The Mafia and His Obsession, Part 2 by Lylah James

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 12

 

 

Viktor

 

I watched her lay in her bed, surrounded by all the white, fluffy pillows and the comforter. Her eyes were closed, and she hadn’t noticed me enter her room.

She was lost in her thoughts while I was lost in watching her.

The rise of her chest as she took each breath. I scanned her face, watching, staring, studying every inch of her features. She looked like the image of innocence lying there.

Golden hair. Hazel eyes with a hint of green specks. Soft skin I wanted to touch. Would she blush under my hands? Would she moan into my kisses? Like last night…

She was an innocent soul I wanted to corrupt. A forbidden beauty I wanted to steal away.

I remembered the way she had writhed under me, the way her lips parted in a silent gasp when I kissed her sweet cunt.

Her scent was intoxicating.

I remembered her sweetness, how her honey-saturated flesh tasted on my tongue, and I licked my lips.

Fuck, I wanted to taste her again. Craved it. I have had just one taste, and I was already a man obsessed.

Rubbing my fingers over my lips, I caught a little faded scent of her pussy. I knew it wasn’t there. It was all in my head. She was so fucking ingrained in my head that I could still smell her flowered-fragrant essence. Roses and peaches. Sweetest pussy I ever had.

I kept seated, giving her time to feel my presence. And when she finally did, her eyes popped open in shock. Her lips parted in surprise and she stared at me. Our eyes met, and then her gaze traveled to the length of me, as if she were really making sure I was here. Really here, in her bedroom, watching her like a fucking stalker.

But what could I say?

I was a damn sexy stalker. And I knew exactly how to make my prey melt into my arms and then melt into a puddle of need at my feet, on her knees.

Raising an eyebrow, I nodded toward her nightstand where she kept my pen—now her pen—and the notepad. Valerie sat up and quickly fished out the stuff. I noticed the way she swallowed. The sweet myshka was nervous. I bet her heart was racing right now, a little scared, anxious with a hint of excitement.

“What are you doing here?” she wrote on the paper.

I shrugged instead of replying. She didn’t need to know my thoughts…my dark…filthy thoughts.

Instead, I nodded toward the tray of food on her nightstand. I had the maid bring it up to Valerie after doing some “research.” Like I said, I was a man obsessed.

The need to know everything about her was overwhelming.

That included her favorite food. I had walked into the kitchen and subtly asked my questions.

Fuck, if Alessio would hear me now, he’d laugh until he wheezed.

“I am not very hungry,” she tried to say, but I ignored the words written on paper.

“Eat.”

I crossed my arms over my chest, sat back against the couch, and waited. She let out a small sigh, and I watched as she did as I demanded.

Valerie picked up a freshly baked croissant and took a small bite.

She instantly closed her eyes when the taste hit her. Chocolate. Her favorite. She quickly took another bite, chewing enthusiastically. I loved a woman who enjoyed her food and didn’t push around salads in their plates.

Damn, I really was fucked.

When she let out a small moan, the littlest sound, I shifted in my seat when the monster bulge between my legs grew uncomfortable.

I wondered if she’d make the same appreciative moan around my dick.

Valerie Solonik had a way of turning my head into a mess. She was dangerous to me, but I guessed I liked to dance with a little danger.

Before I knew it, I was up and walking to her. She was sitting up, her legs hanging over the edge of the bed. There was a pull between us. It was undeniable and carnal.

I found myself sitting beside her on the bed, so close…close enough to reach forward and slide a finger up her neck and her face, feeling her silky skin under my fingertips.

Instantly hit with a warm feeling, I slid closer until the sides of our thighs were touching. I wanted to chase this feeling, grab it, hold it, and savor it.

It was so hard not to touch her when she was this close to me. I could do anything I wanted, and I knew she wouldn’t push me away. I had successfully seduced her mind, and her body was reacting accordingly. I watched her lips part and her chest rise with a shuddering breath.

Her tongue peeked out and she wet her lips before nervously chewing on her bottom one. My gaze found the little smudge of chocolate there, and without thinking…without any consideration…before I could even stop myself, I reached up and touched her.

My tips of my fingers tingled when I met her soft skin, almost like I had been hit with a zing of awareness. Heat traveled through my body, surging me forward. My heart was beating a strange song, irregular.

My thumb brushed the corner of her lips and wiped away the chocolate there. She sucked in a deep breath and then exhaled. Her eyes seemed to be fixated on mine, as if she couldn’t look away. I felt the same way…the same intensity…the same surreal feeling coursed through me.

Valerie was a silent maiden, locked away and trapped in her tower. I was no Prince Charming or hero, but I was irrevocably ensnared by this enchanting beauty. She had no voice, yet she was a siren who was brought here to tempt me.

“Eat,” I pushed, in a deep voice.

Valerie finished her croissant in a few quick bites, but we never took our eyes off each other. I liked to believe that even if we did try, we wouldn’t have been able to.

She was forcing herself not to fidget, not to move…not to show her nervousness, but I could tell what she was feeling by each ragged breath she took.

My fingers twitched with the need to touch her again. I couldn’t seem to stop touching her, and I gave myself all the excuses. This time, I captured a lock of her hair in my hand and curled it around my index finger. Tugging slightly, I brought Valerie’s attention back to me when I noticed her gaze drifting to her lap.

No, silent myshka. I needed your eyes on me. I needed her to see me, all of me…and I wanted her to feel me.

She trembled and I hadn’t even touched her skin. Her eyes came up to me again, and I caught her, trapped her with my unflinching gaze. She seemed to sink into the hollow depths.

When I smiled, satisfied that I had all her attention, I noticed the tiny twitch of her lips. She was fighting a smile of her own.

Beautiful.

“You have beautiful hair,” I whispered. Her hair was a river of golden silk. I loved the feel of it around my finger. I gave the lock of hair a small tug again, and I saw the crimson blush rising up her neck and cheek at my confession.

“My fingers have been itching to touch it, feel it. So silky. So smooth.”

It was thoughtless of me, but I was an impulsive fucker, and now that we had both fallen down the rabbit hole, I couldn’t stop myself. I brought the lock of hair to my nose and inhaled. I smiled at the sweet rose scent. I caught a hint of peaches too.

I smiled at the thought. “It reminds me of sunshine.” And your pussy. But I kept that part to myself.

Still holding her captive, I nodded toward the tray and demanded she finish the rest of her breakfast.

I inhaled. She exhaled.

I exhaled. She inhaled.

It was a dance, two heartbeats breathing in a symphony.

What a weird way to put it, but there was no other way to describe it.

I was no fucking poet, but damn, Valerie had a way of making me want to describe her as a poem. She was silent, but her eyes were loud. She spoke with her touch, and through her gaze, she told a mad tale of forbidden passion. She was silent, living, breathing poetry.

My hands clenched at the thought. What was she doing to me?

I licked and ate her pussy once and here I was, pussy whipped.

I almost laughed at that. Me. Viktor Ivanshov…pussy whipped? I needed someone to punch me.

While she ate, I played with her blonde hair, feeling the silky strands in between my fingers and wanting to memorize her scent.

“Did you sleep well last night?” I asked, smirking at the words.

Did you dream…of me…of us…of my tongue lapping up your pussy?

Her breath stuttered, and I knew what she was thinking. Bingo, baby.

If only she knew…her beautiful, filthy dream was a reality.

But it was safer for her this way, if she didn’t know.

When her breathing stuttered and she blushed deeply, I uttered my own little confession. “I didn’t sleep that well. I was rather…frustrated.”

Valerie cocked her head to the side, not understanding my words. I loved the little sparkle of confusion in her eyes. So I left it there instead of elaborating.

She didn’t have to know about my little aching dilemma last night, the one between my legs.

I eventually released her hair. It felt as if I had pulled away from warmth and doused myself with cold water.

But it was time to go. Time for something else, instead of letting my obsession for this silent myshka take over my life, day and night.

I had to focus on something. Valentin Solonik. Yet here I was, little chit chat with his wife and stealing touches.

Standing up, I faced her. I had to leave, had to walk away, but I found myself standing in front of her, my legs not working.

Valerie stared up at me, her hazel eyes round and lost.

I finally remembered the reason why I was really here. My hand reached into my pocket, and I pulled out a little something.

Opening my fist, I showed her the small white and orange origami figure.

Her eyes widened, and then she looked up at me in surprise. “Take it. It’s yours,” I said.

I didn’t give her a chance to think. Instead, I took her clenched fist in other hand and forced her fingers open before I placed the origami into her palm.

Her mouth opened, as if she wanted to speak, but there was no sound, no words. A silent, beautiful swan.

Valerie scrambled for her paper and pen and quickly wrote down something for me.

“You made this? For me?”

I nodded. “Yes. I made it. For you.”

Because I couldn’t stop thinking of you, I whispered in my own head.

Last night, after leaving her bedroom, after leaving her behind to sleep, I went to my own bed, but sleep was so far away. It was a…hard night. Very hard.

I tried to take care of it, but even that didn’t help. There was no way to forget the way she tasted, the way she smelled, the way she moved.

So I ended up spending some of my time making the sweet Valerie something.

A little something that reminded me of her.

“What is it?”

I read the words and then looked at the origami in her hand. “It’s a swan.”

A paper swan. It was tiny but complicatedly beautiful.

Like her.

Just like Valerie.

“It reminds me of you. Elegant and sweet. Beautiful. Graceful. An unspoken poetry,” I confessed out loud.

Valerie watched my lips move, and she took in every word. The hazel pools softened and she blinked away, maybe hiding her tears. I saw the glassy look in her eyes.

Fuck.

A heavy weight settled on my lungs, and I fisted my hands at my sides.

“Do swans make dreams come true?”

I never took my eyes off her. Her silent words were an arrow to my heart and she wounded me, a cut so deep that I wasn’t sure it would heal.

“Maybe they do,” I whispered roughly.

I watched her hands as she wrote on the paper again. The pen made a scribbling sound, filling the silence of the room.

“What does this mean? You giving me this…?”

Valerie was confused, and she blinked up at me, looking for answers and searching for a piece of my soul.

Her question made me confused too. She was right. What did this mean? Why did I give this to her?

I didn’t have the fucking answers myself, so what could I say to her?

Cocking my head to the side, I thought of something to ease her uncertainty.

“Maybe a symbol of friendship?” I finally said.

That was true enough. Well, the partial truth.

My eyes watched as hope blossomed in her gaze. Her hazel eyes sparkled and her lips parted as she took a small breath. But then just as quickly as that hope bloomed, it shriveled away as she looked down at her lap.

Valerie looked at the paper swan, as if it were a betrayal, a lie…something forbidden.

“We can’t be friends,” she wrote on the paper.

“You are right. We can’t,” I replied before I could stop myself.

A small grin tugged at the corner of my mouth, and then I quickly wiped it away, not wanting to look like an asshole.

But I did speak the truth. Being friends was overrated and boring.

Valerie and I…we could never be just friends.

Because it would never be enough. I wanted more. Much more.

But Valerie didn’t understand, and she instead flinched at my words, misunderstanding the meaning behind my quick refusal.

She stared sadly at the origami before pushing it toward me.

No, silent myshka.

If only you knew…how much I wanted you.

Instead of taking it away, I folded her fingers over the paper swan again. I kept my hand wrapped around hers, and I kept the little thing safe in her fist.

It was hers.

The symbol of friendship and the start of something new.

“No. You can keep it. Who knows…maybe it will catch your nightmares and turn them into a beautiful dream.”

Valerie swallowed, and her nose turned red as she sniffled. Her lips moved and she silently whispered something.

Thank you, she said.

I wondered how her voice would sound if she could talk. Would it be sweet and soft, like the rest of her?

I eventually let go of her hand, forcing myself to step away. She brought the delicate thing closer to her chest and held it closer, like she never wanted to part from it.

Her little treasure.

It made me smile, watching her like this. She might have had me ensnared with her beauty, silent voice, and hidden fire in her eyes. But I had the same damn effect on her.

We had both trapped each other. Together, down the rabbit hole, we went.

Her gaze dropped to her lap, and our connection broke. She let me go, and I snapped back into the present. I watched her silently for a few more seconds before I forced my feet away.

It was time to go.

I had to leave the silent maiden in her tower, alone, yet again.

But I’d be back soon.

That I promised.

I was no hero. I liked to believe I was the villain, but if I had to play hero for Valerie, maybe I’d continue this little fantasy for her sake.

She was mine now. And I’d claim her properly.

My sweet little swan.

 

I opened my eyes and stared at the darkness of my room. The memories, the sound of Valerie’s breathing…the sight of her blush, that moment, it was still all vivid in my head. That was one of our first encounters. I still remembered it so clearly, as if it were just yesterday.

I had been trying to sleep for hours, fighting with myself and chasing unconsciousness. But it was non-existent when Alessio’s words kept echoing in my ears. All I could think about were my promises made to Valerie and the choice Alessio was forcing me to make.

I was a loyal man. A loyal soldier to my King.

But I was also a devoted man to my sweet myshka.

I couldn’t choose.

I used to think Ayla was the sun and moon. But then I laid eyes on my Valerie. My world was no longer black and white. Nothing was faded in the darkness anymore. Everything was clear to me. And I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted her. I craved her.

Just like we all had a weakness, everyone also had an addiction. Mine just happened to be her.

I was addicted to her voice, the sound of her, the depth of her soul, the way she breathed and the way her plump lips would curve up in a smile. She had a dimple in her chin. If I closed my eyes, I’d see the sparkles in hers when she was laughing. Valerie could calm the stormy seas inside of me. She halted my thoughts, appeased the war inside my head, and chased away the Devil on my shoulder.

I craved the feeling she gave me when she was close…something akin to warmth. She was the sun of my solar system, the middle of my world, and it made me want to crawl to her every time to seek the warmth she’d give me. I wouldn’t say I got butterflies, because that shit wasn’t real and not for men like me, but fuck, it was so damn close.

She was the wife of the man we meant to kill…to maim…to destroy. That made her our enemy, right?

But Valerie was an unfair enemy. An innocent woman caught in a web of danger. This game wasn’t meant for her, yet she was trapped between monsters who could chew and spit her out, leaving her a bloody mess.

I couldn’t have that.

The vows I made…I intended to uphold and fulfill them.

Valerie was more than just my obsession.

She was my family.

And they were my family too.

The two sides of my coin were the same.

The choice should be easy, but fuck, I couldn’t…

I didn’t know how to fix this, how to protect them all without fucking it up.

I didn’t know how to do right by my family and the woman who owned a piece of my soul.

Growing more frustrated by the minute, I sat up in bed and ignored the hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach. I felt…sick. Lost and lonely.

This was my house. I belonged here. Yet it didn’t feel like home at all.

It was missing something. Missing her.

My Valerie.

My beautiful swan.

Closing my eyes, I rubbed a hand over my face. You are weak, the devil whispered.

Fuck it. A growl rumbled through my chest, and I clenched my fists, the need to pummel something or someone to the ground intense.

I imagined it was Alessio on the ground and my fists kissing his face. That bastard just complicated my life a whole lot.

And then I wanted to rip out Valentin’s intestines, cook that shit up in pasta sauce, and feed it to him.

I just loved my fucking life. Did you hear the sarcasm? Because I heard it. Loud and clear.

I could drink away my sorrows, but that wouldn’t help. Not really.

If Valerie were next to me right now, I’d find my release between her creamy thighs.

The feeling of loneliness ate at me, piercing my skin viciously and leaving me scarred. I didn’t realize it would be this hard to be away from her…so far away from her warmth.

Getting off the bed, I pulled up my black sweatpants and put my shirt on. It was in the middle of the night, but there was only one way to douse my frustration.

I was going to release all my tension on the punching bag. Pound the shit out of it until I was sweating like a motherfucker and unable to even lift my arms.

Then…then I was going to make my next move.

This game had to continue. Everyone was vicious and vile. It was a lethal game.

And Viktor Ivanshov was no failure.