Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 56280 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 281(@200wpm)___ 225(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56280 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 281(@200wpm)___ 225(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
When she finally regained her senses and managed to catch her breath, the billionaire had already scooped her off her back and was now arranging her on her fours.
“S-Sergei?”
He positioned himself behind her.
Again? She twisted her head around to gape at him, saying weakly, “It’s too much.”
He ran a hand lovingly down her back, but instead of answering he simply thrust his engorged erection inside her, his cock plunging so deep inside it shoved her forward and she gasped.
“I’ve only fucking started, pchelka.” And when she felt him pressing her toy to her clit once more, she knew it was true. The fun was getting started, and it would be torture, pure, beautiful, excruciating torture.
It was over an hour later by the time Sergei left for work, and he only did so when he had helped Fredericka take a bath, told her sternly to rest, and kissed her on the forehead before tucking her in.
She did as asked even without planning to because this, too, was another inevitable change that pregnancy had brought in. She was just so damn sleepy all the time.
It was half-past ten when she woke up, and only because one of the live-in maids employed by the Grachyovs had gently woken her up, telling her that she had a visitor.
Remembering that her cousin had flown in to visit her and was due today, she hastily got up and asked the maid to take Alyx to her office. Upon moving in, Sergei had told her explicitly the first day that he would not let her have her own room. Instead, he would give Fredericka her own home library, and she could do with it as she saw fit.
Alyx grinned in relief when the door burst open and her redheaded cousin came rushing in. “You look fantastic,” she exclaimed as she gave Fredericka a rare tight hug. She would never admit it, but she had worried greatly about her cousin. “You’re practically glowing,” Alyx continued admiringly. “Does this mean everything’s going great with you and your Russian boy toy?”
“Alyx!”
“Your Russian billionaire, I mean?”
“Alyx!”
“How about trophy husband?”
“No!”
“Then what about—-” When Fredericka growled, she said laughingly, “Okay, okay, just answer the question. Are you happy with Sergei?”
“Yes.” But her voice came out strangled. “I’m really happy. With him. His family.” And without warning, Fredericka burst into tears. “I’m happy when I should feel suffocated, and it’s not right. I think I should leave him.”
Chapter Fifteen
“Self-sabotage,” Alyx declared half an hour later. They were at the Grachyovs’ garden, enjoying juice in porcelain teacups and a tiered-tray filled with an assortment of sweets that would have made the Duchess of Cambridge proud. Fredericka had tried asking for tea, but since that was bad for her, this was the next best thing.
“It’s a defense mechanism,” Alyx continued, “brought about by feelings of insecurity and fear. You’ve lived all your life alone and afraid of commitment, and now that you are in a relationship—-”
“I am?”
“Yes, you are, don’t bother denying it.”
“But I didn’t take his ring.”
“It’s just a matter of time, and we both know that, too, so stop lying to yourself. Let’s get back to the real issue at hand, and that’s you about to do something stupid and crazy so you could justify your paranoia.”
“You sound like a shrink,” Fredericka accused.
Alyx popped a macaroon into her mouth, saying, “That’s because I am. I minored in psychology, remember?” Her eyes closed as she savored the mouthwatering taste of the Grachyovs’ home-baked macaroons. Jesus Christ, these were so ridiculously yummy, it was a good thing she didn’t live here or she’d end up gaining a thousand pounds.
When she opened her eyes, it was to see that her cousin was nibbling depressingly on a scone, and Alyx sighed. “You have a really great thing going here and you know it. Don’t let your paranoia – and the past – win. Only an idiot does that, and you didn’t survive this long by being an idiot.”
Fredericka shook her head with a wry smile. “You really have a unique way of words, Alyx.”
“As long as I make sense, you have no reason to complain.”
“True.” She sighed. “And I know you’re right.” Fredericka squared her shoulders. “So no more thoughts about leaving.” For now, she added silently.
Alyx’s gaze narrowed at her cousin’s face, thinking pregnancy has completely lowered Fredericka’s defenses. She was ridiculously easy to read now, and she saw that Fredericka was still entertaining thoughts of leaving.
I’ll text Sergei about it and then it’s up to him, Alyx decided. But for now, she decided to change the subject, asking, “Have you seen the Beasts article?”
Fredericka flushed. “Yes, and I’m so sorry.” Some anonymous entrepreneurial tabloid writer had written an article titled Fredericka Spears’ Six Degrees of Beasts, and the humorous piece had gone viral as soon as it went live. The article showed how all six “beasts” were related to Fredericka, and the list included Sergei Grachyov, the Russian Beast, as the father of her unborn child, Marco Ravelli – the Italian Beast – because he was married to her friend Anneke, Jeremy Al Rashid – the Arabian Beast – because he was Sergei’s business partner, Nathan – the Greek Beast – because he was going out with Alyx, her cousin, and finally Christien – the French Beast – because he recently ended up being her client.