Page 57 of Scarred Ruin

She wasn’t daunted by the stalemate, inching closer. I had to give the woman credit for her chutzpa. I had a feeling the Russian gangster wasn’t used to being confronted by a curly-haired dynamo.

“Why don’t I just call you Thor. How about that? What do you think, Izzy? Doesn’t he look like a Thor? I mean it would better if he was in a loincloth, but I’ll take what I can get.”

“Maybe we should get back to work,” I told her while fighting laughter.

He was unhappy with being confronted, but the only way I sensed the change in his mood was by the shift of attention to my friend and the hard clench of his angular jaw.

“We will.” She dared place her hand on his chest, leaning in. “Not before I share with this big, handsome lug of a man that women can actually take care of themselves. See that chick over there? She has a black belt in karate and I assure you that she can take your fine ass down with one hand tied behind her back.” She ran her hand across his chest to his hip.

Shockingly, he didn’t try to stop her.

As she backed away, she blew him a kiss and spun around with a flip of her hair.

I held my tongue until we were out of earshot of the man. He wasn’t happy at all. “Why did you do that?”

“Because I wanted to make certain he wasn’t easily distracted. For whatever reason your handsome Russian wants you protected, you should take it seriously. He had two guns strapped to him and I think I detected the outline of a knife although he had it too close to his crotch to feel comfortable reaching for it.”

“You were cruising for weapons?” I was in awe.

“Yep. Something my brother taught me to do since we grew up on our own. I’ll teach you. You should talk to Maxsim about what’s going on.”

“I don’t want to be a part of his world.”

“You may not want to be, but you already are.”

* * *

Hope’s statement remained with me as I headed back to the office, burning a hole in my mind as I noticed the soldier had no intention of keeping his distance. Was it possible Maxsim had experienced another attack?

I made it to the elevator before the men moved into the building, taking a deep breath as soon as the doors closed. At least I could use the excuse of needing to discuss business when I called Maxsim.

By the time the elevator doors opened again, I was angrier than before, furious I’d been placed in a position to need bodyguards.

Which of course meant I couldn’t rest on my laurels much longer. I’d need to confront Maxsim, requiring he share with me the level of danger I was in. Next, he’d have his men knocking on my door to install security cameras.

As unacceptable as everything else about the man and his need to control my life.

As soon as I walked in, I instantly knew something was off by the way the receptionist offered a smug smile before reaching for her phone. Soon after came a wink from one of the other architects in the firm.

What the hell was going on?

I made the turn onto the last corridor when my senses were suddenly electrified. A sudden, intoxicating scent caught me off guard, thick with the perfume of countless blooming things. It was a complex, velvety collision of spicy florals and soft, powdery undertones.

Someone had received a bouquet of flowers.

My steps leading to my office were slower and shorter, but I couldn’t stop fate in its entirety. With my office door open, I noticed the huge vase first merely because the tall, artistic crystal piece danced prisms across the surface of my desk from the shimmer of early afternoon sun.

They were stunning. There was no other word adequate for the elaborate bouquet. The flowers caught the afternoon light as well, a breathtaking cascade of pristine white blooms.

“Roses.” I don’t know why I’d whispered the single word, but doing so felt appropriate. As I walked closer, I was well aware there had to be at least three dozen in the crystal vase.

They were absolutely flawless. A dense, cloud-like arrangement of ivory roses that commanded the entire room. There was a crisp, poetic elegance to them, which didn’t fit thoughts of the rugged man. Yet the stark contrast of the rich green foliage against the pearlescent white petals felt like a refined, classic statement of intent.

Maybe the man did have a romantic bone in his body.

My eyes fell to a card located in a holder in the front and even before I dared walk closer, I was well aware of who’d sent them.

I’d barely snatched the note from the holder when Julie appeared. I noticed her reflection in the glass. “Secret admirer? Oh, wait. Let me guess and the first two don’t count. Mr. Aristov?”