Page 17 of Scarred Ruin

Maybe given what little I knew about Maxsim had brought me grandiose ideas of how he lived including behind tall thick walls of stone or steel.

“Hudson. Take me back to my apartment. I’ve changed my mind.”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Dayne. I can’t do that.”

“Or what? Your boss will be pissed?”

He lifted his gaze and highlighted a hint of emotion. “Yes, ma’am.”

Evidently, Maxsim enjoyed putting the fear of God into anyone he believed deserved it.

“That’s fine. I’ll take care of it, but don’t you dare go anywhere.”

By the time he stopped the car, I’d already unfastened my seatbelt, eager to confront the handsome Russian. No, I wasn’t going to think of him that way. He’d all but gaslighted me with praise to get me to agree to working on the project.

I’d say I couldn’t figure out why except for the obvious. However, even before either incident, my firm had been engaged in conversations with the trust. Was there any chance what had occurred wasn’t coincidental?

I didn’t wait for Hudson to jump out and try to open my door. I was perfectly capable of doing that on my own. With the jacket in my hand, I moved forward.

There were two doors that could be considered the front so I chose the one with the impressive looking dark wood. Wasn’t wood a maintenance nightmare? What did it matter? He obviously had people working for him.

Case in point. By the time I made it to the deck, I’d seen two other people. One appeared to be a gardener, complete with pruning shears in his hands. However, the other was dressed similarly to Hudson only he was walking the grounds. My guess was he had a weapon hiding underneath his tee shirt.

Hudson was right behind me but didn’t try to stop me when I rang the doorbell. Music with a rocky beat was coming from somewhere.

A few seconds later, I heard footsteps.

When Maxsim opened the door himself, it was another moment of surprise. Both that he didn’t have some formal butler or maybe a house maid to open the door for him and mostly given his choice of attire. Was there some requirement that his employees mirrored the way he dressed?

Standing in faded blue jeans with knees only a couple of washes away from the thin material fraying into actual holes and a dark blue body-hugging tee shirt, he was anything but the man he’d appeared to be the night before. The deep, rich color accentuated his eyes, which happened to be peering at me with amused intensity.

Even his thick, curly hair was disheveled as if he’d been out in the wind by the ocean. To add to his seductive aura, he’d yet to shave, his angular jaw covered in dark stubble.

At least five full seconds ticked by as I allowed my gaze to fall to the tattoo on his right arm. The long, intricate snake was gorgeous, so realistic I was certain I could reach out and feel scales on the creature’s back.

It took me a few seconds to realize the reason for the art. The amazing work was covering another raw set of scars.

Seeing he was wearing boots that would rival any street gang or biker, I half expected him to also be wearing a chain around his waist, which I’d seen a number of teenagers do over the years.

He leaned against the doorway, looking past me to where Hudson was standing. “You can go, Hudson.” Afterwards, his gaze fell to the jacket I was holding. The way his eyes narrowed indicated either surprise or amusement.

To hell with him.

“You need to stay, Hudson. I’m heading back home, Maxsim. This was supposed to be lunch, not a foray into your house. If I agree to working with you and right now, I’m definitely leaning toward a big, fat no, but if I do, our relationship will be entirely professional. Do you understand me? Having lunch at your house is not professional by anyone’s standards. Take your jacket. I had it cleaned, but they couldn’t remove a couple spots of blood. I’m sorry about that.”

My nerves were evident in the sound of my voice.

Maxsim acted as if he wasn’t interested in taking what belonged to him, so I shoved it against his chest, tormented by the flow of warm air between us.

Electrified air.

At least he was forced to grasp the material to avoid the jacket tumbling to the floor. There. I’d done my civic duty. I certainly didn’t need the incredible scent of rich textured woods and well-worn leather sprinkled with a dash of Cuban cigar invading my apartment or my senses.

Both corners of his mouth upturned just before his eyes deepened in color. “Go ahead and take the SUV to the garage, Hudson. I’ll handle this from here.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Don’t you dare…” By the time I turned around, Hudson had already made it back to the SUV. When I slowly turned my head again, I glared at Maxsim.