like he was a good man. I don’t know many of those. You have to understand that I do my father’s dirty work, but only within the Bratva. I wouldn’t take out a witness. No innocents. He knows that now. I paid the price.”
He probably didn’t want to know how much that had cost her. He ran his hand along the long scar on her shoulder. God, that did something for him, too. She wasn’t delicate or perfect. Her skin showed the tale of her life like his did. She was fucking damaged, and it was somehow beautiful to him. “No one’s innocent, Charlie. Not in our world.”
She was in his world. She knew exactly who he was and who he was working for. It would be good to know how Denisovitch had come by that knowledge. Yeah, that was why he would sleep with her. Sure.
He moved behind her, and she stiffened slightly. Damn, she didn’t like not being able to see him, but she kept her position. How many men had come at her from behind, wanting to take what wasn’t theirs? How sweet would it be if a woman like this trusted him, gave to him? “Do you have a contract on me?”
She shook her head and then sighed as he moved her hair to the side and traced the line of her spine down to the top of the corset. “No.”
“Are you going to use me for information?” He couldn’t help it. He was going to do this, and there wasn’t a reason to wait. He pulled the knife from his boot. He always kept one there. “I’m going to take off this corset now. I would offer to pay for the laces, but I think you can buy new ones. I bet your dad pays pretty well. Answer my question.”
He eased the knife under the bottom of the laces and carefully drew it up, releasing the corset.
Her body shuddered as though deeply grateful for the relief. “I’m not using you for information. At least not the kind from the CIA.”
He pulled the corset off her and stared at her back, fascinated by the scars he found there. The corset had been laced tight, and it left grooves in her skin, red marks that told him she could handle discomfort. The angry scars told him she’d handled pain before. Like he had. Had he met his natural match? The female yin to his yang? “What other kind do I have that you would be interested in?”
She seemed to think about that for a moment. The lucky thing for her was despite the fact that his dick was hard as a rock, he could be patient. The patient man tended to win the prize. He moved around to face her again. Yep, those tits were phenomenal. He hadn’t been making them out to be more than they were. They were big and soft, and her nipples were pink and brown and hard as pebbles.
“I want you to teach me.”
He could barely breathe. She was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. “Teach you what?”
Her eyes met his. “D/s.”
He reached over and picked up the crop he’d placed on the end of the bed moments before. He wouldn’t give her new scars. He would never do that, but she would still be able to feel him tomorrow. Every time she moved, she would feel the ache he’d given her, and it would remind her of the pleasure he intended to give her as well. When they’d both earned it. “You’ve had two Doms.”
“Only one I’ve had sex with.” Her eyes were on the crop, and she licked across her lips as though she couldn’t wait.
It made his cock pulse in his leathers, but he wanted plain language from her. “D/s doesn’t require sex. What are your really asking me to teach you, baby?”
He had a feeling. All those scars didn’t add up to anything good. She’d known pain. She lived what had to be an insulated life. What could he teach her?
“I heard you’re good in bed,” she said, her eyes on the floor in front of him. “I want to know what’s it like. I want to know how it feels to have a man bring me pleasure. I’m not saying he didn’t try. Well, not very hard. He was a Bratva man.”
He brought the crop up to touch the bottom of her chin, gently easing her up to meet his gaze. “Charlie, are you here to distract