The Last Dance (26 page)

As a result of her testimony, Pavel was sentenced to thirty-five years in prison. He had been sentenced yesterday. She’d watched the trial on CNN because she left Russia as soon as she testified.

Pavel had been imprisoned, and Georgina was deported and completely disgraced, so Roman had gotten revenge. Her eyes burned, but she would not cry. That was another life. It didn’t matter anymore. Roman had moved on, and she would too. That was what she was doing. She was making herself get out of the house. She was going to buy some peaches from Old Man Tucker’s stand and make a pie. She had never made a pie in her life, but she was determined to learn. This was her life now. She was going to embrace it for her baby.

Georgina smiled as she passed the barber. Old men lined the seats in the window. Some of them didn’t even have hair to cut, but they congregated there. That was what retired men did in Auburn Springs; they sat at the barber and chatted, fixing the world’s problems.

The smell of fresh-baked bread filled the streets as she passed Hilda’s Bakery. Georgina would stop on the way back to get some to go with the lentil soup she had in the crockpot. She might even buy one of Hilda’s famous mint brownies. She had put on over twenty pounds since she’d landed in America. It was no-holds-barred when it came to her diet. She ate whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. She had been terrified that her time in prison and lack of prenatal care had harmed the baby, but thank God that wasn’t the case.

The sky opened just as Georgina crossed the street to turn down the path that led to the open-air market in the center of town. Warm drops soaked her shirt. She shook her head. She would have to forego the peaches today.

There would be plenty of time to bake pies. Her grandmother had left her some money, and the sale of Georgina’s apartment in Russia plus her savings meant she had enough to live off for a few years until the baby started school. She was eternally grateful she did not need to find a job right away because it meant she got to be a stay-at-home mom and spend every day with her baby, doing mom things like baking pies and singing nursery rhymes.

She didn’t understand her mom. Georgina could not imagine not being there to love and raise her baby. She shuddered at the thought.

Georgina turned back toward home. Her home, this was where she lived now, in the same small town she was raised, in the same old Victorian. It was almost like the last decade had not happened, but for the gentle swell of her belly.

Georgina gasped when she got to the rusted wrought-iron gate of her front yard. There was a man on her porch standing beside the swing, a suitcase at his feet. From behind he looked so much like Roman, the height, the broad shoulders, the cropped blond hair.

He turned to face her.

Georgina dropped her purse and screamed. “Roman,” she gasped. Her hands shook.

“Hello, angel.” Roman came down the step toward her. Heat from his pale eyes warmed her.

Georgina bent over and crammed everything back into her purse. “You shouldn’t be here.”
Please don’t cry.
She was strong; she was not going to cry in front of him. She would weep once he was gone.

“I missed you.” His deep voice was gravelly and hoarse. “I know it had to be done, but I missed you, so much.” Roman crouched down, lifting her off the sidewalk. His smell was just the same, clean and masculine.

She closed her eyes. She could not look at him. His touch was too much. Her body remembered. She fought against the flood of memories. The way he held her and loved her eased her pain. “It needed to be done?” she asked incredulously. “You needed to punish me? Why? Why? You didn’t need to make me fall in love with you. You’re a cruel man. I hate you.” Her lip quivered. She bit into it to stop it from shaking.

“Oh, no. Don’t cry. Please don’t cry.” Roman encircled her with his strong arms.

She tried to pull away with all her force, but he didn’t let go. “Please, Roman. Please go away. You have hurt me more than anyone should have to bear. I hate you. I hate you.” A sob tore through her. “I hate you.”

“I know, angel. Let it out. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. It was the only way. I had to do it. It was the only way you were going to be safe.”

“Shut up!” she screamed. She didn’t even care that her neighbors were probably at their door windows, watching her lose it and scream at the scarred Russian giant. She was the drug-smuggling ballerina, after all. She had to live up to her reputation.

“I’m sorry. You would have never been safe from Pavel. I had to keep you safe. That was the only way I could do it. I needed to put you someplace that he could not get to you until I could put him in prison. I had to do it. I didn’t have a choice. I had to keep you safe from Pavel.”

Georgina pulled back to see him. “And you had to sleep with a model while I was in prison? Just stop. Go, Roman. I can’t do this again. You hurt me too much. I can’t even look at you.”

“Georgina, look at me.” He held her chin in his hand so she could not turn away. Her vision blurred with tears. The rain continued to pour down on them, soaking them both. Their drenched clothes clung to them “I have not been with anyone since we met. I swear. You are the only woman I want. I don’t want anyone else.”

“Don’t. I saw the pictures. I know, Roman. You have hurt me enough already. I can’t take anymore. Stop being cruel.” She thrashed against him, but Roman would not let go. “Please, Roman. Please. Stop. I can’t do this. I’m trying to be strong. Go home. I know you think you needed to hurt me, and maybe you did, but we’re done. We’re even. You have paid me back for what I did.”

“Georgina, listen to me!” Roman shook her. “I love you. I have not had sex with anyone since we met. I did not put you in prison to hurt you. It had to look real. Pavel had to believe that you were nothing to me and you had to believe it too. Listen to me. Don’t close your eyes. I need you to see me so you know I am telling the truth. I sent that old picture to the magazine so you would see it. James said you weren’t going to take the deal. I needed you safe and out of the country. I knew you would not go if you still thought there was hope for us. I had to do it, Georgina.”

“James was sent by the embassy.”

Roman wiped her cheeks with his thumbs. “I hired James. I hired Magda to look after you. I did it all to keep you safe. I am so sorry I hurt you, but I had to do it, and I would do it again to keep you safe. I love you. I will never apologize for that. That is my job as your man to protect you, and I will always do that. Always.”

GEORGINA SHOOK HER head. He was lying. That was what he did; he lied. “You could have told me. If you really had a plan, you could have told me.”

“No, angel, I couldn’t. Pavel would have known. He is smart. He needed to see the pictures of you in the paper being arrested. It had to be real. He needed to believe. I needed time to build the case against him. This was the only way. I tried. Christ, I tried to think of another way. This was the only choice. As soon as he was behind bars I came here. I love you, Georgina. I love you. I did this to protect you.”

She shook her head. Tears and rain mingled on her face, running down her cheeks. “I can’t do this. My neighbors are watching.” She lived in this small town. She didn’t need to give people any more reason to gossip about her. “You didn’t need to leave me to rot in prison.”

Roman reached for her again, but she stepped away, out of his reach.

“I’m sorry.” His tone was pained. The sides of his full mouth pulled down into a frown. “It never should have taken that long. It was supposed to be a few days or a week. But the wheels of Russian justice turn slowly. I’m sorry. Not even I could speed it up. Do you know how hard it was to keep myself from coming to you? Every day…every night…all I wanted…” His voice trailed off, the words lost in the torrent of rain. Soaked blue chambray stretched over taut muscle. His posture had changed, folded in on himself, deflated, defeated. All the strength and power he possessed drained from him. “Knowing you were there, alone…that I couldn’t be there…help you or hold you. If I could have changed places with you, I would have, a million times over. You have to believe me,” he begged. He pulled her hard against his chest, and this time she offered no resistance. All the fight in her was gone.

“But I couldn’t. You would not have been safe. It had to look real. I told you a man must protect his woman, no matter what. That’s what I did. Do you think I wanted to send you to prison? To be away from you? Tell me. What else could I have done? Tell me. How else could I have kept you safe? If there was any other way, I swear to you, I would have done it. What other option did I have? What should I have done?”

Georgina opened her mouth to speak several times, but the words didn’t come. She couldn’t think. There were other options. There had to be, but she couldn’t think of any right now. Roman was too close, his presence too much. The feel of him against her, the wet heat consumed her.

She squinted her eyes, trying to block the flood of emotion she had only just bottled. He belonged back in Russia, in that nightmare. He didn’t belong here. That part of her life was over; that part of her was dead. It had to be. She could not bear to relive it.

Seconds dragged to minutes, and still she could not speak. There was nothing to say. All she could do was feel…anger, hatred, betrayal…and loss of what could have been. That was what hurt the most, that was what she mourned for, the dream he made her believe. He didn’t need to make her love him.

He shouldn’t be here. But her muscle memory was strong. She didn’t want him to go…not yet. It had been so long since she had seen him.

Lightning split the clouds, coloring the sky in a pink blush. Raindrops pounded against the sidewalk.

“Let’s go inside,” Roman said.

Georgina wiped her eyes with the backs of her hands. This was a bad idea, letting him into her house, letting him into her life, even briefly. “Ten minutes. You can come in for ten minutes if you promise to leave.” She didn’t trust herself for any longer.

“Ten minutes,” he agreed.

Georgina distanced herself as far away from Roman as she could as they walked up the wooden steps. The paint on the outside of the house was chipped; under the blue, mint green peeked through. She planned to repaint it once the baby was here. She had repainted all the rooms inside. It didn’t matter, but she wished now she had done the outside so Roman would not see any flaws in her home.

She held her breath as she opened the door, wondering what Roman would make of her house. She had painted the living room a buttery yellow. It was warm and cheerful. The far end of the room was dominated by a brick fireplace. In front was a rocking chair with the unfinished blanket she was crocheting.

“I need to change my shirt.” The paper-thin material clung to her breasts.

Roman nodded.

Georgina went upstairs to her bedroom and stripped off her shirt and jeans and put on a pair of black leggings and a long-sleeved purple T-shirt. She ran a hand over her belly, rubbing the spot her baby just kicked. “Hi, baby,” she whispered. “Soon. I’ll meet you soon.” She took a deep breath and went downstairs to face Roman.
Stay strong
.

“Would you like a cup of tea? Or water?” She struggled to make polite conversation. There was so much she could say to him but her pride prevented her.

Roman shook his head. “You look beautiful, Georgina. You have filled out. It suits you.” His gaze settled on her breasts.

She bit into her lip, trying to decide if she should tell him. Would it matter? Would he have left her in prison had he known? It didn’t matter. “I’m no worse for the wear. How are you?” She could not resist asking. Too often since she came home she had wondered about it.

“I miss you. I love you, angel.”

Georgina closed her eyes. The words were too much. “You never said that. All the times we were together, and you never said it.” Her gaze went to the window. Lightning lit the room, casting a warm glow.

“I couldn’t. I didn’t want to love you. But I do. I need you.” His voice was low, almost a growl as if it pained him to admit it.

Those were the words she wanted to hear, had dreamed of. But it was too late. There was every possibility that he would hurt her again. She couldn’t take a risk. “It’s too late, Roman.”

“Why?” he demanded. “Have you found someone else?”

She laughed at the absurdity of the question. “No. Funny, I have been busy. No time to find a replacement.” Not like there was anyone to find in Auburn Springs.

“There won’t be a replacement.” Roman closed the distance between them. “You’re mine. You always will be. I won’t share.” Heat radiated off his strong body.

Georgina clenched her hands to her sides to keep from reaching out to him. Her body remembered; her muscles had the memory, knew how he felt against her. She craved him. He was like a drug; one hit was never going to be enough. She needed to be strong. This wasn’t about her anymore. It stopped being about her when she found out she was pregnant. Georgina took a deep, fortifying breath. “I need you to leave now. I don’t want you here. We don’t need you. We’ll be fine.”

“We?” His pale brow arched up in question.

She took in a ragged breath to fortify herself. “We. I’m pregnant. I’m going to have a baby.”

Roman’s mouth dropped open. The shock was palpable.

“Don’t worry. I don’t expect anything from you. We’ll be fine.”

Roman dropped to his knees in front of her. His hand ran over the curve of her belly. “Our baby,” he whispered almost reverently. He lifted her shirt and kissed her belly. “Our baby.”

Georgina’s lungs constricted. This was the reaction she dreamed of, Roman happy about having a family together. She could not resist touching him. He was so close. She needed to feel him once more. She ran her hands through his cropped hair.

“When? When are you due?”

“The middle of October. She’s healthy.”

“She?” Roman beamed. “We’re having a girl. A daughter. I am going to have a daughter.” The amazement was clear in his voice.

Georgina pulled down her shirt. She couldn’t give herself false hope. She had dreamed of a family with him, but that dream had died, and it had nearly killed her. “I’m having a daughter. She is mine. Mine alone. We don’t need anything.”