Stay Close Read online

  Stay Close

  By Alexa Riley

  New York Times and #1 ebook bestselling author Alexa Riley returns with Stay Close, the first novella in a brand-new series spinning off from the bestselling For Her books.

  A former Russian mafia soldier is hired to protect a friend’s young daughter, but he knows he’ll do more than keep her safe—he’ll make her his. Forever.

  If she were to simply whisper my name, I would be at her feet, begging to touch what I shouldn’t, taste what doesn’t belong to me, run my hands along the sweet innocence she taunts me with.

  Penelope Justice is eighteen, old enough to graduate high school but—according to her parents—not old enough to live without 24/7 security. Practice has made her an expert at ditching her bodyguards. One look at Ivan and she never wants to run again.

  I’ve been hired to protect her.

  I can’t help but think that perhaps someone should have protected her from me.

  Ivan steals the breath right out of her lungs, something no boy has ever done. Then again, he’s far from a boy. This man, this man who looks like he could kill someone with the flick of a wrist, is everything. He is her future.

  I can’t let her go and I won’t give her up. I’ve done bad things in my life, and I don’t deserve her. But I can’t do the honorable thing.

  I’ve never been noble, and I’m not starting now.

  This book is approximately 23,000 words

  Edited by Angela James

  One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!

  Dedication

  For Daisy... We miss you every day.

  Dear Reader,

  As book lovers, no matter how much we want our favorite stories to go on forever, we know that eventually they will come to an end. The same is sadly true of my monthly letter to you. While I know some of you do look forward to this letter, we’ve decided that we can no longer continue to include it for some practical reasons, which I don’t want to bore you with. So this will be my last letter to you all. But never fear, the good books will continue to come every month and that is what’s most important!

  Still, I get one last chance to tell you all about the amazing books we have in store for you, and I’m going to take full advantage of the opportunity. Are you ready?

  Powerhouse author duo Alexa Riley follows up their bestselling full-length novels Everything for Her and His Alone with a trilogy of spin-off novellas. First up, in Stay Close, a Russian bad boy will do whatever it takes to conquer her headstrong ways and make her his. And don’t miss the next two novellas, releasing later in 2017 and early in 2018, as well as their third full-length novel, Claimed, coming in spring 2018.

  At Noble House, a first-of-its-kind hybrid fetish club that blends real life with the online, three lovers reunite to explore role play and high-tech toys as they battle demons from the past that could threaten their future. Sara Brookes’s Get Off Easy is only the first in her supercharged erotic romance series, Noble House Kink.

  The male/male romance Ethan & Wyatt trilogy by K.A. Mitchell is now available in one volume in mass market print, audio and digital formats. Opposites attract and ignite on campus as optimistic, open-hearted and sometimes clueless Ethan meets Wyatt, who has plenty of reasons for hiding under his hoodie. Together they face a jealous ex, disapproving parents and the most dangerous test of all: real life together off campus.

  Hot in the City author Jules Court is back with her third contemporary romance novella, Tease Me Tonight. Elizabeth Owens spent the last eight years as the responsible and celibate guardian of her little sister, but now Megan’s left the nest, and Elizabeth’s ready to let her wild side out with firefighter Will MacGregor. The only problem is Will wants a connection with Elizabeth that will last longer than one steamy night, and he knows if he gives in too soon to their attraction he’ll lose her. You can also pick up Hot in the City and Enticing the Enemy in digital, wherever Carina ebooks are sold.

  In Betrayed by Blood, the second installment in Beth Dranoff’s romantic urban fantasy Mark of the Moon series, covert agent turned bartender Dana is drawn back to her Agency past by an offer she can’t refuse from a guy she never thought she’d see again. Lured by curiosity, and torn between freedom and restraint, Dana has to decide whether she’s ready to look to the future while leaving the scars of her past behind.

  Romantic suspense author Katie Ruggle, writing as Katie Allen, joins Carina Press with the first of several erotic romance backlist releases leading up to her fall 2017 new erotic romance release. In her Research & Desire series, we’ll publish Erotic Experiments, Natural Selection, Carnal Chemistry and Double Dose in back-to-back months from July through October. Then look for book one of her new series in November 2017.

  Ten years after he rejected her, the Seduction Squad’s newest recruit, Christie Mason, finally has the chance to get her revenge on Theo Ward, but there are some fantasies that are best left in the past and some taboos that should never be explored in Seduction Squad: Tainted by Amanda Stewart.

  Robyn Bachar’s Contingency Plan is the next in her sci-fi romance series, The Galactic Cold War. Privateer pilot Lieutenant Jiang Chen searches for the location of a terrible superweapon, but when the mission threatens to reveal the dangerous secrets of her past, Jiang’s only ally is sexy chief of security Ryder Kalani, who is battling demons of his own. Start with book one, Relaunch Mission, today!

  Fans of TV show The 100 will want to read Zaide Bishop’s Bones of Eden series. Releasing in three volumes in July and August, these continuing stories have it all, from forbidden love to war to a race for survival. First Fall comes out in early July, followed by Second Heart later in July and Third Wave in August.

  That’s all for our dear reader letters, but please follow us on social media—Twitter or Facebook—or sign up for our reader newsletter to be kept informed about all our great reads in the future.

  For one final time, fellow readers and book lovers, here’s wishing you a wonderful life of books you love, remember and recommend.

  Happy reading!

  ~Angela James

  Editorial Director, Carina Press

  Contents

  Prologue: Ivan

  Chapter One: Penelope

  Chapter Two: Ivan

  Chapter Three: Penelope

  Chapter Four: Ivan

  Chapter Five: Penelope

  Chapter Six: Ivan

  Chapter Seven: Penelope

  Chapter Eight: Ivan

  Chapter Nine: Penelope

  Chapter Ten: Ivan

  Chapter Eleven: Penelope

  Chapter Twelve: Ivan

  Chapter Thirteen: Penelope

  Epilogue: Penelope

  Epilogue: Ivan

  Also by Alexa Riley

  About the Author

  Prologue

  Ivan

  She loves to dance.

  Her small body moves with the dark beat of the bass as I throw back a shot of vodka. There is no burn when the liquid warmth hits my tongue and melts down my throat. I clench the glass because I can’t put my hands where I want them.

  The seductive curve of her waist as it cascades to the flare of her hips... I watch transfixed when t
hey move side to side. Side to side. Her body is like the pendulum inside a grandfather clock, and I can’t look away.

  The music is deafening, but if she were to simply whisper my name, I would be at her feet, begging to touch what I shouldn’t, taste what doesn’t belong to me, run my hands along the sweet innocence she taunts me with. An innocence I shouldn’t want but crave. Something so pure and untouched like nothing I’ve ever known before.

  Slamming the glass down on the bar, I’m both disappointed and relieved when it doesn’t break. Maybe the cut of the glass could cool the feelings I have pulsing though me but I doubt it. Not with her. I’m not sure anything ever could. I would welcome a pain that’s greater than my ache for her. For there is nothing more powerful than the spell she has me under.

  I’ve been hired to protect her.

  But as I push away from the bar and walk towards her, I can’t help but think that perhaps someone should have protected her from me.

  Chapter One

  Penelope

  I lean up against the wall in the hallway, trying to determine what’s being said inside my mom and dad’s office. I’ve been standing out here for over twenty minutes and can’t make out a word. In fact, I’m not even sure they’re speaking English. I saw the man who came to have a meeting with them shortly after dinner. It was odd because my parents never bring their work home. The moment my eyes met his, something funny happened inside me. He stole the breath right out of my lungs, something no boy had ever done before.

  It might have to do with the fact that he was far from a boy. That beast was all man, maybe even something more. A man who looked like he could kill someone with the flick of his wrist. And the weirdest part—how could someone who looked so menacing draw me in? Call to something deep inside me. Something that I didn’t even know was there until I saw him.

  My parents run the entire security and protection division for one the top companies in the world, so I’ve been around a lot of people who look deadly. My sister and I have whispered that we think at one time our father worked undercover for the government. At least that’s what Pandora, my twin, thinks. I believe her, because Pandora notices everything. You can’t get much past her.

  This guy seems dark and deadly, from his eyes that are so brown they’re almost black, to his jet-black hair that’s been buzzed short. It looks like he doesn’t have the time—or the inclination—to do anything with it. The way he walked in and how he held himself makes me think he doesn’t give much thought to how he looks. Someone like him doesn’t care what others think, and that kind of confidence is sexy. It’s different than what I’m used to with the boys at school. That difference draws me to him.

  I caught sight of tattoos that ran along his knuckles and hands before disappearing under his coat. Then they peeked out again, up around the collar of his jacket, making me think that most of his big body was covered in ink. And the man was big.

  He wasn’t like most of the men who work for my dad. They look like they could take you in a fight, but they’re always clean-cut and in suits. Not this man. I don’t know what it was about him, but I was drawn to him instantly.

  He isn’t my normal type, not that I really have a type at all. I’m only eighteen, so I’m not sure I’ve decided that yet. The boys I talk to at school would fall under the preppy category, but that’s pretty much every guy there. It’s private and caters to kids with some of the richest parents in New York City. No one there is running around with tattoos covering their body.

  “Not this one, Penny.”

  I jump a little at my sister’s soft words. She’s standing next to me with her back against the wall as well, as if she’s been there the whole time.

  “How do you do that?” I whisper at her. Jesus. Everyone in this freaking house is like a spy or something. They move around like cats, never making a noise. When I move, people don’t normally miss me coming. I’m loud and pretty clumsy.

  She shoots me a smirk, and I roll my eyes. She reaches out her hand and links it with mine. “You weren’t in bed.”

  “Because I’m spying,” I whisper a little too loudly and cringe at myself.

  I’m sure I’m doing a terrible job at sneaking around. You’d think living with Pandora and my parents, I would have picked up some tricks. But I should have known my sister would catch me. We’re twins and have had our own rooms since we turned thirteen, but she still ends up in my bed most nights. She doesn’t sleep well when she’s alone. I like it, though. Pandora has always been the strong one, even when we were growing up. She gives no shits, whereas I’m the girly girl who gets her feelings hurt about everything. But at the end of the day, Pandora is still the one crawling into my bed. It makes me feel like I also have a way of making her feel safe. Just like she always did with me growing up. From school playgrounds to asshole boys, Pandora was always there to put someone in their place.

  “They probably know you’re out here,” she whispers back, and I shrug.

  I don’t care. I want another look at the dark stranger. Something about him has piqued my curiosity, and I feel drawn to him. Maybe it’s the mystery, or maybe it’s that he seems like a challenge. It could be that while I find the darkness in his eyes sexy, they still seem a little lonely. My weakness is seeing someone else hurting, and I caught a glimpse of that. It calls to me.

  “Not him, Penny. Stick to the boys at school.”

  I look over at her. We look exactly the same, but I have my father’s green eyes and Pandora has our mother’s deep blue eyes. We’re both built like her, though. We’re both petite with small features and deep red hair. Our eyes are really the only way to tell us apart. That is, until one of us opens our mouth. Then it’s easy to tell who’s who.

  I feel warmth hit my cheeks. I’m not shocked she knew I was standing out here trying to get another look at him, but I’m still a little embarrassed. I’ve always been a little boy crazy, but it never lasts long. I crush for a second and then jump on to the next. For some reason, when I know they like me back, I lose interest fast. Pandora always jokes that I’m in love with having a crush, and once the crush is gone, so am I.

  “Something feels off. I can’t put my finger on it, but he’s rough around the edges. You need someone sweet.”

  She’s right. Something does feel different with him, but it’s a kind of different I don’t want to stay away from. As crazy as it sounds I think he’s mine. I don’t know why but when I saw him, it was all I could think.

  “Fuck,” she mumbles, probably reading my face.

  The door to our parents’ office opens, making us both jump away from the wall. Our mom stands in the doorway, her hands on her hips. “What are you two doing?”

  “I wanted to see if we could stay late after school tomorrow to study for finals,” Pandora says quickly.

  She’s fast on her toes to cover up for us. She’s always been that way, even when we were little. I would get a bright idea, like covering our room in sparkles, and she’d tell me not to. Then I would do it anyway, because, well, I have terrible impulse control, and when we’d get busted she’d always say it was her idea. Always my protector.

  She squeezes my hand, still locked in hers.

  Mom rolls her eyes, clearly not believing her. My gaze goes to the shadow behind her. He’s looking right at me. My heart jumps into my throat. I can’t look away from him. Pandora gives my hand another hard squeeze, silently telling me to stop staring. Finally I drop my eyes from his, instantly missing the connection.

  “Fine. Your dad and I have a meeting tomorrow and will be working late. Your security will be waiting outside the school for the both of you.”

  “I want to go for a run after,” I tell her.

  I’ve been stuck with Pandora and her security guard since I ditched my last one. Dad made me stick with Pandora’s security and got rid of mine for losing me the las
t time. I should have felt bad, but the guy totally gave me the creeps. He’d always find ways to touch me, and the touches started to linger a little too long.

  I love my family, but all of them want to keep me in Bubble Wrap. They aren’t even like this with Pandora. Everyone thinks I’m the soft one, which is probably true. I’m not into self-defense, and I really don’t care about anything pertaining to safety and security. I’m into cooking, dressing up, dancing and singing at the top of my lungs. And probably boys. But after today, I’m crossing boys off that list. Men. One man in particular is climbing to the top of that list.

  “Well, you’re in luck. We found you a new bodyguard.” My mom glances over her shoulder at my new obsession, and my heart rate spikes. I could not be this lucky. I glance over and see his eyes are still on me, but I can’t read his face with so little light. “Penelope, this is Ivan. I don’t think you’ll be able to lose this one.”

  My mom smirks, and I have to bite my lip to keep from smiling. Ivan is most definitely a man I won’t try to run from.

  I hear Pandora mumble “fuck” under her breath as his dark eyes narrow on me.

  Chapter Two

  Ivan

  I tighten the laces on my shoes and then tuck my knife into the strap at my ankle. I cover it up with the leg of my slacks and then walk over to the closet to grab a shirt.

  I’ve moved into the guest house at the Justices’, although it would be hard to consider this anything but a mansion. There are two other personal bodyguards covering the family, but they maintain residence elsewhere and only stay the night out here when necessary.

  The guest quarters are within walking distance to the main house but still offer some privacy. Originally I didn’t want to move onto the property, but Paige said I owed her. Which is true.

  I was raised in Renza, Russia, just outside Moscow. I did labor on the railways there as a young boy until one of the older guys came around one day looking for runners. I didn’t know at the time what that meant, but he offered up money, and I knew exactly what that was.