Guard (The Underground Book 3) Read online

  Mikhail groaned, leaning his head back and rolling his neck against the couch. No fucking way. “Ladies. You’re both certifiable. No one’s going to approve this plan.”

  Belinda chuckled. “By no one, you mean you?”

  Haley opened her mouth to answer, but Mikhail set a hand on her thigh and squeezed. Hard. He addressed Belinda, “I can see the curiosity in your eyes, and I know you’re a journalist, but you have to realize this is sensitive information that can’t be leaked. If you want to discuss it with Haley, it has to be off the record. You can’t run this story, Belinda. It’s not safe. For anyone.”

  Belinda’s eyes widened, and she licked her lips as she nodded. “Okay.”

  Mikhail released the pressure on Haley’s thigh, smoothing his palm back and forth before glancing at her and nodding.

  “When Mikhail says no one will approve the idea of you interviewing anyone on the street, he means the FBI.”

  “What? What’s the FBI got to do with this?”

  Haley hated getting so in depth, but it was Mikhail’s fault for wording his sentence like he had. “They’re keeping an eye on me,” she added with a shrug. “Apparently they tend to do that when someone’s kidnapped.” She had no idea if that was true or not, but it sounded good.

  And Belinda bought it. “Yeah. I can see that. But if they’re watching you, aren’t you about the safest person alive?”

  “I wish.”

  Mikhail leaned his forehead against hers. “You are.” He turned to Belinda. “Let me make a few calls. I’ll see what I can do. But I don’t like this idea, and I’m not promising anything.” In reality, it would never happen, but he wanted the women to change the subject, so he pretended to go along with it to that small extent.

  “Perfect. Thank you,” Belinda said. She unfolded her legs from under her and stood. “We need more wine.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Before the evening ended, all three of them had consumed most of the food. Haley and Belinda had downed plenty of the wine too. Though surprisingly, Haley didn’t feel the least bit tipsy. Considering she had lost weight and not eaten enough in almost a month, she was shocked.

  But then again, they’d stuffed their faces and sipped the wine over the course of several hours.

  She shoved the last of the evidence into the trash can as the front door opened behind her.

  “How long ago did you date Brad?” Mikhail asked less than two seconds after shutting the front door. He’d escorted Belinda downstairs and arranged for someone to take her home. She’d come on the L, but she sure wasn’t leaving late at night in the same fashion, especially not after spending the evening with Haley.

  Anyone could be watching her leave. It made Haley feel guilty about having her over in the first place. On the flip side, however, if the two of them hadn’t met up tonight, Belinda would have wandered the streets looking for her story Monday night none the wiser.

  Haley remembered his question and giggled. “You held that question on the tip of your tongue the entire evening, didn’t you?” She was putting lids on the containers of leftover food at the table.

  “Yes.”

  “I don’t see why since you didn’t care to hide your need to know how many men I’d slept with before you.”

  “I was trying not to pry.” He stalked toward her.

  She chuckled again. “Riiight. And it wasn’t prying to demand to know how many men I slept with? I thought Belinda was going to have a coronary.”

  “Belinda thought I was the bomb from the moment she got here. She’s at least as submissive as you, baby. If not more so. She was on the edge of her seat the entire night, wishing she were mine.” He stepped behind her, pried her hands off the containers, and gathered them in one of his. With one hand around her waist and the other holding both her wrists between her breasts, he nosed her hair out of the way and kissed her shoulder.

  Haley gasped. How did he so quickly and easily bring her to her knees? “Did you think she was attractive?” She wished she could take the question back the second it left her lips.

  “Who?” he teased.

  “Ha ha.”

  He chuckled against her neck, nibbling a path toward her ear. When his lips landed on the sensitive lobe, he whispered. “Can’t even describe her now that she’s gone.”

  “Liar.”

  He smiled against her. “Baby, stop it. She’s not you. I’m so fucking into you, I can’t even think straight.”

  “Maybe you should hook her up with one of your friends.”

  He chuckled again. “If it makes you feel better, I will. Especially if she thinks she’s going to hit the streets naïvely interviewing the homeless. I can’t handle two women at once. I need to speak to Taylor, but I can’t imagine the FBI permitting this. They’re trying to keep the story as hushed as possible. Allowing a reporter to get involved could jeopardize the entire operation.”

  “Why? I mean people have a right to know they’re in danger. They need to be aware of their surroundings so they don’t end up getting kidnapped also.”

  “You have a point, but digging around any deeper could lead to disaster for the dozens of agents undercover working this case. If the media catches a whiff of anything having to do with blood samples, track marks, or secret injections, who knows what Yenin will do in retaliation.

  “It’s a balancing act. Like I’ve said before, now that we have you, we’re playing a little game. FBI versus Russian Mafia. If Yenin thinks the FBI is digging too deep or getting too close, he could pull his operation and move it elsewhere, setting the investigation back months. That’s the last thing we want.”

  “All the more reason to let Belinda go with me Monday night. I can control what she reports. If we let her dig into this on her own, who knows what she might dig up?” Haley smiled up at him.

  “Fine. I’ll talk to Leo and Taylor. But she can’t report anything until she’s spoken with Taylor.”

  “And pick one of your friends to go with us,” she reminded him.

  “Okay. I’ll call Ivan.”

  “Uh, no. Not Ivan. Anyone but Ivan.”

  “Why not?” He pulled back to gaze into her eyes as she twisted her neck to look at him.

  She narrowed her gaze. “Are you blind?”

  “Blind about what?” His hand released her wrists and flattened on her chest, inching up to her throat. The way he held her there made her knees weak.

  She set her hands on his other arm, curling her fingers around his muscles. “He’s totally into Alena.”

  “Alena? My sister? No way.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Dude, you are blind.”

  He sobered. “What makes you say that?”

  She shrugged. “Forget I said anything. Just pick another friend. Sergei or Nikolav. They’re both sexy and hot. She’ll like either.”

  “You think my friends are sexy and hot?”

  She wiggled around to face him and slapped a hand against his chest. “You know what I mean.”

  “No, really. Enlighten me.” He smiled.

  She tossed his own words back at him. “I don’t know. I can’t even describe them now that they aren’t in the room.”

  He chuckled. “Fine. Touché. Now answer my question. How long ago did you go out with this Brad character?”

  “Two years ago.”

  “Two years? How long did you date him?”

  “A few times. He wasn’t my type.”

  Mikhail stared at her lips. “What is your type?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. Apparently the MMA-fighting, Russian kind.”

  He grinned. “Good answer. And before that?”

  “Before what?”

  “Before Brad.”

  She shook her head and leaned into him until her lips were a breath away. “Can’t remember.”

  “Right. You’ve slept with a whopping two men, and you can’t remember when. Sure.”

  “You want to make a list of your conquests, names and dates?”

>   He sobered. “Touché again. I won’t ask another question.”

  “It was more like an interrogation than a question, and I think your chest is pumped up knowing how many people mattered to me before you. The answer is none. So stop it. You’re the only one I’ve ever been into like this.”

  “Into?” He grinned. “It’s usually me in you, if I recall. My fingers, my tongue, my cock…” He hauled her closer and took her lips in a gentle kiss. “But I’m glad. I can’t say I’ve only been with two women, nor can I say it’s been two years since the last one. But it’s been a while, and I’m humbled you’ve given me this piece of you. I know it’s a big deal for you to get involved with someone, and I promise not to take it for granted.”

  Her heart pounded as she stared at him. Was he really as good as he seemed?

  The vibration of a phone in Mikhail’s pocket caused them to step back.

  “It’s like one in the morning. Who would be calling?” she asked, though she hated to ponder the possibilities.

  ∙•∙

  Mikhail stuffed his hand in his jeans and pulled out his phone. He tapped the screen and spoke, “Leo.”

  “Two more bodies were found about an hour ago.”

  “Where?”

  “Same place, though they won’t be able to use that location any longer. The cops are crawling all over the dump site.”

  Mikhail rubbed his fingers over his forehead. “Dammit. So brazen.”

  “Yes.”

  “Any idea how long they’d been dead?”

  Haley flinched.

  Mikhail wrapped his free arm around her waist and hauled her against his chest.

  “Autopsy will help, but the police think about two days.”

  “Jesus.”

  “It would be nice to know how long Yenin holds them before he kills them and dumps them. A timeline.”

  “At least two weeks,” Mikhail conjectured, thinking of Haley.

  “Not so sure about that. Maybe the dead ones live less time or longer.”

  “True.”

  “In any case, keep her off the street.”

  “About that…”

  Haley lifted her face and set her chin on his chest. “I have to go back, Mikhail. Monday.” She’d heard every word from Leo since Mikhail had hauled her against his chest. “And Belinda…”

  “What?” Leo asked.

  “Haley has a friend named Belinda Gallo. She’s a reporter for Chicago Multimedia. She’s working this story. Plans to hit the street Monday with Haley to snoop around the local homeless.”

  “Not gonna happen.”

  “Yeah, I’m clear on that. But Belinda is definitely not.”

  Haley frowned, chewing on the corner of her bottom lip. He slid his arm up her back and around to her face to cup her cheek and pluck that lip out from between her teeth.

  She gasped.

  Good. He left his thumb pressing on her lip while he stared at her and continued to speak to Leo. “I’ll have one of the guys check on her in the morning and see what we can do about changing her mind. I don’t like that she left here late tonight to go home. One of Yenin’s cronies could have followed her. If anyone watching had any idea who she was…”

  “Possible. Not likely.”

  “I wasn’t worried about her coming over to visit. The curtains were all closed on the apartment. Just because a woman entered the building didn’t mean she was visiting Haley. But then I found out she has a connection to this case. I freaked out a bit. Got one of the FBI out front to take her home.”

  “Good thinking. Text me her address. I’ll see if Taylor can get the police to pick up patrol in her area.”

  “On it. I’ll call you tomorrow.” Mikhail set the phone on the counter and cupped Haley’s face with his free hand so he held her with both palms, catching her full attention. “This is serious, Haley.”

  “So is living on the streets with no food, Mikhail.”

  He took a deep breath when what he wanted to do was turn her over his knee and spank some sense into her.

  “I’ll take you to work Monday, if you really want to return, but you can’t leave the building. Not for any reason. Not even for lunch.”

  “I can’t stay in hiding forever.”

  “You will for as long as it takes.”

  She gasped, yanking her face back in a futile attempt to escape his grip.

  “Haley…” he warned.

  She glared at him. “Let me go.”

  He dropped his hands, though it took every ounce of self-control to do so. Why couldn’t she see reason?

  She spun around and headed down the short hall. A second later the bedroom door shut a little harder than strictly necessary.

  Mikhail took two strides over to the front door, made sure it was secured and the alarm set, and then he shut off all but a small lamp and followed in Haley’s steps. He cringed as he passed the couch. The last thing he wanted to do was revert back to their previous sleeping arrangements. Hopefully she wasn’t that angry.

  Just as he reached for the handle on her bedroom door, it opened. Haley stomped past him and headed for the bathroom. She wore another pair of long flannel sleep pants and a sweat shirt.

  Great. That was the last thing he wanted to see her in.

  He entered the room, took off his shoes and socks, and was just pulling the covers back on the side of the bed he’d used last night when she came back. “You gonna kick me out tonight?” he asked.

  “No. That couch is awful.”

  That was the only reason?

  She headed for her dresser and took off her earrings to set them on top. Without meeting his gaze, she made jerky movements toward the side of the bed and slid under the covers.

  Mikhail stared down at her. Suddenly his mood changed from worried about her kicking him out of the room to fighting the urge to chuckle. “Baby… You’re gonna sleep in that sweatshirt? You’ll burn up.”

  “I’m fine.” She fluffed up her pillow without looking at him and flopped onto her stomach, her face toward the far wall.

  “Well, I’m not. And we aren’t going to bed angry.”

  “You don’t have a choice.”

  Really? Was she testing him? “You’re seriously going to face the wall and shut me out because I don’t want you working in an unsafe environment?”

  “Yep.”

  “Nope.” She was so sadly mistaken. And why did his cock jump to attention at her defiance? Probably because it had become comical and her reasoning was full of holes. “What kind of man would I be if I let you walk out the door alone to go wander the streets handing out blankets?”

  “The supportive kind.”

  Now he laughed. There was no holding it back any longer. “Haley, baby…”

  She flipped over and sat up. “Do. Not. Laugh.” Her face was flaming red.

  He schooled his mouth and narrowed his gaze. “It’s either that or take you over my knee.” He fisted his hands at his sides. “And frankly, my hands are screaming to do just that.”

  Her mouth fell open.

  “That’s right. Your little tantrum is making me horny, and the only way I know to get you to listen to how ridiculous you sound is to spank some sense into you.”

  “Well, it’s not going to happen, so wipe it out of your mind.”

  He stalked around the foot of the bed until he got to her side. And then he grabbed her chin and tipped her head back, forcing her to look at him. “What is this bratty routine?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You. Acting childish. Is it intentional? Are you wondering what I might do about it?”

  She gasped. “No. It’s who I am. I’m not going to quit my job just because you say so. It’s important to me. You need to get over yourself.”

  “No one said a word about quitting your job.”

  “You’re acting all macho alpha like I have to do whatever you say. That might fly when we’re having sex. Hell, it might fly when we aren’t having sex, but not wher
e my job is concerned.”

  He leaned in closer, still gripping her chin. “And I’d never dream of telling you where to work or what jobs to take. What I will do is find a way to make you see reason when your safety is at risk. This would be one of those times.”

  “You can’t just dominate me and make it all better, Mikhail.”

  “Wanna bet?”

  She hesitated. “You think if I let you spank me, I’ll see your way?”

  “Yes. I know you will. But spanking you isn’t what I have in mind.” Hell no. He was going to force her to see his way with a much more persuasive tactic.

  She chuckled, but not with humor. “Fine.” Her shoulders slumped and she rolled her eyes. “You’re on.”

  “Pardon?” Was he understanding her correctly?

  “Dominate me. Do it. Give it your best shot. Let’s see if when you’re done, you’ve convinced me not to feed the homeless.” She raised her voice on those last words.

  A slow grin spread across his face. He couldn’t stop it. “Oh, baby…”

  She rolled her eyes again. “Calling me your baby isn’t going to make my panties wet.”

  Oh but it was. He watched her squirm. And then she pursed her lips.

  “Good. I’ll take this bet. You’re mine. Don’t plan on getting much sleep tonight.”

  “Fine.” She crossed her arms. “But you better pull out all the stops because this will never work.”

  Mikhail’s cock literally ached. The sassy little imp was begging him to dominate her. Begging him. And her stance told him she was already aroused from the effort.

  Before he was done with her, she would be begging him with a completely different set of needs. She wouldn’t even remember her defiance concerning her job. All she would know in a few hours was the deep need to come that would not abate until she called uncle.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Haley watched Mikhail’s back as he turned and strode to the corner of her bedroom where he kept his bag. He pulled off his shirt and dropped it on the floor. When he bent over, she stared at his fantastic ass encased in perfect-fitting jeans. She trailed her gaze down to his bare feet. Sweat broke out on her forehead. What the hell was wrong with her?