after all. There was a faint tremor in the arms that
still encircle her waist, and she could feel his erection pressed
against the vee of her legs. That might explain why he hadn’t
stepped away as their embrace had certainly superseded the norm of
a public greeting, even between lovers.

Vries stepped back anyway. She would never
regain coherence standing so close to him. To her relief her legs
supported her and she could provide a reasonable response. “I can’t
imagine why. Gianni gives the best parties in the city, and you
know I never miss a good party.” She nodded toward Deringer who was
staring at both of them looking very annoyed, the frown marring his
aristocratic forehead. “Do you know my--uh--friend?” she asked
hesitating just enough to imply there was more to the relationship.
When Leo shook his head in the negative she made the
introductions.

Leo gave Deringer a narrow-eyed stare. “You
weren’t seeing anyone the last time I was in town.”

“That was over a year ago. Besides, as I
said, Deringer and I are friends, nothing more.”

A surprised expression passed over the planes
of Deringer’s face. Vries knew it wasn’t real, but she could tell
by the way he stiffened next to her that Leo believed the act.

“If you say so,” Deringer murmured. “Then
again, you told me that the two of you are
just friends
as
well.”

Leo made a sound that was close to a growl as
a human could make. Vries pursed her lips hoping Deringer wasn’t
over-playing his hand. “We are friends.”

“It certainly didn’t look like it to me,”
Deringer snarled in response. He sounded so convincing that for a
moment Vries was worried. She knew he didn’t have romantic feelings
toward her, but no one listening to their conversation would
believe it.

Now it was her turn to look surprised and
then annoyed. Knowing Leo was watching their little drama Vries put
on her best petulant act. She needed an excuse for Deringer to hang
around and the role of the lovesick swain was perfect. It was quite
common for a coterie of young men to gather around her and profess
their undying devotion. They’d even dubbed her “The Goddess of
Milan.” She didn’t think anything of it until the media picked it
up, now it was a bit embarrassing. She knew Leo would assume that
Deringer was a more persistent member of her entourage. Deringer’s
presence would slow down any movement toward the bedroom as she
could pretend to be deciding between the two men if necessary. It
was a problem she’d realized shortly after receiving this
assignment. She and Leo had been flirting for some time now. If
they started dating she needed a reasonable excuse for not sleeping
with him. Plus, she needed a cover for Deringer’s continued
presence. This assignment was huge. She would definitely need
back-up.

After an awkward moment during which Leo made
it clear he wasn’t going anywhere Vries took Deringer to the side
to give him leave to go. Then she turned to Leo again with a smile
designed to dazzle even the hardest heart. It had taken her years
to master it. She was delighted to see it had its intended effect.
Leo’s eyes, a shade of gray so translucent they reminded her of
moonstone, widened and she watched color rise across his slash of a
cheekbone. “How long are you in town?” she asked.

“Not long. No more than a couple of
weeks.”

“Oh?” she said managing to give Deringer’s
retreating back a longing look.

She almost laughed aloud when Leo very
deliberately moved to position himself in her line of vision. He
also moved much closer which was not at all good for her thought
processes or her libido. She looked up at him, at six feet she
rarely had to do that to anyone, but he had several inches on her,
and was thankfully much broader. His wide shoulders not only
blocked her view of Deringer, but of everyone else in the room as
well.

“I’ll only be here for a couple of weeks, but
I’d like to spend that time with you,” he said.

“Really? I assumed you’d come to town to see
Pasha.”

“Pasha understands.”

“You Russians,” Vries said with a shake of
her head.

“So are you in agreement?”

“In agreement?”

“Yes. About spending the next couple of weeks
with me,” he said.

“I suppose so.”

“What, are you worried about your
friend
? I can definitely make you forget about him.”

Vries put on her dazzling smile again. Leo’s
English was usually flawless, as was his Italian, but when he was
irritated or angry, his slight Russian accent deepened
considerably.

“I’m not worried about Dare. And, of course,
I’ll go out with you.”

“In that case, are you ready to leave?”

“Leave? You just got here,” Vries said,
annoyed at what she’d revealed.

“Gianni will understand. Do you have a coat?”
he asked with a pointed look at her long white evening dress. It
was actually quite demure, save for the deep cutouts on either side
revealing quite a bit of the midriff that she fought a never-ending
battle to keep toned.

“Must be nice to have so many people who
understand
you. I have a wrap. Where are we going?” She
asked as he took her elbow and began escorting her toward the
exit.

“I’m not going to spend my very limited time
with you sharing you with others,” he said with an upturned lip. “I
have not yet dined, I thought I’d take you out for a late supper if
you’re in agreement.”

Vries sighed. Eating at this hour would cost
her dearly, but she
was
hungry. She took the soft cashmere
wrap from the doorman, and Leo brushed the other man aside to help
her wrap the soft white wool around her shoulders. She looked
around expectantly as they walked through the door the doorman held
open for them.

“Where are your bodyguards?”

“I left them at home tonight. I wanted to be
alone with you.”

Vries came to a dead stop on the walkway
outside the palatial mansion. “Are you kidding me? A man in your
position can’t just go roaming around without a security
detail.”

Leo frowned, his pale brows stood out in the
streetlights. “I’m perfectly safe in Milan. Why would you think
otherwise?”

Vries realized she’d overplayed her hand. She
should have only mild interest, if any at all, in his security. “No
reason. You always had them with you before, so I assumed you
traveled with them all the time.”

“I do, but not when I’m going to the home of
a dear friend. Besides, Pushka is driving me tonight and he’s all
the security anyone could ever need,” he said.

Vries looked at the enormous man standing
beside the dark luxury sedan. He dwarfed even Leo and his grim
expression was enough to frighten small children.