Love Him Desperate (On the Market #5) - E.M. Lindsey Page 0,91
out. “God, is it always like that?”
Raphael laughed, cupping Dmitri’s face with both hands. He shook his head, nuzzling their noses together, smudging kisses along his jaw. “Nie, kleine Engel. It’s never like that. Only with you.”
Dmitri took a moment to catch his breath. Raphael could hear his deliberately slow inhales and exhales, and then his grip loosened, and he eased back. “I’m cold. And I’m exhausted. And hungry.”
Raphael grinned at him. “Help me up then. Your aunts are around the corner, and I know they’ll want to see you after last night.”
Dmitri’s face darkened, but he nodded and slipped off the boulder before he offered both hands to Raphael and got him safely to his feet. “Everyone knows, don’t they? It was such a fucking blur, but they were all there.”
“Not everyone,” Raphael said, “but most of them will have heard by this morning. I’m sorry.”
Dmitri shook his head. “They already think I’m a mess. They’ll think it was my fault, stirring up shit again.”
“If that were true,” Raphael said, stopping him with a gentle hand to his elbow, “Kyle would still have his job, and there would be no torches and no pitchforks.”
Dmitri laughed and shook his head, stepping closer to Raphael. He laid a hand at his waist, and his fingers dug into the fabric of his sweater. “It’s more complicated than that, you know.”
“I do.” Raphael released one of his crutches and cupped Dmitri’s face. “Are you okay? You never really gave me an answer to that.”
“You never really asked,” Dmitri countered, but it was more playful than hurt. “To be honest, I don’t know. I was feeling a little numb. And then…”
He was silent a moment, so Raphael ran his thumb over his cheekbone. “And then?”
“And then the person I’ve been stupid in love with for like a year kissed me, and everything feels a little off balance,” Dmitri said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Be patient with me?”
Raphael pulled him in and smudged a kiss to his jaw. “For the rest of my life.”
Dmitri nodded, laid his forehead on Raphael’s shoulder, and let his body relax. “Food?”
Raphael chuckled, then gave him a nudge. “Yes. Come on. It’s time for food.”
Chapter Sixteen
When Dmitri was in Charlie’s office after the confrontation, he stared at the ceiling fan, letting his head rock from side to side, which gave the blades the illusion of slowing. It was something he used to do as a kid whenever things got bad with his parents. He’d mentioned it to his therapist once, and she said it was similar to meditation and told him even as a traumatized youth, he had been very good at taking care of himself. He didn’t always feel like it, though. Especially right then. His hands were shaking, and he still felt like he might throw up as the echo of Kyle’s words took forever to fade.
Charlie had talked to him for a while, and when he wandered off to find Kyle, Dmitri had followed along in spite of being ordered to stay. The anxiety of not knowing was worse than seeing him, though, and he got the smallest thrill when they arrived at the service entrance in time to see James cock his fist back and punch him again.
It was harder than when Raphael had done it, and this time, there was blood spilled.
“I’m going to have you all fucking arrested,” Kyle spat through his swollen lips.
James smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. “Go for it.”
Kyle scrambled off, and James turned, looking somewhat surprised to see he had an audience, which made Dmitri feel even better, because it hadn’t been performative. James had always been angry, but having his ire on Dmitri’s behalf meant something important.
Charlie’s hand dropped to Dmitri’s shoulder for a second, then he snatched it back, and Dmitri was grateful because being touched was a lot right then. “Let me get you some water, okay?”
Dmitri nodded and took a few steps back, until he collided against a bunch of shipping crates. He sank down before he realized he was doing it, and James crouched next to him on the pavement, which was wet with melted snow and probably freezing.
“I fucking hated that guy the moment I laid eyes on him. I just wish…” He trailed off and turned his gaze upward. “I wish I had said something before. If I had stopped Charlie from hiring him, none of this would have happened.”