“What does that mean?”
“It means you have a roommate.” He pulled out his phone and texted, first Fyodor, because he knew his brother would be waiting to hear if there was any threat to Evangeline, or if he had to cushion the blow and tell her Ashe was dead. Then he sent a group text to Gorya, Kyanite and Rodion. They would have to keep a wall around Fyodor and Evangeline, whether or not his brother was agreeable.
Ashe drew back, shaking her head. “No way will you be sleeping in here with me.”
“I didn’t say I’d be sleeping in here.” He had other ideas. Sleeping just wasn’t one of them. “You know where the extra blankets are kept?”
She shook her head. “I’m not used to such a big place. This is huge.”
It was very small in comparison to the mansion where Evangeline lived now. Timur thought the house was the perfect size. Other than the windows that gave him nightmares, he really liked the place.
“Do you know how to cook?”
“Why? Because I’m the girl?” she challenged. Sarcasm dripped from her voice.
“No, because I like to cook and if you don’t, I can take over that duty.”
Ashe sent him a faint smile. “If you forgive me that one, I’ll forgive the choke-me-to-death one.”
“I’m not certain the two can compare.”
“I told you,” she reiterated. “If someone wanted my family dead, I’d do whatever it took to protect them. My father was all about keeping us safe, so I do understand. I just don’t want it happening again.”
“Then don’t ever lie to me like that.” He edged toward the door. His body had just about all the abuse it could take. He wasn’t used to his cock being so damned hard every fucking minute. He needed a little respite from her.
“Good night, Timur.”
“Good night, Ashe. If you have to go wandering around in the middle of the night, make noise. You don’t want me thinking you’re sneaking up on me.”
He found extra blankets in the linen closet and tossed a pillow and blanket on the couch. He had to think about why the messenger had arrived before she had. What was he doing there? He believed Ashe, her story about her parents, but there was more going on then met the eye. She was a good liar. He’d barely caught the tiny imperfections in her voice the few times he had. Something was just a little off and he needed to get to the bottom of it.
He told his leopard to guard him and then allowed himself to drift off. The nightmares came the way they always did, but this time, it was Ashe murdered in front of his eyes, not his mother.4FOUR o’clock in the morning came too soon. Ashe lay in the very comfortable bed and stared up at the ceiling. She hadn’t expected to sleep, not with Timur in the house. He was sexy, gorgeous and dangerous as hell. Just the kind of man she was attracted to. She’d never had any sense when it came to men. Never. She knew better than to even go there. A woman could dream of men like him, but she didn’t actually make that mistake. Not unless she wanted to pay a hefty price—which she most definitely did not .
She’d fallen asleep dreaming about it. It was the first time in a long while she’d felt safe enough to really fall asleep, not just dozing, but actually a deep, restful slumber. Well, as restful as a woman could have when she was totally perving on a man. Her dreams were mostly erotic. She didn’t mind that so much, unless she moaned like an idiot and kept him awake. That was a very real possibility.
She sat up slowly, holding the sheet to her neck, as if the thin material could somehow protect her. There was no protection. There was only common sense. She had to keep her distance from Timur if she wanted to come out of this alive. She’d told him the truth as much as she could. It was a matter of choosing the right words. As long as she kept that up, she’d be golden. He was suspicious, but then, what kind of a head of security would he be if he wasn’t suspicious of everyone? He had to be.
She touched her throat and then stroked her fingers over the marks he’d put there. He’d scared her. Really scared her. At the same time, she’d been wildly exhilarated. That was her shameful secret. She liked danger. She liked dangerous men. She craved both. Still, there was the sane part of her that prevented her from making mistakes. Until now. She sat up straighter and circled her throat with her palm. Now she didn’t know exactly what she was going to do.
She hadn’t expected that Evangeline would be the same sweet girl she’d met in the mountains a couple of years earlier. She thought she would be a spoiled woman, putting on airs, threatening the world with her gangster husband. Instead, Ashe found her to be the same genuine spirit, compassionate, helpful and a very hard worker.