The Bratva’s Bounty (Volkov Bratva #3)

29. Nicole

Chapter 29

Nicole

"I'm surprised I ate more than you," I commented as we left the restaurant with our satisfied stomachs.

Chuckling softly, Lev slipped an arm across my lower back, splaying his hand and fingers against my waist and hip before shoving me across his body. Giggling, I gave out a protestant 'hey' from the sudden shift in position. "Gotta make sure my girl is safe," he replied with a grin, holding me close with his other arm around my waist.

With a playful smile, I dug my heel into the ground and stepped in front of him with my arms crossed. "Your girl?" I shot back with a cocky smirk. "We only went on one date, and you're already calling me your girl?" Leaning toward him, I wagged a finger in his face. "Nah ah, I don't think so, bucko. It's going to take more than one simple dinner to sweep me off my feet."

Game on.

Lev's eyes clouded over with confusion for a second before they sharpened with a dangerously playful gleam. "Oh? I don't think you've fully grasped the situation yet, darling." Closing the small distance between us, he pulled my body right against his. "You were mine the moment I laid eyes on you and decided so. This date was a mere formality to make your new life a little easier to ease into."

Defiance sharpened my eyes and lips as I pressed my hands against his chest to shove myself away, only not to budge a single inch. "I don't belong to anyone, let alone to someone like you." I shot at him with more bite than I intended.

Clicking his tongue, Lev raised a brow at me as he backed me into the alleyway nearby. "Someone like me?" His voice dipped dangerously low, sending shivers down my body. "Now, what could that mean, hm? Do tell." It sounded more like a demand than a question.

Gulping, I jumped a bit when my back hit the wall. Another jolt of exciting fear chilled my body from Lev slamming his hands on either side of my body and trapping me. "J-just, you're a little rough around the edges… That's all." I chuckled nervously as my eyes darted around for an escape. "I just don't think we're compatible. I mean, we're from two different worlds, we wouldn't—"

My jaw remained unhinged from Lev's hard grip. "What? Think you're too good for a gangster like me? Does little Miss High and Mighty not want her hands dirty with my crimes?" I barely recognized his raspy voice as his face got all up in mine. "Well, too fucking bad, little empress, because I'm dragging you into my fucked up world whether you like it or not." I couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath from his voice rumbling next to my ear.

A strangled whimper forced itself out of my body when Lev hiked me up the wall and forced my legs apart. Instinctively, I wrapped my legs around him out of fear of falling on my ass if I didn't anchor myself to him. Of course, in doing this, I could clearly feel the excitement tenting in his pants. "Lev, please, we're in the middle—"

Another strangled sound choked out of me from the sudden thrust from Lev. "I own these streets, so I will do whatever the hell I want in them." His lips crushed mine in a starving kiss that sucked my soul out of my body. "Including you."

The front of my shirt bunched up in his large hand, and I braced myself for the rush of cold air that would hit my bare skin at any second.

But it never came.

Instead of chilly air biting my skin, the warm splatter of blood slapped my unexpecting face. "Lev!" The sounds of the bullets whizzing by us disappeared into the background as all I could worry about was Lev.

Could it have been me that was hit? Maybe, but I didn't feel any pain. So, it couldn't have been me, right?

With me tucked against his body, he ducked behind a dumpster. "I'm okay." Lev hissed with a deep scowl as he shielded my body with his. "Fucking nerve of these idiots…" He grumbled under his breath.

Kissing my forehead, he pushed me against the wall. "Stay," he commanded, pointing a stern finger at me along with a hardened glare.

"Oh, I was thinking of going out there to be turned into Swiss cheese." I snarked back very sarcastically.

Bringing my purse into my lap, I opened it and pulled out a pipe bomb. "I got a bomb. Do you want it?" I offered, probably sounding too casual about it. "If you want one with shrapnel, I got some of those as well."

For a brief moment, Lev stood there staring at me all flabbergasted. His eyes constantly cycled between me, my open purse, and the bomb in my hand as the gears in his head turned. Shaking his head, he ran a hand down his face and held his open jaw for a second before closing it. "Just… Stay," he stammered, turning around after drawing his gun.

Right as he was about to peek around the dumpster, he turned his head back at me. "And do not throw a bomb." He deadpanned with a glare before resuming his course.

Lev waited until the gunfire ceased before throwing himself around the corner and shooting. He only got a few shots off before ducking back next to me because of the return fire. "Give us the girl, and we'll let you live!" a voice demanded.

Scoffing in disdain, I rolled my eyes and tossed the bomb up and down in my hand. "Ya sure I can't bomb them?" I was more than willing to bet my parents sent them after me, so might as well take care of the trash now before it became a rotten issue.

Rolling his eyes, Lev snatched the bomb from me, "Give me that!" And stuffed it in his pocket with a scolding glare. "You can't just chuck a bomb at every problem that crosses your path." He chided before turning his attention away from me to address the enemy.

His chest expanded with his deep breath. "You can go back to whoever sent you after us and tell them to either fuck off or to stop being a coward and come get Nicole themselves!" His projected voice carried clearly throughout the alleyway. "You also have five seconds to leave before I put a bullet through your heads!" he warned them while readying his gun for another round.

Laughter from the crowd of men echoed from their end. "There's only one of you and seven of us! You stand no chance! Your Volkov name don't mean shit in this situation!" One of them bellowed loudly.

A wicked grin of excitement stretched at Lev's lips. "Fine! Have it your way!" Rounding the corner, Lev let off exactly seven shots.

Silence followed the dying echoes of the gunshots, and the only disruption to the chilling peace was the sound of bodies hitting the hard ground.

Looking over, I gawked at Lev, who stood there perfectly poised and composed. His chest rose and fell in a perfect, steady rhythm with his controlled breaths. Besides the injuries he had sustained before, he didn't have a hair out of place.

God, he looked so perfect in his element like this.

Seriously, it should be illegal for him to look so damn immaculate and natural handling a gun and shooting down seven men within a blink of an eye.

As fucked up as it sounded, I wanted to see him do it again.

"Empress, if you don't stop looking at me with those 'fuck me' eyes, then we're going to have problems," Lev growled, snapping me out of my stupor.

As much as I wanted to pull him down by the collar of his shirt and have him take me right then and there in the alleyway. The moment of clarity drew enough sense out of me to take note of his injuries.

Whatever arousal woke my body went back to sleep as I rushed up to him, grabbing and touching every inch of his body to get a better understanding of his injuries. Lev wasn't having any of it, though. He was quick to let his annoyance known with groans and sighs as he tried to knock my hands away. " Zhizn moya , I'm fine," he told me with a heavy sigh after bunching my hands in his. " Really." His irritated face softened with reassurance. "They're just surface wounds, grazes."

Sighing, I relented, pulling my hands back and dropping them to my side. "We should head back so Alexei or Angel can have a look at you." Sex was the last and furthest thing on my mind.

All I wanted was to get back home and get Lev checked out. I wouldn't rest easy until I saw all of his wounds with my own eyes. He didn't look like he was bleeding out anywhere, nor did I see any holes in his body, but still.

Grabbing his wrist, I dragged him out of the alleyway toward the car with hurried steps.

What should have been an easy trip turned dicey when we encountered a small group of men who blocked our way. Lev and I immediately stopped in our tracks, and before I could make a move to threaten the men, Lev shoved me behind him. "If you know what's best for you, then you'll move," Lev barked out in a low and threatening voice. "Your buddies already pissed me off tonight, and I won't mind more live targets for practice tonight."

"You're delusional." One of the men scoffed with a mocking laugh. "There are five of us, and you're just one injured person."

Not liking the dreaded feeling in the pit of my stomach, I quickly reached into my purse, using Lev's bulky body to hide my movements. Tossing a bomb with Lev and me being this close was a little risky, but it was better than nothing. I mean, surely Lev would sustain a direct shot or two if he pulled his gun right now. If it was just him or if I was hidden somewhere relatively safe, then his chances of getting away unscathed would be high. Sadly, he had me to take into account right now.

Lighting the fuse, I watched the ring of light eat away at the wire with a bated breath. It felt like seconds for the fuse to be lit to where I wanted it, even if it was less than a second in reality. When the time came, I almost hesitated because I was afraid of throwing the bomb too soon, but logically, I knew otherwise. I couldn't hesitate. If I did, then the risk of being caught in the blast with Lev would increase rather drastically. Worse, the bomb could go off way before reaching the enemy and harm just us.

A tense and confused silence filled the air the moment I stepped out from behind Lev and threw the bomb. I thought surely they'd scramble out of the way before the bomb landed by their feet, but that was too much credit. The stark realization didn't twist at their face until the bomb landed and bounced once, twice…

"Shit!"

My whole body quaked with the small aftershock of the bomb that caused my own heart to explode with happiness. The sight of everyone scattered on the ground, all dazed and groaning in pain, brought a twisted grin to my gleeful body. "Ooooh that worked out so well, definitely need to make note on that one to make more of," I commented out loud, mainly to myself.

I didn't even take note of Lev's concerned look until he spoke up, "Holy shit, you're a fucking psycho." I couldn't tell if that was meant in a good way or a bad way with how unchanging his face was. Although, when was a statement like that ever good?

Well, I didn't have to wonder for long because a crazed smile flashed across Lev's face right before he grabbed my face and kissed me. "I fucking love it." Then, he kissed me again. "But we are so going to talk about the fact you're walking around with bombs in your bag." He chuckled nervously after breaking the kiss. "Come on, let's—"

Without a thought, I shoved Lev out of the way, grabbing his holstered gun in the same action. Now, this whole thing went a lot smoother in my mind…

Bang!

Lev's cry of pain and anger shook the ground. " Blyat' ! Nicole!" Glaring at me scoldingly, he snatched the gun away from me, flicking the safety on and holstering it. "Okay, new rule: you are not allowed to touch any kind of firearm," Lev gritted out, very unamused and ungrateful for how I just saved his ass just now.

"He was going to shoot you," I argued with a soft huff, letting Lev drag me to the car in a rush.

Grumbling, Lev threw me into the passenger seat and crossed the car to the driver's side. "You could have just shouted at me. I would've reacted in time," he said while buckling me in. "Hang on." Was the only warning I got before my body slammed back against my seat with how he floored it.

Rolling my eyes, I glared at Lev out of the corner of my eyes. "You had your back turned…" I continued to argue with him.

I should probably drop the subject, but I was rather proud of what I did.

Raising his voice slightly, he scoffed, "You fucking shot me!" At least he wasn't totally upset with how he mocked me almost playfully.

Slamming a door on my rising guilt, I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Not on purpose!" I defended myself in a shaky voice.

Sighing heavily, Lev ran a hand down his face and slumped in his seat. "Nicole, you don't ever shoot a gun unless you have a clear shot and are a hundred percent confident." And here comes the lecture. "Listen, I know your intentions were well, and I appreciate it, I do, really. But for the love of all that is holy and unholy, please don't ever do anything like that ever again until I've taught you how to properly handle a firearm and you've grown comfortable with doing so."

Okay, maybe it wasn't as bad as I psyched it up to be. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't thrilled about the lack of initial gratitude, even if my actions were rather mindless and risky. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have done what I did. If anything, the safest thing to do during that time would've been to shove Lev aside completely and let him handle the situation after he recovered enough.

Stewing in silence, I sat with my legs curled up on the seat. Awkwardly, I forced my concern out. "I didn't actually put a bullet in you… Did I?" I probably should've asked him earlier, but I was too irritated to think straight.

Breathing deeply, Lev reached over and placed his hand over mine, squeezing it softly. "Just a bad graze, so I'll live." There was some chagrin to his reassurance, not that I blamed him.

If the situation was reversed, then Lev's head would've been rolling down a hill by now. So, honestly, I'd count myself lucky with how tame he was in response to me.

Swallowing my pride, I sank in my seat a little as I gripped his hand. "I'm sorry." I had to force it out of myself, but it was genuine.

A long sigh dragged out of Lev before I found my hand being moved. Then, the familiar ticklish feeling of his beard scratching the back of my hand preceded the warmth of his lips. "As long as you can promise me no more gun-toting Nicole, then I'll forgive you," he joked flatly with a very dry chuckle.

Humming softly, I nodded my head and leaned against his arm. "I'm tired…" Whatever adrenaline buzzed at my nerves took my energy away when it died down.

"Rest, don't fight the crash," Lev encouraged me with some more kisses to the back of my hand. "I'll be here to watch over you."

I tried to fight it, but a wave of dizziness forced my eyes to shut when I shook my head.

Needless to say, my eyes refused to open back up.