The Lion in Russia (6 page)

“No, water would be fine,” Vries said walking
over to her small refrigerator. She pulled out a bottle of water
and after offering it to Leo who took it from her hand, she pulled
out one for herself. She sat down at the table as he placed a
steaming bowl of minestrone in front of her. The delicious aroma
was enough to reanimate a corpse let alone one bone-weary
model.

She waited until he was seated then dug into
the soup with vigor. After a moment she realized he wasn’t eating
and looked up, her brows raised in inquiry.

He flashed his blinding white smile.
“Fetish.” Then he began eating his salad, which reminded Vries that
she hadn’t touched hers. She quickly rectified that lapse and
dispatched a delicious kale salad with the same enthusiasm she’d
had for the soup.

“How did you know my favorites?”

“I simply asked them what you liked. You’re
something of a celebrity in this neighborhood.”

Vries took a long drink of water, then waved
a hand dismissively. “I’ve known Benito forever. When I first
bought this apartment I used to eat there every night. I’m not much
of a cook, but I do love good food and Benito’s minestrone could
make a vegetarian of me.”

“So he told me. I think you have a fan
there.”

After clearing the table they moved into the
living room. The flat was tiny and Vries had opted for a large love
seat, as a sofa would simply not fit. She curled up on the chair
with her head resting on her chin. Despite its small size she loved
her flat. The tall windows let in lots of light and she had
decorated entirely in white and soft neutrals. Her life was so
hectic that she wanted to have her home as a quiet haven to return
to. The pale colors soothed her senses and helped her relax.

“How long have you lived here?” he asked.

“In Milan or in this flat?”

“Both,” he said taking her feet into his
hands. Vries all but melted into a puddle of warm goo as he kneaded
out the agony left by hours in impossibly high heels. How did he
know just where to touch? Of course he would. He had an entire
stable of young socialites at his disposal. The sobering thought
almost made her pull her feet away. Almost. Instead she focused on
answering his question.

“I moved to Milan when I was fifteen to model
and for the most part I never left. I bought this flat about five
years ago. It’s important to make strategic investments in this
business.”

“I’m sure that’s true, but something tells me
you’re very careful with your money.”

“I haven’t always been, but my days of
running amok with my cash are long over. Contrary to popular
belief, all models don’t have rock stars and billionaires waiting
around to sweep us away from all this,” she said with an
encompassing gesture around her apartment. Then she realized what
she’d just said and her thoughts came to a stuttering halt. He was
bound to think she was fishing. Either he wasn’t as astute as she
thought he was, or maybe he was more polite, because he ignored her
faux pas.

“I think your place is charming.”

“I love it madly, but it doesn’t hold a
candle to yours. Still, it’s just the kind of place I dreamed of
living in when I was a girl.”

Leo continued to rub her feet and Vries
snuggled more deeply into the cushions of the loveseat. The steady
motion accompanied by his deep voice was almost hypnotic. Before
long she came half-awake as he lifted her in his arms. She tried to
protest but was totally incapable and he carried her into her
bedroom. After turning back the linens he lay her down, and pulled
the covers back up to her chin. He leaned down and gave her a soft
kiss on the forehead.

“Dream of me, Vrieshka,” he said.

Vries gave up trying to awaken and submitted
to the insistent pull of unconsciousness. Just before she drifted
off entirely she remembered that she was supposed to be guarding
him. She probably should have invited him to stay, but she was
pretty sure she’d see him again tomorrow.

Leo turned turned to switch off her bedside
lamp, but halted when Vries sighed in her sleep and snuggled down
more deeply into her pillow. Fortunately she had put on pajamas
after her shower so he didn’t have to undress her, though it
certainly would have bee no hardship. He smiled at the wild mass of
her hair all over the pillow and reached down to push it out of her
face. It was soft and fluffy as he’d always imagined it would be,
and he stood there while it coiled around his fingers much the way
its owner had wrapped herself around his heart; strongly,
irrevocably but with soft silken bonds he had no desire to resist.
He was pretty sure she didn’t normally sleep with it unbound and
all over the place this way. It would surely keep her awake getting
caught under her head.

She smiled in her sleep, a curve in a pair of
lips that already kept him awake nights. Try as he might, he
couldn’t bring himself to move his hand from her hair enthralled by
its sensual allure. More than anything he wanted to stay with her,
curl up with her under the silky white linen and spend the night
brushing her hair out of his face. He shrugged, and why shouldn’t
he? It would be easier to simply spend the night than to rush to
try to catch her in the morning.

And with that very weak argument, he stepped
back into the living room to make a brief phone call. Pushka would
return in the morning with a change of clothing. Then he returned
and quickly undressed down to his briefs and t-shirt. Before long
he was exactly where he’d dreamed of being for months, in bed with
Vries. It didn’t take him long to realize that she liked to take up
the whole bed, she turned to sprawl against him, one arm spanning
his chest, while a leg crossed his body at mid thigh. And just as
he’d predicted, that wild honey-scented hair was spread all over
him like the silky furs native to his homeland. With those thoughts
lingering in his mind, Leo drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Five

Vries came slowly awake. She’d never been a
morning person and that wasn’t likely to change anytime soon, but
this morning something was different. Before she was even fully
awake she realized that the enormous body cuddled against her back
could be no one but Leo, but she was pretty sure he hadn’t been in
bed with her when she went to sleep. And if the erection pressed
against her backside was anything to go by, they hadn’t had sex
last night. At least she hoped a man his age wouldn’t be ready
again so soon. He made a snuffling noise and she realized he was
awake. She turned to face him as he grabbed a large lock of her
hair and moved it out of his face. She pushed her hair behind
her.

“I’m sorry Leo. Usually I tie it up before
bed. It can be such a nuisance.”

“It wasn’t a bother at all, just tickled my
nose a bit and made me want to sneeze.”

Vries nodded. “Yes. It does that to me too. I
really should cut it off, but it’s my trademark. I’ve always said
it’s the first thing I’ll do when I retire.”

Leo reached up and grabbed her hand, almost
as though he feared she planned to take scissors to it that very
instant. “That would be an abomination. Your hair is a work of
art.”

Vries rolled her eyes, and flopped back on
her pillow. “Don’t tell me you’re one of those guys who’s hung up
on hair.”

“Not on hair. On
your
hair. It’s
beautiful. I want to...”

His words trailed off and Vries sat up
frowning down at him. “You want to what? Don’t tell me you want to
do something freaky with my hair. It takes an entire day to wash
it.”

Leo shrugged. “Nothing freaky. I just want to
pull it while I make love to you.”

Vries threw back her head and laughed. “Oh,
is that all?”

“No, not really, but that’s all I’m telling
you for the moment.”

Vries stared at him. “You’ve got to tell me
now. Have you been on YouTube? They do all kinds of freaky stuff on
there and I can’t have you defiling my hair. You can’t imagine some
of the stuff I’ve heard about. Then again, as a bona fide member of
the Billionaire Boys Club you’ve probably seen and done it
all.”

“Probably not.”

Vries gave him a disbelieving snort. “Yeah,
right.”

“No, I’m telling the truth. I married fairly
young and even though we’ve been divorced for ten years, I spent
most of that time fighting to hold on to my money. You don’t get to
be wealthy or stay that way spending all your time in bed with
women. I’m no innocent, but I’ve probably had fewer affairs than
you would imagine.”

For some reason knowing he hadn’t been around
made Vries very happy. Still, there were a few questions. After all
his definition of screwing around probably differed greatly from
hers. “When you say fewer affairs...”

“Do you want an exact number?” he asked with
an arch of one leonine brow.

“No, no,” she said with a firm shake of her
head.
Yes! Yes!
Of course she did, but the idea terrified
her too. Besides if she asked for his number that would give him
the right to ask hers, and while it wasn’t particularly high she
intended to take it to her grave like any sensible woman would. “A
range will suffice,” she said with a blasé wave of her hand.

“Fair enough, fewer than a half dozen.”

“Wait, did you say a
half
dozen?” He
nodded the affirmative. He was right, that was stunning. “Does that
include Pasha?” Why had she asked that when the last thing she
wanted to think about was him in bed with anyone she knew? Her
mouth had an annoying habit of running ahead of her brain.

“Yes, I would definitely include my ex-wife
in an accounting of my affairs. What about you?”

“About the same I would guess. It’s funny,
people think models lead these glamorous lives and really more than
anything it’s just a helluva lot of work. I haven’t had time to
pursue very many relationships over the years. Look at us. It took
a year for us to go on our first date.”

“Much longer than a year.”

“What?”

“I’ve been wanting to ask you out for much
longer than a year. You just started noticing. I wanted you the
first time I saw you at Girasole.”

“When I first became La Luz? That was five
years ago.”

“Yes. I know,” he said with a heavy sigh.

Vries frowned. “So why didn’t you ask me
out.”

Leo exhaled heavily through his nose. “Lots
of reasons. I’ve had a very busy past few years. I knew that my
involvement with you would not be casual. I would have to take my
time.”

Vries felt a little leap in the region around
her heart at his words.
Down girl, I’m sure he says this sort of
thing all the time.
“What other reasons?”

“Pasha said you felt uncomfortable with our
relationship.”

“Well, yeah.” And that was the problem right
there. Did he routinely discuss his love life his ex-wife? Who the
hell wouldn’t feel uncomfortable with that? Exes should loathe the
very sight of one another not go into business together as best
friends. It was positively uncivilized.

“Again, I knew it would take time for you to
understand that as well. You do understand, do you not?”

“Probably about as well as I’m going to.” She
decided to change the subject, because really she didn’t want to
spend a lot of time thinking about the fact that she was about to
sleep with the ex-husband of the owner of the design house she
represented. “How about STDs? I’m on the Pill, but...”

“HIV is an unfortunate reality in my country
and has been for much of my life. Thankfully we are getting it
under control now, but still... I’ve always been careful, and I am
tested regularly. My last test was less than six months ago, and I
haven’t been with anyone else in over a year.”

“I have to get tested every year for my
insurance, and I’ve always been careful too. Still, I would like to
use condoms.”

“Of course, it will be as you wish,” he
said.

Vries sighed, and then laughed. “Now that
we’ve got the heavy stuff out of the way can I ask you a
question?”

“Of course.”

“What are you doing here?”

He frowned in momentary confusion, his heavy
brows coming down over his eyes for a brief moment. “You mean in
your apartment?” She nodded. “I’m sorry. I took the liberty of
staying the night last night. I hope you don’t mind overly much. I
just thought since we’ll be spending our time together I didn’t
want to waste even a second of it sleeping away from you.”

Damnit, she was such a goner. “Oh good grief
Leo, you really are a charmer, aren’t you?” Vries said, barely able
to muster a whisper.

“And I told you, I don’t waste time on charm.
That is the literal truth.”

“Yes, I know,” she said, leaning forward to
brush her lips against his. Even that faint touch was almost too
much for her overloaded system. His lips were just as she’d always
imagined they’d be; firm, but soft. The fuller lower lip was too
tantalizing to resist and she stroked it with her tongue. Before
she could withdraw the touch she felt a growl work its way up
through his chest and he grabbed her head with one hand. Suddenly
the soft innocent kiss became totally feral. Something so
soul-stirring that Vries knew she should run like the wind. Instead
she wrapped an arm around his neck and pulled him closer.
Luxuriating in his warmth, his masculine scent that rose through
the soft cotton t-shirt he wore.

Now he had both hands in her hair as he
pinned her to the bed under him, his mouth was devouring hers,
taking all she had to offer and she could think of nothing else to
do but to give him all that he demanded and more. His heartbeat
thudded in time with hers and she groaned under his mouth,
desperately seeking more and more of him.

The telephone ringing in the distance would
never have penetrated her consciousness had he not pulled away.
When Vries finally realized what the disturbance was she grabbed
the phone off the bedside table and stared at it in consternation.
Deringer? Why on earth was he calling her at this hour? Vries knew
she had to answer it. After all Deringer was in Milan at her
behest, but damn.