CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 6
It's lovely.
"You want to try it?" Alexei asks.
"Think it's safe?
"I think we only live once, and as you've been saying yourself, you want to have as much fun as possible tonight. So I say why the hell not."
"Why the hell not," I repeat, and we approach the door. Alexei reaches out and takes the handle, yanking the door open and moving aside to allow me to precede him. He follows, shutting the door behind us.
Where do you want to go?"
"Surprise me."
He grins and leans in, pressing the button that will take us to whatever is on the third deck of The Crimson Ark. My heart races as the Shadow Lift roars into action, taking us down into the ship. A yellow light blinks on, casting a warm orange glow over us.
I tighten my grip on Alexei's hand, not ready to openly admit that I'm somewhat scared of what we'll discover when we reach our destination.
NATALIA MOROZOVA
The Shadow Lift goes down further, and soon, with a squeal, halts in a narrow corridor. Alexei opens the door and grabs my hand, pulling me down the corridor. Finally, we reach a door, and Alexei grins wickedly before opening the door.
Music pounds in my ears, the atmosphere before me a completely different one from that of the burlesque show upstairs…one that I love.
Tiny tables speckle the edge of an enormous dance floor as red-hued dense fog covers The Abyssal Floor, making anything below my knees virtually unseen. The Lost Souls are everywhere—nearly as many of them as living people in the room.
Someone pushes someone, and a table is knocked over beside me. Alexei grabs me and whirls me around, putting himself between me and the fight. I smile up at him, but annoyance and concern in his eyes are intense. We need to calm you down.
"Come on, let's have a drink." I scan the room for the bar and spot it just ahead. I pull Alexei further into the room, clutching his hand like a lifeline so that I don't lose him in the crowd. Finally, after pushing so much, we make it to the bar.
Alexei and I grab two stools next to each other, and I glance over at the bartender who's bent forward—both hands on the bar top—and flirting with a stunning woman with the brightest bubblegum pink hair I've ever seen. It's cut straight off at the shoulder, and I'm envious of how rich the color is.
If I ever manage to get away from Viktor, I'm dying my hair purple. Bright purple.
She glances over at me, her piercing brown eyes making me feel like a woman who misses nothing.
"I love your hair," I say much too loudly over the music.
She smiles. "Thanks, girl. Love yours, too. I'd kill for those legs you're wearing."
My face grows hot, and I'm suddenly conscious of Alexei's hand on my hip. I lean into him.
"Oh, is he with you?" Daria Mirova asks.
"Yeah. I'm Natalia, and this is Alexei."
Daria's eyes sparkle with humor. "Well, I haven't noticed any cars around, but if you two are in search of a place to get all steamed up, there are lots of bedrooms." Winking, she turns back to the bartender, and I force myself to look away.
My cheeks burn, and beside me, Alexei coughs. Well, this is just fucking uncomfortable.
"What can I get you two?"
Oh, thank goodness. Grateful for the topic shift, I glance up at the female bartender. Her hair is black at the roots and slowly becomes white as it gets longer on the left side. The right side is white on top but slowly becomes black. Her brown eyes are lined with black that is the same color as her lips.
The black leather mini-dress she's wearing clings to her and reveals one shoulder completely—the leather just high enough to cover her breast—while the other side is closed over the top of her opposite shoulder.
She's stunning.
"Whatever you're having," I say.
"Whiskey for me."
"You got it." Anastasia Korvin disappears, and I turn to Alexei.
"Not in the mood for specialty drinks anymore?"
"Nah. I'm a whiskey man."
"Good to know."
Is it?" he asks, his eyebrow going up, and I am aware of the heat pooling in my belly once again.
"Here you go, honey," Anastasia says, putting two glasses in front of us. "Need anything else, just ask for Anastasia."
"Thanks," Alexei and I say together. He watches me over the rim of his glass as I lift mine to my lips and take a sip.
Citrus assaults my senses in the best possible way—and I can detect pineapple, orange, and coconut. "This one's my favorite so far," I exclaim, surprised that something finally topped the drink we had at The Velvet Den.
"Good."
"This is amazing!" I exclaim as I look around at the crowd.
"It's something, all right," Alexei says as he takes a sip.
The music that I'm pretty sure is being magically broadcast to this part of The Crimson Ark from the Skydeck calls to me. The song is hypnotic, and when I glance at the bodies undulating on the floor—their bodies moving together, in absolute sync with one another, as they're engaged in a sexy, sultry dance—I can't prevent myself from pulling Alexei out onto the dance floor.
"I don't dance," he yells at me.
"Tonight, you do." I approach an empty space and turn, bringing my body nearer to his figure so we're pressed against one another. That his pupils dilate only causes my wicked grin to increase. Is he any idea what I'm hungry for tonight?
We begin to dance, his body against mine, one hand at my lower back and the other still clasped in mine. I twist against him, the music intoxicating me with longing like I've never felt before. Logically, I know that it's not magic that's causing me to respond this way—but to consider that it might be Alexei, himself—it's a bit too close to reality for me.
Especially when I strongly suspect that I won't be able to keep him.