5

 

Mia

 

Right now the world bears very little resemblance to the one I woke up to this morning. On the con side, there’s the whole wandering around Hawaii half naked and not in a good way. Why did I put on the hot pink undies again? Admittedly, I didn’t expect to be flashing the entire island, but half the world’s mothers are constantly warning their children about the risks of leaving the house without clean underwear. Including my own. They were clean by the way but I think we can take that homily as implied to extend to ‘don’t wear overly eye-catching underwear either’.

But then on the pro side of the equation there’s Alexei. Who not only has appeared back in my life out of nowhere but has gone from the rather stern teddy bear I remember sighing over into what I can only describe as a hot-as-fuck possessive alpha male. Who wants to fuck me? I’m still trying to wrap my head around that one. Yes, I fantasized about exactly that scenario, but it’s no different from a teenage girl dreaming about her favorite rock star. She’d be pretty damn shocked if he showed up at her birthday party.

And as delicious as the thought of being claimed by Alexei is, it’s becoming clear that I’m going to have to enforce a certain amount of independence. Or he’s going to having me caving with the slightest quirk of his eyebrow. I came here to do a job and I’m determined to do it to the best of my abilities. Never mind that I told Sarah I didn’t want to come. And Alexei’s sexy growls in my ear about how I should never be looked at by another man are nice but not practical. I know he doesn’t literally want to lock me away. I think.

I’m still not convinced that he’ll want me once he really gets to know me. I mean, I’m pretty ordinary outside of my job coordinating fish deliveries, which if you take away the fish part is a straightforward mid-level purchasing and logistics job. I’ve never even had what I would call a real boyfriend. Don’t you have to get past three dates for that? And none of the dates I’ve ever been on were memorable enough to make me feel like I was missing something.

There’s no doubt in my mind that a night (heck, an hour) in Alexei’s bed would be something I would never forget or regret. I’d haul him down in the back of this jeep if I thought I could ever offer the same to him. I’m afraid I’m utterly forgettable. It’s never really bothered me before, well, except for where Alexei is concerned, but we’ve been over that.

Now he’s looking at me like the sea lions stare at Sarah when she’s holding the last fish and they know if they take their eyes off it, one of the others will gobble it right up. See? I can’t even describe a man’s lust-filled eyes without bringing fish into it. How sexy is that? God help me.

The jeep thing grinds to a clanking halt in front of a large, very wet-looking tent. Alexei bends down to whisper in my ear, “Wait here, I’ll go find something for you to wear.” Then he raises his voice to carry over the rain pinging on the metal roof to Mike. “I’ll be back in a sec, don’t want Mia getting any wetter than necessary.”

Mike looks at me in the rear-view mirror with a puzzled expression, but nods once and leans back. Alexei opens the door and dashes for the tent, his shoulders military level, not moving an iota. It’s a long, tense few moments until he comes back with a dark bundle in his arms. He leans in and tosses the fabric to me. It’s an odd-looking duster coat of waxed cotton. I’m not sure how much water it’s going to keep off, but it will cover me and I’m beyond grateful. I tug it on, trying not to flash Mike any more than necessary and belt it tightly. Then I’m sliding over the bench seat and Alexei is helping me out. Together this time, we dash for cover.

Right away, Sarah is pulling me into her arms. “Fuck, Mia. I was so worried about you. I’m glad to see you’re okay.” She tries to lead me over to some chairs by one of those industrial plastic coffee dispensers, but there’s a dead weight attached to my other arm. I look over my shoulder to see Alexei rooted in place, his large hand clasped around my hand and my wrist. Sarah turns too, probably to see what the holdup is. I hear a soft snort laugh from her direction, but she stops pulling on my arm. “What?” I’m not entirely sure why he doesn’t want me getting coffee. It’s not like I’ll be out of his sight.

“We aren’t done with our earlier conversation, Mia. We clear on that?” His voice is stern and everything about him is tense.

My jaw drops and I half nod. “Um, okay?” I’m really not sure what he’s getting at.

He sighs and relaxes half a notch. “Do not leave this tent without letting me know or when I find you, I’ll be making you very sorry.”

I blush, my entire body hot with need. It’s not that I’m that turned on by the thought of whatever it is he’s threatening, it’s the vision of winding Alexei up enough for him to even think of it. Sarah groans behind me, “Where did you find him?”

Alexei lets go of my hand with a curt nod and I go off numbly with Sarah for a different type of interrogation.

 

 

 

 

Alexei

 

“That’s Alexei?” an astonished voice rises above the din in the tent and I glance over to see it’s coming from the woman with Mia. My girl blushes slightly and casts a worried look my way to see if I heard that. I smirk in response and she turns back, her cheeks even redder than before. I want to throw her over my shoulder and go find a hotel room where I can fuck her until she finally understands how irresistible she is. Then I can’t wait to hear what she’s been telling her friends about me, so I can tease her until she blushes. But I know it’s going to have to wait a few more hours. I’m not going to be patient any longer than that, though. Those days are over.

Mia has her head close to the other woman’s, they’re chattering and gesticulating like they haven’t seen each other in years but I’m pretty sure that’s the woman trying to send Mia out to seduce guys. I glare at the thought and the young woman looks up right then and just rolls her eyes. An older, former military man comes up behind her and kisses her neck discretely. If I hadn’t been watching the two of them like a hawk, I wouldn’t have noticed. She softens instantly and I revise my opinion of her. Up to a point. My Mia is not seducing anyone but me. Just so we’re clear.

I could stand here staring at Mia all day, but I suppose I should take care of some business, so I’m free to spend the evening with her without arguing with management. I scan the tent, looking for a recognizable face with some influence over this shit fest. Ah. Just the man. Lukas is attempting to take a nap while sitting up in the far corner deep in the shadows. I make a beeline over there and jam his cap down over his eyes. He surges up, fists raised, until he sees me. Then he relaxes with a big shit-eating grin. “Alexei, should have known they’d let the trash in on this one.” That insult is followed by one of those manly handshakes that’s really arm wrestling without a table. Naturally I win and he’s stuck wringing his hand out, trying to get the blood flowing again.

“What do you want, Alexei?”

“Intel. And a change of assignment. Turns out my girl is here and some idiot wants her out seducing other men.”

He sighs heavily, like he’s heard this a thousand times already. “They’re not seducing anyone, not physically anyway. It’s all psychological and management wants it in place. This year is the trial run. They want to see what weaknesses it exposes and also tap any potential female leadership so their diversity numbers look better.”

“Fuck that shit.”

Lukas rolls his eyes. “Same crap everywhere, Alexei. Get over it.”

“I don’t give a damn about any of the others, but Mia is not rolling those big eyes at anyone else. Who do I have to kill to make that happen?”

“Prison isn’t going to help keep your girl away from other men, hotshot. No killing. No hitting. Got it?”

He’s right and I know it, but my inner six-year-old is having a hard time backing down from the playground fight. I’ve waited so fucking long to hold Mia. These last few hours are the hardest yet. “Back to my question. I want her off this squad and I intend to be glued to her side for the remainder of this cluster fuck so make it happen.”

He blinks at me. “Not my commanding officer, Alexei, or my boss or anything but an old friend, and I didn’t hear the magic word.” He’s teasing now, and it’s annoying as fuck.

“Please,” I grate out through clenched teeth.

“There, was that so hard? If you agree that I am a vastly superior being, more intelligent, better looking, and charming beyond belief I think I can make something work in your favor.”

“Lukas,” I warn, dangerously close to the edge. He’s a good friend normally, but he’s tap dancing on my last nerve and he knows it.

Finally he relents. “There’s a nice little cruiser moored at the dock in the southeast quadrant. Needs perimeter control same as the road checkpoints. I can also move your girl there under the theory that any incoming from either side could be possible targets for questioning.”

“So I’d be there with her?”

“The whole time. Boat’s too small for too many visitors, so I’m guessing any conversations would be held over open water. And there’s a small berth down below not that I’m suggesting you sleep on the job or anything.”

I glare at him. I don’t know where this completely possessive streak came from, but I’m ready to tear into him for even the suggestion of Mia naked. I can’t say that he even knows what she looks like, so I don’t think he’s doing anything deliberately offensive.

“Thanks, man.” I give way grudgingly.

“Invite me to the wedding.” Lukas grins. “You’ve got it bad.”

I nod jerkily. I do. “So about tonight, is there a fucking real hotel around here?”

His grin widens. “Can’t wait for the romance of a boat, huh? There’s a couple of B&B’s up the main road and one of those eco resorts if you leave the compound going the other way. Can’t imagine there’re any vacancies though, not with this weather.”

I grunt at that assessment and scan the crowd again, looking to see if there’s anyone with better connections into the local area. Razz was from Hawaii originally, wasn’t he? I wander over his direction and nod when he meets my gaze. “You know this area?”

He shrugs. “Not my hometown, but I have some family nearby. Why?”

“Need a nicer place to stay tonight. My girl’s in town.”

There’s no mistaking the twinkle that appears in his eyes. “Finally fell, tough guy? Must hurt after all these years.”

“You have no fucking idea,” I acknowledge with chagrin.

“Just so happens I think I can fix you up. My cousin has a small vacation place here, it’s a little further out so I haven’t bothered because it’s more fun to hang with the guys. But it’s your lucky day if you don’t mind a drive.”

“The further away from this mess the better.”

He digs in his pocket and dangles a key in front of me. I snatch it before he can change his mind. “You’ll need to stop at the corner store for food, and they only stock local eats, plenty of canned ham, none of your fancy mainland crap.”

I nod. I don’t give a damn about food beyond making sure Mia isn’t starving. Razz rattles off basic directions and how to know we’re at the right place. I memorize it all and turn to find Mia. That’s when I realize she’s no longer in the tent. Fuck it all.