Page 33 of Brutal Knight

What business could Tatiana possibly have with Poppy? And why the hell did she have to conduct it in the middle of the night, during the time when she had to know we'd be watching his house?

I had several options, the most tempting one to waltz right into the front door, tie Tatiana up on the kitchen table, then eat her out until she confessed what the fuck she was doing. Just when I’d decided to do just that, the front door opened again, and Tati breezed out of it, a small smile on her face.

I watched her closely as she got into her car, then rushed down the driveway. Instead of driving off, she pulled to the side of the road and stepped out…headed straight for me.

Damnit.

Without even looking my way, she strode across the front of the car, then, at the last moment, cut to the passenger door and got in.

The car instantly filled with a scent that reminded me of hot, sweaty Cuban nights and star-blue eyes that ate my heart out. I realized with a start that she was wearing the perfume I'd bought her years ago—as if she'd known I would be here and had worn it especially for me.

Frowning, I stared out the window and watched as palm tree leaves danced in the wind. “You shouldn't be here."

"I disagree. In fact, I would say that I have more of a right to be here than you.” I could feel the heat of her angry glare as it prickled my skin. "I was actually invited."

"Why?"

She snorted derisively. "Wouldn't you like to know?”

"I would.”

Once again, we were ignoring what had happened between us.

I finally turned to look at her. Lips painted Chanel Brazen red, she was stunning in a matching crimson, deep V-neck dress that showed off the generous curves of her tits. It was tight, accentuating the cinch of her narrow waist, but was long enough that I didn’t feel the need to gouge out any another male or female who looked in her direction.

I reached forward, then stopped, surprised at myself. It had been an automatic reaction, one I hadn’t had since I was a kid: I was going to pull on an imaginary braid.

But braids and red ribbons were now long gone, replaced with perfect, cascading waves, disheveled to look like she’d recently been fucked, yet tidy enough to tempt you to fist it.

Innocence and naivety had also vanished, replaced with a steeliness in her eyes that would never go away.

We were worlds apart from what we'd been as kids, and yet, I still wanted her as badly as I had back then.

I caught my hand just in time and placed it on the center console. “You’re wearing my necklace.”

“Of course I am.” There was a pause, a stare off between us. “Will you tell me what it means?”

“No. But you’re going to tell me what you’re doing here.”

"Actually, I'm not."

Despite her calm demeanor, I could see the flutter in her throat that belied her true emotions.She was nervous.

Good. She should be. “Things are becoming more dangerous, Tatiana. You need to be more careful."

"I'm fully aware of what a change in regime means. You remember,” she thrust her chin up, “I've been through one before."

"Exactly.” My fingers itched to touch her, like I had so many times before. I dug my fingers into the leather console instead. “So you should know better than to be sneaking around in the middle of the night. Especially here.”

“Clearly, I’m notsneaking,” she sniffed dismissively, “or was my music not loud enough for you? Besides, being careful didn't help me back then, did it?"

“Your cockiness is going to get you killed.” I growled, my hand snapping out. I gripped her chin harshly, and her eyes widened in surprise. “You may have been through a regime change, but don’t pretend my family didn’t insulate you from the worst of it.” I got straight to the point. "I want you to stay with me."

“And I want a puppy, but that would be completely irresponsible of me at this point in my life.” She stared into my eyes defiantly.

“Rook won’t keep you safe, not like I will.” Of its own volition, my hand slid down her chin to her neck and I caressed her pulse with my thumb.

“You?” Lips parting in disbelief, she exhaled a laugh. “You’llkeep me safe?

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