The Russian's Tender Lover (The Sisterhood) (19 page)

He stepped closer to her, putting his hands on her hips. “Well, there’s the little thing about me being completely in love with you. And you love me so at least we match there.”

She pulled back, looking up at him with amusement. “How do you know I love you?”

He chuckled. “Are you kidding me? It’s there every time you look at me.” She blushed at that but he touched her cheek gently. “And I love that about you. When you’re angry with me, you aren’t afraid to show it. And when you’re feeling something, I know I can figure out what you’re feeling, if not why. So please, marry me and let me give you as many animals as you can take care of.”

Darcy laughed at that and nodded. “I can do that,” she said. Peeking behind his back, she remembered the other men. Three of them were smiling and one was furious, but silent.

“Marco, my I please introduce you to Sergei Andropov? My fiancée?”

Marco and Sergei, both equal in height and breadth, measured each other up. Marco was the first to speak. “She’s had a horrible childhood. And from what I can see, she’s had a pretty tough adult life so far. Are you going t change that?” he challenged.

Sergei didn’t hesitate. “I’m going to do everything within my power to make sure she’s happy.”

“And will you bring her to visit me regularly? We have a lot of catching up to do. Our father separated us when Darcy was little so we don’t know each other very well. I’d like to change that.”

Sergei stiffened. “Why did he separate you?” Darcy felt comforted when Sergei put an arm around Darcy’s waist, pulling her closer protectively.

“Because my father was a bastard with a heavy hand and didn’t like it when I interfered with him beating the crap out of my little sister. She was only five when he smacked her the first time.”

She felt Sergei’s arm tighten and she put her own arm around him. “Its okay, Sergei. Marco tried to help. And I learned to dive under the dining room table and other furniture more quickly after that.”

Sergei looked down at her soft, innocent eyes. “But you weren’t fast enough all the time, were you?”

She didn’t answer, shrugging in response. She knew that he’d know if she was lying, which was what she would do automatically to protect him, and telling him the truth would only make him angrier.

Turning back to Marco, he reached out his hand as a peace offering. “We’ll visit as often as you can stand it,” he finally said.

Marco hesitated for a long moment before taking Sergei’s hand. “And a long engagement?”

“Not going to happen,” Sergei said instantly.

At that moment, Mitch stepped forward, having been leaning against the hood of his grey jaguar during the previous parts of the conversation. “I’m going to have to intervene at this point. Claire and I are getting married first. That’s happening next week,” he said and looked down at Darcy. “And from what I understand, you’re supposed to be one of my future wife’s attendants and have missed your dress fittings. So I’m first in line.”

Darcy laughed but was horrified that she’d let Claire down so close to her big day. “Goodness, I forgot that she’s getting married next week!”

“You can do your fittings from New York,” Marco said quickly. “I know of a designer that can work magic and she’s in deeper trouble than even she knows about so she’s going to owe me a favor pretty soon.”

“Not so fast,” Sergei interjected. “Darcy needs to come home with me and meet my mother and sister.”

Dave and Matt came forward at that point. “But Darcy has been gone for so long, Fred and Ginger are really going to be upset if she leaves again.”

Darcy looked back, seeing the group of dogs and cats that were all patiently looking at the humans, Darcy in particular. As soon as she looked at them, four animals stood and started wagging their tails and the kittens instantly started batting at any tail they could reach.

Darcy slipped her arms around Sergei’s waist and hugged him closely. “What about if your mother and sister came here for a visit? You and I could stay at my place, while your family stays at the hotel down the road.”

Matt stepped forward at that moment. “Just so you know, she only keeps herbal tea at her place. No real coffee of any sort.”

Dave had to put his two cents in as well. “And she has the smallest bed in the world. I think it’s smaller than a twin, just in case you were interested I a good night’s sleep.”

Sergei looked at the one bedroom cottage behind his future wife and instantly started shaking his head. “No way. We’ll stay in the hotel until our house is built, and whatever shelter you need for all those animals because I’ve just shared a bed for the past couple of nights with one dog and a bunch of puppies and there’s no more room to spare,” he commanded.

Darcy smiled up at her future husband, happier than she ever thought she could be. “I love you,” she said and reached up to kiss his jaw, the only thing she could reach when he stood up straight like this.

Not satisfied with that measly kiss, he reached down and kissed her properly, forcing Mitch to hold Marco back and Matt and Dave to turn away. “I love you, my crazy animal princess,” he replied.

Find the rest of “The Sisterhood Series”…read below…

The Sisterhood Series

A trilogy about three women closer than siblings who meet in college and stick with each other through the years, protecting secrets and always providing a shoulder to cry on during the tough times or cheers when things are going well.

The Sheik’s Virgin Lover

Emma and Dharran’s story

The Billionaire’s Impulsive Lover

Claire meets Mitch

The Russian’s Tender Lover

Sergei kidnaps Darcy

And….due to reader requests…Marco saves Zoe in The Billionaire’s Rescue

All available through Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.

Excerpts below….

The Sheik’s Virgin Lover

“I just…I haven’t been sleeping well lately and….” She couldn’t say anything more because he was looking down at her, leaning over as if he were about to pounce. “Don’t do that,” she said, her voice barely a whisper and rough, her eyes dropping down to his lips.

“Don’t do what?” he asked, moving closer.

“Don’t kiss me.”

“That’s inevitable,” he countered. “Why shouldn’t I kiss you?”

“Because there’s no future for us.”

“Why don’t we let the future….” He started to say but he never finished because she reached up and kissed him softly, tentatively and quickly pulled back, her terrified eyes looked up to his to see if he was offended.

She wasn’t sure if the fire in his eyes by her actions was more frightening than the way she was feeling, but either way, she needed to get out of here. She started to pull away, get ready to leave and run for her sanity, when his lips touched hers. There was no hesitation and it wasn’t in any way tentative. When he kissed her, his mouth possessed, took over and there was no pulling back this time. His hand came up to hold her head while his other wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer.

All thinking, all rational thought was now a memory as her mind shut down and her body took over. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him closer, her body arching to have more contact with his hard planes. As he touched her, she gasped and reveled in the electrifying feelings ripping across her body, leaving her both weak and empowered at the same time.

Her fingers, emboldened by the flames tearing through her, reached up and tangled in his jet black hair, feeling softer than she would have thought possible.

Each time he explored a new area, she gasped in surprise, feeling more and more of an ache, something she’d known was possible, but had never experienced before. The only thing that would ease the ache was more of the same, but that in turn intensified the feelings. When his hand moved under her cotton blouse, touching her bare skin, she cried out and moved, her body automatically begging for more of that touch, more excitement.

The Billionaire’s Impulsive Lover

“Are you going to tell me how you knew I was here?”

He chuckled. “I don’t think so.”

She thought about that for a moment, then sighed once again. “I’ll just have to keep trying then.”

“Be careful of your actions. Breaking into my house might have consequences.”

She considered him for a long moment. “You could simply teach me how to do it correctly so I won’t get caught.”

He stopped stirring the vegetables and looked at her sternly. “You’re not going to break into anyone’s house except this one, Claire.”

“Says who?”

“Says me. And if you do, I’ll fire you and make sure you’re doing data entry for the rest of your life.”

She grimaced at that threat. “I’d rather go to jail.”

He laughed and picked up the spoon again. “No you wouldn’t. But that won’t even be an option.”

She sipped her wine while he chopped up something green and shoved it with the knife into the sizzling oil. “What if I try it and get away with it?”

“What would be the purpose?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. Getting away with it?”

He stopped chopping and looked over at her. “I’ll make a deal with you. If you can break into my house without me catching you, then I’ll teach you whatever you want to learn. But until then, you can’t even try to break into any other building. Do we have a deal?”

Claire considered her options. “What if I say no and I go out on my own.”

He looked at her carefully, then shook his head. “You won’t.”

“Why won’t I?”

His smile was slow, and lazy. And sexy as hell, making her stomach muscles clench with both fear and anticipation. He walked around to her side of the granite counter, set her glass down on the ledge, then abruptly pulled her into his arms. “Because you want the adventure only I can give you,” he said a moment before his mouth covered hers in a slow, crazy passionate kiss that made Claire’s toes curl. As his mouth moved over hers, his tongue invaded her mouth, touching her own tongue, his lips sucking on her lips. His hands went from her waist, then pulled her black sweater upwards, his hands touching her bare skin and making her gasp with the pleasure the skin to skin contact created.

It took less than a minute before her arms were wrapped around his shoulders and her legs actually crept up to wrap around his waist.

There was no flash drive to retrieve, no code to build, just his mouth driving her crazy, his touch that inflamed her mind and her own desperate need to touch him just as he was touching her. She wanted to feel his skin, to know if his hair was soft or rough. Her arms reached up, wrapping around his neck, pulling him closer, molding her body against his as the fire increased in intensity, growing so out of bounds that she wasn’t sure where she was anymore. There was only a driving, obsessive need to touch and be touched.

Her fingers stole into his shirt right above the collar and the flames increased as she felt his hot skin under her finger tips, her palm molding against the muscles flexing wherever her hand moved. She cried out when his own hand moved under her sweater to rest on her rib cage and she moved slightly, wanting his hand on her breast.

The Billionaire’s Rescue

He spun her around and pulled her closer, Zoe gasped as she felt his arm circle her body, pressing her against his hard frame. “We’re too close,” she whispered, looking up at him shyly, but she didn’t pull away.

“I think we’re not close enough,” he replied back, his voice husky and his eyes slumberous as he took in the heightened color on her cheeks. “You feel good.”

Zoe cleared her throat and looked down, staring at the buttons on his silk shirt. “So do you.”

Her voice was so soft, he’d barely heard the words. But her admission, so in tune with what he was thinking and feeling, made his body harden with lust for this gorgeous woman. His hand moved against her back, releasing the pressure somewhat and was relieved when she didn’t move away. In fact, he thought he felt her press closer.

His leg pressed against hers as they swayed to the music. Zoe gasped when she felt his leg move in between hers. Her hand slid up his chest so it could hold onto his shoulder a bit more securely as his other hand slid down to her bottom, covered by the curtain of fabric. When she felt his hand pull her hips closer, she looked back up at him, wondering if he knew what he was doing to her.

The heated look in his eye told her he knew exactly what he was doing and Zoe couldn’t stop him. Didn’t want to stop him. She wanted to be closer. She wanted to press herself against him and feel more of him.