Ultimate Vengeance (Wanted Men Book 4)(81)

She hugged Maks’s arm where he settled it around her waist.

“You came barreling back onto the scene, and within days threatened Sacha’s primary role in life. I can’t believe how amazing she’s being about all of this. I know I wouldn’t be. I’d be a right nightmare. But that’s not the point,” she said, waving it away. “How do you think she’s going to sleep when the lights go out? She won’t because she’ll be too afraid when she wakes up you or Vasily will have done what you easily have the means to do; take away the baby she’s been singularly responsible for since conception.” She reached over and touched his arm. “I can’t tell you how to deal with this because I don’t know the whole story, and it wouldn’t be my place to open my big mouth even if I did. But I’m standing here doing just that because I feel a kinship with Sacha, and I’ll happily admit I’m impressed by her. Slightly intimidated, if you want the truth. She’s so…compliant.” She frowned as if that wasn’t what she’d wanted to say. “And comfortable about it. She didn’t give up and allow you to drag her and her daughter away. She yielded to you, and I’ve recently learned that giving in sometimes takes more strength than fighting. A lot more strength.” Her gaze drifted to the house. “It seemed to come so naturally for her,” she mused. “As if she didn’t have to work at it. She just let it happen.”

After a few seconds, Maks tugged on a lock of her hair and she snapped to attention. The embarrassed little blonde cleared her throat and rubbed at her bright pink cheeks as she jerkily moved out of Maks’s embrace. She didn’t look at Alek again as she rushed through the rest of her speech. Good thing, too, because he couldn’t hide his grin.

“All I’m going to ask is that, if you haven’t already, please take separating her from her baby off the table. If someone had come along and taken Andrew from me when he was that age—because he was my entire life—I would have killed myself. I don’t think you want to do that to a woman you love the way you love Sacha.”

She flashed a tight smile, slapped at Maks’s hand when he reached for her, and hurried back into the house.

“Mmm. She is so fucking beautiful.” There was no embarrassment or awkwardness to Maks’s claim. The guy was proudly admiring his choice. “She’s flustered because this is the first time she’s recognized a fellow submissive.”

Alek chuckled. “Yeah, I got that. Though Sacha has never worn the label. I don’t think she’d even recognize many of the Dom/sub aspects between us.”

“Do you?” Maks asked, sounding curious.

He thought about that for a second. “There’d be a lot of boxes ticked off if I went through a checklist, but, again, I wouldn’t label us like that either. It’s just who we are together.” Who we’ll be tonight, he added silently.

“It used to burn my ass that someone so real in that respect just fell into your fucking lap. Now I don’t care because I have a little princess of my very own who’s allowing me to shape her into my ideal partner. She’s so willing to learn it brings a tear to my fucking eye. But that stubborn streak of hers still rears its bitchy little head to thrill the hell out of me every so often. And speaking of thrilled, Andy’s going to shit bricks when he hears his mother made another friend.”

“You freak me out with this normalcy,” Alek said, only half joking.

Maks laughed and leaned his back on the limo. “Yeah. I creep Micha out, too, so you’re not alone. Now, back to your drama. Just so we don’t have to revisit this at a later date and stir the shit up again, I’m going to freak you out a little more and add my piece. Ready?”

To refuse to listen would be pointless, so Alek figuratively bent over and hoped the spank didn’t hurt too bad. “Have at her.”

“You’re intelligent enough to understand why this is what it is; now you have to get over it.”

“Do I,” Alek said wryly.

“Yup. Does hearing me say that sound as funny to you as it does to me?” Maks blew out a hard breath. “Fuck. Anyway, you must see where she was coming from when she stashed the kid. You two were talking about buying a house before you got spooked, weren’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Imagine this scenario took place, say, a couple of weeks before you two split. You searched for and found the place of her dreams—it’s not as important as a kid, but work with me here. You closed on the deal and stressed all afternoon about how to surprise her. You told her you were going to be home by six and that you’d bring dinner. You’re all fucking happy, grab a bottle of wine, maybe some flowers; the papers are in your pocket as you head up in the elevator and let yourself into your place…Sheppard has your princessa bent over the back of your sofa, fucking her good and hard. Yeah, that’s a nasty vision, huh?” he whispered, turning the knife. “Now picture her barely looking at you, hardly pausing, because she’s ‘enjoying it so much’. She doesn’t stop. Doesn’t even alter her position. Wasn’t that what Sacha saw that night? Now you tell me if you’d go running to her the next day and share your good news. Come on, brother. Don’t let this fester. Accept the loss and get past it before any more damage is done.”