Page 15 of Bratva's Stolen Bride
The heat is what’s making me warm and liquid everywhere. Not him. Surely? “They go to the beach.”
I sneak a look at Feliks as he takes a long sip from his own can.
It’s a soft drink, same as he gave me, but somehow, he makes it sexy. The bob of his Adam’s apple as he drinks, and the way his stubble blends into his neck. I want to see more of him. That’s definitely wrong. Taboo. He’s my ex-boyfriend’s father, old enough to be my dad, and he’s kidnapped me.
But the anger doesn’t surface beyond a worry about Hayley being out of her mind from not knowing where I am.
“Come on.” He hovers his hand at the small of my back and shepherds me to hinge sliding doors that he opens with a key. Then we’re out on decking that ends on the sand. On the beach itself, and I gasp.
It’s as perfect as those images you see on social media. The sky bluer than I could believe possible, the water almost still and utterly clear, turquoise-blue. The sand is creamy-yellow, and incredibly fine. Palm trees edge the beach, and it curves out of sight.
“Oh…” I knew I liked water. I knew I loved the sea, although I’ve been precious few times. But this? This is next level.
Every cell in my body has relaxed, like I’m home.
“Beautiful.”
When I tear my eyes from greedily taking in the view, I find that he’s watching me, not the sea. His eyes dip to my mouth with slow deliberateness that heats me more than the sun, and a delicious shiver goes up and down my spine.
He turns back to towards the ocean.
“Whenever I’ve been away for a while, I begin to wonder if I made a mistake buying this island,” he says, conversationally. “And then I visit, and I realise I’d have paid more. Twice, or three times as much, ten times, and it still would be cheap for the feeling of peace I have here. Nowhere on earth is as good.”
“Yeah,” I breathe. “I get that.”
I feel that way too. In this place, with this man by my side, there’s a sense of safety. I’ve never felt truly safe. Yes, I’m thebaby of the Love sisters, and Hayley protected me. Taylor too. But we were all kids, and we never had adults to look after us, and in particular, not a dad. No one who loved us, except each other.
And the weird thing is, this big, burly man is obviously not my dad. But as my captor, he’s responsible for me, and there’s the weirdest comfort in that. And he’s looking at me as though he’s obsessed. And I like it.
“I think you do,” he murmurs. “Want to swim?”
I hesitate. “Can I phone my sister first?” By my guess, Hayley will be finishing work around now, and she’ll be distressed when she gets home and I’m not there.
He sighs deeply. “That would be very inconvenient for me, and risky for you.”
That’s a softened stance from him. Something to work on. “Well. Do you have a spare swimsuit I could use?”
“There aren’t any spares, no. I’ve never brought anyone else here.”
I blink. “Seriously?”
Skinny dipping. It’s my first thought. With Feliks. The idea is surprisingly appealing, and in combination with the fact that he says I’m the first woman to be here?
That squishy, warm sensation returns to my tummy. Butterflies, but caffeinated and wearing padded suits.
“But I made arrangements,” he continues, “and there will be what you need.”
He heads back into the house without another word, and I’m left trotting after him like a baffled pony. I follow the sounds of his movement until I reach a door, and peek around it.
And my heart slams into my ribs. He’s standing in a large room with an enormous bed. He’s stripping off his shirt, and I get a flash of his chest, covered in tattoos and rippling with hard muscle, before I duck out.
“Sorry!” I squeal. “I thought…”
I press my back to the wall like I had a narrow escape and might still be in danger from proximity to a man that sexy taking his clothes off.
A rumbling laugh comes from Feliks.
There’s the sound of fabric on skin, the clink of a belt, and the crackle of a zip. I imagine, fuzzily given my inexperience, what he’s doing and how it would look. Feliks, my ex-boyfriend’s dad, naked.
