Russian Bad Boy's Untouched Love Read online

  Russian Bad Boy's Untouched Love

  By: Bella Rose

  All Rights Reserved.

  Copyright 2016 Bella Rose

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

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  Chapter One

  Mary Reilly primly straightened the papers on her desk and surreptitiously checked her watch. To her knowledge, she was the last teacher left at the school. She didn’t normally like doing conferences this late at night, but one parent had particularly insisted.

  The school building was one of the oldest in South Boston. She tried to suppress a shiver as the old structure creaked and settled as the late evening coolness set in. It didn’t help that it was late October. A week more and they would be celebrating Halloween. For now Mary was violently aware that she was a twenty-three year old single woman alone in a poorly secured building while waiting for a criminal to show up for a parent/teacher conference.

  Someone knocked on her classroom door. Mary jumped. She tried to cover her telltale response by tucking a stray strand of dark red hair into the haphazard bun she’d secured on her head with a stray pencil. “Come right in, Mr. Sokolov,” she urged with a wave.

  The tall Russian looked to be in his sixties, far too old to have a second grader. But Mary had met Mrs. Sokolov several times. She was rumored to be a former prima ballerina with the Russian ballet and she didn’t look over thirty. Apparently she’d married for money and power.

  “Thank you for agreeing to meet so late,” Mr. Sokolov said in perfect English. He had only the barest hint of an accent coating his words.

  Mary stood at her desk and gestured to the chairs she’d placed on the opposite side in order to do her conferences. Considering the variety of parent types her inner city students had, keeping a barrier between them seemed prudent. Now more than ever.

  Mr. Sokolov strode over to the chairs. He sat down, glanced over his shoulder and snapped out something in terse Russian. Another man appeared in the doorway and Mary suddenly forgot how to breathe.

  Sokolov seemed to guess her discomfiture. “I’m sorry, this is Vladimir. I never go anywhere these days without someone to watch my back.” Sokolov snorted. “You know how it is.”

  No. She most certainly did not. But she could well imagine that Vladimir was good at watching someone’s back. The guy looked as if he could scare away just about any threat by glaring at it. Mary had almost zero experience with men. She had always been too busy with school and work to put much effort into a relationship. This man could tempt anyone to play hooky. He was fascinating.

  Vladimir was easily six feet tall and built like a professional athlete. His muscles probably had muscles. He had black hair and inky dark eyes. He was wearing black cargo pants that fit obscenely well in the crotch and a black T-shirt. There were tattoos sticking out all around the edges of his shirt. Mary had never seen a man with so many. She wondered what they meant.

  He seemed to sense her staring. His gaze shifted to Mary, sliding briefly over her and apparently finding her of no interest because he returned to his perusal of her classroom.

  She stiffened. It was like being slighted without even understanding why. She knew she didn’t look like a bombshell. She’d had a long day. By now her hair was messy and her sensible clothes were rumpled. Still it would have been nice to at least feel a passing curiosity from a member of the opposite sex.

  Mr. Sokolov cleared his throat and Mary realized she’d been staring openmouthed at Vladimir for far too long. She dragged her thoughts back to the moment at hand. The stack of papers before her was for Mr. Sokolov. She carefully placed them on the opposite side of the desk in front of him.

  “First, I would like to thank you for coming this evening,” Mary said in her best teacher voice. “It’s really important for parents to be involved in their child’s education. That’s when kids really do their best.”

  Mr. Sokolov murmured something indistinguishable and then pointed to the papers. “What is this?”

  “That is a record of every time your son Ioann has been sent to the principal’s office for breaking the rules.” Mary tried to keep her tone neutral. She actually liked Ioann. He was a good hearted boy with a quick mind. She just didn’t understand why he was prone to such outbursts of meanness.

  “Why was I not told of this?” Mr. Sokolov’s accent grew more pronounced. Then he threw a glance over his shoulder at Vladimir. “Did you know about this?”

  “Da.” Vladimir nodded his head once.

  Mr. Sokoloff turned back to Mary. “Is this school picking on Ioann?”

  “No.” Mary pursed her lips. She hated confrontations like this. “I think your son is bright boy with amazing potential. He just seems to feel that he should be allowed to boss around the other students. He’s also prone to outbursts of anger that result in physical violence.”

  “Ah,” Sokolov said with a smile. He relaxed back into his chair. “So Ioann is behaving as he should. Your rules are just not meant for him.”

  “Rules are meant for everybody.” Mary narrowed her gaze, a strong suspicion growing in her mind. “Especially for second graders. Children need boundaries or they soon start to believe that they can do whatever they want in life without consequences.”

  Sokolov held out his arms. “Rules are for those who are meant to be ruled. My Ioann will lead, not follow. You should keep this in mind when you are trying to discipline him. I do not want you putting ridiculous notions of compassion and mercy into his head. Those are weaknesses he cannot afford in life.”

  “What?” Mary asked incredulously. “You cannot be serious. Your son is a wonderful boy with a big heart. Why would you want to stifle that and make him into a monster?”

  “Because monsters survive,” Sokolov said simply.

  Behind Sokolov, she could see that Vladimir was taking in everything they were saying. Did he believe the same thing as his employer? Was he coldhearted and mean? It was strange, but Mary didn’t feel as if he looked mean. Vladimir looked intimidating. Yes. But that wasn’t the same thing as mean. And it certainly wasn’t the same thing as what Sokolov was suggesting for the raising of his child.

  Mary took a deep breath and gathered herself. She had come to this tough inner city school right out of college. She’d meant to make a difference. Maybe this was how she would accomplish her goal. “Mr. Sokolov, if your son does not improve his behavior he runs the risk of being expelled from school. I must tell you that even in our school district we do not see a lot of second graders getting expelled for this sort of behavior. If this is how you want to raise your child, there’s nothing I can do about it. But I can make him responsible for his actions here at school and I will continue to do that.”

  VLADIMIR WANTED TO laugh at the expression on his father’s face. The elder Vladimir was not accustomed to anyone gainsaying him on any topic. And he certainly hadn’t expected a tiny schoolteacher to tell him she wasn’t interesting in taking his suggestions for Ioann’s discipline at school.

  Vladimir had initially been looking forward to meeting this Miss Reilly. Ioann had spoken of her as though she were a tough woma
n that didn’t take any backtalk or bad behavior from her students. On first sight though she was less than impressive as a disciplinarian. In fact it looked as if one good wind could blow her over.

  Mary Reilly looked like a young, inexperienced idealist. She was short. Her head would probably only reach the middle of his chest. Her voice was pleasant, but it didn’t strike him as being forceful or commanding at all. It was impossible to tell how long her hair was with it all piled on top of her head. She was wearing a pair of glasses with little rhinestones on the rims. Plus she was wearing plain khaki pants and a bulky green sweatshirt with the school logo on it. From the look of her it was quite possible she had graduated college less than a year ago. He couldn’t imagine how the kids took her seriously.

  The elder Vladimir stood suddenly. He gave Miss Reilly a cursory glance. “I think we are done here.”

  “You didn’t want to discuss Ioann’s academics?” Miss Reilly asked pleasantly. “He’s really quite good in mathematics and his reading level is far about what I’d expect for his age. It’s also very impressive that he’s bilingual. We have several other children who also speak more than one language, but Ioann’s command of both languages is excellent.”

  “Thank you,” the elder Vladimir said grudgingly. “But I still need to go. Please allow us to walk you to your vehicle. It is dark and quite late.”

  “Thank you, but no.” Mary Reilly glanced back down at her desk, apparently done with them. “I appreciate the offer.”

  “As you wish.”

  Vladimir felt Miss Reilly’s gaze linger on him once again. He couldn’t decide it if was interest or horrified fascination and finally settled on the conclusion that it must be both. Regardless, he had no choice but to follow the elder Vladimir outside.

  The dark tinted limo was already idling at the curb. Vladimir opened the back door for his father and waited. It was obvious that the content of the conference was bothering the aging mob boss. There wasn’t much in life that Vladimir Sokolov, Senior. could not buy, cheat, or bully his way out of. Yet here was a woman who had already made up her mind not to be accommodating.

  “You will wait here for Miss Reilly,” Vladimir ordered.

  Vlad frowned. “To what end?”

  “I want you to romance her.”

  “Excuse me?” Vlad couldn’t even begin to imagine how someone like him might go about doing that with a good girl type like her. “Again I ask, to what end?”

  “I cannot have Ioann kicked out of school.” The elder Vladimir’s face was set into an expression of cunning thoughtfulness. “If you can convince her to cut him some slack, he won’t get in trouble. Then Tatiyana won’t be cross with me.”

  “You want me to romance Ioann’s teacher so that you don’t have to upset your wife?” Vlad asked, feeling disgusted with his father’s behavior and yet also completely unsurprised. There were no scruples in the Sokolov household.

  “Exactly! You’ve read the dossier on the teacher. I gave it to you when I told you to prep for this meeting.” Vladimir slapped his eldest son on the shoulder before getting into his limo. “Don’t worry how late you are tonight. Maybe you can convince her to let you take her home. She’ll invite you in, you’ll give her a good fucking and it will all be over.”

  There wasn’t even any point in arguing with him. Vlad just let his father get in the limo and go. The vehicle pulled out of sight leaving Vlad standing in front of the school on a dark night in late October all by himself.

  His acute hearing picked up the sound of footsteps on the concrete. The parking lot was just across the bus lane in front of the school. It was perhaps another two hundred yards from where Vlad was standing. He could see one solitary compact car parked in the lot.

  Miss Mary Reilly suddenly came into view. She was weighted down with several tote bags, a big purse, and struggling to balance it all while trying to find her keys. Vlad knew this wasn’t going to go well. He was likely to scare the wits out of her while trying to offer aid. Not a great combination to instill trust and confidence.

  “Excuse me, Miss Reilly?” Vlad said in a low, calm voice. “I don’t mean to scare you but…”

  She screamed and flung everything she was carrying straight up into the air. It all landed piecemeal around her. Papers fluttered to the ground only to be caught up in the night breeze and whirled about. Her keys jingled as they landed in the gutter, and her face was pale, pasty white.

  Vlad stepped very slowly toward the papers just beginning to fly away. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m just here to help.”

  “Help?” she squeaked. “Help with what? You just scared me half to death!”

  “I’m terribly sorry about that. I didn’t want you to be alone in the parking lot at night. It seemed unsafe,” Vlad told her. That part at least was true.

  “Mr. Vladimir,” she said primly. “You are the most unsafe thing out here.”

  Vlad had to admit that was also true.

  Chapter Two

  Mary’s heart was still beating so quickly she thought it might be in danger of exploding. Yes. Vladimir had frightened her. But the real shock had come from the abrupt change in his behavior. He’d been cold and almost dismissive inside the classroom. Now he seemed as if he were actively trying to gain her approval. Why?

  “You can call me, Vlad,” he said in what seemed like a deliberately calm tone of voice.

  “Excuse me?”

  “As opposed to Mr. Vladimir,” he explained. “Sokolov’s first name is also Vladimir. Generally he is referred to by other titles, but I began going by the name Vlad many years ago to try and distinguish between the two of us.”

  “Is Mr. Sokolov,” Mary said, beginning to put the pieces together. “Is he your father?”

  “What?” His smile was as unexpected as it was attractive. “You couldn’t see the family resemblance?”

  “Not particularly.” Mary puzzled over the situation that would leave a man like Sokolov with one son in his midtwenties and another in the second grade.

  “My mother passed away not long after I was born,” Vlad told her quietly.

  He stood so straight with his hands clasped before him. It was almost as though he were trying to project an aura of harmlessness. It didn’t work, but it did pique her curiosity. Why was he being so forthcoming with his history?

  His lips thinned into a tight line. “My father asked me to stay behind and make certain you got to your car without incident.” He gestured to her lonely vehicle sitting in its solitary space in the lot. “But I have to admit that I had another reason for wanting to speak to you without my father present.”

  “Oh?” Mary’s palms were sweating. She was in danger of losing her grip on her armload of stuff yet again.

  “Yes.” He seemed suddenly uncomfortable. “I know my father’s attitude must have seemed strange to you, but you must realize that his way of raising children is not compatible with what you might call a Western mindset.”

  “Meaning he encourages meanness and flaunting the rules,” Mary guessed. “I had surmised as much.”

  “I try with Ioann.” Vlad grimaced. “I try to encourage him to see other people’s viewpoints and consider his actions as they apply to a larger world. There was nobody to do that for me.”

  Mary’s compassion was instantly engaged as she imagined this hard man as a boy about Ioann’s age, seeing and doing things that no seven-year-old should. “So what are you asking me to do? Look the other way? Give him leeway I wouldn’t to my other students?”

  “No.”

  “No?” Mary was confused.

  “I want you to hold him to the same standard you would anyone else.” Vlad leaned forward, his expression increasing in intensity. “He needs that structure. He won’t get it anywhere else. He also needs to learn compassion for others. I can tell already that you are uniquely qualified to help him begin to understand that.”

  “What does that mean?” She didn’t know if that was a compliment o
r an insult. “So I’m a weak woman with a bleeding heart? Is that it?”

  “No.” His smile shifted, but she couldn’t have identified what was different. “I think you are far stronger than you give yourself credit for. You stood up to my father. That takes courage.”

  “Your father is a bully.”

  “Standing up to a bully with a penchant for violence and a belief that he is above the laws of any mere mortal is nothing to shake a stick at.”

  Mary frowned. She held her various bags and papers closer to her chest as though they could protect her from the strange desire to help Vlad. “What are you playing at?”

  Vlad moved closer. She could smell him somehow. It was shockingly attractive, like something male and spicy underlying the scent of cedar and sandalwood. A strange heaviness began to build below her navel. Her fingers and toes tingled. She didn’t have all that much experience with arousal, but she’d read enough to realize that was what she was feeling.

  “I’m not playing at anything,” Vlad soothed. “I’m asking for your help for my brother.”

  “You’re making me uncomfortable,” she replied. “I think you’d better go now.”

  He tilted his head to one side. “Why is this uncomfortable?”

  “You’re just… You’re standing too close.” She waved her hand to shoo him off. “It’s pretty simple. I don’t know you. And even you have to admit that you look pretty dangerous.”

  “I look dangerous?” He sounded both surprised and amused. “And that is a crime of some sort in your opinion?”

  “Not a crime,” she amended. “Just a reason to be cautious.”

  “Cautious.” A smile played at the corners of his generous mouth. “Because avoiding any hint of danger is how you prefer to live your life?”

  Why was she discussing this with him? And why did she feel the need to prove to him that she wasn’t some shrinking violet? “Perhaps. It’s really none of your business though, is it?”

  “Do you find me attractive?”