When I Hurt (Vassi and Seri 2: Russian Stepbrother Romance) Read online

  Vassi’s smile was mocking. “Et tu, Brutus?” But he was swearing inside his mind as he spoke. Dammit. He should have known better not to underestimate Misha. He had always been too fucking smart, always able not just to read between the lines but come up with both the story and its prequel, too.

  Misha was nodding understandingly. “I see.”

  Vassi’s lips tightened. He was tempted to ask what this brother of his did see, but he managed not to.

  “I remember,” Misha said casually, “Papa virtually threatening to kick you out of the house when you told us you wanted to give acting a try, but you didn’t back down then.” Misha frowned. “And yet now, you are taking this type of risk. Is this not tantamount to career suicide?”

  Vassi’s broad shoulders moved in a negligent shrug, and his voice was unconcerned as he replied, “Perhaps for others.”

  Misha laughed. “Spoken like a Grachyov.” Outside the lobby, their limousines came up the driveway, and as he and Vassi began walking towards the doors, Misha asked, “What will you do while on hiatus?”

  Knowing that the truth was impossible to hide, Vassi said reluctantly, “Go back to school, I suppose.”

  Misha blinked. Ah. Now that, he definitely did not see coming. He murmured wryly, “It’s rare for someone to make me feel stupid, but…I have to hand it to you, brat. In the past, I couldn’t understand why you opted to take a gap year.” He stopped speaking as they went through the hotel’s revolving doors and upon emerging outside, he continued, “That kind of thing would have been necessary for others, but for someone who had already been working and seen the world several times?” Misha shook his head. “You are just not the type to need extra time for…what is the term you teenagers like to use these days? Self-discovery?”

  Vassi asked sarcastically, “You do remember you’re only three years older than I am, don’t you?”

  Misha ignored his brother’s words, saying, “But I get it now.”

  “Get what?”

  “The gap year,” Misha said easily. “Because of it, you now have a valid reason to start university with our little dove, da?” When his younger brother’s face became stoic, he knew he had hit the nail on the head, and Misha’s eyes gleamed with rare shrewdness. Unlike Vassi and Sergei, he had no patience for playing games. He said what he wanted, took what he wanted.

  But because this involved two important persons in his life---

  “I’m glad you’ll be around to look after Seri,” Misha said smoothly.

  Vassi grunted. “I’m not the one with a sister complex.”

  “I know,” Misha answered right away, “and that is as it should be. She is only a sister to us, after all.”

  Vassi’s eyes became hooded. “I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.”

  Misha didn’t bother refuting the obvious lie but instead clapped his hand over his brother’s back, saying lightly, “I’m just concerned. I don’t want you unnecessarily hurt when the time comes that you realize you’re no longer…Seri’s favorite. Girls her age can be surprisingly…fickle.”

  Misha expected Vassi to dismiss his warning and continue feigning ignorance, but instead he was surprised when Vassi replied almost bitterly, “Do you really think I don’t know that?”

  No other words followed after that, but what had been spoken remained with Vassi even when he and Misha had already parted ways.

  I don’t want you unnecessarily hurt when the time comes that you realize you’re no longer…Seri’s favorite.

  Vassi smiled humorlessly. He had never fooled himself into thinking that time would never come, and it had been the reason why he had resisted his attraction to her for so long.

  But after that night---

  There was just no way he could stop himself now.

  No way.

  And so he would allow himself a taste while keeping his feelings in check. He would indulge in what he knew was forbidden and impossible while he waited for Seri to realize what he had known from the start---

  And it was that the day would eventually come when she realized that what she thought was love was just infatuation.

  Chapter One

  Two weeks later

  It was a day of many firsts.

  Her first day in college, her first class with Vassi, and the first day since the time she had blackmailed him into being her boyfriend.

  She was seated alone at the last row when Vassi came to class. He slid into the vacant seat on her left, and with just the two of them sharing the long console table, everything felt too intimate.

  Darkness had allowed him to escape detection, with everyone too busy watching the video tutorial playing in front. But if the lights had been on, it would have been different of course. All the girls would have gone crazy with the knowledge that Vassi Grachyov was in their midst---

  Vassi! Grachyov! In! The! Flesh!

  Seri had seen it happen too many times to count.

  A sound on her left drew her attention, and Seri reluctantly turned towards Vassi just in time to see him move his chair closer towards her. She resisted the urge to move her seat away from him, not wanting him to realize what kind of effect his nearness had on her.

  D’err mo.

  She sucked at this.

  She had been the one to force him into being her boyfriend, and yet---

  “Still not going to look my way, solnishka moya?” The words were whispered straight into her ear, and Seri nearly fell off her chair.

  Bo zheh moy.

  Oh my God, but what was that?

  How was it that his mere voice was enough to turn her on now?

  This close, Seri could smell his aftershave, could feel his breath fanning her skin. When he leaned closer, she tensed involuntarily, and when his arm rested at the back of her chair, it was almost like he was embracing her, drawing Seri into a forbidden world she had always dreamt of entering.

  “Maybe…” His fingers trailed suggestively on her shoulder, and Seri swallowed at the sensual impact of his touch. “You should think twice about this.”

  Maybe…but she won’t.

  “N-no.” Even without looking at him, she could feel Vassi smirking at the quiver in her tone, and she was torn between wanting to kick him under the table and---

  An idea crystallized in her mind, and the moment it set in, Seri just couldn’t let the idea go.

  She could do it. She had to do it. And she was going to do it. She really was, and if she did, it would teach him not to underestimate her.

  So yes, she would do it.

  She would.

  Vassi started to move away, still smirking, and Seri took a deep breath.

  Then she did it.

  She touched his knee under the desk.

  Ha!

  Triumph filled her even as her body trembled at the feel of his knee under her fingers. Unable to help it, she glanced at Vassi, hoping to see his shocked expression.

  The faint light coming from the glow of the projection allowed her to see his face, which was…bland.

  Huh?

  He raised a brow. “That’s it?”

  Her lips parted and closed.

  B’lyad.

  She really sucked at this, and color flooded her cheeks as she realized that what seemed like an incredible achievement for her was probably child’s play for someone as experienced as Vassi. They might only be a year apart in age, but Seri wasn’t foolish enough to think that the difference between his level of experience and hers could be measured the same way.

  Angry and humiliated, Seri started to pull her hand away, but his hand suddenly covered mine.

  Her gaze jerked to his. “Let go,” she hissed under her breath.

  But his lips only curved, and his voice was mild as he asked, “What’s wrong? We’re just getting started.” He picked her hand up.

  “Stop it, let---” But she found herself choking instead, unable to believe what Vassi had just done.

  Or made her do.

  Whatever.
/>   The point was, her hand was now on…his…dick.

  Somehow, he had managed to get his zip down without her realizing it, and now it was his skin against her skin, her hand inside his pants and the hot, silky feel of his dick between her fingers.

  Vassi’s dick.

  Her legs automatically pressed close together in an effort to stop the wetness that was already seeping out of her, making her tremble and bite back a moan even as Seri’s eyes flew to him in shock.

  Holy mother of Russia, but her hand was on her stepbrother’s dick.

  Vassi’s dick.

  She recovered enough of her senses to try pulling her hand out of his pants, but his lips only curved even as he pressed his own hand down on her, telling her without words that he was not letting go.

  She almost gaped at him. Was he serious? They were in class, for God’s sake, and they weren’t alone!

  As if to answer her, Vassi’s gaze held Seri’s eyes captive while he slowly started to move her hand up and down his dick. His eyes gleamed with cruel pleasure, and the answer to her question was in that look.

  Yes, he was serious.

  Yes, he knew they weren’t alone…

  And wasn’t that goddamn exciting?

  His dick throbbed in her hold, the sensation both frightening and exciting, and Seri wanted to bang her head against the table. God, but she really sucked at this. She was supposed to be the one seducing him, blackmailing him, and yet it was the opposite happening. It was still Vassi calling the shots…like now.

  His hand tightened around hers, and it was the only warning Seri got before he forced her hand to move faster. His dick was so much more than she imagined. Longer, harder, thicker…the thought had her swallowing again, and when she started to think about what she was doing---

  Her stepbrother’s dick in her hand---

  She wanted to moan and whimper, wanted to run away and throw herself at him, wanted to open and close her legs at the same time. The wetness soaking her panties made her ache with a strange kind of need to be filled, and when his dick twitched in her hold again, her fingers involuntarily tightened around his arousal.

  Vassi hissed, and it was the most beautiful sound---

  The lights in the room were suddenly switched open.

  Seri froze.

  “Does anyone have questions?” the professor in front asked.

  That, on the other hand, was the most awful sound Seri had ever heard.

  It was the sound of knowing they could be discovered any moment, of people realizing that she was giving her stepbrother a hand job in public---

  Panicking, Seri let go of Vassi’s dick and tried tugging her hand away.

  Tried being the operative word since Vassi’s fingers only tightened over hers, forcing her hand to close around his dick again.

  He turned to face the professor, his arm still resting on the back of her chair, his posture entirely relaxed even as under the table he made her stroke him faster.

  Nothing in his demeanor gave him away even as his dick kept growing between her fingers. It was throbbing almost violently, and a moment later Seri heard him say between clenched teeth, “Faster.”

  Oooooh.

  She couldn’t stop herself then, her fingers stroking Vassi’s dick as fast as she could while squeezing him hard, drawing every little lesson of seduction she could from all the hentai videos she had watched.

  In the corner of her eye, she saw Vassi stiffen in his seat---

  Aaaaah.

  Oh my God, he was cumming.

  Her stepbrother was coming.

  In her hand.

  This time, it was Seri who was unable to stop her hand from moving. Even as she covered her mouth with her free hand to keep her moan from escaping, she still didn’t – couldn’t – let go of his dick.

  She couldn’t.

  She wanted, needed, to prolong his pleasure.

  The sound of his pleasure played over and over in her mind, and Seri momentarily squeezed my eyes shut.

  B’lyad.

  She couldn’t get the sound out of her mind, couldn’t believe that she had made her stepbrother come with her hand.

  And Holy Mother of Russia, but instead of feeling dirty, she just wanted…more.

  The bell rang, and she jerked in her seat, her fingers involuntarily tightening around Vassi’s dick as everyone started to stand up. This time, Vassi gently but firmly pulled her hand away from his crotch.

  “Let’s go.” Before she knew what was happening, Vassi already had them out of the classroom.

  Struggling to keep up with his pace, she hissed under her breath, “I can’t believe you made me do that.”

  “You shouldn’t be complaining.” Even with his head lowered to avoid being recognized, it was all too easy to hear the smirk in his voice, and idiot that she was, she still found it both irritating and sexy.

  D’err mo.

  As he maneuvered her towards the empty hallway leading to the university’s back exit, he asked, “Wasn’t that the point of this entire arrangement?” Drawing her closer, he murmured, “This is how I am as a boyfriend, solnishka moya.” He bit the outer lobe of her ear as he spoke.

  Argh!

  She tripped over her own two feet, and Vassi laughingly stopped walking as his arm tightened around her waist to keep her from falling.

  She looked up, a ready retort on her lips, but Vassi had shaken his head at her before she could speak.

  “Give it up, leech.” His tone was light, but his gaze held a warning in it. “This blackmailing thing isn’t you, and in the end…only one of us will get hurt.”

  His warning left her cold, and she could only stare at him in mute hurt. Why couldn’t he give them a chance? Why?

  Vassi’s face softened slightly. “You mean the world to me, leech. I don’t want you hurt any more than you do. So do us both a favor and stop this. Da?”

  Even knowing that she could end up angering him, Seri slowly shook her head. “Nyet.” She could feel her body stiffening as she answered him, as if preparing itself to face Vassi’s anger. But instead all she felt was the tender brush of his lips on her forehead.

  And then he was pulling her close, murmuring over her hair, “Stubborn, idiotic leech.”

  She wanted to smile and cry at the same time.

  Pulling away, he glanced down at her, saying, “I need to leave now. I’ve got one last campaign to finish before I’m officially on leave from Hollywood. You’ll be okay on your own?”

  She nodded, and Vassi gave her a smile.

  And then he was walking away, and as she stared at his back, she had the worst sense of premonition.

  One day, she would see him walking away from her---

  And it would be for good.

  Seri abruptly turned away, telling herself that she was acting silly. An inevitable side effect, she thought determinedly, when one lived with superstitious Russians all her life.

  But even so a tear slipped down her cheek, and the moment she realized she was crying, she found herself unable to stop.

  Why was love so hard?

  Head still down, she took one step forward and crashed into something – someone – unmovable, hard enough to cause her to stagger back.

  “Are you okay?”

  * * *

  Maximilian Rockford was on his way to leave when a girl with her head down came barreling towards him. He grunted but held his ground easily, causing the girl to stumble back with a stifled gasp.

  He frowned, not liking the thought that he would have to deal with an intoxicated party girl. “Do you need help?” He reached out to help steady her but had his hand immediately swatted away, and he lifted a brow at the unexpected reaction. He was more surprised and amused than offended. It was not exactly the kind of response he was used to from the opposite sex.

  When she finally looked up, Maximilian realized immediately what was wrong. Ah. She had been crying. The realization had him looking down at his hand thoughtfully.

  Ser
i bit her lip hard to keep herself from crying. The guy in front of her was remarkably handsome, almost as good looking as Vassi really, although they were polar opposites in appearance, with the stranger’s jet-black hair and hazel eyes. He was also dressed a little bit too well and formally for a college student, with his light blue collared shirt perfectly ironed and his tailored gray pants similarly without a crease.

  Seri knew she should apologize, and if she had been in a normal frame of mind, she would have. Problem was, she wasn’t, and she heard herself snap ungraciously, “What are you staring at?”

  Maximilian said easily, “I’m not staring.” If there was one thing he had learned from having four sisters, then it was being able to recognize the difference between a girl who was just plain bitchy…and a girl who was pretending she was bitchy to hide her pain.

  When the girl started to walk past him, Maximilian said, “One thing before you go.”

  Seri scowled at the words but even so, she found herself turning to face the guy again. “What?” She knew she was being unreasonably rude, but she didn’t care. She was hurt, and right now, it felt right to have everyone feeling as miserable as she was.

  “I thought you might want to know…” Seri saw his gaze fall to his hand, and that was when she noticed a drop of creamy white liquid on his knuckle.

  Her eyes widened as she realized what it was.

  As he pulled out a hanky from his pocket and meticulously wiped his hand clean, the guy said with mocking politeness, “You need to wash your hands.”

  She gasped.

  Then she looked down, saw that her fingers did still have more than a bit of Vassi’s cum, and she gasped again even as color flooded her cheeks.

  A shadow fell over her, and a moment later she heard the guy whisper to her ear, “Next time, choose a guy who can return the favor---”

  Seri gasped for the third time, and she automatically raised her hand to slap him.

  Maximilian caught her wrist without trouble, and as she glared up at him, he found himself thinking that she was just his type. It was too bad, he thought wryly, that she already had someone else.