The Prince's Gamble (17 page)

She knew Alexander had never been one to manhandle a woman, but he seemed to be getting immense satisfaction from her pique at his restraint of her. “Say pretty please.”

Her eyes shot wide open. “
Pretty please?
Really? Is that the best you can do?”

He pondered it for a moment before bending and leaning in as if to kiss her. “Pretty please, Sasha. Say it, Kat. Say my name.” Part plea, part demand.

Did it tug at his heart the way it did at hers?

“Don’t make this any harder than it already is, Alexander.”

“Sasha. Say it, Kat,” he repeated. “If things go wrong tonight, I want to have the memory of you saying my name.”

She stopped struggling and inclined her chin until his warm breath, slightly rough , spilled against her lips. “Why are you doing this?”

He wrapped his other arm around her buttocks, imprisoning her against him. Shuffling with her toward the table, he kept on going until she was pressed against the edge and had no way of escaping him.

“Why do you think, Kat?”

The threat of tears blurred her vision. Her voice quavered as she said, “Please don’t go tonight. Don’t do this just for me, Sasha. Not for my badge. It’s not worth it.”

His expression twisted at the love she couldn’t stop from filling her voice. But he kept his emotions to himself to avoid being hurt once more by her.

“I’m doing this for us.” He leaned his forehead against hers, his eyes peering into hers in a kaleidoscope of blue.

She sucked in a hesitant breath. The scent of him, clean and masculine, filled the spaces in her senses that had not already been captured by the feel of him against her, so powerfully strong. So irresistible, because no matter how much she tried to fight it, she could not deny what was deep in her heart.

She nuzzled his nose with hers and her lips brushed the edge of his mouth. “I love you, Sasha. I know I shouldn’t—”

His eyes flared with surprise, then undisguised pleasure as he smiled broadly. But that emotion evaporated quickly, replaced by worry as he tightened his arms around her. “I love you also,
Ko’shechka maja
. But don’t think about the bad right now. After this is over, we’ll work things out. Together we’ll work things out. ”

He took her mouth with a kiss filled with such tenderness it was impossible not to be carried away by his hope and love. She answered his kiss, opening her mouth to him. Pressing her body to his and inviting him to do more.

With unexpected swiftness, he swept her into his arms and strode with her out of the dining room and down the hall to his suite. Somehow he dug his keycard out of his pocket and swiped it to open the door.

Shoving it closed with a foot, he hurried with her until they reached his bedroom. In the center of the room was a king-sized bed covered in midnight-colored satin.

He strode to the side of the bed and let her slip down his body to stand before him. Cupping her cheeks, he said, “I feel like I’ve waited forever for this, Kat.”

She smiled and turned her face to kiss his palm. “Me, too, Sasha. I want you to stay safe tonight. I
need
you to stay safe.”

“I will. I don’t want to risk what we have together. What we can have in the future.” He threaded his hands into the silky strands of her hair and tilted her head back as he bent to take her lips in a hungry kiss.

Kathleen freed herself to him, not wanting to waste a second because she knew tomorrow was promised to no one. Much like Alexander had gambled on her love, she had to take the risk and give him her heart. Offer all of herself without reservation.

Without breaking from the wonder of his kiss, she eased her hands beneath his jacket and urged it off his shoulders. Then she went to work on the buttons of his shirt, ripping open the last few with a tug that tore fabric in her haste to be with him.

That earned a chuckle from him as he finally broke away from her lips. “Impatient?” He shrugged off his ruined shirt.

“I don’t want to wait another second to be with you.”

He grinned, and that boyish dimple teased her as he quickly went to work on his pants. “Let me not delay you then.” He shucked off his briefs and trousers in one elegant move and then removed his shoes and socks.

He was already erect, his long, thick width jutting toward her. As she skimmed her fingers along him, he laid his hand on hers to still her caress. “Not yet, Kat. I’m not sure I can hold off, I’m so ready for you.”

She raised her other hand and urged him to sit on the edge of the bed. Despite his admonishment, she stroked him yet again, dragging a groan from him.

As she eased off her jacket, he helped her remove her shoulder harness, then shifted his hands beneath her cashmere sweater to pull it over her head.

Moments later she kicked away the rest of her clothes, revealing herself to him fully.

“So beautiful,” he said, and laid his hands on the curve of her hips to drag her near. A heartbeat later, he closed his mouth over her nipple while caressing her other breast with his fingers.

She sighed as pleasure rippled through her. She clasped the back of his head with one hand, dropped the other to the head of his erection which twitched with his desire.

Easing one knee onto the mattress, she urged him to the center of the bed. When he lay flat against the immense surface, she straddled his hips and in one smooth move, sank down onto him.

And finally felt whole.

Chapter Twenty-one

Alexander filled Kathleen completely, right down to his body and soul. But with that reality came another.
Fear
. Bone deep fear that in a few hours he could lose her forever. Could lose everything…

“Shhhh. Whatever you’re thinking about, don’t,” she murmured.

He snaked a hand upward to curl around her neck and draw her down against him. “I know. Just think about now.” He rolled, trapping her beneath him. Surrounding her with the feel of him.

As he shifted his hips to draw out of her, she dug her fingers into his shoulders and urged him to stillness. “Not yet, Sasha. Not yet. I need to keep you with me, inside me, for as long as possible.”

He groaned and surged deeper into her, understanding the emotions racing through her eyes because he was feeling them as well. If he could, he would stay with her like this forever, in this moment where perfection was theirs. He bent his head and kissed her again. Danced his lips along hers to memorize the shape of them. The taste, so sweet and fresh, and the heat of her tongue slipping past his lips.

The puckered tips of her breasts rubbed against his chest, and she raised her knees, cradling his hips with her thighs. The movement welcomed him deeper to her warm, slick depths and he shuddered, almost overwhelmed.

She sighed and raised her hands to his shoulders, met his gaze. Words unnecessary. He moved then, beginning the rhythm to bring them both satisfaction. Driving into her, each thrust dragging them ever closer as she shifted her hands across his shoulders and down to his buttocks. Exhorted him with her cries of pleasure and the gift of his name spilling from her lips as her release crashed over her.

“
Sasha
.”

He stilled then, savoring the pull of her muscles drawing him in. Holding himself back from his own release to allow her a moment of breath before he plunged forward again. Harder. Faster. Ripping her from her first climax into another.

She moaned, and her nails bit into his shoulders as she arched her back, lost in the passion. His release punched into his gut, driving the breath from his lungs. He held himself deep in her, spilling his seed into her womb.

His body shook from the force of his release. She gentled him, running her hands along his shoulders and down his arms. She invited him to lay upon her as passion ebbed and their heartbeats and breaths slowed back to normal.

Even as he stayed intimately buried, his body softening, his resolve strengthened.

They would survive this night and be better for it. Their love more determined. Then he allowed himself the pleasure of her arms until, finally, they gazed at each other, swamped by emotion, and reluctantly stirred.

It was time to go.

…

Alexander listened intently as ADIC Roberts explained where the FBI agents would be situated, in the wetlands which ran along the back of the building, and laid out the locations where additional backup units would be stationed, as well. He gave the details of the door-to-door search that would begin along the Camden waterfront at the locations pinpointed from the earlier phone calls.

It all seemed very well planned.

But that sense of unease that had dogged him all day had returned with full force. He wrestled it back. Petrov’s contacts wanted their money. Surely they would not do anything to jeopardize the transfer. At least not at first. Alexander worried about what they might do once he had turned over the cash, if they didn’t believe he wanted to step into Petrov’s shoes.

“What should I do after I hand over the money?” He glanced between Kathleen and her boss.

“You get back in your car and drive away. We’ll move in as soon as you’re clear of the area,” ADIC Roberts advised.

“And what if the transfer doesn’t go well?”

Her boss glanced at him uneasily.

That look said it all.

They were all screwed
.

…

Alexander tightened his grip on the leather steering wheel of the Bentley convertible. He had raised the hardtop in deference to Kathleen’s concerns, but had refused to take the Escalade as she had wished. He feared Petrov’s contacts might view the larger vehicle as a threat.

There would be little possibility of hiding anyone in the smaller, sportier automobile, and that might provide the reassurance needed to avoid an immediate confrontation.

He turned off the avenue onto the road that ran down to Bader Airfield toward the location for the meet. Large, empty parking lots and the adjacent Ventnor City Wetlands surrounded the two dilapidated buildings. While the frontage was well-lit by streetlights, only a few oddly-spaced bulbs provided dim light along the sides and back of the buildings.

“I’m here.” He hoped Kathleen and her team could hear him with their roving bug.

“We’ve got your transmission. We can see through the rear windows of the van that there is someone in the back in addition to the driver. Maybe more than one,” she informed him through the earpiece he wore.

He slowed the car and peered into the darkness. A white panel van was parked about thirty feet away, close to the gated delivery entrance of the building.

At least two against one. Maybe more against him. The odds weren’t in his favor, but he hoped the risk would pay off.

Driving to within fifteen feet of the van, he stopped the car but left his headlights on, trained on the other vehicle.

“Good job, Prince Alexander. We’ve got a clear view thanks to the lights,” ADIC Roberts chimed in through the earpiece.

Alexander braced himself with a measured breath, pocketed the hacked cell phone and grabbed hold of the briefcase. He opened his door and rose from the low slung car, but stayed behind the protection of the steel-armored door.

As if in slow motion, the van’s driver side door opened. A second later, the back doors flew open.

The man the FBI had identified as Stravinski hopped down from the driver’s seat just as two men came around the rear, holding a struggling, hooded person between them.

Had they
brought Vanessa? Except—

He froze in horror.

He didn’t need them to remove the hood to know who it was. He recognized the diamond tennis bracelet he had bought for her eighteenth birthday.

“
Tatiana
,” he said on a strangled breath, loud enough for the men to hear. Loud enough for Kathleen and her colleagues to hear as well.

A cunning smile spread across Stravinski’s face.

Fear sank its talons into Alexander and his knees grew weak. A chill sweat erupted across his body as terrible memories pummeled him. He became, for that briefest moment, the scared little seven-year-old who had been kidnapped. But only for a moment as he shoved aside the nightmare from his childhood and steeled himself to fight for what he loved. To the death, if need be.

“Easy, Sasha. It’s going to be all right,” Kathleen soothed across the air waves to help bolster his courage.

“I’m disappointed. You’ve spoiled our little surprise.” With a negligent flip of his tattooed hand, Stravinski directed his men to rip off the hood.

Tatiana was gagged and disoriented for a moment. But as she spied him, her struggles increased. Her actions were futile. The two men holding her capably between them were large, powerful, and armed with automatic weapons.

“What’s the meaning of this? Why do you have my sister?” Alexander demanded.

“Insurance.”

“I thought we had a deal,” Alexander spat out, deadly calm injected into his voice by the sheer force of his will.

“We do. I just like to make sure all my bets are covered.” Stravinski held out his hand, palm up, and wiggled his fingers in invitation. “You have something that’s mine.”

“We need to move in, Sasha. Try to get Tatiana clear of the van,” Kathleen warned.

With a determined breath, Alexander stepped away from his car, the briefcase in his hand. To buy some time for the FBI to get in place, he raised the bag slowly to show it to Stravinski and said, “Not before I get my sister.”

“Don’t you trust me, Sasha?” The taunting tones in the other man’s voice were impossible to ignore. Alexander bristled at the bastard’s use of his nickname.

“Let her go. Then you and I can discuss our business arrangement. Tatiana has nothing to do with this.”

Tatiana protested his offer, wrestling between the two men with renewed efforts, but he tried to calm her.

“It’ll be fine, Tatochka. Trust me.”

Stravinski laughed out loud and clapped his hands together as if to compliment Alexander’s performance. “Trust him, Tatochka,” he mimicked, clearly amused.

“We’re in place, Sasha. Stay put,” Kathleen said, but Alexander couldn’t just stand there with his sister at risk. He stepped toward Stravinski, still holding the briefcase in plain sight. He jostled it to draw their attention and succeeded. With a barely perceptible wiggle of his wrist, he let the pen-sized mace spray Jim had provided slip down into his palm.

With careful deliberation, he said, “The cash for my sister. My trust for yours. Then we can talk about how our future business will work.”

A cackle erupted from deep in Stravinski’s throat. “You still want to do business together?”

“I need the money. You need a partner. Just one rule: My family is off limits.”

A change crept over Stravinski then. One which Alexander didn’t particularly like. The man straightened his shoulders and pulled them back with deadly assurance. Without a glance in the direction of his men, he snapped his fingers. One man moved forward with Tatiana. Thankfully, his sister seemed to understand she had to remain composed to avoid an escalation in the situation.

She stood there peacefully, her gaze locked with his, seeking both reassurance and instruction.

“Hand over the briefcase,” Stravinksi commanded, but over the earpiece, Kathleen warned, “You need to get Tatiana closer to you and away from them.”

He knew, but Tatiana was still a good ten feet away from him. Only one thing came to mind.

“You want the money? Here it is.”

He tossed the briefcase into the air with a high arc and rushed forward for his sister just as Stravinski’s man yanked her back. A quick spray of mace in the man’s face made him roar with pain and stumble away, releasing Tatiana.

Alexander snatched his sister free and shoved her behind him just as Kathleen shouted, “Move in!”

…

“Go! Go! Go!” Kathleen yelled, her heart pounding in her chest.

Lights flared to life as the FBI Agents rushed from the wetlands onto the parking lot behind the building.

Alexander shoved his sister toward the protection of the Bentley just as Stravinski and his men grabbed their weapons and opened fire.

They didn’t have a chance. They were fully exposed and outgunned.

Her first shot hit Stravinski high in the shoulder, driving him back from Alexander and his sister. But not before he got a shot off in their direction.

Icy cold fear spread through her, but she kept her head, taking down Stravinski with a second shot. She moved forward with the other agents as they contained the other criminals in a hail of gunfire. The acrid smell of gunpowder and metallic smell of blood was strong in the night air. Kathleen grimaced against the odors as her team swarmed forward to finish disarming and restraining the wounded men.

Her boss stood over Stravinski, taking his pulse while Kathleen hurried in the direction of Alexander and his sister.

“He’s still alive,” Roberts called out as the other agents reported on the condition of Stravinski’s two men. One dead and one alive. Barely.

As she rounded the front of the Bentley, Alexander was on his feet before his sister. But then he looked at his side and drew away his jacket. He stared uncomprehendingly at a blotch of blood which grew steadily as he stood there, wavering slightly. In slow motion, he slid down the side of the car and collapsed at Tatiana’s feet.

“Sasha!” Kathleen raced over as Tatiana ripped off her gag on a cry, and cradled her brother in her arms.

“We need three ambulances, stat,” she instructed their backup unit, and kneeled beside Alexander.

“I’m okay,” he said, but too weakly. His chest heaved in stutters as he struggled for breath. Kathleen shoved away his jacket to examine the bullet hole in his right side. Blood oozed freely from the entry wound.

Alexander tried to speak, but instead coughed up blood. Bright crimson stained his lips.

Tatiana shot her a panicked glance, and although she was just as scared, Kathleen knew they had to remain calm for Alexander’s sake.

“Stay still, Sasha.” She placed her hand over his side and applied pressure, trying to stem the flow of blood. “You’re going to be okay,” she said, striving to reassure him even as his blood leaked out between her fingers and his breathing grew more labored with each passing moment.

Tears glistening on her cheeks, Tatiana brushed her fingers across his hair and temples, likewise trying to comfort. “Just hold on, Sasha. Help is on the way.”

The screaming sound of sirens approached quickly while she and Tatiana stayed by his side. The first ambulance screeched around the corner and the EMTs jumped out and rushed over to assist.

Kathleen reluctantly stepped away and wiped her hands on her jacket, but the smell and stickiness of his blood lingered. She walked to Tatiana, whose face was pale, her gaze wide with concern. Hugging the young woman, she offered comfort despite her own fears. “He’s going to be all right.”

“He did it to protect me,” Tatiana murmured, arms wrapped tight around her, too.

“He loves you,” she offered, understanding now, more than ever, just how deep Alexander’s love ran.

Tatiana looked at her. “He loves you, too. I saw it at dinner that night, although maybe he didn’t want to admit it yet. He loves you.”

Kathleen hugged Tatiana hard. “And I love him.”

The paramedics hauled Alexander onto a gurney and sped with him to the ambulance. As they were lifting the gurney into the back, Tatiana said, “I want to go with him.”

The EMTs glanced at them uneasily. “We only have room for one.”

Kathleen nodded and tenderly patted Tatiana’s back. “Go. I’ll follow and meet you at the hospital.”