With a pained groan, I sit and pop the aspirin in my mouth before taking the water. I drink as much as I can before pushing it away.
“Finish it,” he tells me.
“I can’t.”
“You need it.”
“I’m gonna throw it up,” I warn him.
He relents and puts it on my nightstand next to the other bottle andthe crackers. “You need to drink more when you can and try and eat something.”
“Mm-hmm,” I mumble, already sinking back against the covers, but when I try to pull the blankets back over my head, he surprises me by reaching out and stopping me. He grabs the blanket, tucking it around me instead of over me, and before he stands, he brings his hand up to brush a strand of hair off my forehead. His fingers graze my skin, and I’m craving his touch so badly that I actually lean into it and close my eyes. His fingers immediately still, and by the time I open my eyes, he’s pulling back to stand up.
Instead of leaving, he sits on the floor next to the bed, leaning his back up against it.
“Thought you had to be somewhere,” I say.
He looks at his watch. “I still have some time.”
“You can go,” I tell him.
Turning his head to look at me, he says, “I’m not leaving until I’m sure you’re okay.”
Rolling onto my side, I curl my legs up and stare at Vitya’s profile. I’ve dreamed about him being in my room so many times, but none of those fantasies ever involved him holding my hair while I puke and make a fool of myself. My eyes focus on his sculpted jawline and neck tattoo.
“Tell me about your tattoo,” I whisper.
“No. Try and get some sleep.”
I must still be a little drunk because I reach a hand out and lightly brush my fingers over the dragon. He stiffens at my touch, jaw clenched and veins throbbing, before he grabs my hand and puts it back on the bed. Meeting my eyes, he says, “Go to sleep, Sveta.”
“You’re the most stubborn man I’ve ever met,” I tell him.
He gives a soft laugh. “Well, that’s high praise coming from you.”
I roll onto my back, hoping he’ll grow bored and leave so I can wallow in my embarrassment in private. He doesn’t. He sits in that annoyingly calm way of his, barely moving and not making a sound. Idon’t know how he does it. I toss and turn, trying to get comfortable until I finally give up and curl back into the fetal position.
After what feels like forever, he says, “I need to go,” reminding me that he has plans tonight. Plans that don’t involve babysitting my sorry ass. “Don’t forget to drink the water, Sveta, and text me if you need me.”
“I’ll be fine, Vitya. Go have your fun.”
He hesitates, almost like he wants to say something, but then he just gives a small shake of his head before leaving my room and softly shutting the door behind him. I groan and pull the covers over my head, wanting nothing more than to sleep and forget this ever happened.
Chapter 3
Vitya
By the time I meet Timofey outside of Pink, I’m more than ready to kill someone. Today has felt never ending. It doesn’t help that I keep checking my phone, hoping that Sveta has left me a text to let me know she’s still okay, but there’s nothing, and her silence is slowly killing me.
I reread the texts she’d sent me and groan. God, I can’t let things escalate any further. I’d desperately wanted to respond to her drunken, flirty texts, but nothing good can come of it, and I refuse to hurt her like that. What the hell had she been thinking drinking all that vodka? She’d looked so small and sad when I’d left, and it had taken all the willpower I possess to walk away and leave her. The thought of Vitaly finding me in bed with his daughter had been a very good incentive to get my ass out of there, but I hadn’t wanted to. What I’d wanted was to crawl into that bed and slide into her as deeply as I can get and then never let her go.
I try to push her from my mind, knowing she’s fine and sleeping it off. She’ll delete the messages on her phone, and I’ll pretend I’m not still rereading them and wishing I could’ve given her what she was begging me for.
Walking over to Timofey, I rest a hand on the roof of his car and lean down to ask, “Hear anything new?”
He smiles up at me. “Lev and Sasha are holding him at the warehouse.”
A thrill runs through me at his words. It’s the exact distraction I need right now. “I’ll meet you there,” I tell him, pulling my helmet back on and going to my bike. I don’t wait for him. I weave my bike into traffic, skirting around the cars that are at a standstill and slipping into the turning lane. My heart races as the adrenaline starts to kick in. I will never turn my back on watching over Sveta, but, fuck, I’ve missed being a part of the action.
