Page 22 of Nikolai

The following morning,I leave for work later than usual. Reid will be working in the office today and will be there before Leah arrives. Needing the blueprints that should have been delivered by now, I head toward town. After making my routine stop for breakfast, I finally pull up to the front of Kings Construction.

Leah is sitting behind her desk, typing on her keyboard as I step through the front door. Her eyes briefly leave her computer screen to look at me before dropping to the white bag in my hand. Then, she looks away just as fast, red staining her cheeks. She's so fucking adorable. Rounding the corner of her desk, I step behind her. Bending, my arm brushes past her as I sit the bag from the bakery in front of her. Her hair is pulled back in a braid today, giving me full access to lean down and whisper in her ear. "Good morning, Malyshka." She sucks in a breath, and I watch her skin prickle from the warmth of my breath. She swallows.

"Good morning, Nikolai." Her sweet voice makes my cock twitch.

"I cannot join you this morning for breakfast, but I will pick you up for lunch."

"Umm," Leah hesitates.

That's when I notice a blue card sitting beside the bag I just placed in front of her—a business card from the local gym. I snatch it from her desk.

"Hey," her hand darts out, trying to take it from me.

What the fuck? Hell no.

I grow angry as I stare at the card. "Who is Rhett?" I demand.

Leah folds her arms under her breast. "He runs the gym in town."

"I've told you before. There is nothing wrong with you."

Her heavy sighs let me know she is becoming frustrated with me. "I'm considering taking self-defense classes, okay."

"You want to learn self-defense?" I ask her, my tone softening a bit.

Instead of making eye contact with me, Leah bores a hole through my chest. "I need to be able to take care of myself." Then her voice becomes smaller, and she draws into herself. "I felt so helpless the other day."

"Look at me." Quickly her face turns up, her eyes connecting with mine. "I'll teach you."

Her eyes widen. "You?"

"Yes."

"But, why?" she questions.

Does she not realize the hold she has on me? The thought of another man touching her—teaching her infuriates me to the core. The words spill from my mouth before I think twice about it. "I don't want another man touching you." Leah's eyes dilate with the truth in my confession.

"Okay," she says after a long pause.

"Good. Your first lesson will be this evening." Instead of returning the business card to her desk, I place it in my pocket. Walking off, I enter my office, retrieving the materials I need for the workday ahead. I pause before walking out the front door. "I'll bring lunch."

The day seemed to never end after enjoying lunch with Leah. Through several meetings, piles of paperwork, and a formal groundbreaking ceremony, for the massive mountain resort project outside of town, all I could think about was Leah. I've been waiting for her for more than an hour now. Going against my natural tendency to pick her up from work and haul her sweet ass home with me, I opted to text her the address instead. I wanted to see if she would follow through on training instead of risking the chance of making her feel like I was forcing her. Finished moving a few pieces of equipment to make space on the floor to teach Leah, I start to lay multiple floor mats.

Maxim walks into the gym as I place another mat on the floor. "Your girl is on her way."

I catch his use of the term my girl. The mat slaps against the floor. "Thank you, Maxim. You look tired from your long flight. Go, rest," I tell him as I continue my task. Looking up, I find him still standing in the doorway. "Speak freely." I throw the last mat down.

"She means something to you," Maxim states, and it doesn't surprise that he is asking. I've known Maxim most of my life. Damn near as long as I have known Sasha and Victor. Like them, I consider him family.

"She does," I answer him, and glance at the clock on the wall for the hundredth time.

"This is a good thing," Maxim proclaims then walks away.

Ten minutes later, Leah appears. Alone. Wearing black leggings, sneakers, her wild, curly hair up in a ponytail, and a loose t-shirt, she peers around the gym as she crosses the room. "Wow. Your home is amazing, Nikolai. At least, from the glimpses that I caught as I was being ushered in by a large, angry-looking man, who doesn't appear to speak English."

I chuckle at her description of Maxim, although accurate, except for one detail. "He speaks English very well." Leah shuffles from foot to foot, her eyes glued to my bare chest. "I was starting to believe you had changed your mind," I remark because she's late.

"I almost did," she admits.

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