Until I collapse over her, pressing her into the table as I breathe heavily, inhaling the heady scent of sex and sweat and her.
My Sara. My wife.
My obsession.
We could spend an eternity together, and that still wouldn’t be enough.
4
Henderson
I lie in bed, staring at the ceiling. For the second night, I can’t sleep, dark thoughts crawling around my mind as my neck keeps locking up.
The plan I’m formulating is extreme, monstrous even, but I don’t see any other choice. I can’t strike at Sokolov directly—he and his bride are too well guarded. If I try and miss, there will be hell to pay.
Besides, Sokolov is not the only one I want eliminated.
His allies are just as dangerous… to me, to my family, and to the world at large.
This is really the only way.
He and the others must be made to pay.
5
Sara
I wake up to the quiet beeping of my alarm. Shutting it off, I roll over onto my back and stretch, feeling both sore and satisfied. After we cleaned up the kitchen and showered, Peter took me one more time before we fell asleep, and then again during the night.
Someone needs to bottle up the man’s sex drive and sell it as a drug. They’d make a fortune.
Grinning at the thought, I hop out of bed and run into the shower. I can already smell whatever deliciousness Peter is cooking in the kitchen, and my stomach is more than ready to start the day.
“Morning, ptichka,” he greets me when I step into the kitchen after quickly showering and getting dressed for work. On the table are two plates with avocado toast and egg, and on the counter is a lunch bag—I presume for me to take to work.
“Hi.” My heartbeat accelerates as I take him in. He’s shirtless today, his dark jeans riding low on his hips and the tattoos on his arm gleaming in the morning light. His body is a work of art, with perfectly defined muscles and broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist. Even the scars on his torso have a kind of violent, dangerous beauty to them—just like the man himself.
“Do you have time to eat?” he asks, and I nod, fighting the urge to lick my lips as his ab muscles flex in front of me.
Maybe Peter is not the only one with an insane libido.
The condition might be contagious.
“I have fifteen minutes,” I say huskily, forcing myself to walk over to the table instead of toward him. If I give him a good-morning kiss now, we’ll end up right back in bed.
“Good. I’ll take you to work this morning,” he says, joining me at the table. Picking up his toast, he bites into it, and I do the same with mine, enjoying the zesty lime flavor combined with the savory fried egg and crisp rye bread.
“Is this a busy week for you?” he asks when I’m almost done with my toast, and I nod, patting my lips with a napkin.
“Yes, actually. Really busy. Wendy and Bill—you know, my bosses—just took off for vacation, so I’m seeing some of their patients in addition to my own. Oh, and I’m inducing one of my patients tomorrow afternoon, so I’ll probably be home late. Plus, I have some shifts at the clinic in the second half of the week.”
“I see.” Peter’s expression is neutral, but I sense a subtle darkening of his mood. He’s not happy about this, and I can’t blame him.
I’d also rather spend time with him than go to work.
“Will you be home for dinner tonight?” he asks, and I smile, glad to be able to give him some good news on this front.
“I should be. If there are no emergencies.”
“Right.” He stands up. “Let me grab a shirt, and I’ll drive you to the office.”
“Thank you—and thanks for the delicious breakfast,” I call out, but he’s already gone into the bedroom.
6
Peter
Sara’s office is walking distance from her apartment, so the drive is just a few short minutes. All too soon, I’m pulling up to the curb and handing Sara her lunch, all the while feeling like I’d sooner gnaw my arm off than let her out of the car.
I hate that I won’t see her all day long, that I won’t be able to touch her or talk to her until evening. It’s even harder than last week because we got to spend this Sunday together—and I now know what paradise feels like.
It’s what we had back in Japan, only without the bitter animosity—without Sara resenting me for stealing her away from her career and everyone she loves.
It takes all my strength to remain seated and calm as she kisses my cheek and whispers, “Love you. See you soon,” before jumping out of the car.
I watch her slim figure disappear into her office building, and then I message the crew to give them their Sara-watching instructions for the day.