Fucking pathetic.
With a groan, I shut off the computer and check my watch. Is it wrong that I’m ready for bed at 9 p.m. on a Friday night? I don’t bother answering, knowing I won’t like the answer, and instead lock up the office and walk through the gym, making sure everyone has left. A quick sweep of the locker room lets me know it’s empty, and I seriously consider relaxing in the hot tub or sitting in the sauna for a bit, but my stomach growls, reminding me I need supper, so I shut off the lights instead.
It’s quicker to just grab something from the Arctic Fox, so I walk through the connecting door, giving a nod to Anton who’s on bouncer duty, making sure no one decides to get nosy or is trying to find a place for a quick fuck.
The place is crowded and the music annoyingly loud. I fight my way to the bar, noticing how the men back away to give me space while the women smile and step a bit closer. I don’t even bother smiling at them. I never do, and it never makes the slightest bit of difference. If anything, it makes them try even harder as if they can’t possibly believe I don’t want to immediately bury my cock inside them.
Natalya sees me and gives me a wink, letting me know she’ll be with me in a sec. She’s been our bartender from the beginning and is an absolute godsend. Her thick Russian accent, blonde hair, and curvy body mean she’s never in short supply of tips. She may shake her tits at the customers, but she’s nothing but professional around the guys who work here, and I’ve always respected her for that.
When she’s done serving the two guys who are staring at her like they’d give anything for just a few minutes with her, she walks over to me and leans against the counter.
“What can I get you, Nikolai?” she asks, switching over to Russian.
“I think I’ll go with a cheeseburger and onion rings tonight.”
“Ooh, really shaking things up, aren’t we?”
“Yeah, I hope I can handle the excitement of rings instead of fries. We’ll see, I guess.”
She laughs and goes to put my order in. I lean against the bar while I wait, not at all surprised when a young brunette walks over to me with a drunk smile on her face and a slight wobble to her step. I look down at her in silence.
“Hey,” she says, shooting me a big smile and ignoring my complete lack of one. “Want some company?”
Without waiting for me to answer, she hikes herself up on the barstool next to me in the most ungraceful display I think I’ve ever seen. The guys at the table behind me sure enjoyed it, though, when she flashed all of them in the process. She giggles at their hoots and whistles before turning back to me.
“What’s your name,” she slurs, and I’m sure in her mind that probably came out as a sexy purr.
“Not interested,” I say, turning back to the bar and noticing the way Natalya is trying not to laugh.
“Oh, don’t be so hard to get,” she whines, twirling in her stool and then giving a pained moan when the movement makes the room spin as well.
“Not hard to get,” I clarify. “Impossible to get, at least for you. I’m not interested, and you should take your drunk ass home before you wake up tomorrow in bed with one of those guys,” I say, nodding to the group that’s still eyeing her like they’re more than happy to take any leftovers I want to give them.
Instead of heeding my warning, she looks over at the men and lets out another giggle while giving them a ridiculous looking wave like she’s the queen of fucking England. She lowers herself off the stool with as much grace as she used to get on the damn thing before wobbling over to the men. I’m guessing she’ll be running for the toilets in about ten minutes based on how green she’s looking.
Right as Natalya is passing me my bag of food, I see a flash of movement from the corner of my eye and laugh. The men behind me groan, watching their potential one-night stand disappear into the women’s bathroom.
“Big surprise there,” she says, handing me the soda I hadn’t ordered but she knew I’d want. “She’s been drinking shots for the last hour. I think we all saw that one coming from a mile away.”
I laugh, remembering all the mornings I woke up feeling sick as a dog when I was younger. “See ya, Natalya, and thanks for the food.” Maybe getting older does have its perks. At least I know how to hold my liquor now.
The thought is a small consolation as I walk to my car and head home to an empty house. The traffic disappears once I turn into the quiet neighborhood I live in, and when I see my house up ahead, the tension I’ve been carrying around slowly starts to fade. I bought the modern style home several years ago, and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. Being on the end of a dead-end street gives me plenty of privacy, but it’s really the wall of woods behind the house that I bought the place for.
Growing up in an orphanage and then living on the streets of Moscow before finally giving in and crashing at the tiny apartment Dima and his older brother Sergei rented has given me a great appreciation for peace and quiet, and seeing the patch of undisturbed nature outside the large windows that cover the back and side of my house always makes me feel at home.
Unlocking the door, I walk in to the dark house and flick on the lights as I make my way to the large kitchen that is completely wasted on me and my disastrous cooking skills. I grab a plate and sit down at the counter, clicking on the small TV that I have mounted on the wall so I can watch a hockey game while I eat.
The sounds of sticks hitting the puck and skates scratching along the ice fill the room, and I try to convince myself that this is the bachelor’s life I always wanted. I eat my meal in silence and try hard to ignore the feisty woman with green eyes and freckles who keeps popping into my thoughts. God, the memory of her is just as stubborn as the actual woman. As if eating my supper alone wasn’t depressing enough, I now have to do it with a raging hard-on.
“Fucking Irish,” I groan, rubbing the back of my neck. Tomorrow night, I’m going and getting a piece of ass. End of story. I need to push the memory of her far from my mind. Feeling a little bit better about the situation now that I have a plan, I pick my burger back up and turn up the volume on the game. She’ll be out of my system in no time.
Chapter3
Moira
“Holy shit,” I sigh, letting the steaming hot water hit my shoulders and neck, forcing my tense muscles to loosen up and relax. The last few weeks have been absolute shit. It started with me arriving and learning just how bad the club’s situation was in and ended with the infuriating Russian showing up today and ruining the whole rest of my day. I’d been so shocked by the sight of him. I still can’t believe the sexy guy I’d been eye-fucking on my pervy drive-by had showed up in my club. It had taken all my willpower to remain tough and not give in to his gorgeous, intimidating presence.
Part of me wants to just play nice, do the female thing where I’m super accommodating and sweet, but I know that’s not going to end well for me. I’m all alone, and I need to keep protecting myself just like I’ve always done. The more I think about it, the more pissed I get. I mean, who the hell does he think he is anyway, showing up here with his broad shoulders and broody scowl? As much as I try to pretend that he didn’t have an effect on me, I know it’s a lie, and I know deep down I’m really just pissed because of the reaction he’s getting out of me. The throb in my clit is proof of that, and I hate him just a little bit more for making my body betray me like this.