I stared at it in horror. “What the hell?”
“What is it?”
“Didn’t you hear? Kaplan Holmes has been murdered. Kap Holmes – from Woodhaven.”
Kirill barely reacted. “The bully?”
“Yes, the bully. He used to come into the club sometimes. Still being an ass.”
“Well, someone decided to teach him a lesson.”
I turned my horrified gaze on him.
He raised an eyebrow. “What? You expect me to be upset about a high school bully I haven’t seen in seven years who tortured us?”
“No, not upset, but . . . shocked or something.”
“I am shocked. This is me shocked.” His tone was so flat and unemotional that my heart tremored.
Why was there this wall between us? Why could I not recognize the boy I’d loved in the face of this handsome, reserved stranger? As if sensing my discomfort with his reaction, he picked my hand up and pressed a kiss to the back without taking his eyes from the road.
I cleared my throat and turned to look out the window. Light rain had started to fall. It was time to change the subject. I couldn’t stand this distance between us.
“What did you do after you left Woodhaven?” I asked as he drove me uptown to his apartment. I took it we were going back to his again. I didn’t mind. My apartment was hardly anything to boast about, but it felt weird not to be asked.
“Molly, what did I tell you about the past?” Kirill sighed as if I’d broken a promise to him.
“It’s a question! Why is it such a big deal?”
“I worked for my father.”
“Max said you guys work in finance.”
Kirill nodded. “It’s the family business, and it pays the bills.”
“It more than pays the bills,” I observed as we pulled into the underground parking of his building, The Tower. The car that always drove behind him parked beside us, and his men got out. “I never knew bankers who had security entourages.”
Kirill turned the car off and spread an arm along the back of my seat. His hand fell into my hair, sifting through the strands.“I never said I was a banker,” he pointed out, as elusive as ever.
“What else do finance guys do?”
“Whatever makes money. You’re asking a lot of questions tonight, Molly. A man might think you need something to keep your mouth otherwise occupied.”
Heat flared in my belly at his suggestive tone. His eyes fell to my lips as I became aware of how turned on he was. My need roared to life. It was like he held the keys to my body and could turn me on at command. He understood my desires better than I did, leaving me vulnerable and wet as hell.
I was also relieved. I didn’t want these worries about our relationship or news of Kaplan Holmes’ grisly fate to intrude on my time with this man.
I lowered my hand, running my palm over the hard length pressing against his zipper. I was content to play and be distracted from my worries for the evening. The car windows were darkly tinted so that no one could see in.
Kirill wound my ponytail around his hand. “Shall we keep your mouth busy another way? Practice makes perfect, after all.”
Heat flooded my cheeks.I licked my lips and tugged his zip down. Words crowded against my lips in a weird panic response. It felt like everything was slipping through my fingers, no matter how hard I tried to hold on.
“You know I love you, right?” I stammered, driven by some unknown force to get the confession off my chest.
Kirill tensed, and his hand curled hard around the wheel. “Show me,” he muttered in a guttural tone that shook my bones.
The hand holding my hair like a rope led me down to his cock, already bare and glistening in the dawn light.