“No,” I croak out, and one of the nurses attaches a bag of liquid to the top of the IV stand. The doctor, already in scrubs and a surgical mask, asks if I’m allergic to latex or any medication as he pulls on a pair of gloves. I have no idea where all this medical equipment came from, but my bedroom appears to have been transformed into a hospital room. Within seconds, an IV is taped to my left arm, and I’m hooked up to several monitors. When I open my eyes next, I’m in my bedroom, with the doctor and his team bustling around my gurney. I’ve never been shot before, and it’s not fun. I presume he’s explaining what happened, but I’m in too much pain to care either way. Squeezing my eyes shut, I focus on breathing and not passing out as I’m wheeled inside the house, with Nikolai barking orders to the medical team in between speaking Russian to Alina and Lyudmila. Though he’s careful, the movement sends a stab of nauseating pain through my arm, and the distant mountain peaks spin in a sickening circle in my vision as he gently places me on the gurney. Pavel jumps out of the car first, opening the door for us, and a wave of dizziness crashes into me as Nikolai climbs out, holding me clasped against his chest.

I can see the monster underneath his beautiful façade. “Just a few seconds longer, zaychik,” he murmurs, smoothing back my hair, and a shudder ripples through me as my eyes meet his tiger-bright gaze. His taste lingers on my tongue, my lips throbbing from his kiss, and as much as I want to deny it, dread isn’t the only emotion filling the pit of my stomach at the thought of him keeping me here against my will. His powerful arms are wrapped around me, securing me against his large body, and even though I’ve just seen him kill two men, I can’t help but derive comfort from his touch, his warmth, his familiar cedar-and-bergamot scent. All my senses are consumed by the man holding me possessively on his lap. Behind them is Alina, Nikolai’s sister, her beautiful face pale and worried. A man and two women in hospital scrubs-presumably the medical team Nikolai mentioned-are waiting for us on the driveway with a gurney. The thought loops through my pain-dazed mind as the car rolls to a stop in front of Nikolai’s ultra-modern mountain mansion.

Note: This is the conclusion of Nikolai and Chloe’s story. Because no matter how far I delve into the enigma of his past, I still don’t know the answer to the most crucial question: or fight his growing hold on my heart and mind. If only I could resist his lethally seductive touch. Nikolai Molotov is as much my captor as he is my protector, his compound both my safe haven and my gilded cage. Back in the devil’s lair, I’m at the mercy of a man who fascinates and terrifies me, a tender killer whose obsession with me is growing by the day.

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