Page 10 of Pregnant By the Russian Pakhan

“Would my being a virgin have changed anything?” she asked softly.

He started to respond, but then he looked away into the distance for a minute. His features hardened somewhat as he looked back at her and said, “Nothing changes a one-night stand. It is what it is.”

The words were so cold and callous and unexpected that Mira felt as though he’d doused her with cold water from head to toe. True, it was a one-night stand, but did he really have to be so…cavalier in the way he’d said it? She had, after all, just given up her innocence—a little finesse on his part couldn’t possibly hurt.

As though he heard her silent question, Mikhail detached himself from her arms and rose to a seated position as he began to unhurriedly put his clothes back on.

Mira allowed herself sit up too. In a detached portion of her mind, she was wondering why his attitude had bothered her in the least. Hadn’t she walked into that club looking for a one-night stand too? All she’d wanted was a man to take away her virginity, and crush her father’s selfish dreams for her.

So now that she had apparently succeeded in getting exactly what she wanted, why did it matter how he talked about it?

She was getting ahead of herself, she thought. She was a young, intelligent, ambitious woman who didn’t want or need anything from anyone, least of all a man. The last thing she needed was strings, so it didn’t matter how good Mikhail was in bed, he had served his purpose and that was that.

Now, she wanted to be as far away from Mikhail as it was possible to be. He was a sophisticated, rich, and handsome man, which meant he was probably more trouble than she could handle right now.

Suddenly, he held her shoulders and forced her to look up at him. He chucked her tenderly under the chin and bent to take her lips in a kiss so tender and sweet she almost melted against him again—almost.

As he lifted his head, Mira’s only thought was how to get out of there.

What if he’s married? her subconscious asked belatedly.

That last thought made her feel physically ill. Had she just helped a man betray his wife?

She’d had one too many shocks tonight, and she didn’t think she could take one more, so she didn’t ask.

Mikhail tapped the partition, but there was no response. He sighed. “I did ask Drew to make himself scarce. Sit tight. I’ll go find him and take you home,” he said.

As he left the vehicle, Mira saw her chance. The last thing she wanted was her one-night stand pulling up to her home, knowing where she lived and discovering who she was.

This had all been about him scratching an itch and she…well, for her it had been about escaping an unwanted marriage, she assured herself, lifting her chin. Besides, if her father found out just which man had helped his daughter dash his dreams of an alliance with the family he wanted to wed her off to, she didn’t think he would be very forgiving.

She found a piece of paper in her purse and a pen. She scribbled a small message on it and carefully folded his favorite jacket, placing the paper on top.

There, he would be sure to see it and he would get the message, she told herself. And she would never see him again.

Then Mira opened the door on the other side of the vehicle and slid anonymously into the night.

Chapter 8 - Mikhail

His men were beginning to treat him with the sort of caution reserved for violent sociopaths, Mikhail thought with dark humor as he watched well-trained men, armed to the teeth, take a detour every time they saw him coming. It was no secret that for the past two weeks, he had been in a very black mood, and he’d taken it out on everyone and everything within reach. Even his brothers started avoiding talking to him. If he was honest, he preferred it like this more than their regular calls ever since Alena.

He sighed now, shoving a hand through his hair as he reclined against the lounge chair in his pool area. This was so unlike him. He never used to lose his temper in the past. Usually, he expressed anger with icy displeasure, becoming more silent and cool when he was pissed off, which made him even more deadly and hard to read.

But in the past two weeks, he could barely keep a lid on his temper. Everything seemed to set him off, and he hit the roof so fast it surprised even him. Mira was to blame for his foul temper, he knew. Ever since he’d returned to his limousine and found her gone, his blood had been on a slow boil.

He was unable to get her out of his mind. Now, instead of Alena’s sobs for Dmitri that had haunted him all these past months, all he heard in his mind’s ears were Mira’s soft cries of pleasure and wonder as he thrust into her again and again in the throes of passion.

Every time a woman walked past, he found himself unconsciously sniffing, looking for that particular fragrance of jasmine and something like orchids he had smelled on Mira.

Every time he heard a tinkling laugh, he couldn’t stop himself from looking up. He’d been neglecting all his business interests for the past two weeks and camping out at the club every night in hopes of catching a glimpse of her, but there had been neither hair nor hide of her.

Mikhail couldn’t understand what was wrong with him. What was it about Mira that affected him so much? Admittedly, she was the first woman of his acquaintance who had been a virgin, but he knew that wasn’t the appeal. There was something else going on.

He could be very sure of that, because even though he knew now for sure that she wasn’t a virgin anymore, he still wanted her terribly. Every time he thought of her soft skin pressed against his, he felt as though he were back in that limousine with her, burying himself to the hilt in her wet pussy. Every time he remembered her sweet, soft cries, he got so hard it was a wonder his men hadn’t noticed it.

Or maybe they had, he thought, realizing for the first time that all through the last week there’d been a steady parade of pretty women he had never seen before doing one chore or the other around his villa in places where they were sure to grab his attention.

Like right now—instead of his pool boy Ted, there was some curvy, buxom brunette dressed in booty shorts and a cropped top doing chores around the pool. Now that he was looking for it, he realized she was giving him a come-hither glance every now and then. Who could be responsible for this?

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