Chapter 7 I swipe my hands down my leggings, hoping that I made the right clothing choices. Most nannies dress for getting down on the floor and playing with children, but Dimitri's home is not most places. And he is not most men. A fact of which I've become intimately aware. My stomach turns as I enter the lobby of his building. The doorman doesn't ask me any questions this time. Instead, without a single word, but with a friendly smile, he moves to the elevator, opening the door. As I go to step in, he holds out his hand, a key dangling from his fingers. I open mine, palm up, the cool key dropping into my hand as I close my fingers. "In case you enter the building and I'm attending another resident," he says with a nod. "It only works on this elevator and only you, me, Trent, and Mr. Ivanov have a key." I'm honestly surprised Dimitri already trusts me with a key. I have no idea who Trent is, but I'm sure I'll meet him soon enough if he's one of the few key-holders. The tiniest bit of guilt slides through me at the level of faith Dimitri has shown. But I stiffen my spine and nod back to the doorman before stepping into the elevator. I heft my duffle bag higher on my shoulder, determined to look like I belong. I don't really travel, so I've never bothered with nice luggage, but right about now, I wish I'd bought something newer than this old beat-up duffle I carried from one shitty foster home to the next through high school. I blow out a breath, trying to dispel the nerves that are making my muscles tense. Seeing Dimitri today feels like so many layers of strange, I don't even know where to start. I had phone sex with the leader of the Las Vegas Bratva, and then took a position in his house as his nanny so that I can track my lost friend. Jesus, that's messed up. Even worse, I'm going to have to control both my attraction and my panic while in his company, all while hiding my real reason for being there. Easy peasy. At least Anna is the cutest little thing I've ever seen. That part will actually be easy. And maybe my panic will be a natural wall to place between us. The elevator slides open as I try to paste a smile on my face. Dimitri must hear the doors, because he appears a moment later, devastating in a crisp white dress shirt and slacks. The smile slides right off my face, my jaw falling open as I stare. "Milaya," he rumbles, Anna appearing at his side, grabbing onto his pant leg. "Aya," Anna points with a smile. Despite all the anxiety I had leading up to this moment, Anna mixing my real name and Dimitri's nickname, melts my heart. I slide to the floor, sitting on the marble as my bag sags next to me. "Anna," I coo back. "I'm so glad to be here with you." She smiles and then starts for me. "See my dolls?" I reach out a hand, letting her little hand fold into mine. "I'd love to see your dolls." I stand again, keeping her hand in mine as she leads me to her room. Looking back, I catch Dimitri picking up my bag and easily slinging it onto his shoulder. I hide the wince to see that beat-up, dirty thing against his Italian wool slacks. Instead, I focus on the little girl pulling me down the hall. We turn into her room, a large dollhouse sitting in the corner. Dimitri doesn't follow, taking my bag into my temporary room instead. I can't believe I'm going to live with him. It's insane. My boss is furious. I'm supposed to place nannies, not become one. I had to promise to forgo my next three vacations and keep up with all my regular work while I did this. Anna squats down in front of the wooden structure, intricate in every detail. It's built with center hinges so that it can be opened and closed to reveal the entire inside. It's open now, exposing all the rooms within the house, the furniture, and the dolls. "It's beautiful," I gush, dropping down on my knees next to her, to look inside. Anna grins, reaching inside. "See this?" She's pointing to the baby room, which looks a great deal like her own. "Wow." I touch the doll bed coverlet, the material a plush velvet. She grabs up all the dolls. There is a little girl. A daddy. A grandma. A mother and a little baby boy. Anna places the daddy in the office. "Daddy goes there." I hide my smile. "What are you grinning at?" Dimitri rumbles sliding down next to me. I stiffen again, and then chide myself to remember to relax. My body cannot give away my every feeling. "At least she didn't set the daddy doll in the bathroom." He rumbles out a laugh and I find myself relaxing. I know what I know about him. About who he is and what he's done. But I also know that he isn't likely to hurt me here or now. What he'll do if he finds out the real reason I'm here is a worry I'll have to consider later. "Not right," Anna holds out the mother doll to Dimitri. "Why not, my little love?" he asks taking the doll and turning her over in his hand. Anna touches my hair. "Hair is yellow." Does she want a doll version of me? My brows shoot up and my heart twists. I slide my hand over the dark silky strands of her ponytail. Whatever I do, I have to make certain Anna is not hurt in all of this. She's an innocent in every way. Dimitri takes the doll in his hand, his thumb sliding down the doll's synthetic hair. "You want a doll with yellow hair?" "Yes." Anna nods. Dimitri hands the doll back to Anna, kissing her chubby little cheek. "I'll see what I can do." He gets up again, leaving the room, but returns a minute later with several sheets of paper in hand. Sitting next to me, he stretches out on the thick carpet, his long legs looking lean and sexy in his dress slacks. On my other side, Anna starts to babble about how the baby needs to go to sleep but all I can do is watch Dimitri from the corner of my eye. "This is a list of daily activities for Anna. They are color-coded by ones you need to attend, and ones that are drop off like pre-school. Home visits are in green. I've provided all addresses and contact information, but I have a driver who knows all the locations and travel times for you." He hands me the sheets. "This is very organized." Apparently illegal activity takes a lot of planning. Makes sense when I think about it. "Thank you," he chuckles. "I'm going to work from the apartment today so that you can ask any questions you might have throughout your first day." I scan over the pages, relief making my shoulders sag. There are several spots in each day that Anna is at school or engaged with other services. "Anna has a speech therapist?" I catch a slight grimace on Dimitri's face. "Between the two languages spoken at home and her mother's..." He looks away. "She's been very slow to speak. But she's catching up now and doing a wonderful job." He gives Anna a soft smile. "Aya," Anna curls her hand a couple times, calling me forward. "This doll. Baby. Needs bed." "You want me to put the baby to bed?" I ask, leaning forward. I hear Dimitri's soft growl and turn back to realize that in bending over, my butt is really close to his face. He's staring at the roundness of my ass in leggings, his gaze dark in a way that makes me sit back up, a little zing of tension making me stiff. "How should I put the baby to bed?" "Sing," Anna giggles. Then she hands me the mother doll. "Rock in the chair." I set the dolls up, having no choice but to bend again. I don't look back, and Dimitri doesn't make a sound, but I can still feel the tension radiating off him. Even worse, I respond, growing damp between my thighs. Which means, this time the tension is not fear... I do as Anna requested, slowly rocking the tiny chair in the dollhouse and sing. Anna joins me humming away. That's when Dimitri touches the small of my back. It's a light brush of his fingers, and in his relaxed position, stretched out on the floor, it doesn't frighten me at all. In fact, I pulse with need even stronger than I felt before last night. It's like now that my body's had a taste... His phone rings, interrupting the moment. He pulls himself up, taking the phone from his pocket. "Hello?" Immediately, he begins speaking Russian as he leaves the room. I stay with Anna, playing with various toys until an hour later, when the speech therapist arrives. As soon as they're settled, I dart to my room and fire off a series of texts to potential candidates for Anna's full-time nanny. I'd like to keep the search moving so Dimitri doesn't suspect why I'm really here. With that in mind, I slip from my room, making my way deeper down the hall. I know Dimitri's room is here along with his office. His door his partially open, his deep baritone rumbling into the hall. "I know what I've told them, and what I haven't. But it's time to be honest. I need the Kincaids and the Smiths if I'm going to take him down." Take him down? What does that even mean? It doesn't sound good. "Make it happen. Tonight, if you can." Then he hangs up. I hear the squeak of his chair, and I realize my mistake. I'm about to be caught eavesdropping. I start down the hall, glad for the leggings and sneakers. But even at a run, I hear his door softly swing wider and I spin back toward him, like I'm just coming out of my room. "Milaya," he says in that voice that never fails to send sparks shooting through me. "Is Anna with the speech therapist?" "Yes," I nod with the manic energy of someone who is trying to cover her real intentions. "Is there something I should do while she's receiving services?" He shakes his head. "The time is yours." He stops in front of me, his eyes devouring me and my breath catches as I try to decide if the emotion pulsing through me is still fear or if it's just attraction. Both? He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a card. "The day after tomorrow, Anna has preschool for four hours. I took the liberty of making you an appointment." And then he hands me the card and I stare at it, trying to understand what's just been handed to me. "An appointment for what?" "She's a leading therapist who specializes in trauma like yours." I stare at the card and then at him. "I'm...I...what?" "If you don't want to attend, I understand. But it's an excellent opportunity to speak with someone about your past. Your fear." He leans over and places a light kiss on my forehead, before he straightens again. "Anna's favorite snacks are bananas, goldfish crackers, apples, and club crackers." Then he turns and heads back to his office. He got me a therapist? This is the man who is holding my friend captive or worse... I look down at the card. There must be some kind of mistake. Then again, my past has taught me that men are rarely what they seem. I've got to be so careful with Dimitri Ivanov.