Page 21 of Fierce Pursuit

“Hey, anyone home? I’m thinking about ordering pizza. Anyone want in—What the fuck happened to the wall?”

Another voice.

Masculine.

I saw red.

CHAPTER 6

MARINA

“Welcome home.”

Two words coming from the darkness.

That was all it took for my stomach to plummet and my breath to catch in my throat as I’d cautiously opened my apartment door, hoping against hope that the place was as empty and still as it appeared from outside.

I had spent hours riding the train, switching cars, changing lines, doubling back, walking in circles through Grant Park until my feet ached, convinced I had finally shaken him.

I hadn’t.

I had played right into his hands.

I wasn’t dressed for the late-night temperature drop.

My thin sweater and yoga pants were no match for the brutal wind slicing off the lake. My body ached for warmth, for comfort, for the simple luxuries of the spiced cider from that overpriced neighborhood café I liked tosplurge on when I was home, and an hour wrapped in my favorite shawl with a book.

Was that really too much to ask?

Of course it was.

Because I had been so focused on losing him, I hadn’t stopped to consider the obvious.

If Kostya knew where I worked, he’d already known where I lived.

I had been running in circles for nothing.

For a split second, I considered turning around and bolting right back out the door.

But where would I go?

What could I possibly do to shake him now?

This was the end of the line.

I squared my shoulders and tightened my fists at my sides.

He wouldn’t get the satisfaction of seeing me tremble before him.

I wouldn’t give him that.

Kostya sat sprawled in the rocking chair I had found at a garage sale for five bucks. Making himself at home in the middle of our thrift-store mishmash of an apartment like it was his personal throne room.

The custom-tailored wool of his suit was crisp, pristine, far too fine for the shabby living room. He looked as flawless as ever, as if he hadn’t spent his night out in the cold hunting me down. He was perfectly warm, perfectly composed, perfectly him.

And I hated him for it.

I hated him.

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