“I’ll need a credit card to secure the room,” she said expectantly.
I slipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out several hundred-dollar bills. She glanced at me and down at the cash.
“We don’t usually…” she began.
I slipped another one toward her.
“Please. Just for a night.”
She stared at me for a long minute before glancing at her screen. When she turned back to me, I thought I saw something of a flare of recognition, but it was gone so quickly that I told myself that I had just imagined it. With a sigh, she took the money off the counter.
“The room is $325 a night,” she stated. She prepared a few room keys for me and then passed them to me across the counter. “Checkout is at noon tomorrow. Would you like late checkout?”
“Sure.”
“I’ll put you in to check out by three. Enjoy your stay, Ms. Poplav,” she smiled.
“I appreciate it. Have a wonderful rest of your night,” I replied.
I walked down the hall to the elevators. While I was waiting for it to come down, I finally checked the room number. I was pretty high up on the twentieth floor. I rode the elevator up and strode down the hall to room 2026, waving the key in front of the lock so that it clicked open.
I went into the room and closed the door behind me. I leaned against it, sighing in relief. I was alone, but more important, I was safe.
When my heartbeat finally returned to normal, I opened my eyes and nearly started to cry. The room was beautiful. It was designed in a contemporary style, with a dark blue feature wall painted with angular slate blue lines. The massive king bed was covered in a plush white quilt with four fluffy white pillows against the padded gray leather headboard. There was a seating area with a dark gray canvas couch and a matching ottoman to lie on. I probably wouldn’t use it, but there was a desk area that looked pretty efficient and well thought out.
I pushed myself away from the door and walked into the bathroom. The walk-in shower was covered in beautiful granite tiles. Unable to resist, I disrobed and wandered inside. When I turned on the water, I expected it to be cold at first. It wasn’t. It came out hot from the start and I moaned as I simply languished under the spray for a few minutes.
It had been so long since I’d felt clean, and I luxuriated in it.
Eventually, I started to wash myself. I lathered my hair several times until the water finally rinsed clear. I washed my body twice, scrubbing away at the dirt and filth so much that my skin turned a little pink. I conditioned my hair, working it through every strand purposefully. I used my fingers to tease out all the tangles before I was done.
I enjoyed the warm water for a while longer until exhaustion finally hit me. I turned off the shower and grabbed one of the hanging towels. I squeezed out my hair and walked over to the counter. There was a wide range of toiletries all laid out, including a small, wrapped brush. I opened it and brushed my hair.
There was a toothbrush and toothpaste and I used that too. When I was done, I felt like myself again. I grabbed the sleepshirt out of the plastic bag and pulled it on along with the panties I’d picked out.
Not caring that my hair was still wet, I slipped into the ridiculously tempting bed and closed my eyes. I didn’t wake up for the rest of the night.
CHAPTER2
James Monroe
Kasia was an absolute firecracker.
I wanted her.
From the very first moment I laid eyes on her, I’d been captivated. I didn’t quite know how to handle that, but I was curious enough to want to know more.
When I’d walked into the room, I’d expected to find a group of ravaged and terrified girls, with the exception of Kasia. She was different. She’d taken on the Russian Bratva soldier without even the slightest hint of fear.
I don’t know why that made me as hard as it did.
She’d jumped on his back like a goddamn spider monkey, pulling that rope taut around his throat like he wasn’t at least twice her size. The man was an ominous sight, even to someone like me. He was massive, the kind of guy that probably hadn’t missed a single upper body workout in his life. His body had been covered in tattoos, a symbol of just how many men he’d killed in his days as a Bratva soldier. There was a thick silver nose ring in his left nostril. He kind of reminded me of a prized bull.
Her slate blue eyes had challenged me as soon as I walked through that door. In the dark, they had looked gray but when the lights flickered from outside the window, I had seen the prettiest shade of blue flash in my direction. Her soft pink lips were tense, yet full and I bet they were soft to the touch. Her heart-shaped face was dirty, but there was a rosy hue painted over her cheeks that gave her an angelic glow. Her blonde tresses were tangled and just as filthy as the rest of her. I knew that her hair would shine in the sun like a spool of golden thread once I got her clean.
I’d let my men handle the rest of the women. They’d gone quietly. I’d take care of them, ensuring that every single one of them made their way back home safely to their families.
Kasia was a more complicated case.