Authors: Jacee Macguire
“Yes! I’m all set.” Dani yelled back. While she was definitely excited about going on a week-long vacation to Russia, she was also a little panicked. Traveling was the only thing Dani hadn’t done in the last four years. To be separated from her weapon was weighing on her mind heavily.
“I’ve been looking forward to this trip ever since Kitty told us about Russia last year.” Zoe said. “We’re going to have so much fun.” Her suitcase banged against the wall outside my bedroom door. “Damn it!” she groaned checking her manicured nails.
“You alright?” Dani asked, zipping her suitcase closed.
Zoe nodded, looking at Dani as she leaned against the doorframe. “You okay? You’re not nearly as excited as you should be.” A frown formed on her face. “You aren’t backing out are you?”
“I haven’t changed my mind,” Dani said. “I’m actually really excited. Maybe we can look Kitty up when we get there.” There was no need to share her worries with Zoe; she already knew them all to well. Zoe had been Dani’s best friend since their freshman year. Dani had initially kept her dark secret from Zoe, but the closer they grew, the more she felt the need to be honest with Zoe. If they were going to be friends, Zoe had the right to know what had happened to Dani. If it happened again, Zoe could be in danger and Dani wanted her to be safe. So she told her.
Dani had expected Zoe to move out of their shared apartment and end their friendship. It’s not easy to hear that everything thought you knew about someone is a lie, but Zoe didn’t leave or end the friendship. Instead, she had listened intently while Dani recounted the entire horrendous affair. Not once did she make Dani feel small or weak. Tears had filled Zoe’s eyes, her hand gripping Dani’s the entire time. It was then that Dani realized that sharing her story with her friend was the best decision she could have made.
Zoe was quite possibly the best friend she’d ever had. If she’d had a sister, then she’d want like hell for her to be like Zoe. They were inseparable, and Dani had a sneaking suspicion that this week-long trip was planned as a sort of therapy for her in addition to being a vacation during Spring Break. The plan was simple: experience the culture, museums, and night life of Russia for one whole week and have fun during every single second. There was so much to see, Dani hoped they would be able to see and do everything the average tourist did and then some. Dani wanted to experience the real Russian as if they lived there.
“You’re worried about... you know? Aren’t you?” Zoe said in a whisper, looking everywhere but at me.
“A little. It’s just the first time I’ve traveled so far away since I moved here.”
“I’ll be with you,” Zoe said, pulling me into a hug. “We won’t leave each other’s side… and you look different than you use to. It’s been four years and he hasn’t found you. That has to mean something. Right?”
“I know. I know. You’re right. There’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure it’s just nerves,” Dani said, a cheerful tone in my voice. Zoe was right. If he hadn’t bothered her here, there was no way he’d find her in Russia.
Zoe glanced at her phone, frowning. “Our flight leaves in a few hours. We need to leave for the airport in about an hour because security crap is going to take forever.”
“Right! I’ll call the cab. Want to grab something to eat at the airport? It will give us something to do while we wait.”
“Sure. Sounds good,” Zoe said, wrestling her suitcases into the hallway. Why she packed so much was beyond Dani.
Two hours later, the girls were people-watching in a bar at the airport while devouring burgers and fries. This would be their last meal on American soil for a while and Dani wanted to savor every last bite.
“We should do something crazy, you know, while we’re on vacation.” Zoe said, drenching a French fry in her ketchup.
“Oh. And just what do you have in mind?” Dani asked as she watched a couple kissing at a table nearby.
“We should have a hot fling with cute Russian guys while we’re gone.” She pointed a French fry in my direction. “What do you think?”
“Sure. Why not!” Dani snatched the French fry and took a bite. “I haven’t dated anyone in forever.”
“That’s a good reason to let go a little while we’re away,” she said, smiling from ear to ear. “Nobody will know you and it will be over in a week.”
“It would definitely add a little spice to the trip,” Dani said with a wicked grin, images of a hot love affair wisping through her mind.
Zoe looked at Dani, her eyes narrowing. “What exactly are you thinking about right now? The look on your face is so naughty.”
“Nothing really. Just thinking about how exciting it would be to be naughty with a cute Russian.” Outside of planning what museums to go to they hadn’t really planned that much. They wanted to fly b the seat of their pants and enjoy the day-to-day offerings of St. Petersburg.
Several semesters ago, they had met Kitty Pravdin, a student from Russia. She had told them so much about St. Petersburg that the girls immediately wanted to pack their bags and go. Since that wasn’t an option, they saved every dime that they could and promised to go together the first chance they got. And here they were, getting ready to fly a little over sixteen hours to their adventure destination.
Zoe and Dani had researched all of the tourist attractions and came up with a small list of places they just couldn’t miss seeing, and experiencing the nightlife was a large part of the appeal. Kitty had told them about so many clubs and how much fun they were. As a bonus, she said Russian guys were way hotter than the guys at the college and they were definitely excited about that. Each of the girls liked man-candy just as much as the next girl. Hell, Dani wasn’t dead; just dating challenged.
A female voice on the intercom announced the boarding of their flight. Dani’s heart began to thud in her chest, rattling against her ribs. Their adventure was about to begin. There was no turning back now; not that Dani wanted to.
“It’s time to get our party on.” Zoe said, dancing around by her luggage. She might be cute but her dancing abilities were comical. She had about as much skill as that chick on Seinfeld; you know, the one that danced like she was having a seizure or something. Yep, that’s what Zoe looked like right now. So dorky!
“Zoe! Stop dancing around. Everyone is staring at you,” Dani said, heat spreading across her pale cheeks. “Come on.” Dani grabbed Zoe’s arm and gave it a tug.
“You’re no fun,” Zoe said, sticking her tongue out at Dani. A childish act but so fitting for Zoe. A quick glimmer of steel caught Dani’s eye.
“When did you get that?” Dani asked, pointing at Zoe’s mouth.
“What? This?” She pointed at her pierced tongue. “I got it the a few weeks ago. I hear that guys really like it when you... you know.”
“Gross, Zoe.”
“Gross? I don’t think so. I’m just excited to find out if guys like it as much as I’ve heard they do.” She flicked her tongue at Dani in a suggestive manner and winked.
“I’m sure you are,” Dani said, unable to contain the giggles from escaping her. Zoe had no filter. That was just one of the things that Dani liked about her. She didn’t care what people thought. They grabbed ther carry-on bags and raced through the waiting area, dodging people on the way to the check-in desk. Taking a place in the already-forming line, the girls dug out their tickets and passports, ready for their turn at the desk.
The line moved quickly, the woman at the desk directing each passenger to the nearby door to board the plane. They handed over each of their tickets and made their way down the jet way. Dani felt a cold chill wash over her as she stepped over the threshold of the airplane. She shook off the feeling, making her way past the flight attendant as she quickly and politely directed everyone to their seats.
“Come on, Dani,” Zoe chirped in a sing-song voice, bounding down the aisle to their cramped little seats. “Give me your bag and I’ll put it in the compartment with mine.”
“Okay,” Dani said, tossing her bag at Zoe and slipping by to grab the window seat. “I can’t believe we’re actually going to Russia.”
Zoe sat in the tiny seat next to Dani. “I know. We’re going to have an awesome time. A fling in Russia is going to be so much fun, I can’t wait. It would be nice to tour the sights with a couple of hotties, too. I bet we’d see some awesome things the usual tourists don’t see.”
“Oh my god, Zoe. Could you say that any louder?” Dani looked around nervously to see if anyone had overheard Zoe. “People will think we’re sluts. Honestly, girl, you have no filter.” A new thought sprang to her mind. “What if one of us finds a guy and the other doesn’t?”
“Then we’ll share.” Zoe laughed, patting Dani’s hand. “Just kidding but I couldn’t resist, and the look on your face was priceless. And I’m not asking you to be a slut. It’s just that every guy isn’t a bad guy. One day, you’re going to want to settle down with
the one
and a little practice wouldn’t be a bad thing.”
“I know,” Dani muttered. “I am tired of being alone. I may not be a virgin but I certainly feel like one, it’s been so long. I’m looking forward to letting my wild side loose in St. Petersburg.”
The girls chatted again about the places they wanted to see. It was a great way to kill time before take-off. Twenty minutes later, they were listening to the safety spiel. Dani only caught a few words here and there like emergency exits, oxygen masks, blah blah blah. She just wanted to open her hot romance novel and be swept away by some muscular alpha male. The more she thought about the guy in the book, the more she realized Zoe made a good point. Dani needed get past the manless life she was living. And this trip offered her the chance to let her guard down, to be wild and free, to have the adventure she deserved and desperately needed.
“He’d always been a man who followed
his head and not his heart. The heart was
just a bloody motor. The head was meant to drive”
- Mario Puzo
Chapter Three
Sergei Smirnov had dreaded having to attend this month’s family meeting more than any other. It wouldn’t be with just his family alone, but with the family of his betrothed as well. He hadn’t had a chance to meet this woman before as her father, a pakhan of a rival organization, had kept her secured in his compound. The topic of the meeting angered him but it was how things had always been done in mafia families. Marriage matches had never been made out of love. Marriages such as this one were intended to create loyalty. Since love offered no benefit in their world, it had no place here.
Men like Sergei didn’t have lasting relationships because they left a man vulnerable, and as the son of the current pakhan, weakness was not something one wanted or needed. He had known plenty of men that had loved a special woman and they had suffered horrendous deaths trying to keep those women safe. Seeing the lifeless bodies of beautiful, loyal women tortured until they could handle no more had always shaken him. He had never been tempted by love but had often wondered what it would be like to experience the heat and passion that was said to accompany a loving relationship. He didn’t feel he would ever know.
At the age of twenty-five, he lived by the code and wisdom his father had set many years ago – think with the head on your shoulders, not the one between your legs – and he had lived by those words, taking random women to his bed, promising them nothing. Most of the women knew the score and just enjoyed the moment they shared for what is was... a heated sexual encounter, often happening only once.
Sergei admitted that watching a woman’s head bob up and down on his cock as she sucked him off was exhilarating, the feel of her warm mouth gliding over his velvety shaft like a slice of heaven on earth. His cock throbbed now just thinking about it. With marriage on the tip of everyone’s tongue lately, he had started to wonder if, as the new pakhan, he could have love or, at the very least, learn to love this stranger he was sworn to be bound to.
Today, he was to meet the woman his father had chosen for him to marry, creating a union meant to strengthen the two most powerful mafia families in Russia. Sergei, being the eldest of the Smirnov boys, had the responsibility to join the families through marriage. Afterwards, the two families would unite their forces, each Pakhan stepping aside for Sergei to reign as Pakhan over the united families.
Sergei knew the honor he was being bestowed was a great one, and the first of its kind in mafia history. Having been an enforcer dealing out death to those who stepped out of line, went against the family, or a host of other unsavory things, he had handled it... with pride. It was a dark life to live but he did it. Loneliness was part of the job, allowing him to get things done without having to worry about retaliation against him through loved ones.
“Can I love a woman I don’t know?” he muttered. If he was looking for an answer, none came. It didn’t matter really; the marriage would happen no matter what he thought… or wanted. It had been decided and the pakhan’s word was law in the mafia world.
Reaching into the shower, Sergei set the water temperature to his liking and stepped into the warmth of the stream. Water cascaded over his taut muscles, relaxing him as it kissed his muscular abs. He hadn’t been with a woman in more than a week. That wasn’t like him at all but he had grown tired of being with random women. Part of him wanted more than the one-night stands he had grown accustomed to. The variety of women that shared his bed would thrill any man but Sergei had grown bored with it. He wanted more.
He yearned for a woman that would submit to his darkest desires, desires that blended pain with pleasure in the most erotic ways. His cock twitched with need as he thought of what he would do to such a woman. Wrapping his long fingers around his steely cock, he stroked himself forcefully. A welcome pressure began to build as his muscles quivered. He thrust his hardened shaft into his hand, images of a beautiful woman pleasuring herself dancing through his mind. The fire within him built to a raging crescendo and he thrust one final time, groaning as relief swept through his muscular frame. “Fuck!”