LOGINAiden’s POV“Who am I?” I scoffed. “I should be asking you that. Who the hell are you and why do you have a key to Nikolai’s place?”She blinked, clearly caught off guard. Her striking green eyes flicked over me again — taking in Nikolai’s oversized black button-down, my messy bed-hair, and my bare legs. Something like realization crossed her face.“I’m Ashley,” she said. “I’ve known Nikolai since we were kids. I just came to bring him breakfast. He forgets to eat when he’s stressed.”“You just… let yourself in? And why do you call him Niko?”Before she could answer, heavy footsteps sounded on the stairs.Nikolai appeared at the top, wearing only low gray sweatpants, his hair still tousled from sleep. The second he saw us standing there, his entire expression darkened.“Ashley,” he growled, his voice low as he came down the stairs two at a time. “What the fuck are you doing here?”She turned toward him with a small sigh, holding up the paper bag like it explained everything. “I brou
Nikolai’s POVThe city lights shone across the ceiling of the bedroom, but my eyes were fixed on the man in my arms.Aiden was sprawled half on top of me, his head tucked under my chin and a leg thrown over my leg. His skin was still warm and slightly damp from sweat. Every breath he took brushed across my collarbone.Our hearts were beating in perfect sync.After four years of loneliness, this felt like a dream.I tightened my arm around his waist, pulling him impossibly closer. My other hand traced lazy circles along the smooth line of his spine. Aiden shifted, nuzzling deeper into my chest with a soft, contented hum.“You’re smiling,” he murmured, his voice sleepy.“Am I?” I pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “I didn’t notice.”“You are. I can feel it.”I chuckled quietly, the sound rumbling through both of us. “Guilty. I’m so happy, malysh. I’m happier than I’ve been in four years.”He tilted his head up just enough to look at me. Those warm brown eyes were soft. “Me too,” he
Aiden’s POVHe rocked into me slowly and I groaned at the feel of his thick hardness against me.“Fuck, Nikolai—” My voice cracked.He growled low in his throat, the sound vibrating straight through my chest. “That’s it, baby. Let me hear you. God, I missed those sounds.” His hips rolled again, grinding his cock right against mine. “You’re so fucking hard for me already. My desperate little slut.”I whimpered, my head falling back against the cold window. The contrast of freezing glass on my bare back and his scorching body between my thighs made my brain short-circuit.“Please—” I begged, my fingers digging into his shoulders. “I need more. I need you.”Nikolai’s eyes darkened to molten steel. He leaned in, his perfect lips brushing my ear as he whispered, “You’re so pretty when you beg, malysh. So fucking perfect.”He shifted his grip, one massive hand under my ass holding me up like I weighed nothing, the other yanking my jeans and boxers the rest of the way down in one rough tug.
Aiden’s POVIt’s been five minutes since this Russian guy picked me up, and he hasn’t said a single word to me. I’ve been trying to reach Nikolai but something’s wrong with my phone’s network.“Hey—um, excuse me? Is Nikolai… is he meeting us somewhere? Or—”The driver didn’t even glance in the rearview. He just kept his eyes on the snowy road, and kept driving. No nod. No grunt. Nothing.I waited five full seconds for him to respond, till I figured he wasn’t going to.“Okay,” I muttered, mostly to myself. “Got it.”I sank back against the seat and stared out the tinted window. Moscow wasn’t what I had expected. It looked… sad.Gray buildings, gray sky, gray snow swirling under orange streetlights. Everything felt muted. Distant. Exactly how my chest felt right now.Four years.Four years of imagining this moment a thousand different ways. In some versions he was waiting at the gate with a smile, looking as seductive as sin.In others he pulled me straight into a hug so tight I couldn’
Nikolai’s POVThe Maybach glides through the streets of St. Petersburg, its tires hissing softly against wet asphalt.Viktor’s hands are steady on the wheel, but I can feel the weight of his stare on me every few seconds.I keep my eyes on the tablet in my lap managing the shipment manifests, banking logs, as well as Ivanov’s latest movements.The Prime Minister has been acting very suspicious lately, but that's to be expected anyway.Viktor suddenly sighs dramatically and then I know that he wants to say something I don’t want to hear.I don’t look up when I mutter. “Spit it out, Vik.”“I don’t think you should go pick up Aiden.”My thumb freezes mid-scroll. I lift my gaze slowly, one brow arched. “Excuse me?”“You heard me.” He doesn’t even glance my way. His eyes are fixed on the road. “Your enemies are watching. Don’t tell me you’ve already forgotten that the Prime Minister has been crawling up your ass for weeks?”I set the tablet on the seat beside me. “I haven’t forgotten a da
Aiden's POV TWO DAYS LATER...Lily sat on the edge of the mattress, her hand wrapped around Mom’s. Mom’s eyes—red-rimmed and glassy—found mine first. She tried to smile. “Aiden,” she rasped. “You look like hell, honey.”I huffed a laugh that didn’t reach my eyes. “Yeah, well... I've been through hell.”Lily cleared her throat at the tense silence and I continued. “They’re transferring you to the inpatient rehab this afternoon. Are you… are you gonna do it?”Mom’s lower lip trembled. She looked down at the thin hospital blanket, then back up at me. “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, Aiden. I’m going. I swear to you. I don’t—I don’t want this anymore. I don’t want to be this person.”Tears spilled over, tracking down her cheeks. She didn’t try to wipe them away; she just let them fall, like she was too tired to hide anymore. “I’m so sorry,” she choked out. “To both of you. I told myself—just one more time. Just to feel... something. And then I woke up here.” She sniffled. “I almost died. An
Nikolai's POV Ashley leaned against the bar, her green eyes sparkling as she launched into her story. "So, there I was in Paris last month, negotiating this deal with some sleazy art dealer who thought he could scam me because I'm a woman. Can you believe it? He pulls out this fake painting—swear
Nikolai's POV I grip the steering wheel tighter as I pull the car into the driveway of the Bravta's compound—it's what I now call home, but really, it's more like a fortress.It's not warm or as full of love as my penthouse had been with Aiden and Lily.The gates swing open automatically, and I gl
Aiden's POV How the hell had it come to this? Mom who'd clawed her way back from the brink of addiction was back to square one?I don't know what could have happened. She seemed fine.We were in the hospital, waiting anxiously for a doctor.I glanced at Lily who sat at the side of the waiting room
I peeled off my white coat in the hospital's locker room, the fluorescent lights buzzing overhead.My shift had dragged on way longer than expected—between Tyler's emergency surgery and catching up with Sean, it felt like I'd been in this damn hospital for a lifetime. I stuffed my coat into my loc







