Vicious Protector by Maggie Cole

22

Skylar

Heavy floral perfumeand the scent of sex never leaves me. All day, no matter what I work on, I can't escape the smell. Every time my tears flow, I quickly pull my emotions together.

He didn't smell like Dasha. Unless she has a new perfume, it wasn't her typical rose one.

Who was he with?

There were different lip marks on his neck.

Damn, Adrian!

I ignore Adrian's text messages and phone calls. I delete the voice messages he leaves before listening to them.

All my stuff is now at his place.

We didn't even make it an entire day.

Go to Adrian's, pack a bag, order movers tomorrow.

At least I still have my apartment and furniture.

By five, I'm still a wreck but am adamant about sticking to my plan. I'm not going to be with someone who cheats on me. When I step off the elevator in the lobby, I freeze.

Sergey waves, and I cautiously approach him.

"What are you doing here?" Heat fills my cheeks, embarrassed from earlier this morning when he heard Adrian's and my fight.

"Sticking my nose where I shouldn't." Sergey holds out a four-inch thick, yellow envelope.

I glance at the package. "What is that?"

Sergey shifts on his feet. "I'd appreciate it if this stays between us. If Kora finds out I did this, she's going to be angry with me."

Very slowly, I enunciate, "Okay..." My eyes dart between his face and the package. "Then why are you telling me? You do realize she's my best friend, right?"

He nods. "Yep. But it's my fault Adrian wasn't home last night. Kora has a client whose husband has threatened both her and Kora. He's not a good man. I asked Adrian for help. This is what Adrian got for me last night. He only went into this environment to help me. Obrecht was with him. He didn't cheat on you, but he had to play the part with the strippers. But it wasn't anything more than what you would have experienced with the strippers at the Cat's Meow."

"Are you throwing that night in my face? I was single—"

Sergey holds his hands in the air. "No, not at all. I'm putting last night into perspective. The truth is, Adrian can't stand strip clubs or anything that passes that boundary. It reminds him of what they forced Natalia to do. He was only there to help me get what I needed to protect Kora."

"He had lipstick marks from at least two different women on his neck," I blurt out.

Sergey nods. "Yeah. That's what strippers who also are prostitutes do. I'm sure they tried to lure him into more all night."

"Prostitutes," I repeat, but my voice cracks. My lungs tighten.

Sergey firmly states, "He didn't do anything with them. He wouldn't."

I focus on the brick wall, not knowing what to make of this conversation.

Sergey pushes the envelope in my face again. "This is what he needed to get for me. He didn't cheat on you. Adrian wouldn't do that to you."

"Where else does he go? The night of the rehearsal dinner—where did you all disappear to?"

Sergey's eyes darken. "I can't tell you. But there sure as hell weren't any women with us. Now look at what's inside, please. I can't leave these with you, so you get one look."

Part of me wants to rip the envelope up. The other half is too curious. I want to know what Adrian was doing. Why was he with strippers and then hiding it? "I consider myself pretty open-minded. If he wanted to go to a strip joint, I'd go with him," I blurt out.

Sergey's mouth twitches. "Yes, I'm sure you would. However, if you look at the contents, I am fairly certain things will become clear why Adrian didn't invite you."

I cave and pull a stack of photos out of the envelope. My mouth turns dry. "Holy...is that...is that Jack Christian?"

Sergey glances around us and pulls me to the corner of the room. "You know him?"

"When we were at Selena's, his picture popped up on TV about the merger. We were trying to figure out how to work the remote when the news came on. Selena started shaking. She and Kora only discussed a little bit about her situation, but he sounds like a nightmare."

Sergey's eyes swirl with anger. "Jack is bad news. How do you know Selena?"

"Kora arranged for us to go to her apartment after yoga a while back. She made us brunch. I only met her once. She seems super nice."

"She is. So, hopefully, you can understand why this divorce needs to get finalized for both her and Kora's sake?"

I study the lewd pictures of Jack doing everything under the sun with several women and lines of coke. The time and date stamps are on each photo. I pin my gaze on Sergey's. "Is this what Adrian does for you? Hangs out at strip clubs?"

"No. Not usually. But in this case, yes. I'm sorry, but Jack would have recognized me. I needed Adrian to handle this."

"So you're going to blackmail Jack into divorcing Selena?"

Sergey's voice is deadpan. "Yes. Men like this aren't used to losing. The only way they do is by legitimate threats."

I sort through the photos again then put them into the envelope. I hand it to Sergey. "Why can't Adrian tell me this?"

Sergey tilts his head. "Would you have listened to him this morning?"

"If Kora came home smelling like cologne, cigars, and sex, would you have reacted any different?" I snap.

"I'm not judging you, Skylar. But put yourself in Adrian's shoes for a minute. I don't need to inform you of the legalities of this situation. I just put you in danger, and when Adrian finds out, I'm going to get an earful. No matter what, he's always going to do what he sees is the best thing for your safety."

"Then why are you telling me?"

Sergey studies me for several moments.

"What?" I uncomfortably ask.

"Adrian's never loved anyone besides Dasha."

"I'm so sick of Dasha being part of the conversation," I admit.

Sergey snorts. "All of us are. She's still using our name. Trust me. No one is a fan of hers. My point is, he loves you. I don't want the reason you break up to be due to the job I needed him to do. He didn't cheat on you. If you don't believe me, talk to Obrecht. He was with him the entire night. Neither are a fan of places with prostitutes, so the only reason they were there was to help me nail this guy."

I study Sergey's face, not sure what to say.

"Do you think I would show you these pictures if it weren't true?"

Sergey is right. It's not information Adrian would ever share with me due to the risk of me knowing. And Kora will be upset if she knows Sergey interfered with a divorce case. "No, he wouldn't show me."

"So if he was at a strip club all night getting lap dances from strippers to get me the leverage I need to protect Kora, is that a reason you would break up with him?"

My insides quiver. I think about his question. I can't say I would. I don't have a problem with strip clubs or lap dances. "No. But if he would tell me things, I wouldn't have to worry all night or feel like he's cheating on me."

Sergey sighs and shakes the envelope. "As you can see, it's not a black-and-white situation. I just admitted to you what I did behind Kora's back. If she finds out, I'm in the doghouse. But I'm doing what I think is best to keep Kora safe. I guarantee you Adrian is putting you first in his decisions about what he feels is safe for you to know."

"Why does it—"

"Sergey, what are you doing here?" Adrian's voice cuts me off.

I jump and spin.

Adrian's icy-blue eyes are lasers, focusing on the package in Sergey's hands.

"What are you doing here?" I throw back at him.

"You haven't answered my messages or calls. It's after five. I waited outside for you but thought maybe you were still upstairs." He glances between Sergey and me then scowls at him. "Not sure what is going on here, but if that's what I think it is—"

"It is. I showed her."

He steps in front of Sergey. "Are you stupid?"

"Adrian!" I scold.

He spins. "You don't have any business knowing about what he showed you."

"So it's better for me to assume you had an orgy with several women?"

Adrian's face hardens.

"Why can't you trust me enough to let me in a bit? I could have handled this if—"

"This is not something you should have any knowledge of," he says in a low tone then turns to Sergey. "You had no right to put her in this position."

"Sometimes you're too stubborn, Adrian. This is one of those times. Nothing good happens from her not knowing the truth. Have a good night." Sergey walks away, and we watch him until he disappears out the door.

My heart beats hard in my chest. I quietly ask, "What were you going to tell me?"

Adrian turns and slides his hands on my cheeks. "That I love you, and I'd never touch another woman."

"How were you going to explain last night?"

He slowly inhales. "I don't know. But you have to believe me—"

"Jesus, Adrian. That's the problem. You expect me to have blind faith in everything you do. You don't give me anything. Sergey trusts me more than you do—"

Adrian angrily shakes his head. "I do trust you. This isn't about trust, and I've told you that several times. You just saw one aspect of my job. Now do you understand why I don't want to put you in any positions where you could get hurt?"

"Your lack of disclosure is hurting us, Adrian."

He dips down to my face. "Please listen to me. I will never put you in a position that could harm you. Sergey should not—"

"I was coming home to pack a bag. If Sergey didn't show me those pictures, I would have left you. Do you not understand this?"

He clenches his jaw and pins his steel-blue eyes on me. Hurt fills his expression. "How could you believe I would betray you with another woman?"

"If you were in my shoes, you wouldn't be asking me that."

"So is this how it's going to be? Every time I have to work, you're going to assume I'm cheating on you?" Pain is all over his face.

"I didn't think that until you came home with lipstick marks and smelling like a whorehouse."

"And I hated every minute of it."

Sergey's admission pops into my mind. I soften my voice. "Yes, Sergey told me you have a hard time with strippers and prostitutes."

He blows out a breath of frustrated air. "What else did Sergey tell you?"

I place my palm over his racing heart. "Adrian, I don't want to know these things from Sergey. I want you to tell me them."

He stares at the ceiling and blinks hard.

"Adrian, look at me." Sad eyes meet mine. It makes my heart break. He holds so much pain inside. "I need you to let me in."

"What do you want from me? I professed my love for you. I moved you into my house so I can spend every free moment with you. I won't ever lie to you. I'll die protecting you. So please tell me what else you want from me. Besides telling you about my work, which I can't for reasons we've already discussed. Tell me what I'm supposed to do that I'm not."

I shake my head. "I don't know. Everything we struggle with seems to be surrounding your work and lack of disclosure."

Adrian closes his eyes tightly then drills them into mine. "Are you breaking up with me?"

Before I can even think about it, I reply, "No. I love you. But I want you to let me in. If your work involves you at a strip club all night, just be honest and tell me. I'm not going to freak. I actually do trust you. I don't get bent out of shape over strippers if I'm with a man who can keep it at a lap dance and not cross the line."

"I don't even like strip clubs."

"Yes, Sergey just informed me. I also was with you at the Cat’s Meow," I remind him.

He scoffs. "How do we get past this? Tell me so we can go home."

I swallow the lump in my throat. I'm not sure what I'm fighting about anymore now that I know the truth about where he was and what he was doing.

He places his forehead on mine. "Don't throw us out, my printsessa."

My mind screams for me not to run from him. I love him. I want us. "I'm not. But, Adrian, I feel like there are layers upon layers of who you are, but you don't want me to know the real you."

"You know me. I've let you in more than I've let any woman in since my divorce. Anything I don't tell you is to keep you safe."

"Because you're a man who does bad things?" Nervousness flutters in my belly.

He glances behind his shoulder. I think he's going to deny it, but he strokes my cheek. "At times, yes. Please don't ask me more about it tonight."

I lace my fingers around his head. It's a bigger admission than I've gotten before. "Okay. Thank you for admitting that."

He says against my lips, "I love you. Please, let's go home."

When I nod, he kisses me, controlling and owning my mouth until I can hardly breathe. In his embrace, I feel everything I always do with him—safety, love, and that I'm his.

The desperation I usually have around him intensifies. Relief he didn’t cheat on me mixes with my desire to know the things he doesn't tell me. My addiction for him only gets worse. No matter what happened this morning, he is the only thing I want. He's the oxygen I need to breathe. I have to believe whatever our issues are, we'll get through them. If I just give him more time, he'll eventually tell me everything.