CHAPTER SIXTEEN

John forgave my sloppy attempt on his life, in exchange for another date next weekend, which I couldn't refuse. I mean, I almost killed the guy. Although I had a good time, the restaurant was some top stuff, I was under-dressed but I didn't feel awkward much because he was too. The dishes were exotic Italian dishes; not that I expected anything less. After the Italian, we went out for Ice cream and we spent some time at the movies too, by the time he dropped me off at Ian's house, it was almost 7:00 pm. Where did all the time go?

I carefully entered the house to see a very angry Ian sitting in the living room in those damned shorts again, obviously waiting patiently for my arrival. I ignored him and quickly walked up to my room because I know nothing good would come out of a conversation with Ian in this state. I heaved a sigh of relief as I closed the door, but I guess I rejoiced too soon, Ian came barging through the door looking like an angry bull.

"Okay…what is the meaning of this?"

"What is the meaning of what?"

"Of what you just did? Barging into my room uninvited and all? I don't appreciate that."

"You know what I don't appreciate?"

"No, and honestly, I don't care…"

"You frolicking around with that fool, Hank."

"We are not together anymore, Ian, and you're not my father so, who I hang out with is honestly none of your business."

"It is because you're the mother of my son."

"Well, you shouldn't have left me, neither should you have cheated!!!"

Ian groaned and kicked the foot of my bed, I could see the muscles on his shoulders bulging, knowing Ian, that meant he was trying hard to control his temper. He was slowly and steadily losing control over it.

"How many times do you want me to tell you that it isn't what you think? There is more to that story, for goodness' sake!!!"

"Well, I don't know how many times you've said it and you can keep saying it for all I care but what I know is until you're ready to tell me the 'more to the story, you're a no-good man whore!!!"

"So, what are you trying to do now?"

"I don't know what you're talking about?"

"What exactly are you doing with Hank?"

"That is actually…none of your business."

"It is my business because you are the mother of my son and whoever you date will influence his life, for or against me."

"John is a good man, Ian. That's all you need to know, Ian. Now please get out, I need some privacy>"

I sat on my bed and took off my shoes, rid my hair of the accessories, and put it up in a simple braid, my jacket was next, and was about to pull down the straps of my gown but then remembered Ian was still in my room.

"Do you mind?"

"I don't. I think I want to enjoy the view."

Ian lay down on my bed and propped his hands behind his head, putting his biceps on full display. I don't know what came over me but all of a sudden, I wanted to play. I stood at the foot of the bed, in front of Ian, and began to sashay out of my gown, Ian's eyes almost popped out of his head when he realized what I was doing. Two can play, there was also what Tatiana told me, we were both adults, if we wanted to have sex with each other, we should.

"Arizona, what are you doing?"

"What, you scared already? I thought you wanted to play…"

"Yes…but…this is rough play. It could get us both into trouble…it could get you into trouble…"

"What if I want to get into trouble, Ian? What happens then?"

"If it's trouble you're looking to find, then it is with great pleasure that I inform you that you will find it here…"

"Good, just good…"

I took off my thong and flung it at Ian's face and began working on the straps of my lace bra, Ian held my panties to his nose and breathed in my scent. I shuddered when he groaned and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. I threw my bra behind me and crawled on the bed and straddled his hips, I began to play with my nipples as I rolled my hips against his groin, then I lowered my chest till my nipples brushed his lips and pulled back up. I repeated it a couple of times while still rolling my hips and laughed when he groaned. I knew it was taking him all the control and willpower he had in him not to just flip me over and have his way with me.

"You're playing a very dangerous game, Ari. Be careful."

I ran my fingers across his bare chest and skimmed them across the waistband of his shorts, I moved down his body and pulled his shorts down to his thighs. My knees straddled his calves and my ass was high up in the air, our eyes met and locked and there was no doubt what I was about to do as my head lowered and I wrapped my fingers around his girth. And then I remembered Mikael, if he was in the house, there was no way we could do this. We were always so loud. As though he heard my thoughts, Ian answered them.

"My brother and his wife have him till Monday…"

Oh. I stroked him slowly from the base to the top and back again.

"Arizona…fuck…"

I licked down from the base to the tip and circled the hole, I sucked the bulbous head into my mouth then I sucked him in until he hit the back of my throat. I pulled up and spat on him before going back to working him slowly, sucking his balls each time I got to the base. I felt Ian's hands tangle in my hair and pull me up.

"Bring that ass over here…"

I turned around and Ian pulled my ass till I was straddling his face, I went back to sucking his dick, Ian on the other hand had other ideas. He blew air into my pussy and swiped his tongue across my clit, I moaned around him, he seemed to like that very much because he thrust his hips into my mouth and moaned around my clit sending very delicious vibrations through my body. I rolled my hips against his mouth for more friction when he began suckling my clit and then he thrust his fingers into my vagina and curled his fingers, hitting just the right spot. He spread his fingers and curled them again, he did this repeatedly and I saw the white in my vision as I couldn't hold back my orgasm. I pulled away and sat upon his face as my orgasm hit me with a force and I rolled my hips on his face, riding out my orgasm. I collapsed on the bed beside him trying to catch my breath. I felt Ian move up my body and began placing light kisses on my neck and beneath my ear.

"I warned you, sweetheart. I told you that you were looking for trouble, hope you're not tired cos I'm not quite done with you yet, hon."

I moaned and tried to tell him to give me a few moments to recover before we continued but words failed me and also because he bit my nipple and sucked it into his mouth, running his tongue over and across it. I arched my back and held back a loud moan as his fingers played with the other nipple, his other hand blazed a trail down my torso till they settled between my legs again and slightly brushed against my clit. My hips jerked in reaction and I held his hand in a failing attempt to control its movement.

"Ian, I can't…still too sensitive."

"I don't care, you'll take it."

And that was how that went, by the time he was done, I was wet and tired and sticky all over. He flipped me over pulled me up by my hips and entered me in one savage thrust, I rolled my hips as he began to move and held on to the edge of the bed. Ian pulled my hair, making me arch my back, and began to move faster. The room was filled with the sounds of our skins slapping together, our moans and groans, and of the bed creaking and squeaking as we moved faster.

"Fuck Ian…I'm…"

"I know, baby. Let go…"

It was like my body was waiting for his command to come undone, every cell and every nerve in my body went into overdrive as my second orgasm hit me. In the midst of it all, I felt Ian come inside me, we both fell to the bed in a tangle of limbs and sweaty bodies. And then it hit me…

"Oh my gosh!!!"

"What?"

"We didn't use any protection."

"And…"

"And I am not on the pill or anything. Oh my gosh, how could I have been so careless."

I tried to get off the bed but Ian only held me tighter from behind and covered us both with my blanket.

"Let me go, I need to rush down to the drug store!"

"Why?"

"What do you mean 'why'? Because we are not ready for a child. That's why!!!"

"But that's not true."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I am more than ready to have another child with you, Arizona."

I froze as my brain tried to process what exactly it was that I just heard. Did he say he wanted another child with me or was my imagination working overtime on me today? He can't possibly be serious, right?

"Could you slowly repeat what you said?"

"I said I wanted another child with you, Arizona. Except you don't exactly like the idea of having another child of mine in your womb."

I tried again to get out of the bed and this time he let me, I felt him silently watching me as I went into my bathroom and threw on my robe. I came out of the bathroom and closed the door, placing my forehead on it, I felt him behind me and I moved away from him before he could touch me.

"Do you hate me that much, Ari?"

"Do I not have enough reason to hate you, Viktor?"

Ian swore and ran his fingers through his short hair. That was a low blow, but at the same time, that was also the bone of contention, the core of the whole issue.

"How many times do you want me to tell you that…"

"…that what I'm thinking isn't what exactly happened? Well, you might have to say it one more time because I don't understand how you claim to love someone but go ahead to cheat on that person. As if that wasn't enough, you didn't even have the decency to man up for your mistakes. Instead, you ran!!!"

"Arizona, calm down. We need to talk about this…"

"Fuck you!!!"

I took off the robe and began to wear my discarded clothes, I was about to leave the room to get something strong from the kitchen when he began speaking.

"I was sent to Russia to go undercover and find the kingpin of one of the Russian gangs…"

I turned around and he was sitting on my bed, he patted the spot next to him and I slowly walked over and sat beside him. This was the moment I have been waiting for.

"Parvanov's daughter was a student at your university so we decided that I would go in an old-fashioned way, as a professor. With my looks and my charms, it wasn't hard getting the little miss blonde to like me, everything was going to plan until that faithful day…the day I ran into you in the hallway and then the club…"

He cast a sideways glance at me and we both smiled, remembering my clumsy moments during my university days at Synergy. Those were fun times…with Tatiana and Dimitri adding a little spice here and there.

"…I couldn't stay away from you, the fact that you were in my 'class' made it even harder. I had to see you every day. So, I spoke to a friend who gave me the best advice of my life, since Miss Parvanov wasn't in any way my love interest, I should pursue you and when all the mess was cleared up, just continue my relationship with you."

"But why didn't you just wait till you were done with the mission?"

"You are a very beautiful girl, and with the brains to match. I was afraid that by the time I would be done with the mission, someone else would have gotten to you, someone without a target on his back or who didn't have to carry a gun as a necessity. I admit I was selfish in my reasoning but I wasn't ready to let go. So, I carried on with the fake and the real relationship."

"But that time in your office…you and her…"

"Oh, you need to forget about that. That was supposed to be the final nail in Parvanov's coffin, I had collected enough intel from the daughter and I knew there were going to have another shipment soon. I felt the best way to get it out of her was to make her believe that I was all in, I didn't have sex with her but we did mess around, and then she told me. I immediately texted my supervisor and well, he was busted."

"Why did you just up and leave without at least a proper goodbye?"

"His daughter figured out that I played her into betraying her father so she informed the family, word got to me just in time that my head was the most sought-after item in Russia so I had to leave."

"You could have called…texted…left a letter…a note…something. You just left!!!"

"Everything about me was been watched, Arizona. If I had tried to contact you in any way, you would have been put in danger too, I couldn't risk it. I barely got out. I'm sorry."

Everything was beginning to make sense now. Slowly but surely. I understand why he had to leave the way he did, the circumstances surrounding our relationship, and every other thing he had mentioned. It eased the hurt I have carried all these years, for some reason, I felt relief. I felt the tears run down my cheeks but for the first time in a long while, they weren't tears of pain. To Ian, I think he thought the opposite was happening because he bundled me into his arms and began to rock me, saying how he was sorry and how he didn't mean to break my heart. It was amusing, so funny to me for some reason and I just burst out laughing. The expression on Ian's face was priceless and that only made me laugh harder. I took a deep breath and eased my laughter.

"It's alright, Ian."

"Really? You sure?"

"Yes, I am. I feel much lighter now, and I feel happier. Thank you so much for telling me."

I pulled his head closer to mine and captured his lips in a kiss, it was slow and sensual, it was comforting. It wasn't like any of the heated and burning kisses we shared some few minutes ago. It spoke of companionship and I loved it. I couldn't wait to tell Tatiana all that happened today, well, the edited version. She would have a fit.

"I love you so much, Arizona, you have no idea how much."

"I love you too, Ian."

And that was when I heard the blast, the last thing I remember is seeing smoke all over the place and men with black guns. The most distinctive image is of a pair of familiar long legs and then I blacked out.