Chapter 11

My ass hurts.

That was the first thought that crept into Kenzie's head when she woke up. Bright sunlight shone through the windowpanes where the curtains had been pulled to the sides. She winced as she sat up and pushed the covers back. The sheets were heavy and softtoo softand the room she was in was lavishly decorated with antique furniture, not the cheap IKEA stuff from her apartment. A trickle, then a flood of embarrassing memories came back to her. She covered her face in her hands.

Oh my God, I let my professor spank me last night. In front of his friends.

She peeked between her fingers, checking to make sure the room was in fact empty. It was. Then she slipped out of bed and dashed to the bathroom. Her toiletry bag sat on the counter. Hans had been really thorough when he'd retrieved her stuff. She hastily brushed her teeth before she had the courage to tug down the pajama pants and look at her ass in the mirror.

It was a light-pink shade and still incredibly sensitive. Every time she sat down today she was going to remember being bent over that pool table, cuffed, and spanked. How humiliating. And yet

And I'm going to Russia. It'd been worth it for that. She knew last night that she had to go. She was wrapped up in this thing now and couldn't let Royce face this alone. She couldn't stay here when she knew what he would be facing. It didn't seem right to just sit back like some idiot damsel in distress when she could help him somehow. She'd find a way to justify going, but at least for now, she was relying on her instincts, and her instincts told her she had to go with him.

You only live once, right?

She stared at the mirror and took a brush out of her bag, running it through the tangled brown strands of her hair before she pulled it up into a ponytail. She needed to shower and change, but first she needed to call her parents and let them know she was leaving for Russia. She pulled her laptop from her backpack and turned it on. Her mom would be making coffee right now in the kitchen, checking her emails on the computer. When she called them via her webcam, she watched the little green phone icon vibrate on the screen.

Her mother's face appeared on the screen, a coffee mug in her hands. "Hello?"

"Hey, Mom! I'm glad I caught you. Is Dad around?"

"Andrew? Come in here, honey. Kenzie wants to see you." Kenzie smiled at the sight of her parents hunched together as they watched her through the screen. Her dad smiled broadly.

"Morning, kiddo. What's up?"

She braced herself, not knowing how they would take it. "I have some big news."

"Yes?" her mother asked.

"Dr. Devereaux is taking me to Russia today. It's a last-minute decision, but we're flying to Moscow."

"Russia?" Her dad's brows rose. "This for some paleontology thing?"

"Yes. We're going to visit some universities over there." She wanted to tell them they would be digging, but it would be frozen in Moscow and there would be no way to dig this time of year.

"Wow," her mom said. "Russia. You'll be safe, won't you? I hear it can be a little dangerous."

Kenzie nodded. "Dr. Devereaux is bringing a bodyguard. We'll be perfectly safe." The lie felt a bit acidic on her tongue, but there was no way she could tell her parents the truth about why she and Royce were going to Moscow. Telling them about a Russian fossil smuggler and the goons who tried to kill her sounded like a terrible idea.

Her dad pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. "When will you be home?"

"I'm not sure. Probably a week?" That sounded reasonable.

"Good, we don't want to miss you coming home for Christmas."

"I won't." She smiled at them, feeling instantly better until Royce walked into the bedroom.

"Up and at 'em, Little Mac," he announced, and then paused. He'd noticed her sitting in bed with her laptop.

"Who's that?" her dad asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Oh, that's" She glanced at Royce in terror. This she could not explain.

"Is there a man at your apartment?" her mother asked, then frowned. "Waitthat doesn't look like your apartment."

"I'm staying at Dr. Devereaux's." She knew this was one truth she couldn't avoid. "We had to be ready to leave for the airport together, so I stayed here overnight in the guest room."

"Oh, okay," her mom said, still frowning. "Can we meet him? Is he still there?"

Royce made a polite cough. Kenzie turned his way. He gave her a little nod, and she turned the laptop his way. Royce came over and bent to peer at the screen, flashing that charming smile of his.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Martin. I'm glad to finally meet you."

Kenzie's mother all but swooned, and her father grinned. That was the thing about Royce Devereaux. He could charm snakesand even overprotective fathers.

"So nice to meet you too! Kenzie's told us all about you. So, Russia? What a treat that will be." Her mother was beaming now, and Kenzie wanted to crawl into a hole and die. She loved her parents, but they were sometimes a little too eager to help further her career, and right now they were embarrassing her.

"Hey" She cut into the flurry of questions her parents were currently directing at Royce. "We have to go now, okay? I'll call you when I get home." She slapped the laptop lid closed and once again covered her face with her hands.

"They seem nice," Royce said as he pried her hands away from her face.

"They are," she agreed, still not looking at him. They weren't going to talk about last night, were they? She wasn't ready for that. Hell, she'd never be ready for that discussion.

"You don't need to hide from me, sweetheart. Last night was intense for both of us. But you have nothing to be ashamed of." He gave her ponytail a gentle tug.

So they were going to talk about it. She finally looked at him, expecting what she didn't know. But she a saw fierce tenderness in his eyes, and he was smiling.

"Most subs are emotionally vulnerable after their first punishment. It's because you opened up to me, and that made you feel vulnerable. And I liked that you were open with me."

"You did?" She wanted to know what else he liked, but they were already treading in dangerous waters. He should not have touched her last night, and she sure as hell shouldn't have let him. But she had to know more about him and the dark world he lived in that seemed to fill a void inside of her.

"Yeah, I liked it a hell of a lot. If you and I weren't" Royce's smile faded. "If we didn't work together like we do, let's just say I'd have done everything to you last night."

Her mouth was dry and she struggle to swallow. "What do you mean by everything?" I'm only going to torture myself asking him to tell me what I want to hear, like looking at a pair of Jimmy Choos when all I can afford are sneakers.

Royce leaned over her on the bed, one hand fisted in her ponytail, and he pulled her head back as he gazed into her eyes.

"I'd only scare you if I told you."

"Tell me," she begged. Her heart pounded against her ribs, and a hunger lurked deep within, wanting to know what he defined as everything.

He shook his head. "No sense in speaking aloud that which I cannot do." He said it like a kingly proclamation and was smiling again. "Get up and get showered. Our flight leaves in three hours." He released her hair after one more playful tug.

Half an hour later, Kenzie was showered and packed, her bag by the front door. Hans and Royce were there waiting for her.

Hans handed her a slim black phone. "Here. This is your personal satellite phone. It has a tiny tracker wired in that I can trace at a distance of five thousand miles."

"Whoa," she whispered as she accepted the phone.

"Five thousand? Emery must've extended the range of the Black Widow." Royce was checking out his own phone with new appreciation.

"What's a Black Widow?" Kenzie asked.

"It's a tracking device. Emery's company makes them. Powerful little bug. Handy as hell." Royce pocketed his phone and focused on Hans. "We taking any protection?"

Hans shook his head. "Too risky, even with permits. Dimitri Razin will meet us in Moscow and see that we receive any necessary firepower."

Guns? They were talking about guns? The room spun a little as Kenzie recalled the shooting from last night. How she'd managed to forget it in the first place she didn't know.

"Kenzie, it's okay," Royce said, touching her shoulder. "We won't let you get anywhere near the dangerous stuff. I promise."

She nodded, wanting to trust him. But she certainly didn't trust whoever that man Vadym was. She knew in her gut that whatever they faced in Russia would not be easy or safe, and she'd made a vow to herself to face that danger and follow through on helping Royce. But if Royce wanted to pretend for a little while longer that he could keep her safe, she would let him. Her eyes would stay open, and she would stay alert.

"Everyone ready?" Hans looked at her, as though trying to make sure that she was truly set on coming.

She tightened her grip on her suitcase handle. "Ready."

This is crazy. Flying off to Russia with my professor and his scary-ass bodyguard to stop fossil smugglers? God, I hope I know what I'm doing.