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v6quewrlds · 2 months ago

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❝ last to know, a. svechnikov. ❞ ‎ ‎ ┉

‎ ‎ ⁎⠀┉⠀summary: it's always nice to hear about the canes' team bonding activities. but when andrei comes home with a november challenge, you know the only solution is to kill seth jarvis.

‎ ‎ ⁎⠀┉⠀author's note: yay first svechy fic. hope y'all know that's my baby boy. it's me and google translate against the world <3 this is day one of my no nut november series.

‎ ‎ ⁎⠀┉⠀warnings: smut, please do not interact with my work if you are under 18. language, established relationship, jarvy's an idiot, andrei gets a little grumpy, google translated russian, andrei calls reader kisa (kitten), moya lyubov (my love), and malishka (baby), bratty!reader, dom!svech at the end, choking, oral (fem receiving), fingering, squirting.

‎ ‎ ⁎⠀┉⠀pairing: andrei svechnikov x reader.

‎ ‎ ⁎⠀┉⠀word count: 5.3k.

The evening air was cool, hinting at the early arrival of winter. Inside the cozy apartment, the smell of onions and garlic sizzling in olive oil filled the kitchen. You wore a simple pair of black leggings and an oversized t-shirt as you chopped vegetables for the stir-fry. Your hands moved with precision, each chop echoing in the quiet space. Andrei stood towering over the stove, carefully tossing the chicken in the makeshift wok. His muscular arms flexed with the motion, and you couldn’t help but sneak glances at his broad back.

Andrei caught you staring and winked playfully. "What are you looking at, kisa?" he asked in his deep, accented voice. You rolled your eyes, feigning annoyance, but a smirk danced on your lips.

"Just making sure you don’t burn our dinner," you quipped, tossing a pepper slice in his direction. He chuckled, the sound rumbling in his chest. The two of you had been living together for six months now, and your playful back-and-forth banter was as much a part of your daily routine as your career obligations.

"You know I'm better in kitchen than on ice," he said, a smug smile playing on his lips.

You scoffed, throwing a handful of sliced mushrooms into the pan with a dramatic flair. "Right, is that why I've had to clean burnt pans more times in the last six months than I have my entire life?"

Andrei shrugged, his smile growing wider. "You know I'm just teasing, moya lyubov." He reached over and pinched your side gently, making you squeal and swat his hand away. The stress of the day had dissipated, replaced by the warmth of your easy banter. The two of you worked in a harmonious dance, you adding the final touches to the meal while Andrei plated your dinner. You sat down at the small kitchen table, the TV playing highlights from the latest Hurricanes game in the background.

As you ate, your conversation turned to the upcoming team events. Andrei mentioned the Thanksgiving gathering at the captain’s place at the end of the month with a hint of excitement in his voice. "You could not go last year but you will love it, kisa. It's going to be so much fun."

You nodded, swirling your fork through the noodles on your plate. "I’m looking forward to it. But some of the girls were talking about a challenge you guys are doing?" you asked, trying to sound nonchalant. Andrei's face grew slightly red as he took a sip of his water, avoiding eye contact.

"Is just something...stupid," he mumbled. "Some of the guys on the team are trying to not...you know."

Your eyes narrowed, your curiosity piqued. "What do you mean, 'not'?"

Andrei sighed, setting down his fork. "They're doing a thing called 'No Nut November'. It's where you...try, um, not to climax for the whole month."

Your mouth dropped open. "Are you serious?" you exclaimed. "Why on earth would you agree to that?"

Andrei shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed. "Just ispytaniye, you know? The guys talked to me," he said, his English faltering slightly in his bashfulness. "But it is okay. We have fun."

You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. You knew Andrei had a competitive streak, but this was ridiculous. "So, what, you're just going to ignore me for a whole month for a challenge?" you said, trying to keep the annoyance from your voice.

Andrei looked at you with those puppy dog eyes you had come to love. "Nyet, kisa, it's not like that. We can still...you know, do everything else."

You raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "Everything else?" you questioned. "So, you want to be abstinent for a month because of some dumb bet?"

Andrei looked at you sheepishly. "It is not a bet," he clarified. "Team bonding. Like when we go dry January."

You couldn’t help but laugh at that. "Yeah, but you hate those challenges," you pointed out. "What's the deal with this one?"

Andrei sighed, his shoulders dropping.

"Honey, tell me who put you up to this," you pressed, your voice filled with a mix of amusement and annoyance.

He took a deep breath before admitting, "Jarvy." Your eyes widened with understanding. You were going to kill Seth Jarvis.

You put down your fork and leaned back in your chair. "Why didn't you tell me it was him? Is he bothering you?" you said, your voice filled with the mock concern of a mother tending to her distressed toddler.

Andrei's cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red as he groaned at your tone. "He just was talking, and I thought...I could do it," he said, his voice trailing off.

You studied him for a moment, your expression unreadable. "Alright, fine. You can do your 'No Nut November' thing," you said, your voice dripping with sarcasm. "But you're not getting off that easy."

Andrei looked up, hope flickering in his eyes. "What do you mean?"

Your smirk grew more mischievous. "I mean, I'll make sure you really feel like you're participating in this challenge," you said, your voice low and filled with a hint of laughter. Andrei's eyes widened slightly as you pushed your chair back and stood up from the table.

For the next few days, you made it your personal mission to test Andrei's resolve. You wore outfits that you knew would drive him wild, your short shorts and tight tops leaving little to the imagination. You would strut around your apartment, hips swaying with each step, eyes sparkling with amusement at his obvious discomfort. Andrei tried to resist, his eyes darting away whenever you caught him looking, but you could see his jaw clench and his fists tighten.

One evening, after a particularly tiring day of teasing, you lay on the couch with a knowing smirk, your legs crossed and your fingers tracing circles on your bare thigh. Andrei sat in the chair opposite you, his eyes glued to the TV but his mind clearly elsewhere. He cleared his throat, trying to ease the tension that hung in the air like a thick fog.

"Kisa, why do you do this to me?" he murmured, his voice deep with frustration.

Your smirk grew wider as you shrugged. "Just trying to make sure you're really committed to this whole 'challenge,'" you said, emphasizing the last word. You leaned back, your fingers continuing their torturous dance. Andrei's eyes followed the movement, his own eyes darkening with desire.

The tension between the two of you grew palpable. Andrei shifted in his chair, his discomfort clear. "You're being mean, kisa," he said, his voice thick. You sat up, placing your hand on his knee.

"I know, I know," you said, your voice softening with faux understanding. "But think of the prize at the end. You'll have earned it." Andrei groaned, his eyes pleading.

You stood up, your hand sliding over his thigh. "Come on, baby, let's go to bed." You could feel his resistance wavering, and you reveled in the power you held over him.

Andrei's eyes snapped to yours, and for a moment, you thought you had won. But then he leaned back and took a deep breath, his Russian stubbornness shining through. "No, kisa. I finish what I start."

Your smirk faded, replaced with a look of determination. "Fine," you said, your voice a purr. "But I won’t make this easy for you, Andrei."

The next two weeks were a battle of wills. Every move you made was calculated to push Andrei to his breaking point. You would lean over to grab something, giving him a perfect view of your cleavage. You would sit on his lap while you watched movies, your body warm and inviting against his. And each time he'd try to make a move, you would push him away, reminding him of his commitment to the challenge. Andrei's patience grew thinner with every passing day, his eyes darkening with need whenever you were near.

The day of the Thanksgiving gathering finally arrived. Andrei was on edge, his usual stoic, confident demeanor cracking under the pressure of his raging hormones. The two of you arrived at Jordan Staal’s home, the aroma of roasting turkey and sweet potatoes greeting all the guests at the door. You looked stunning in a carefully selected silk dress, your confidence deepening when you saw the other wives and girlfriends' reactions to your attire. You knew Andrei would struggle all night, and you were more than ready to watch him squirm.

As you mingled, the conversation inevitably turned to No Nut November. The other wives and girlfriends laughed at the idea, sharing stories of their partners' failed attempts. Andrei's teammates exchanged knowing glances, and you felt a twinge of annoyance that you were the butt of their private joke. But you held your tongue, smiling sweetly as you listened to their banter.

“You look good, girl.” Gianna, one of the player’s girlfriends, whispered to you with a knowing smile as she passed by with a tray of drinks. The room was filled with the sounds of laughter and the clinking of silverware as everyone stood around in anticipation of the dinner.

“I can’t believe he’s still holding out on you, sweetie. Most of the guys gave up by week two,” one of the wives named Melissa said with a wink.

You couldn’t help but feel a smug sense of pride at the thought of Andrei’s tortured self-control. You took a sip of your wine, watching as he talked with Jordan and his wife, Heather, his eyes occasionally straying to you. You knew he was desperate for release, and you were enjoying every second of his torment.

As the evening progressed, Andrei's touches grew bolder, his hands lingering a little longer on your waist or brushing against your thigh. You would look up at him with a knowing smile, watching him bite back his desire. When you were alone in the kitchen for a brief moment, Andrei leaned down and whispered in your ear, "Kisa, I need you. Let's go home."

Your eyes sparkled with mischief as you leaned back into his touch, your voice a seductive murmur. "But the party's just getting started," you teased. "You're not giving up now, are you?"

Andrei's grip tightened on the countertop, his knuckles white. "I can't...not with you looking so sexy," he admitted, his accent thickening with his arousal. Taking a brief moment to take in his surroundings, Andrei bent down to whisper his plea in Russian into your ear, hoping that the language barrier would shield your conversation from prying eyes and ears.

“Da, ya ponimayu, Andrei,” you whispered back your understanding in what little Russian you knew off the top of your head, your voice dripping with sweetness. “But you need to be stronger than this. Think of the victory you��ll feel when you win the challenge.”

You stepped back, placing the platter of food you had been holding onto the counter with a gentle clink, leaving his hand hovering in the air between you. Andrei’s frustration was palpable, but you felt a thrill of power knowing you had him right where you wanted him.

The dinner was a blur of flavors and forced small talk as Andrei’s eyes followed you around the room. You could feel his gaze on you, his need for you almost tangible. You were enjoying your victory, watching him squirm, his self-control hanging by a thread. As the night went on, the tension grew thicker than the gravy on the turkey.

The two of you found yourselves standing at the edge of the living room, the TV playing a football game neither of you was particularly interested in. Seth Jarvis strolled over, a smug grin plastered on his face. "How's it going, buddy?" he asked, slapping Andrei on the back.

Andrei gritted his teeth. "It's...going," he said through clenched teeth.

Jarvy chuckled. "You know, I didn't think you had it in you. We thought you’d tap out by week one." He winked at you, drawing an eye roll out of you. Andrei's jaw tightened, but before he could say anything, Jarvy cut in again. “We actually bet on it. I lost like a hundred bucks, Svechy. You’re a beast, man."

Andrei's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, 'we'? Who else is not doing this?"

Jarvy's smirk grew wider. "Well, most of us stopped after the first week. We decided to test how long it would take for you to catch on," he said, his eyes twinkling with amusement. Your mouth fell open as you threw your head back and laughed, the sound echoing through the room. Andrei's face went red with a mix of embarrassment and anger.

"You asshole," he groaned, visibly annoyed but trying to hold back his self-deprecating laughter. "Why did you not tell me?"

Jarvy shrugged, his grin unabated. "It's not fun if you know, right?" He clapped Andrei on the shoulder before walking away, leaving the Russian standing in stunned silence.

You couldn't help but continue to laugh, the tension of the past few weeks finally breaking. You stepped closer to Andrei, your eyes gleaming with mirth. "So, you've been suffering for nothing?"

Andrei's eyes searched yours, a mix of relief and annoyance swirling in their depths. "It will be worth it," he murmured, pulling you into a tight embrace. You could feel his heart racing against your chest, and you knew that the challenge had pushed him to his limits.

“Maybe this will be a good thing after all,” you whispered into Andrei’s ear, your voice filled with amusement as you wrapped your arms around his waist. You felt his body relax slightly against you, his grip on you tightening for a brief moment before loosening.

Andrei leaned down and kissed your neck, his breath warm against your skin. “Ya budu zhdat’,” he murmured in Russian, his voice thick with need. You giggled, feeling his hard chest against yours.

“You’ll have to wait a little longer, my love,” you said, pulling away with a mischievous smile.

Andrei sighed, his grip on your hips loosening slightly. “You are cruel, kisa,” he said, his eyes still dark with desire. You knew you had won this round, but you couldn’t resist pushing him just a little further. You pushed yourself off the wall, stalking back to the group of wives and girlfriends.

The rest of the night was a blur of laughter and food. The tension between you and Andrei had dissipated slightly, replaced with a newfound excitement. As the guests began to leave, Andrei’s hand found yours, his thumb brushing over your knuckles in a gentle rhythm that sent shivers down your spine. You knew what was coming, and you were more than ready.

As you two said your goodbyes to Heather and Jordan, Andrei's grip tightened, pulling you closer. His eyes were dark with desire, and you felt your body responding, your core heating with anticipation. You walked to the car in silence, the crunch of gravel beneath your feet the only sound between the two of you.

The drive home was tense, the air in the car thick with unspoken words. Andrei's eyes never left the road, but you could feel his need for you in every tense line of his body. You leaned over and placed your hand on his thigh, your thumb stroking the fabric of his dress pants. His jaw clenched, but he didn’t move away.

When you arrived at your apartment, Andrei practically dragged you inside, the door slamming shut behind you. He slammed you against the door, his mouth claiming yours in a fiery kiss that left you both gasping for air. You moaned, your hands fisting his hair as you wrapped your legs around his waist.

Andrei’s hands roamed your body, desperate to feel every inch of you. He slid the silk dress up your thighs, his rough palms grazing your soft skin. Your breath hitched as his thumb brushed against the lace of your panties.

"Now, kisa?" he growled, his voice a mix of need and frustration. You could feel his arousal pressing against you, and you knew you couldn't wait any longer either.

With a sly smile, you whispered, "Alright, let's go to the bedroom."

Your passionate kisses didn't stop as you stumbled down the hallway, Andrei’s hands moving to peel off your dress, his desire unbridled. As you reached the bedroom, the dress fell to the floor in a puddle of silk, revealing your barely-there lingerie. Your heart raced, your body craving his touch.

Andrei laid you on the bed, his eyes dark with want. His fingers traced the outline of your bra, his thumbs brushing over your hardened nipples. He leaned down, his breath hot against your skin as he whispered in Russian, his voice deep and demanding. Your back arched, your eyes closing in pleasure as you felt his mouth replace his hands.

He kissed a path down your body, his teeth grazing the sensitive skin of your stomach before he reached the apex of your thighs. You could feel the wetness pooling between your legs, your body begging for his touch. Andrei didn’t disappoint, his mouth closing over your clit through your sheer panties, his tongue flicking and teasing until you were moaning his name.

Your hands were in his hair, guiding him, urging him on as he devoured you. You could feel the warmth of his breath, the softness of his lips, and the roughness of his prickly stubble. Your legs trembled, and you knew you were close to the edge. But Andrei had other plans. He pulled away, his eyes smoldering as he removed your underwear, tossing it aside.

“I want to see you come apart for me, kisa,” he murmured in your ear, his voice thick with lust. “My way of saying sorry.”

Your eyes flew open, meeting his intense gaze. You could feel his hands on your thighs, spreading your legs wider, exposing you to his hungry eyes. Andrei leaned down, his mouth replacing his thumb, his tongue delving deep into your folds. Your grip on the bedsheets tightened as waves of pleasure crashed over you, your body responding to his every touch.

Andrei took his time, savoring every gasp and moan that escaped your lips. His tongue danced around your clit, flicking and swirling, driving you closer to the brink of orgasm. Your hips bucked against his face, your legs tightening around his head, urging him to never stop. The room was filled with the sound of your ragged breaths, the smell of your desire thick in the air.

“Dai, Andrei, please,” you begged, your voice a breathless whisper. Your body was a tight coil, wound up by the masterful way he teased you. Andrei chuckled darkly, his eyes glued to your glistening pussy as he added a finger to the mix, sliding it in and out of you with a rhythm that matched his tongue.

Your eyes rolled back, and you bit your lip to keep from screaming out. His finger curled inside you, finding your sweet spot, and you could feel the orgasm building, ready to crash down on you like a wave. Andrei’s other hand found your breast, squeezing and playing with your nipple, sending sparks of pleasure to your core.

With a final, desperate plea, you came, your body shaking with the intensity of your climax. Andrei didn’t stop, his tongue and finger working in unison until you were nothing but a trembling mess beneath him.

Pulling away, he gave you a satisfied smirk, his eyes gleaming with triumph. Russian rolled off his tongue, “Ya zastavil tebya zhdat' slishkom dolgo, moy milyy kotenok, hmm?” He licked his lips, savoring your taste.

You could only nod, catching the phrase ‘made you wait too long’ and ‘kitten’, your breathing still erratic. Andrei leaned down and kissed you deeply, his tongue sliding against yours, sharing the flavor of your desire. You felt his erection pressing into your thigh, and you reached down to stroke him, your hand wrapping around his thick length.

He groaned into your mouth, his hips jerking forward involuntarily. "Malishka," he murmured, his voice strained. He pushed your hand away, standing up to remove his own clothes. His pants hit the floor, revealing his boxer briefs, the outline of his hard cock clear. He stepped out of them, standing before you naked and proud.

You took in the sight of him, your eyes lingering on his toned abs, the V that dipped down to his shaft, the heavy erection that stood tall between his legs. You licked your lips, feeling your arousal spike again. Andrei climbed onto the bed, his movements swift and purposeful.

He positioned himself between your legs, his cock poised at your entrance. He took a moment to appreciate the sight of you, spread out before him, your chest heaving with every breath, your skin flushed from the orgasm he’d just given you. He leaned down, whispering something in Russian that you didn’t understand, but the way his voice vibrated against your skin sent shivers down your spine.

Andrei slid into you with a groan, his thickness stretching you deliciously. Your nails dug into the bed, your body arching to meet his, your eyes boring into his. He began to move, his strokes deep and measured, each one pushing you closer to another peak.

“Andrei, faster,” you panted, your eyes fluttering shut. You felt his hand wrap around your throat, gently squeezing as his other hand found your clit, his thumb pressing down firmly.

"Open your eyes, kisa," he ordered, his voice gruff with need. Your eyes snapped open, locking onto his as he began to thrust harder, his hips moving with a fierce rhythm that matched the pounding of your heart. His thumb on your clit grew more insistent, the pressure just right to send you spiraling toward another orgasm.

Andrei’s grip on your throat tightened slightly, his eyes focused on yours as he whispered, “You want me to make you feel good, malishka?”

Your eyes widened, the dominance in his voice sending a thrill through you. You nodded, your body already obeying his command. He picked up his pace, his strokes growing more erratic as his own climax approached. You felt yourself teetering on the edge, your muscles clenching around him, your walls contracting as you fought for release.

Andrei’s thumb played with your clit with renewed vigor, his hips slamming into you as he claimed your mouth in a bruising kiss. You could feel his cock swell even further, the pink, angry head brushing against your g-spot with every thrust. The hand on your throat tightened, cutting off your air, and making you lightheaded with desire.

He growled in approval, his own climax still a ways off. Andrei’s strokes grew erratic, his movements more primal as he chased his release. Your eyes remained locked with his, the connection between the two of you intense and unbreakable. You could feel the sweat trickling down your spine, your body begging for more, even as you trembled from the aftershocks of your orgasm.

With a sudden movement, Andrei pulled out of you, flipping you onto your stomach with surprising agility. You yelped in surprise, but before you could protest, you felt the head of his cock nudge against your slick entrance from behind. "Andrei," you whined, your voice a mix of pleasure and frustration.

He chuckled darkly. "You want more, kisa?" He didn’t wait for a response before slamming back into you, his hips slapping against your ass. Your moan was muffled by the pillow Andrei had buried your face into. The angle was new, the sensations overwhelming. Each thrust hit deeper than before, sending waves of pleasure through your body.

Your hands strained against the pillow, pushing yourself back to meet him as he claimed you from behind. You could feel the heat of Andrei’s body surrounding you, his muscles flexing and releasing as he moved in a punishing rhythm. His grip on your hips was firm, guiding your body to his will, his breath hot against your neck as he whispered words that only added to the erotic symphony of your lovemaking.

"Do you want to touch me? Do you want to feel how hard I am for you?" Andrei’s voice was a gruff whisper in your ear as he pounded into you, his hand reaching around to stroke your clit again. You nodded frantically, your voice lost in the pillow.

"Vpered, prodolzhat'," Andrei hummed over you, giving you the permission you craved to reach out and feel his skin on yours.

You reached behind yourself, your hand finding his forearm, the muscles tight with effort. Your fingertips danced along the slick skin, feeling the power in every flex of his bicep as he pounded into you. The sensation of his cock filling you from this angle was exquisite, and you could feel your body responding, already building towards another peak.

Impatient, Andrei yanked you up by your arms, so you were on your knees, your breasts bouncing with each thrust. You moaned, your hands reaching back to grip his hips, your nails digging into his skin. He groaned, his movements growing more urgent. The sound of skin slapping skin filled the room, a testament to your passion.

"Harder," you gasped, your body begging for more. Andrei obliged, his strokes growing rougher, his grip on your hips tightening. You could feel his cock swell even further, his balls slapping against your clit with each powerful thrust. Your body was on fire, your orgasm building again.

Andrei leaned over you, his chest pressing against your back, his mouth at your ear. "Khoroshiy?" he murmured in Russian, his voice sending shivers down your spine as he asked if you were good. You nodded, your body tightening as you approached the edge once more, unable to form words to respond to him.

He whispered something else you couldn’t process, and you felt him shift his angle, his cock brushing against that sensitive spot deep within you. A whiny moan escaped your lips, and your head fell back against your boyfriend's shoulder. Andrei’s breath grew ragged, his hips moving in a punishing rhythm that had your toes curling.

"Come for me," he demanded, his fingers trailing up to your throat once more. The gentle pressure was enough to send you spiraling over the edge, your body convulsing around his. Your scream of pleasure was broken as it fought its way through your constricted airway. Your soul practically left your body, the orgasm so intense it was almost painful. You could feel the fluid leaving your body, dampening the sheets as droplets landed on Andrei who simply grunted, his strokes never slowing.

"Andrei," you panted, your voice hoarse from screaming. He leaned down, kissing the side of your neck, his teeth grazing your sensitive skin. "Ya lyublyu tebya, kisa," he murmured, his voice thick with passion.

"Love you," you hummed, your words faltering as you came down from your orgasm.

You felt his thumb tracing lazy circles against your pulse point. His other hand found your clit, his movements precise and demanding. Your body responded instantly, your hips bucking back to meet his. You could feel him smiling against your neck, his breath warm against your skin.

When you finally came back to Earth, you could feel Andrew’s cum sticking to your thighs. You collapsed onto the bed with a sigh, your legs quivering, your breathing ragged. "I didn’t even realize you came too," you murmured, turning to look at him over your shoulder.

Andrei pulled out, his cock glistening with your combined juices. He didn’t bother to cover himself as he stumbled over to the bathroom to clean up. When he returned, he was still hard, and you couldn’t help but laugh at his aroused state. You had never seen him like this before, so raw and needy. It was both interesting and exhilarating.

He climbed back onto the bed, his eyes never leaving yours. He reached out, his hand grabbing the back of your neck, pulling you closer until your foreheads were touching. His voice was low and gruff as he whispered, "You think this is funny?"

Your smile grew wider, your eyes sparkling with mischief. "A little," you admitted. Andrei’s grip tightened, but you didn’t flinch, your own desire sparking for a brief second as you felt his length finally begin to soften against your leg.

"Legs," Andrei hummed, instructing you to open up so he could clean you up. You giggled, your cheeks flushed with pleasure and a hint of embarrassment, spreading your legs wider for him. His gentle touch and the cool cloth against your sensitive skin were a cool relief from the fiery passion you had just shared. He took his time, wiping away every trace of your lovemaking, his focus on taking care of you in the aftermath of your passion.

Once you were cleaned up, Andrei lay beside you, pulling you into his arms. His chest was still heaving, his heart racing from the intensity of your encounter. Your eyes drifted shut, a contented sigh escaping your lips as you felt the warmth of his body envelop you. His hand caressed your back, his thumb making soothing circles that had you melting into him.

The two of you lay there, basking in the afterglow, your skin sticky with sweat, the scent of sex heavy in the air. Andrei’s arm was wrapped around your waist, his leg thrown over yours in a possessive manner. You felt his breath against your neck, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. It was moments like these you cherished, the quiet moments after passion had taken over, when your bodies were still joined, your hearts beating as one.

“Why did you do this to me?” Andrei’s voice was a mix of playfulness and exasperation. You chuckled, turning your head to look at him.

“Me? Do this to you?” you replied, feigned innocence in your tone. You wiggled closer, your eyes sparkling to match the cheeky smile that graced your face. “You’re the one who started this whole 'No Nut November' thing. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t forgetting how good we are together.”

Andrei sighed, his hand tightening briefly around your waist before he leaned in to kiss your forehead. “I never forget, kisa,” he murmured, his voice thick with appreciation. You felt a warmth spread through you, his pet name for you a sweet reminder of his affection. You snuggled closer, enjoying the feeling of his arms around you.

For a moment, you lay in silence, the only sound the distant murmur of the Raleigh nightlife. Then Andrei spoke up, his tone more serious. “No more challenges for me.”

You raised an eyebrow, looking at him with a hint of skepticism. “What about your pride, Svech?” you teased, using his nickname.

“You are my pride, kisa,” he replied, his eyes never leaving yours. There was a vulnerability in his gaze that you hadn’t seen before, and it made your heart race.

You leaned up on your elbow, studying his face. “Really?” you whispered, your voice filled with wonder. Andrei nodded, his thumb brushing over your full bottom lip.

“You win, kisa. I can’t resist you, and I don’t want to.” His eyes searched yours, a silent promise in their depths. You felt your heart swell, the love you felt for him overwhelming you. You leaned in, your lips pressing to his in a gentle kiss. It was filled with all the love and passion you felt for this man who had stumbled into your life and turned it upside down in the best way possible.

Andrei’s arms tightened around you, pulling you closer, and deepening the kiss. His tongue slipped into your mouth, dancing with yours in a silent apology for his earlier stubbornness. You melted into the embrace, your bodies still humming together from the show of your love.

#&. cassie writes.#&. nnn masterlist.#andrei svechnikov #andrei svechnikov x reader #andrei svechnikov smut #carolina hurricanes #nhl imagine #nhl smut #hockey smut #x black reader #black!reader #black!oc #x black fem reader #black!fem!reader #nhl fic

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jo-speaks · 4 months ago

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jo's 13 days of kinktober masterlist (coming to this blog October 2024) ~♡︎~ warning: MDNI 18+ content below the cut.

day 1: Play With Me (ft. quinn hughes and sex toys)

day 2: Say So (ft. trevor zegras and orgasm control)

day 3: Trust Me (ft. luke hughes and sensory deprivation)

day 4: Nothing Holding Me Back (ft. jack hughes and rough sex)

day 5: Follow My Lead (ft. quinn hughes and inexperienced! reader)

day 6: The Show Must Go On (ft. nico hischer and exhibitionism)

day 7: Wish You Were Here (ft. cole caufield and phone sex)

day 8: Return The Favour (ft. jamie drysdale and mutual masturbation)

day 9: Reflections (ft. brock boeser and mirror sex)

day 10: You Look Good On Camera (ft. andrei svechnikov and filming)

day 11: Caught Up (ft. elias pettersson and bondage)

day 12: Keep Me Warm (ft. dawson mercer and cockwarming

day 13: Take Control (ft. john marino and domination)

#jo's kinktober masterlist #qh43 #lh43 #jh86 #brock boeser #trevor zegras #jamie drysdale #andrei svechnikov #nhl hockey #vancouver canucks #new jersey devils #anahiem ducks #carolina hurricanes

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mendeshoney · 3 months ago

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this close isn't close enough

a/n: happy thirsty thurday fellow harlots ^_^

this is a small little part 3 ish/sequel to take me back to eden (you can find part one here and part two here) that just popped into my head and i figured i'd jot it down for you all to enjoy. it does discuss wanting and trying for a child, so if that's not something you're comfortable with, this may not be for you, so read with caution. this is for @pyotrkochetkov and @smileysvech because without them this fictional andrei wouldn't exist! title is from "melt" by kehlani

warnings/tags: nine year age gap, older man x younger woman, slice of married life, baby fever, fluff, lots of smut, shower sex, hotel sex (semi-public, against the window), oral sex, unprotected sex, mentions of pregnancy/impregnation

word count: 12,163

“Almaznyy?” Andrei calls out, removing his reading glasses with one hand as he shuts his laptop with the other, then rubs the bridge of his nose.

He counts to ten in his head, waiting for your response, but it doesn’t come. The soft and familiar whrrrrr of a machine echoes back at him instead, and he sighs, a small smile stretching across his face as he gets up from his desk to wander down the hall.

When he makes it down the hall and to the threshold that leads to you, he's not surprised in the slightest to find you at your pottery wheel. Your back is to him as you sit on your stool, headphones on as your body lightly moves along to the music playing, hands firm and shaping the clay in front of you into what he knows is the makings of a teapot.

Beside you, on the work table, Andrei sees two mugs newly finished with their handles attached, two finished matching saucer plates that need to be painted with glaze and fired, and two little spoons, already fired and glazed, probably newly taken out of the kiln. Beyond that, he also spots two jars - one for honey and one for sugar cubes, you had told him - and three brand new jars of glaze.

He takes a second to himself to just silently admire you, his beautiful wife of nearly two years, and lets his heart beat wild and content in his chest.

Andrei had converted one of his guest rooms into your own little art studio not long after you moved in with him, and by converted, he means he took out all the furniture, stripped the carpet, and let you decorate and furnish it how you saw fit.

He tried his best to learn as much as he could about what kinds of art you liked creating, the tools you used, but in truth, a lot of it was lost on him, and you had more mediums of art you were interested in than you cared to admit. Andrei had ended up giving you his card instead, telling you to buy whatever it was you needed or wanted, so that the space became exactly what you had always dreamed of.

You had been meticulous about it, too, and Andrei adored every second of watching you design the space back then. The flooring was first - you insisted on water and stain proof vinyl floors - followed by shelves, storage drawers, a small desk, your massive work table, and other organizing things. Then, once you had a place and space for everything, you bought canvases, a pottery wheel, clay, easels, paints, a sketchbook, pencils, pens, markers, and more.

You’d bought a kiln, too, which had its own place in a little shed he bought and had built for you outside. Since you'd gotten back into pottery and started making pieces, you'd been able to sell some to a few of the wives, girlfriends, and partners of players on the team, as well as some of Andrei's co-workers in the Canes' front office. You had even put a few up of your paintings and drawings you'd done on your larger canvases in their charity auctions over the last couple of years, which had given you a significant amount of your own money.

Andrei encouraged you to go legit and open up a shop, which was an idea you'd been slowly getting used to. You'd set up a website so far, and had sold your first collection a couple of months ago - planters and vases and hanging planters and such - which had done extremely well, but you insisted you wanted to still be able to find fun in doing it again instead of allowing it to feel like an obligation.

To help with that as of late, had been your project of a tea set for his mom's birthday, which was still months away. You'd been using the kiln a lot more because of it, for test pieces as well as the actual pieces themselves, so more often than not lately, your art studio is where he found you.

"If you call for me and I don't respond to you in ten seconds," you'd told him when you first started on the set, "I'm either in here, or at the kiln out back."

Quietly, he observes as you shape the lump of clay in the center of your wheel into a sphere, then, unhappy with the roundness, you carefully squeeze at it until it's back into another lump, before shaping it out once more. The rise of your shoulders before they tense as you start to create a hole in the middle of the clay, and the fall of them again when you start to pinch at the walls until it forms into the exact shape you want.

Only when you stop the wheel and dip your hands into the bowl of water beside you to get rid of the excess clay does Andrei approach, carefully placing his hands on your shoulders to give you a gentle squeeze.

You tilt your head back, bumping it into his abdomen gently as you gaze up at him with his favorite dazzling smile. He carefully removes your headphones, putting it on the work table and smoothing your hair down.

"Hi baby," he murmurs, bending down to press a kiss to your forehead, the tip of your nose, and then to your lips.

You hum softly before sitting up, turning yourself around on the stool to face him. "Hi handsome," you return, grabbing a towel from the work table and wiping your hands before settling them on his waist, fingers playing with the belt loops of his jeans. "Did you call for me a lot?"

"Just once," he says, unable to resist bending down to kiss you again.

He loves looking at you like this, soft in the mid morning light, a blissful smile on your face with dots of clay and glaze over your cheeks and on the little apron you have covering your clothes. He loves how he can smell the vanilla of your body wash among the earthen scents in the art studio, and how it makes him feel like he's completely at peace.

Andrei loves you. His almaznyy. His beautiful diamond. His wife.

"What's going on?" You ask him, those beautiful eyes crinkling at the edges in another one of his favorite smiles when his hands descend into your hair, carding the strands between his fingers.

"I bought the tickets for us to go and visit Evgeny and Sara." He says.

"Oh good," you say with a nod before leaning into his touch. "When do we leave?"

"Next week," he says, tugging playfully on a strand of your hair and chuckling softly when you pout at him for it. "Is that okay?"

You wrap your arms around his waist, rubbing your face into his clothed abdomen, your verbal response muffled in the fabric. Andrei laughs, scratching gently at your scalp. "What was that, almaznyy?"

"Da," you say, leaning back to look at him again but keeping your arms secured around his waist. "That's fine with me."

He smirks when he spots a familiar glint in your eyes, watching the way your pupils dilate then blow out a little wide when he cups your face in his hands, thumbs caressing at your jaw. "My busy little almaznyy, you've been working hard lately, haven't you?"

You nod, humming in agreement. He nods too, letting one of his hands trail down and to the back of your neck, deftly undoing the knots at the top of your apron. "So diligent," he praises, "What did I do to deserve you?"

Your eyes track him as he removes his hands from your body, lowering himself to his knees so he can wrap his arms around your waist to get at the ties behind you. He buries his face into your neck as he does so, adoring the way your head immediately tilts to allow him the room. He ghosts his lips across the skin as he undoes the ties around your waist, ignoring your little whines of protest when he pulls the apron off of you and tosses it to the side.

He sits back on his haunches, looking up at you with a Cheshire grin of his own. "You got clay on your clothes too, almaznyy." He playfully chastises, gesturing towards the little flecks of clay on the black shirt you're wearing - which is most definitely his - and to the miniscule spots on your sweatpants. "Think we should probably get you cleaned up in that case, shouldn't we?"

A small smirk crosses your lips as you nod, and Andrei smiles, surging up to wrap you in his arms. You go easily, both your bodies on muscle memory as you wrap your arms around his neck and legs around his waist, and he lifts you into his hold easily, standing with you and carrying you off down the hall to your bedroom.

The warm spray of the shower cascades down his bare back as Andrei fucks you slow and deep against the tiles, his arms settled into the space behind your knees as he holds you up and open for him.

Your cries echo around the bathroom, your arms wrapped around his neck and fingers tangled in his hair, grasping at the strands desperately, his name a repeated plea on your lips.

"More," you beg sweetly, and he smiles, eyes locked on your face. He lowers you a little bit, and on the next push in, your eyes flutter shut as your mouth falls open in a beautiful cry, pussy squeezing around his cock in a way that makes him so fucking dizzy.

"Come on baby," he coaxes, pressing you impossibly closer against the tiles and against himself, burying his face in your neck to suck a bruise into the skin. With every press of his hips forward, your clit grinds against his abs, and he can feel the way your body begins to tense up and shake in his hold, your nails disappearing from his scalp to dig into his shoulders instead.

His name leaves your lips in another desperate plea, and he chuckles, nipping playfully at the skin of your neck, your jaw, before capturing your lips in a filthy kiss. He licks into your mouth, massaging his tongue with yours before he pulls away just slightly, dragging your bottom lip between his teeth as he goes.

"Is my pretty wife going to come on her husband's cock?" He taunts, and he sees the way the words go straight through you, your eyes glazing over, body going almost lax in his grip.

(He'd gotten much filthier and practically insane with his dirty talk over time. It started not long after you'd left Eden and began officially dating nearly seven months after meeting, and had only gotten more intense during the three month time span that you'd been engaged. It didn't help the fact that he noticed you particularly loved when he called you his wife, regardless of the situation.)

"Andrei," you plead. "Please."

"Please what, pretty baby?" He murmurs, dragging his lips against yours lazily, "What is it my pretty wife wants, hm?"

Your pussy squeezes down again and he groans, stealing another filthy kiss from you. "'M so close," you say between kisses, dragging your nails across his shoulders again.

He keeps your legs hooked over his bent arms, reaching his hands down to squeeze at your waist, thumb rubbing gently over where he knows a little diamond tattoo sits at your side, fucking you onto his cock in deep, sharp thrusts that steal your breath from you, and your eyes squeeze shut as your body shakes even more in his hold.

Andrei latches his lips to that sensitive spot on your neck, pressing his body tight against yours. That, and the added friction as your clit rubs against his abs, your sensitive nipples brushing against his chiseled chest, has you coming around him with a loud cry. Your pussy clamps down, pulsing around him and Andrei groans, holding you tight as he fucks past the grip, chasing after his own orgasm.

He groans low and deep, electricity shooting up his spine as he comes, filling you from where he's buried deep. It sends your body into a second orgasm almost immediately, and Andrei curses, muttering a string of Russian in your ear at the unexpected sensation.

You both take a blissful, fucked out moment to calm down, heartbeats slowing and breathing returning to normal.

"Okay?" He murmurs after a few minutes, and you nod, sighing happily in his hold. He taps your hips, and you nod again. An unhappy sounding noise leaves you when he gently pulls out, and his heart aches a little bit, thinking you’re probably sore. He’s immediately pressing apologetic kisses to your forehead while lowering you to the ground. His hands stay on your body, keeping you steady until you manage to stand on your own.

When his eyes finally get back to your face, there's an expression there he hasn't seen before, one he can't quite place. There's a tinge of disappointment there, and longing, and it brings a frown to his face too.

He cups your face in his hands, tilting your head up to look at him. When your eyes lock, the expression fades, and the smile that takes over your face is so brightly it almost knocks him off of his feet.

"What's wrong, almaznyy?" He says, thumb brushing against your cheeks.

You lean into his touch, hands circling around his wrists. "Nothing, Drei." You promise, "I'm perfectly happy."

There's nothing in your voice or in your face now that tells him that you're lying, or that you're hiding anything from him, so he has no reason to not believe you.

Still, he stores the expression he saw away for later, keeping it in mind just in case.

He takes his time washing you both off after that, enjoying the content noises you make as he shampoos your hair and wraps you up in a fluffy towel when you're all done, pressing gentle kisses all over your face before seizing your mouth in a kiss he hopes tells you "I'm so in love with you I think my heart might burst without you."

Andrei quickly darts out of the way as a little boy zooms past him, his father chasing after him and tossing a “sorry!” over his shoulder as he goes.

He laughs a little, calling out a “it’s okay!” in their way as he double checks that he still has a hold on your drinks and food before he keeps walking.

He heads back into the airport lounge and straight for you, handing you a cup of hot chocolate and a warmed up croissant from one of the bistros in the terminal. You accept it with a happy smile and a murmured ‘thank you’ before he snuggles up next to you on the little couch you’ve both managed to commandeer for yourselves.

He glances over at your airport outfit once more, mostly because he can’t help but appreciate how cozy you look.

Admittedly, he’s still got a small habit of dressing up when he flies, so he’s his standard in black pants and a white shirt, and you insisted on matching with him when you got dressed this morning. You’re in black lounge pants, a white shirt, and you have a gray sweater tied and resting around your shoulders.

Andrei figured out that when you fly you prefer to have your own blanket with you, which you have curled around your shoulders right now as you take a sip of your hot chocolate.

You look more ready for a cozy winter than you do for a week-long vacation during the summer in San Jose.

“Is it good baby?” He asks, taking a sip of his own coffee. You nod, holding the cup to your cheek. Another thing he learned - you get cold easily, but especially in airports.

“Very,” you nod, leaning your head to rest on his shoulder. “Spasibo, malysh.”

“You’re welcome, almaznyy.”

He’s content to relax like that with you, and when he takes his phone out once you’ve finished your drinks, you help him with the crossword puzzle game he became addicted to once he saw you playing it yourself.

The two of you are engrossed in trying to figure out a six letter word for the clue “tough” when there’s a blur of pale yellow accompanied by a flurry of giggles that crashes into your legs, and it makes both of you jump up a little in surprise.

It’s a baby boy, Andrei realizes, one who’s most likely just learned what running is given the delighted and mischievous expression on his face, and when he turns to check if you’re okay, he’s surprised to find you out of your seat, blanket abandoned, and kneeling on the floor in front of the child to see if they’re okay.

The baby looks like he’s seconds from crying, but then you’re smiling, speaking at him quietly and gently, and to Andrei’s amazement, the baby stops, looks at you, and then bursts into a fit of giggles.

You laugh, happy that you could make him feel better, and continue to speak to him while he babbles away at you. He’s seen you do it with Luka, coaxing him away from a tantrum he’d been seconds away from, and calming Mila down when she scraped her knee while learning to ride her bike that first time, and it still amazes him how good you are with kids. Something warm and fuzzy starts to grow in his heart, and it stops short when a woman who Andrei can only assume is the baby’s mother approaches.

“I’m so sorry!” She says, jogging toward where you and the baby are on the ground. “Leo’s just discovered how fast he can move but we’re still working on finding his brakes.”

“It’s alright,” you reassure her through a laugh. “My nephew Luka was the same.”

My nephew - Andrei still loved that you thought that way.

“He probably had places to be and we were just in the way, weren’t we Leo?” You tease, pulling a funny face at Leo. His mom laughs when Leo bursts into giggles, picking Leo up into her arms.

“He’s fast,” Andrei notes when you stand with her, “How old is he?”

“He just turned one,” his mom gushes.

You make a little cooing sound. “Is he your first?”

Leo’s mother shakes her head with a laugh. “You’d think so, but I have a three year old too. His name’s Sky, he’s with my husband over there, we finally just got him to settle down but then this little guy decided it was time to sprint.”

You and Andrei look over to where Leo’s mom gestured, finding the three year old who almost ran him over earlier eating snacks while his dad watches over him, all the while looking over at his wife and smiling when he sees her.

Andrei knows that smile, he probably sends that same smile your way about a hundred times a day.

Ulybka vlyublennogo muzhchiny. His mom had said. The smile of a man in love.

“You should think about getting them into sports soon.” Andrei says when he turns back toward the mom, “Sky almost tackled me in the terminal earlier-”

“-And Leo barely flinched when he ran into me!” You tease, making another funny face at the baby. He giggles, suddenly growing shy as he hides in his mom’s shoulders.

She laughs, “Everyone’s been saying that to me. I might just have to consider it.”

Andrei reaches into his pocket, grabbing his business card from his wallet and hands it to the mother with a small smile. “If you ever think they’re interested in hockey, give me a call or send me an email. I’d be happy to get them set up.”

The mother takes Andrei’s card with a curious look, and when she reads his name, her eyes light up in recognition, and she smiles, laughing a little to herself.

“I knew you looked familiar! My husband and I are big fans. We were there for your last cup winning game. It’s so nice to meet you!”

Andrei catches the glance you shoot at him from the corner of his eye, can see the tense line of your shoulders in his peripheral, but he gives the mother an easy smile, and your body relaxes.

Now that he has you, that time in his life isn’t so painful anymore.

“Thank you,” he says genuinely. “I’m glad that you were there, it felt good to have home crowd support.”

“I appreciate your offer, I’ll definitely reach out.” She says, then looks at both of you. “It was nice meeting you both, you’re such a lovely couple!”

You both say your goodbyes, you waving at baby Leo, who waves back shyly, then looks at Andrei. Andrei waves too, and to his surprise, baby Leo waves back to him too, before burying his face in his mother’s shoulder.

You finally return to your seat on the couch next to Andrei, wrapping both of your arms around his, resting your chin on his shoulder as you smile brightly up at him.

“That was hot of you.” You say, which has Andrei laughing in surprise.

“What was, almaznyy?”

“You and your business cards.” You say, scrunching your nose a little. “I liked it, it was very authoritative.”

Andrei shakes his head, booping your nose with his finger. “Calm yourself down, almaznyy. I’m still not interested in being part of the mile high club.”

You roll your eyes with a shrug, but relax fully against his side. “Offer still stands.”

You're laying on the floor of Sara and Evgeny's living room, laughing as you bounce eight month old baby Alexei up and down against your belly, watching as his little legs kick back and forth and he babbles his joy. From beside you, three year old Luka lays on his belly as he plays with the train set Andrei had bought him last Christmas, and five year old Mila rests on your other side, coloring diligently in the sketchbook you'd bought her for her birthday.

She'd seen you drawing in one of your journals and had become both enraptured and amazed as she observed you, and then had been overjoyed when you handed her the book and pencil so she could create her own drawings as she pleased.

Her parents had been worried that she might accidentally press the pencil too tight and ruin one of your other drawings, or accidentally draw over something you had done, but either way, you would have cared less. "It's good for her to do it this way," you had told them, "so she knows what she makes is important, too."

On the couch above you, Sara's feeding a bottle to Alexei's twin brother Aleksander, watching you and her children. She smiles, nudging you gently in the side with her socked feet.

"You're a natural at this," she praises. "The kids always seem to behave better when you're here."

You scoff a little, making nonsensical noises at Alexei as he babbles back at you. "Hardly," you say. "I think it's because Andrei wears them out first."

When you and Andrei come around, he tends to round up his niece and nephews, tiring the older ones out by running around while you and Sara or Evgeny or Andrei's parents help with the twins.

Sara shakes her head. "No, he might wear them out, but they still have plenty of room to be crazy. You settle them down. This is the quietest they've been all day."

You look at your nieces and nephews at where they each are, peaceful and happy and content, and you shrug, smiling a little to yourself. "I guess so."

Sara laughs, nudging you again. "So, when are you gonna have some little ones of your own? We're outnumbered by boys here and it's your turn to pop a baby out for once."

You falter slightly, almost dropping baby Alexei straight on your face before you catch him effortlessly, trying to ignore the wave of dizziness when you launch yourself upright into a sitting position. Luka and Mila barely spare either of you a glance, too focused on what they're doing. You gaze at Sara, holding Alexei tight with one hand while shushing her with the other.

"Not so loud!" You half whisper, half yell.

Andrei and Evgeny were just in the kitchen not too far away, and while they were probably distracted by shop talk, you couldn't risk him hearing like this.

Sara narrows her eyes at you, frowning, whisper-yelling right back. "You told me on the phone last week that you were going to talk to him about it! And the week before that, and two weeks before that!"

You groan, shaking your head and beginning to bounce Alexei again when he starts to fuss. Sara shakes her head right back at you, gesturing for you to follow her as she heads toward the twins' nursery, instructing Mila and Luka to "wait right here while mommy talks to your aunt."

As you head to the nursery, you pass Andrei and Evgeny who are, as expected, engrossed in their conversation, but it doesn't stop Andrei from tossing a wink at you as you pass by.

You pointedly ignore the way it makes butterflies swarm and swoop in your stomach, smiling softly in return before ducking out of sight and into the nursery. Sara shuts the door behind you, giving you a pointed look as she does so.

You'd had best friends before, obviously, but never an older sister figure, and none quite like Sara. When Andrei had introduced you two, she'd been nothing but welcoming, friendly, and someone you'd come to rely on quite a lot since then.

When she announced she was pregnant with twins last year, you'd been overjoyed for her, and often traveled back and forth between San Jose and Raleigh to help her with the babies, especially since it had been Evgeny's first year working with the coaching staff of the Sharks, having previously been in the front office.

Maybe it was the excitement you got in helping her decorate the nursery, even though most of it was taken care of since they had things from Luka and Mila, or maybe it was just all the preparation you helped her with, but it had given you severe baby fever.

Like...severe.

Severe enough that you were practically ready to be pregnant that very same day until reality kicked in and knocked some serious sense into you.

You'd asked her how she and Evgeny had approached the topic of having kids, if she had advice on how you should broach the subject with Andrei, and she had only one thing to say.

"They're pretty direct people," she had said. "It's best to rip the bandaid off with something like that."

A couple of months ago, she texted you a picture of the twins in the matching pajama set you'd bought, and something in it made you want to finally talk to Andrei about it. So you told Sara that you would.

But...

The second you'd gone to Andrei in his office about it, you suddenly got cold feet. Realistically, you two hadn't actually talked about having kids before. Things with the two of you had been unconventional and fast from the start, so granted, you both had done things a little messily and quite backwards.

Still, the worst he could say to you was "no" or "not right now baby," but despite your past mess you two had always been on the same page, so the idea of hearing a "not right now" was okay, but hearing "no"?

Yeah, not something you had exactly prepared yourself for.

So instead of allowing there to be room for a "no" or "not right now," you just...didn't say a word.

Which Sara was definitely going to yell at you for.

Or at least, whisper yell, what with the twins going down for their nap and all.

Sara lays a droopy Aleksander into his crib, and he falls asleep the second his head hits the pillow. She takes Alexei from you next, sitting in the rocking chair set up in the corner of the room to start to feed him his bottle while you sit on the floor, gazing at baby Aleksander through the bars of his crib.

"What in the world are you waiting for?" Sara asks you, voice soft but firm in the nursery.

You groan a little to yourself. "I just haven't gotten around to it, okay?"

"Yes, but why?" She presses. "You know he won't say no to you."

"I actually don't know that. He might not be able to say no when I ask for help, or ask for something, but children are not things to ask for. It's an entire human being you're bringing into the world, you know!"

Sara gives you a deadpan expression. "Of course I know, I've brought four of them into existence."

"Then you know that it's a lot to ask. Even if I want a child, even if I want to be a mom and raise my kids and bring them up, that doesn't guarantee that Andrei wants the same."

"He'll want them with you." Sara insists. "He'll want them because you'll be their mother and he's in love with you and those kids will be half of you and he'll be so proud to say that they're your children."

The idea fills you with hope, but you tamp it down. You have to be realistic about this. You know your husband, and you know that while Sara's right and he will do anything for you, he also probably won't handle this being sprung on him as a surprise, or appreciate being confronted with it out of the blue.

"Just get rid of your birth control and tell him you want a kid." Sara insists, and your eyes bug out of your head.

"Are you insane?" You whisper yell. "That would definitely give him a heart attack."

"Don't be so dramatic," she says, rolling her eyes. "He's too young to have those."

"I'll talk to him," you promise, more to yourself than to Sara. "But I'm not using any of your suggestions."

Sara shrugs. "Fine by me, but there'd better be a new baby next Christmas, and it won't be mine."

In the kitchen, Andrei watches with fond eyes as you disappear into the nursery with Sara and the twins. He's listening to what Evgeny's talking about, he really is, but his eyes are locked on the silent screen of the baby monitor, showing you handing Alexei off to Sara after Sara's put Aleksander down.

Watching you with his niece and nephews all day had filled his heart with something warm and fuzzy, something he couldn't quite place.

The way that you cared for his family since he introduced you to them was something that made Andrei incredibly happy, and he could tell that the way that they cared for you in turn made you just as happy.

He often caught you speaking with his mother on the phone, trying your best to only stick to Russian as best as possible to make her comfortable. His father didn't reach out often, but when he did, you did your best to converse with him too. Sometimes, when you thought Andrei wasn't looking, he'd see you reading through a Russian textbook in your art studio, brushing up on the language.

You talked to Sara almost every week, the two of you growing to be as close as sisters, and that made Andrei happy considering the only real sibling relationship you had was still pretty strained. Even after Andrei married you, your brother Joshua still wasn't his favorite person, which was unfortunate, considering his husband Sam was an angel and one of your favorite people.

Evgeny had also grown closer to you a little, considering how much you helped him and Sara prepare for the arrival of the twins. There were times he'd reach out to you if he couldn't reach Andrei for any reason, and Evgeny often teased Andrei about how more often than not, it seemed like a freak accident that he'd managed to find someone like you to be his wife.

"Believe me," Andrei had told his brother. "I know."

He listens intently to his brother as he discusses what's going on with the Sharks, clearly seeking Andrei's advice, but all the while, Andrei keeps his eyes on you, watches you through the baby monitor as you sit with Sara and the twins.

Everything about your body language screams comfort, like there's nowhere in the world you'd rather be, and it brings a smile to his face unconsciously.

Evgeny pauses in his ranting, glancing to the baby monitor and rolling his eyes, shoving at Andrei. "Obrashchat' vnimaniye," he scolds. Pay attention.

"I am!" Andrei insists, turning his full attention back to his brother. "You were saying?"

Evgeny opens his mouth, then closes it, a curious expression crossing his features. "Have you thought about it?"

"About what?" Andrei asks, moving his brother so he can go into the fridge and steal one of those obnoxious glass bottles of water Evgeny insists on buying.

"About what comes after marriage," Evgeny says. "About having kids."

Andrei almost drops the water bottle on the kitchen floor, can hear it shatter in his ears, but he's pretty sure that's his brain doing that. "About what?" He asks, voice practically an echo in his head.

Evgeny shakes his head. "Ty takoy idiot."

Andrei turns to face him, frowning. "I am not an idiot."

"You are, actually. Have you two not talked about having kids?"

Andrei opens his mouth, then shuts it.

You two actually hadn't. Not really. Not at all, now that he thought about it.

Evgeny shakes his head. "Listen, I know you're enjoying your never ending honeymoon phase, but it wouldn't hurt to ask."

Andrei takes a swig from his water, glancing at you on the monitor.

You've got Alexei in your arms now, feeding him the rest of his bottle while Sara rests on the rocking chair, eyes on Aleksander.

His heart does a little flip, imagining you holding a little baby that's got your nose and his eyes, and it brings back the warm and fuzzy feeling he'd felt earlier.

Maybe...maybe it was worth a discussion.

Since Evgeny's house had gotten crowded with all the kids, Andrei had booked a suite for the two of you at the Marriott.

It had a lovely view of the city, especially at night, and Andrei enjoyed it even more with your naked body pressed against one of the many floor to ceiling windows, watching the way your face twisted with pleasure in the reflection of the glass.

The lights were off in the hotel room, so there wasn't a single chance of anyone seeing what the two of you were up to, but the thrill was there all the same. He wanted to show you off, show off his beautiful little wife, the only diamond he ever needed.

Your palm prints littered the window as you pushed back against him, and Andrei groaned, tightening the grip on your hips, fingers pressing against where he knew that little diamond tattoo rested beneath the waistband of your thong.

He could barely wait, barely think by the time you both got back to the hotel. The second your jeans were off, he pulled your thong to the side and slid in to the hilt, burying himself inside of you and making you come all over him in seconds.

It wasn't often that Andrei took you from behind. More often than not, he preferred looking at you, preferred watching the beautiful faces you made and watching the way your body reacted to his own. But in times like these, where there was something that could help him watch you, he couldn't exactly complain.

He releases his hold on one of your hips, letting his hands wander up your torso, bringing you upright against him as he bends his knees a little, adjusting for your height difference so he can cage you against him as he fucks into you.

Pleasant and happy noises leave you as he plays with one of your nipples, then the other, his mouth leaving a trail of kisses on your neck. His nails gently scratch at the valley between your breasts, making you shiver, before trailing his hand down your stomach.

He had every intention of putting his fingers to your clit, rubbing gently there the way you liked when he took you like this, but instead, his hands lingered on your stomach, on where he could feel the slight bulge of where his cock fucked in and out of you, and he found his hands resting there instead.

A shiver ran through your body, your pussy pushing back on his cock again as if on impulse, and a deep, pleased noise rumbled through Andrei's chest.

"Almaznyy?" He murmured against your neck, finding the sensitive spot below your ear and sucking against it gently.

You gasped in his hold, shaking a little, and he chuckled, pressing his hand against the little bulge of your stomach, the hand he still had on your waist tightening its grip, pressing his fingers a little more into the diamond tattoo.

"Can you feel me here, moya krasivaya zhena?" He asks you, cock throbbing when you squeeze against him in excitement. You loved it when he called you ‘my pretty wife.’ "Can you feel me fucking you?"

You nod, frantic, hands gripping onto his arms. "Please, malysh, wanna come."

"You wanna come already?" He taunts. "Gonna come for me in front of the whole city?"

A soft whine leaves your lips as he thrusts in particularly hard, emphasizing his question.

"Yes," you answer, nearly breathless.

“And what about me?” He teases, pressing his hand against your stomach a little more. "You want me to come inside, almaznyy? Want me to come right here?"

In the reflection of the window, he catches the way your eyes slam shut before you throw your head back against his shoulder, mouth open in a silent cry and body seizing as your orgasm claims you. Your pussy clenches impossibly tight, and it sends Andrei over the edge in seconds, pushing down on your waist to bury himself inside of you, cock throbbing almost painfully as he comes.

The two of you shake silently for a second, and Andrei holds you both upright as best as he can until he can feel your body as it calms down. He pulls out gently, not wasting a second before he scoops you up, walking you over to the bed to lay you on it gently before he climbs on beside you.

You go to him almost immediately, and his arms open on instinct, welcoming you in his embrace as you bury your nose in his chest.

He wants to say something, anything. He wants to ask you if what just happened was okay, if you're okay, if he didn't cross a line, if you maybe wanted to try that again sometime soon or maybe if you want to try it in a different position.

But then he hears your breathing start to even out, feels the way your body goes lax in his hold, and he resigns himself to discussing it another time.

The following day, you and Andrei head back over to Sara and Evgeny’s for lunch. You help Sara put the kids down for their naps after you all eat, and Andrei and Evgeny handle the dishes.

When you and Sara come out of the kids’ rooms, you’re met with a chorus of laughter from Andrei, Evgeny, and then their mother’s voice echoes through the living room.

Peeking around the corner, you can see Andrei and Evegny crowded around Evgeny’s laptop, definitely on FaceTime with their mother.

She signals to you to hang back, and you nod. You’re more than happy to give Andrei and his brother the alone time they need to speak with their mom, so you lean back against the wall, Sara against the one opposite you, and you smile at each other when you hear the brother excitedly converse with their mother in Russian.

Your fluency has gotten better, but it’s not one hundred percent - same with Sara’s - so the two of you can only really pick up on bits and pieces here and there, catching tidbits of their mother’s praises for her boys along with her normal chastising.

You two are looking fit!

Still, you both need to eat more.

You’re working too hard.

Are you ready for the upcoming season?

Oh my brilliant boys!

How are my daughters?

How are the grandkids?

Evgeny, you’d better bring them by soon so I can babysit.

Andrei, how are you doing?

Are you and my favorite girl happy?

When are you two going to give me more grandchildren?!

That last part sends a shock through your body, and Sara nudges you with her foot at the same time Andrei begins to stutter and stammer in the living room.

Their mom starts to say something else when her voice gets quieter, and you realize Andrei’s turned the volume down. His voice gets a little quieter, and Evgeny’s loud laughter drowns out whatever Andrei says in return to their mother.

Sara gives you another pointed look, as if to say “So you still didn’t talk to him about it.”

You roll your eyes, and she nudges your foot again before dragging you down the hall and into her and Evgeny’s bedroom.

“For the love of God,” she says. “I know you said you’re not taking my suggestions, but you are going to have to take this one, specifically with the promise that you’ll at least save it until you get back to Raleigh.”

You answer her with a deadpan stare, and she sighs, exasperated, before gesturing to you.

“You have to seduce him.” She says plainly. “It’s how I did it with Evgeny, and it’s how you’re going to have to do it with Andrei instead of tiptoeing around.”

You’re slightly dumbfounded, so all you can manage is a weak “What?”

“Remember when I told you to rip the bandaid off?” She asks, and you nod. She waves a hand around, “Well, that’s what I meant by that. Seduce him. Rip the bandaid off.”

“Seduce him…” You say, and it sounds more like a question than a statement.

Sara grabs you by the shoulders and shakes you a bit. “You know he loves you, you know he thinks you’re hot. Use it.”

Sara doesn’t know how you and Andrei met, no one does except Lottie, Oli, Mason, Eli, and you and Andrei. She has no idea about your past.

Which means she has no idea that if there is anything you know how to do, it’s seduce Andrei.

You try your best to clear your mind, focusing on exfoliating your skin as you shower and the things you’re planning on doing once this shower is done.

It had been a week since you’d returned from visiting with Sara and Evgeny, and this morning, you’d gone to see your OBGYN doctor to discuss…well, a possible game plan.

You agreed that after you finished this round of birth control pills and had your period, you and Andrei would probably start trying.

And well, after you spoke to Andrei about all of this, of course.

But Sara was right, seduction might have to come first. You were too out of sorts to wait any longer.

He had been gone this morning when you went to your appointment, having to be at the practice rink to watch the team’s morning skate, and when you had returned home after running some errands, he’d been in his office for a string of phone calls, which he said he’d be in and out of till about two this afternoon.

It was about noon, then. So you’d gone on a run, had a little pep talk with yourself to prepare for the impending conversation, and strategized.

The pep talk you had was simple - if during said conversation, Andrei voiced that he didn’t want kids, that was that. You would not be forcing him into anything he didn’t want or trying to convince him, and the two of you would likely talk things out from there.

If he did want kids, perfect, you could talk about that, but, you could also give him a bit of extra motivation.

Which brought you to the seduction strategy you’d developed so carefully on the way back from your run.

It was about one in the afternoon when you got back, so you threw together a quick lunch for you and Andrei to have - once he was done with his phone calls and you - and it was about one thirty when you hopped into the shower.

You’d gone for a wax right after your doctor’s appointment, as part of the errands you ran, along with a mani pedi, but a little extra gentle exfoliation on the legs never hurt anyone.

Once you finished in the shower, you toweled off and applied the vanilla lotion Andrei loved the most on you, before slipping on one of your favorite sundresses. It was also one Andrei liked on you, particularly because it was just the right side of see through.

Hence, why it was a key part to your strategy.

It might be devious, and it’s definitely playing dirty, but you need a little ammunition on your side, if not for the sake of a small confidence boost to get you through the conversation.

You did this for a living, for a time. You did this specifically for Andrei before, it shouldn’t be too hard to do it for him again. Sure, the way that you seduced him now looked different, the way that you were together now had changed drastically, but Sara was right. At the very least, Andrei loved you, and he never failed to remind you how attractive you were to him.

So hopefully, this worked.

You checked the time on the clock on your nightstand - one fifty five. A quick glance in the mirror assured you this was the best option outfit wise, and your nerves reminded you that you’d both probably need a little bit of liquid courage for this next bit. Heading back out to the kitchen, you make yourself a quick margarita and pour Andrei a shot of his favorite whisky.

If there was anything you knew about your husband, sometimes he just needed a little something to take the edge off before he could plow forward with whatever it was he needed to do. He was bound to be nervous once you brought up the idea of having a baby, especially if you were going to be playing just a little bit dirty about it.

You grabbed both glasses and headed back down the hall to Andrei’s office. Just as you crossed the threshold, he was bidding whoever was on the other line goodbye, and you took a deep breath to steel yourself.

Andrei is your husband. You love each other. You reminded yourself. He is your husband. You can get through anything together.

Andrei smiles when you hand him his glass, his reading glasses perched on his nose making him look both hot, authoritative, and innocent all at once. “Now how did you know I needed this, moya zhena?”

You shrug, playing innocent. “A lucky guess.”

You both toast, clinking your glasses before each taking a sip of your respective drinks. You try to hide your smile behind your glass as you do, but you should’ve known better.

Andrei’s almost always looking at you, so nothing ever could get past your loving and doting husband.

“What’s that smile doing there?” He teases, and it’s then that he seems to finally take in what you’re wearing.

And that you’re wearing nothing underneath it.

You try another innocent smile, but Andrei raises a brow in suspicion, quirking his finger and summoning you to his side of the desk.

Placing your glass down on the mahogany, you round the desk to his side, obeying when he taps the desk and jumping up, taking a seat but keeping your legs crossed.

You don’t want him distracted.

“Are you about to ask me for something expensive, almaznyy? Because if you are, you’re off to a good start.”

You never actually needed to do anything if it was expensive, including asking him for anything, since you did have your own income, and you both knew that. But still, every now and again you liked to pretend like you did, liked the way it made Andrei nervous and pliant, like he didn’t meet you the way he actually did, like he wasn’t familiar with the concept.

But that wasn’t what you were going for here.

“Well,” you start, “it’s sort of expensive. An…investment, if you will.”

He frowns slightly. “Don’t tell me Jarvy’s wife actually talked you into wanting to buy that monstrosity of a beach house.”

A surprised laugh bubbles out of you, having almost completely forgotten Tessa’s attempt to expand her real estate portfolio by tempting you with an even bigger sunroom than the one you and Andrei had now.

You shake your head. “No no, I don’t want that house.”

“But you do want a house?” Andrei inquires.

You shake your head, nerves suddenly racing through your veins. It makes your hands shake, so you reach out for him, cupping his jaw with your hand, leaving the other resting in your lap. You thumb over the stubble along his jaw, humming to yourself, trying to gather the right words.

It makes Andrei nervous. “Listen, almaznyy, whatever it is, we-”

“I want this house, Bubby,” you interrupt, wanting to be out with it but also not sure if you were remotely prepared for the rest of his sentence. At the pet name, Andrei’s eyes get brighter, his entire demeanor softening. “I want this house, with you and I in it, and maybe…maybe a little one running around in it, too.”

There. You said it…kind of.

But it was out there now.

And Andrei…

There’s surprise in his face, definitely, and you’d been expecting that. But there’s also no…opposition. Nothing that says he doesn’t want to have this conversation, nothing that screams disagreement, nothing that says he doesn’t like the idea.

There are nerves there, like yours, but amongst the nerves and surprise is…hope? Something wistful.

You lean into it, trailing your hand from his face to his arm, then down to the desk where his hand rests beside your legs. You take it, intertwining your fingers, playing with his hand a little.

“Bubby,” you continue. And that time you’re definitely playing dirty, saying one of his favorite pet names like that, like you want something - which you do, no question - and it makes Andrei’s whole body relax. “I want a baby,” you say, this time, plainly, so there’s no question and no doubt. “I want to have a baby with you.” You glance up at him, finding his intense gaze already on you. “What do you think?”

He’s quiet for a moment, and if you didn’t already know your husband, his lack of a response might concern you. But the look on his face tells you that he’s thinking, and so you wait, giving him enough space and time to collect his thoughts.

Finally, he squeezes your hand, a little sigh of relief mixed with a laugh leaving his chest, eyes crinkling at the corners as a brilliant smile takes over his features. He says nothing, just maneuvers you to part your legs so he can haul you off the desk and into his lap. You go to him easily, wrapping your arms around his waist and burying your face into his neck, breathing him in. One of his arms bands itself across your waist, the other across your back so he can cradle the back of your head in his hands.

“I didn’t know how to ask you.” He says softly into your ear. “I’ve been thinking about it, too. How to ask…how to tell you…”

“Ya tozhe,” you tell him. Me too. “I didn’t know if it was something you wanted.”

“We never talked about it,” he agrees. “And we should have, and I’m sorry we didn’t.”

“Nothing to be sorry for, malysh. We’re talking about it now, aren’t we?” You say, pressing a small kiss to his jaw.

He tightens his grip on you. “Because you were brave enough to do it. You’ve always been the brave one of the two of us, almaznyy.”

“You were the one who brought us together, Andrei.” You remind him, “I couldn’t have done that. Only you could have, and you did.”

“I would do it again.” He swears, leaning back a little to press a kiss to your forehead.

You pull back a little, puckering your lips, and he laughs, leaning down to kiss you softly, gently, and like he has all the time in the world. You love when he kisses you like this, like he’s afraid you’ll break or disappear into thin air. It makes you feel precious, like the very diamond he continues to call you.

“Bubby,” you murmur between kisses, “how many babies do you want?”

There’s a choked noise that bubbles in his throat, so you pull back, looking at him in concern. He reaches for his scotch, but you bat his hand away, handing him the bottle of water he always keeps on his desk instead.

He takes a couple of grateful swigs, and much to his disappointment, you climb off of him and climb back to your perch on his desk, giving him some room to breathe.

“I’m sorry,” you say. “Didn’t mean to take you by surprise there.”

Andrei shakes his head, putting the closed water bottle down and reaches for his glass, downing the rest of its contents. When it's empty, you take it back from him, putting it on a far enough corner of his desk before reaching for your glass, taking down the rest of your margarita, then set the empty glass next to Andrei’s. Once those are out of the way, you lean back on your hands, your attention solely on Andrei once more.

He’s got a little glint in his eye as he considers you, letting one of his hands come up to rest on your legs, caressing your skin. “You know me, almaznyy. I’m not picky.” He starts. “I’ll be satisfied with as many babies as you’re willing to give me.”

You smile, pleased with his answer. In reward, you nudge the hand he has on your leg a little, and Andrei beams, gently grabbing your calf so he can part your legs, this time, to take in the sight of your bare pussy.

Carefully, you pull up the hem of your dress and push yourself to the edge of his desk, and Andrei takes your ankles, gently placing one on the armrest of his chair, putting the other over his shoulder. He scoots his chair in closer, your leg sliding down his back a little and allowing his hands to rest on your hips.

“We should…” he starts, swallowing. “We should probably talk about this a little more.”

You smirk. “We are talking, though.”

“In depth,” he clarifies. “Get into specifics, and things.”

But even as he says it, you can see in his face you probably wouldn’t get further than the next five minutes. “We can still talk about it after, too, okay? We’ll sit and have a real conversation about it.”

He blinks, nodding, then glances down at where you know he wants to bury his face.

“If you wanted a baby, almaznyy,” he says, warm breath fanning over your lower abdomen, “you didn’t have to play dirty.”

“Dirty?” You ask, innocent as ever. “What do you mean?”

Andrei narrows his eyes at you. “The first time you walked into this office on a mission, you were dressed just like this.”

“You mean when I used to be your assistant?” You tease, and he pinches your thigh playfully.

“Moya zhena,” he warns. He may be playful, but it seems you’ve pushed a few too many buttons in that area today.

Shame, you think. Maybe I can try again after dinner.

You roll your eyes playfully, pouting a little. “I was nervous and needed some confidence, alright?”

“You look plenty confident to me,” he reassures you with a slight nod, then he’s bunching up the fabric of your dress and pressing against your stomach, his nice way of saying ‘lay back moya zhena, let me take care of you.’

The first swipe of his tongue in your folds takes you by surprise, a pleasant squeal leaving your lips and echoing around his office. His second taste of you is slower, his tongue laying flat against you and dragging from your entrance to your clit, his lips circling around the bud and sucking in a way that elicits a pleasant moan from you.

Andrei’s hands crawl up your body to the neckline of your dress, and you help him a little, slipping the straps off so he can pull the neckline down, cupping your tits in his hands and squeezing.

He’d been particularly fond of the first time you’d had sex in this house together. Had cherished the memory of you in that light pink sundress and on this desk in a similar fashion. It was probably why you’d chosen to approach him this way, he thinks absentmindedly, lips and mouth settling into the familiar pace you love when he’s got his face between your thighs.

Andrei can feel his pants get a little tighter the wetter you get, his chin coated in your slick and nose nudging against your clit as his lips and tongue work you open. He’s so perfectly at peace here, totally content to just lick at you and taste you for hours at a time that he nearly forgets why you’re sprawled out on his desk like this.

You tugging at his hair serves as a gentle reminder that kicks him into gear, and he smiles against your skin, pressing kisses to the junction of your thighs and nipping at you a little.

“Andrei,” you say, breathless. “Potoropites', pozhaluysta.” Hurry up, please.

He shakes his head, gently letting your legs fall to the side as he sits up in his chair, draping his body over yours. “Not this time, almaznyy,” he says, wrapping your arms around his neck before he wraps his own arms around your back, cupping your ass in his hands.

Your brain kicks into gear just in time for you to wrap your legs around his waist, and then he’s lifting you up, pressing filthy open mouth kisses to your neck as he navigates the hallway carefully, taking the measured and familiar steps to your bedroom.

He lays you gently on the mattress, placing you delicately among the pillows before he’s shedding his shirt and pants, kicking his boxer briefs off to the side and then settling back between your legs.

This time, your thighs squeeze at his head when he sucks your pussy into his mouth particularly hard, tongue dipping inside of you, and your fingers fly into his hair, scratching at his scalp in warning.

“Behave, moy muzh.” you hiss through gritted teeth, even if the way you writhe against his face tells him you like it.

“You started it,” he reminds you, tugging on the dress resting around your middle. You huff, grabbing the bottom and peeling it off, tossing it in the direction of Andrei’s pile of clothes.

Your eyes sparkle with mischief when you watch the way he takes in the sight of your naked body. No matter how many times the two of you do this, Andrei always looks at you the same way.

Like he’s in love, like it’s the first time, like for all he wants to take you apart, the way he’ll put you back together will be well worth it, and if it isn’t, he’ll work for it until it is.

“Pridi ko mne, lyubov' moya,” you beckon him. Come to me, my love.

His bottom lip drags against your clit as he rises from his position, tongue darting out to lick at your arousal still coating his lips, and the sight alone licks at the flame of arousal sparking low in your belly.

When he crawls up your body to kiss you, he props himself up on his arms, not wanting to rest his full weight on you, his delicate little almaznyy. Normally, you love it, but right now, you need something a little different.

Your arms wrap around his neck as you seize his mouth in a bruising, desperate kiss, pulling him down to you and taking him by surprise as you manage to flip him onto his back on the way down. You take full advantage of his surprise by making your way down his body to settle between his legs, wrapping your fist around his cock and taking him into your mouth.

Andrei groans, sitting up on his elbows to watch you.

“I don’t know if we’ll be able to make a baby if you keep doing that,” he warns, cock throbbing against your tongue as if to emphasize his point.

You bat your eyelashes at him, sucking at the head of his cock and using your hands to stroke at him at the same time. He hisses, one of his hands flying to rest in your hair, the other resting behind his head and emphasizing the chiseled muscles of his arms, chest, and abdomen.

Sometimes, you couldn’t believe this man was your husband.

“Almaznyy,” he warns when you take him down your throat, swallowing around him. You’re slow to come off his cock, letting him leave your lips with a dramatic ‘pop.’

“I’m still on birth control,” you tell him. “So we can’t make a baby tonight anyway, probably not for another month, at least.”

His brows furrow, both from your statement and the way you twist your wrist, stroking his cock the way you know he likes. “Then what - ah yebat’ - what are we doing?” He asks, trying to focus on the conversation as you take him back in your throat. You hum a little, and he tugs on the strands of your hair again in warning.

You pull off of him, gently stroking your hand up and down, squeezing as you go. “Practicing, of course.”

He lets his arms fall out beside him, collapsing against the pillows and dragging his hands over his eyes. “Almaznyy,” he huffs, hips stuttering when you squeeze him at the base.

“Hmm?” You hum, ready to take him in your mouth again, but Andrei moves quickly, hauling you up his body and cradling you close as he flips you over again. He positions you among the pillows, placing one under your waist so you’re practically propped up for him. He positions himself so his arms rest in the crook of your knees, your ankles near his head as he folds his body over yours.

He takes his cock in his hand, running the head through your folds. “Practice?”

You nod, “Practice, for now.” You reach out, pushing his hand out of the way so you can line his cock up with your entrance. “Which is why the desk was perfectly good, and-”

The rest of your words are stolen from you when Andrei bats your hand away gently and slides inside of you, slow but precise, bottoming out and nestling his body close to yours. Your eyes flutter shut when you squeeze around him, and his hands come up, cradling the sides of your face as he murmurs encouraging words to you, staying still until you’ve adjusted to his size.

“Almaznyy,” he calls, and your eyes blink open, glazed over and hazy and you’ve barely even started. “Good?”

You nod, tilting your hips a little, trying to fuck yourself on his cock. He laughs a little, shaking his head. “So damn impatient.”

He raises his body off of yours a little, angling his hips and setting a steady pace, one that has you whining in protest almost immediately, grabbing at the muscles of his ass and trying to drag him closer.

“I won’t break Andrei-” you start, but he cuts you off with a particularly hard thrust that has your eyes rolling back into your head.

“I don’t care if it’s just practice, almaznyy.” He tells you, “and I don’t care how many times we have to practice. I’m going to make it last, and I’m going to make sure that you remember all the ways I fuck you and make love to you until I put a baby in you.”

You gasp a little, and Andrei smiles to himself, thoroughly pleased. He sits up, placing his hands on the backs of your thighs and settling in to fuck you just the way you like. He fucks you in deep, strong strokes, the head of his cock brushing up against that sensitive spot in your pussy every single time.

It steals your breath from you, and all the telltale signs of an orgasm approaching signal to Andrei like a beacon. The way your breathing catches in your throat, the way you can’t keep your eyes open, how your legs start to shake.

He takes his thumb and rests it on your clit, rubbing in lazy circles until your back arches off the bed, a satisfied cry echoing out of your throat and into the pillows beside your head when you come. Your pussy squeezes down in a way that makes Andrei’s head go dizzy, and then he’s coming with a groan, pushing your hips down onto him as he buries himself to the hilt, his orgasm sudden and a shock to his system.

It takes him a second to catch his breath, and moves your legs off of his shoulders to make it easier to pull out of you and give you reprieve, but a noise of protest leaves your throat, and your ankles lock at the base of his spine.

He pauses, glancing at you curiously when he notices the look on your face.

Andrei thinks back to before you left for San Jose, the day he took you in the shower, and how upset you’d been when he set you down on your feet.

It clicks in his head, then. What you’d been upset about.

He’s still hard - he’s practically always hard when he’s around you - so he moves his hips, slowly pulling back an inch before pushing back inside. You throw your head back, his name leaving your lips in relief, and he smirks.

Fucking you in shallow thrusts, thumb circling your clit, Andrei watches in fascination as he pushes his come back inside of you with his cock, watches the way your pretty face twists in pleasure, and hums satisfactorily to himself.

“Is this what you’ve been needing, moya zhena?” He asks, eyes on yours the whole time. “How long have you wanted this?”

You can barely answer him, your head thrown back against the pillows, eyes squeezed shut, brows furrowed, back still arched and pushing those beautiful tits of yours up. Andrei takes them in his hands, massaging them, and you keen, pushing into his hands and pussy trying to retreat from his cock with nowhere to go.

The sensation feels different for him. He’s hypersensitive now, all too away of the slick slide of his cock, of your mixed come leaking out of you before he pushes back in, feels heat begin to prick at his skin when your pussy continues to flutter and squeeze, like it’s trying to keep him inside of you. With every brush of his finger over your nipples, your pussy squeezes and you try to pull off of him, but in the next breath you’re winding your hips, pushing back down until he’s buried to the hilt.

Andrei pushes your legs up again before he rests his weight on you gently, his shoulders under your knees, burying his face in your neck and placing his hands under your ass, cradling you closer to him as he starts to fuck you in deeper strokes, drowning in the pleased little noises leaving your lips.

“Ty chuvstvuyesh' sebya tak khorosho, dorogaya,” he murmurs against your neck. You feel so good, darling.

“Andrei,” you finally manage to breathe out, and relief floods through his veins. There were times when you two made love that you got so lost in the pleasure that you couldn’t speak to him, and it worried Andrei to no end. But you always came back to him, always called for him, and the same calm washes over his body, a shiver running up his spine.

Your arms come up, wrapping around his neck and arching your back, giving him more access to you. Andrei hums, pleased, sucking a bruise into your skin while his cock starts to throb from where he’s fucking you, can feel a second orgasm creeping up when he bites down gently, raking his teeth over the sensitive skin and you start to squeeze and clench around him.

“Gonna come again, almaznyy?” He asks, nosing along your jaw. “Want me to come again, too?”

You nod, turning your head and Andrei meets you, slotting your lips together and swallowing your moans down when you shake gently beneath him, back arching and pushing your body closer to his. His eyes squeeze shut, electricity zipping up his spine when your orgasm tips him over the edge and he’s spilling into you again, groaning against your jaw.

His arms come out from under you and he gently eases your legs back down against the bed, massaging the muscles as he does. Instead of resting them against the bed though, you wrap your legs around his waist, locking your ankles at his lower back, and Andrei laughs.

Gently, he rolls you both until he’s laying underneath you instead, careful to keep himself nestled inside of you, and he smiles to himself when you do a half cat-like stretch before sprawling across his chest.

A pleased little exhale greets his ears after a moment, and his hand comes up, rubbing gentle circles in your back. “Made you lunch,” you tell him, voice hoarse. “‘S in the kitchen.”

“Spasibo, almaznyy.” He murmurs, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “We should go eat it then, it’s probably cold by now.”

“It’s the chicken caesar salad wraps you like.” You say, lips dragging across his chest as you speak. “And I made strawberry lemonade this morning, should be ready by now.”

He nods, tapping your flank gently. “We should get up, malyshka. Get cleaned up.”

You nod, but you’ve got that look in your eye like before, like you’re disappointed as you carefully lift yourself off of him and roll onto the mattress beside him. Andrei rolls onto his side, cradling your face in his hands. “What’s wrong, moya zhena?”

You shake your head, a small smile gracing your lips. “Nothing’s wrong, just…excited, is all.”

“Excited?”

“To start a family with you,” you clarify.

“Then why do you look so sad?” He wonders, thumbing at the pout in your bottom lip.

You laugh, nose scrunching a little before cuddling into him. “It’s silly - I just wanted to start now.”

“It’s only a month, right?” He asks. You nod, nose rubbing at his pec, and he smiles to himself. “That’s good - plenty of time for us to practice, then? Wanna make sure we get it right on the first try.”

You snort. “Perfektsionist.” Perfectionist.

“Only the best for you, moya zhena.” Andrei says, teasing. Underneath it though, you both know that he’s serious. Because if anything, even as he rises from the bed and lifts you in his arms, carrying you into the bathroom, you know he never does anything half assed.

Now that you’re both on the same page, he’s going to do everything he can to ensure you’re well looked after from beginning to end, and when your little baby eventually comes, he’s going to work twice as hard to make sure the both of you are taken care of, and that you’ll want for nothing.

You, his almaznyy, and your future child, his malen'kaya rubin. His little ruby.

#andrei svechnikov #anderi svechnikov x reader #andrei svechnikov fic #carolina hurricanes #mendeshoney masterlist

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sportswriters · 9 months ago

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sportswriters' nhl recommendations list

first of all, we love lists. second of all, we appreciate everyone who takes their time to put these works together, so we decided to do our own recommendation post. at last, these authors deserve all the love, we keep coming back to the space you created in this mess of a world. thank you, truly.

be aware of the individual warnings before reading. if the links are wrong or stopped working, please let us know.

love, namu and ella.

LAST UPDATE: 10/04/2024

guidelines | a: angst, f: fluff, s: smut, c: comedy, 💗: personal favorite

604 miles with luke hughes by @zegrasdrysdale | a, f | established relationship

canes red with jesperi kotkaniemi by @hoesforthecanes | s | established relationship

late night teasing with jack hughes by @alwayshughes | suggestive | established relationship

out with jack hughes by @babydollmarauders | f | secret established relationship

a guided hand with quinn hughes by @sweetestdesire | f, suggestive, aftercare | established relationship

gonna give it to you in capital letters with william nylander by @misshoneyimhome | a, f | secret established relationship

captain doesn't have to know with jeremy swayman by @skjeinon | s | friends to lovers

show you with mat barzal by @islesnucks | f | yearning, friends to lovers

the worst wing-woman with mat barzal by @youunravelme | a, f | co-workers to friends to lovers

yours with frederik andersen by @secretlittlerandezvous | a, f | established relationship

football recs list | list of players we write with | masterlist (soon!)

#nhl imagines #jeremy swayman imagines #carolina hurricanes imagines #andrei svechnikov imagines #jack drury imagines #brady skjei imagines #jesperi kotkaniemi imagines #nhl scenarios #nhl imagine #fic recs #fic recommendation #mat barzal imagines #william nylander imagines #jack hughes imagines #quinn hughe imagines #luke hughes imagines #nhl recs #nhl masterlist

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misshoneyimhome · 6 months ago

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Let it go | Frederik Andersen☆

Push the Button | Frederik Andersen

Cooking with Frederik Andersen

The three times Frederik Andersen proposed

Lover - Frederik Andersen

AU Instagram I Frederik Andersen - Christmas in Denmark

What I go to School For I AU Frederik Andersen Imagine☆

I’m gonna fuck love the Hell out of you I Freddie Andersen☆✐

“Because I know you” I Frederik Andersen №

“Shhh… I’m here” I Frederik Andersen №

“Can you help me with my tie?” I Freddie Andersen☆✐

My warrior - Laying on their lap as they play with their hair until they fall asleep I Freddie Andersen [☆]№

“I am done. I'm done waiting for you." I Freddie Andersen [☆]№

“A Thanksgiving to Remember” I Frederik Andersen ♎︎

Snowed-In Seduction - Frederik Andersen ☃︎

#fa31 #frederik andersen smut #frederik andersen imagines #carolina hurricanes imagine #nhl hockey smut #freddie x reader #freddie andersen imagine #nhl imagine #masterlist

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behoright · 2 years ago

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₊˚ ♡ Masterlist :¨·. ₊˚ ♡

༚ . 🍓 ◌ ꙳ . ⊹ 🎂 + ｡ ๋༚ . ☎️ ◌ ꙳ . ⊹ 🦷 + ｡

last updated: may 5th

contains smut or adult themes -> *

Carolina Hurricanes love countdown (series) l andrei svechnikov

love countdown

i like you*

asap!

your fuse is fireside*

prisoner*

give me a sign*

beside you, somehow

say it back*

let us feel*

holy series

holy l brent burns (+ canes)*

electricity l b. burns x a. svechnikov x m. necas*

one shots

just a little bored l brent burns x jordan staal x reader*

how the gold glisten l andrei svechnikov x pyotr kochetkov x reader*

eye on you l a. svechnikov

smitten l f. andersen*

blurbs

kid's night with andrei svechnikov*

kids night with kk*

kids night with brent burns*

kids night with brady skjei*

long distance friendship with andrei svechnikov

Montreal Canadiens/Habs

lightning on my skin l k.dach*

Vancouver Canucks

alive for you l j. studnicka*

Pittsburgh Penguins

ultraviolet disguise l s. crosby*

New York Islanders

console me l m.barzal*

New York Rangers

blurbs

boyfriend! braden schneider in bed*

#masterlist #nhl #nhl fic #nhl smut #carolina hurricanes #montreal canadiens #habs #new york islanders #new york rangers #pittsburgh penguins #vancouver canucks

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mp0625 · 1 year ago

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Masterlist

Mara, 20 and I'm an American NHL & F1 Fan.

I currently write for NHL, F1, and Top Gun.

My friend and I have a discord for Tumblr Hockey Fans. If you are interested in joining. Click Here!

If you would like to be tagged in a upcoming fic shoot me a message

Requests and asks are Open.

Will write for most players and drivers.

Will not write for:

Tag List Form

Started: 7/22/2023

Last Updated: 3/24/2024

Total Works: 14

Drafts: 19

Inbox: 5

Queue: 1

If you see someone on a team that they’re not currently on that is because it was written when they were on that team.

Hockey Girlies Discord Christmas Fic Exchange 2023

Daniel Ricciardo

Imagine being team mates with Daniel Ricciardo

Logan Sargeant

Lazy Sunday

Oscar Piastri

Aussie! Teammate with Oscar Piastri

Pass the Cranberries

NHL

Boston Bruins

Jeremy Swayman

Under The Moonlight

Carolina Hurricanes

Frederik Andersen

Elsker For @wyattjohnston 's Lowkey LoveFest 2k24

Pyotr Kochetkov

Sun and Sand

Teuvo Teravainen

Jouluiloa For @callsign-denmark for @wyattjohnston 's Winter Fic Exchange 2K24

Colorado Avalanche

Ross Colton

Ross Colton X Reader For @cellythefloshie Birthday Bingo

Florida Panthers

Matthew Tkachuk

Game Time

New York Islanders

Anthony Beauvilliver

Being With Anthony Beauvillier On His Last Day In New York For @swissboyhisch Suprise Birthday Fic

Fairytale of New York For @swissboyhisch for the Hockey Girlies Discord Christmas Fic Exchange

Seattle Kraken

Vince Dunn

Sushi

Philpp Grubauer

Pfirsich

Tampa Bay Lightning

Andrei Vasilevskiy

Svyatoy Patrik

NHL & F1 Crossover

Race To The Net Masterlist

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itsnotgray · 1 year ago

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gray’s fic recs

my tagging/recommendation system is a mess beyond the point of fixing, so i made a masterlist. (i’ll slowly be adding fics to this!)

- an asterisk is next to players who play for the ahl team of said nhl team

- if works focused on more than one person, they’re listed under the other people, but only tagged in the first one you see in the list.

- also, apologies if the links don’t work correctly, it is in fact my first time making a masterlist

NHL/AHL

Anaheim Ducks

Jamie Drysdale

hey roomie by @emaanemaa

- trevor and jamie threesome. that's right, that's all it took to get you to go read it.

Trevor Zegras

chameleon by @hischierhaze

- listen- if you're someone who, whether it be consciously or unconsciously, changes themselves and their personality for those around them, or you have a history of it- please read this. I promise you, you won't regret it.

now that we don't talk by @sc0tters

- it's a toxic relationship with trevor, of course I'm gonna eat it up (she might end with trevor... or she might not. you'll never know if you don't read it.)

hey roomie by @ emaanemaa (fic linked above under jamie)

the penalty box series by @starsandhughes

I- if you're not already keeping up with this series... where have you been? every update is laugh out loud hilarious, and leaves you itching for more.

cruel weather- apart of the penalty box series by @starsandhughes

cruel weather gets it's own link because of the amount of emotional damage this inflicted upon me.

Arizona Coyotes

Boston Bruins

Buffalo Sabres

Devon Levi

like it very much by @jackhues

there aren’t many devon fics (which there totally should be), but the way i squealed when i read this one. further affirmed the fact that i think he’d be the best bf.

Calgary Flames

Nikita Zadorov

that scar hurt by the way by @swissboyhisch

- listen…. i’m the farthest thing from a flames fan, and can wholeheartedly admit it was an adorable read.

Carolina Hurricanes

Chicago Blackhawks

Colorado Avalanche

Columbus Blue Jackets

Adam Fantilli

to you, my adamo by @hischierhaze

- it's adam's birthday + his debut, can you blame me for crying?

his return by @hischierhaze

-this made me cry. but in making this, i'm convinced anything kei writes with the fantilli brothers makes me want to cry from either just how sickeningly sweet it is, or of course, sadness.

tiny dancer au by @letsgetrowdy43

god when i say sunny and adam have my heart- i mean it. they’re sososo special to me.

Dallas Stars

Wyatt Johnston

our song by @lovinbarzal

hands down one of my favorite wy jo fics/au’s. it’s wyatt x a barzal sister, a pairing i wouldn’t have thought of, but works so well!

Detroit Red Wings

Edmonton Oilers

Florida Panthers

Matthew Tkachuk

waking up in vegas by @doc-pickles

- matty t x hughes!sister is a dynamic i didn’t know i needed.

Mackie Samoskevich*

perfect girl by @dmercer91

- this had me feeling things like no other... a big hint as to why? she's shared.

Los Angeles Kings

Alex Turcotte*

who does it better? by @harry-hollands

one of the cutest social media au’s in a while (technically has two parts, but they don’t have to be read together)

Minnesota Wild

Montreal Canadiens

Kirby Dach

here with you by @sc0tters

- it's amber's writing + kirby, what's not to love? (if that's not convincing enough, maybe the line, "I will follow you to the ends of the earth," is.)

Nashville Predators

New Jersey Devils

Jack Hughes

timeless by @babydollmarauders

- if I hadn't originally read this in the middle of the grocery store, I can almost guarantee that I would've cried from just how heartwarmingly adorable this is.

out by @babydollmarauders

- equipment manager x jacky boy- aka a trope I never knew I needed, but now crave after reading this.

ballad of a homeschooled girl by @babydollmarauders

- hands down one of the best pics I've probably ever read in terms of conveying emotion. my stomach was in knots the entire time, attesting to just how realistic the writing is.

never grow up by @aliaology

- i'm sorry but you're not human if you don't get even the tiniest bit emotional at any fic with "never grow up" as the song. BUT A FIC WITH THE BROTHERS? this rendered me emotionally unavailable for a solid 20 minutes.

medía management au by @babydollmarauders

the media management au is an ongoing series staring mr jack hughes and his lovely girl, dove! the updates always bring a a smile to my face, and more than likely make me laugh out loud.

4:41 am by @sweetestdesire

listen, as much as i adore brynn’s smut like no other, her fluffy, soft and sweet fics just do something to me. she writes them so detailed, and consistently has me craving for soft moments with a significant other (a significant other i do not have)

John Marino

stay for a while by @sc0tters

- when i talk about made me feel things, i mean it. amber never fails in writing panty-dropping smut, while also having an thought-out plot.

Luke Hughes

welcome back by @leaentries

- this literally made me swoon. a protective lukey- what's not to love?

nobody's love by @eyesthatroll

- my heart was in my throat while reading, and my emotions were all over the place. regardless of how emotional it left me, it was amazing and deserves all the love.

never grow up by @ aliaology (fic linked under jack)

- older hughes sister watches her brothers grow up + never grow up = tears

summer aches by @starry-hughes

- this fic makes me want a luke to take care of me when i get headaches, triggered by heat or not

what’s not to like? by @starry-hughes

- queen ellen and jimmy are a little apprehensive of you…

jack’s best friend by @lvrzegras

okay listen- any of the brothers x their best friends is great, but jack’s best friend x luke… it just hits different, yk?

Nico Hischier

I never could've seen you coming (I think you're everything I could've ever wanted) by @writingonleaves

- this is probably as close to a literary masterpiece as a fanfic posted on tumblr will ever get

will you take a moment? promise me this (that you'll stand by me forever) by @writingonleaves

- listen- it's apart of the universe she began in the fic above. I have the fic linked under nico (because the oc eventually ends up in a relationship with nico, as seen in the part above), but this is sososo found family heavy. if found family is your trope, then this is your fic

New York Islanders

Mat Barzal

it's nice to have a friend by @youunravelme

- put me through the emotional wringer in the best way possible.

winnie martin's favorite person by @ilyasorokinn

- god- i cannot even begin to describe how cute this is. all i can say, is that I need more pictures of barzy with kids... for science of course.

New York Rangers

Ottawa Senators

Philadelphia Flyers

Pittsburgh Penguins

Sidney Crosby

she was the (red) devil by @crosbyscurls

- hockey meets f1 is already a dream combination… but sid x f1? absolutely amazing

San Jose Sharks

Seattle Kraken

St Louis Blues

Tampa Bay Lightning

Toronto Maple Leafs

Vancouver Canucks

Quinn Hughes

these michigan summers by @lukevangelista

i feel like the only way your not aware this series exists, then your new here. because if you haven’t read this, where have you been? this is for sure one of my top three series’ on tumblr, finished or unfinished. will in fact, forever have my heart. (currently unfinished)

the sun to my moon by @ghostfacd

this fic is part of an au! i highly, highly recommend checking it out- quinny + a grumpyxsunshine trope, what’s not to love?

never grow up by @ aliaology (fic linked under jack's name)

- older hughes sister watches her brothers grow up + never grow up = tears

Vegas Golden Knights

Washington Capitals

Dylan Strome

it's never too late to come back to my side by @lukevangelista (a series)

- one of my recent favorites. particularly geared towards those who think back on old friendships (...and constantly overthink on whether you should reach out. spoilers- it's never too late)

Winnipeg Jets

NCAA

University of Michigan

Luca Fantilli

missing you, quietly by @bitchinbarzal

- emotional torture in the best way possible. i re-read a concerning amount

i lost him by @hischierhaze

- made me cry- but in a good way

baby 101- name reveal by @hischierhaze

- it's dad!luca... yeah that's right, now that you have that cute thought in your head, you kinda have to go and read it

I tell you that I think im falling back in love with you by @writingonleaves

- this fic is sososo special to me for so many reasons- and I think you should totally read this fic to figure them out... just saying

opposites attract au by @dmercer91

this is a link to the head anons for the au- but please go read this sweet au. luca and landen are one of the sweetest pairings.

Nick Moldenhauer

sundays are for textiles by @drewsbuzzcut

- super cute read, and it's apart of an even cuter au

all american lace by @drewsbuzzcut

- also apart of that super cute nick au she has- but this part was not so cutesy (it was at the end). had me on the edge of my seat, and tears building in my eyes. the type of angst you physically feel- but with the type of ending that makes up for it (trust me, it does!)

Mark Estapa

icy roads by @nicohischierz

the simplest explanation i can offer is that this broke my heart- but i loved it anyway!

Boston College

Gabe Perreault

princess!gf x gabe perreault by @yankstrash

- these two are on my mind at least three times a week. i aspire to become amelia- aka find someone who is as down bad for me as gabe is for “his meels”

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humming-fly · 2 months ago

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North Carolina Relief Masterlist

One of my close friends is currently living in North Carolina and took the time to put together this really nicely organized list of organizations currently taking donations after Hurricane Helene, and I thought it'd be nice to share it on tumblr as well since I know some folks like these kinds of organized lists! All links and descriptions come from her and her experiences with the orgs below. 👍

Foundation

The Community Foundation of WNC - Read no further if you want a catch-all, one stop donation spot for WNC long-term Helene response. CFWNC is a permanent pool of charitable capital for the 18 counties of Western North Carolina including the Qualla Boundary (land of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians). They are an amazing source of consistent support to many WNC nonprofits via grant opportunities. They have financially supported so many of the non-profits I have encountered or worked with. Donate to the cause of your choice via CFWNC (including the Helene response specifically) here.

Food Security, Farm Support & More

Bounty & Soul (Swannanoa Valley, Black Mountain, and Asheville) - decade-old non-profit currently typically focused on health and food insecurity now working in partnership with World Central Kitchen, MANNA, Hearts with Hands, and many others to distribute food, hot meals, and supplies. They are also working to resume purchasing and distributing fresh produce from farmers in WNC who still have crops to harvest and sell. Donate to their disaster relief here.

Annie’s Culinary Garden - I often frequent this small but mighty Black Mountain restaurant, which is closely partnered with Bounty & Soul. Annie’s was already embedded in health and food justice work pre-Helene but the last 2 weeks, Annie and her team have been working around the clock (using a generator to power their restaurant) to provide free vegan, vegetarian, and other diet-specific hot meals to retirement homes, distribution hubs, and also to feed the staff and volunteers at these hubs. This has been a huge need expressed to me by community members because much of the food available at distribution sites is not able to be eaten by those requiring special diets. Donate to their effort here.

Haywood Christian Ministry (Waynesville) - WNC’s largest food pantry has partnered with MANNA (WNC's largest food bank?) and is distributing food on the ground and requesting donations to help with the emergency disaster response. They are also directly purchasing from WNC farms to distribute fresh foods for folks cooking bulk hot meals and for families who can cook at home. For info and to donate, go here.

Food Connection(Asheville-based) - I first encountered this org at a food waste solutions summit and thought their concept was brilliant. They rescue high-quality, chef-prepared meals and deliver them to neighbors in need (often those who can’t afford to participate regularly in Asheville’s expensive foodie culture). I have since seen them out in Asheville and beyond to rural communities doing exactly what they do best and delivering delicious, no-cost hot meals to Helene victims. Donate to them here.

Foothills Food Hub (McDowell County) - McDowell was hit really hard and this hub is working to source water and shelf-stable goods to distribute. They will continue to feed vulnerable populations and to support farmers with direct purchasing and a reliable market. Requesting monetary donations, which can be made online here.

TRACTOR Food & Farms (Spruce Pine*, Mitchell County) - In another hard-hit county, this hub is also working, much like the Foothills Food Hub, on connecting local farmers with folks in a system of equitable healthy food access in rural communities. Donate to this local food hub here.

*Interesting aside: Spruce Pine and its quartz mines were extremely damaged by flooding and this threatens the global tech industry. This rural town is home to one of the world’s only sources of high-purity quartz. The mines are currently trying to re-open.

MANNA FoodBank (Asheville) - This very large organization is still doing what they do best and distributing food, water, and more, despite having their warehouse/headquarters were destroyed in the flooding along the Swannanoa River. Donate online here.

Farmer Support & Advocacy

Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP) (WNC) - this wide-reaching farmer advocacy org is currently reestablishing communications with WNC farmers and getting aid to them. They also have healthy food programs that, once operating again, will serve tangentially in the relief effort. I have worked adjacent to this org for the last year and am a dogged cheerleader of them and their work. Donations can be made here.

Center for Environmental Farming Systems (Qualla Boundry and WNC) - CEFS works closely with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, NC State, extension services and more to support food and farm initiatives across WNC. I previously worked adjacent to this org and was extremely impressed by their commitment and effectiveness. Donate (ideally to “Friends of CEFS” for more flexible funding) here.

Tierra Fértil Coop (Hendersonville) - social and economic farmer cooperative formed by a group of Hispanic community members living in Henderson County that grows and provides culturally-specific foods but also has community programs to support the Latinx community in Henderson county. I have attended some of their educational events and have worked adjacent to them. I am ever impressed by their work. Donate to them by emailing [email protected].

Economic Justice & More

Pisgah Legal Services (all over WNC) - these folks do just about everything “life admin” for WNC's most vulnerable populations and have done so for over forty years. They provide pro bono civil legal aid, health insurance enrollment, and more. I have worked adjacent to them over the last year and could not be more impressed by their broad scope of bi-lingual legal work that maintains incredible efficiency and effectiveness. Donate to them here.

Just Economics (WNC) - JE works on shaping the economic development of WNC in a way that benefits everyone and promotes a sustainable future. I have attended some of their workshops and found them to be powerfully educational. I am also grateful for their political advocacy for living wages for all in WNC. They are not directly working on the Helene response (as far as I know), but the road to recovery is long and their economic justice advocacy will be especially crucial as WNC rebuilds. Donate to JE here.

BeLoved (Asheville) - Org working on improving the well-being and quality of life for individuals, families, and communities through our focus areas of Home, Health, Equity, and Opportunity. On-the-ground volunteers are currently collecting and distributing a wide array of supplies and BeLoved will continue to play a significant long-term role in housing and more. Donate to BeLoved here.

Health Services & Equity

Blue Ridge Health (WNC) - Blue Ridge Health is a federally qualified health center that is continuing to provide accessible & affordable medical care and mental health care to vulnerable populations (now including Helene victims) with their sites around the region and mobile clinics. Donate here.

Vecinos (WNC) - This rapidly growing org provides direct healthcare services to underserved, uninsured communities with a focus on WNC's farmworkers at their clinics and with mobile clinics on site at farms. Donate to their continuing services here.

Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry (Asheville based) - The ABCCM helps run and provide shelter in Asheville and is partnered with the Red Cross. Donations help pay for motel and food vouchers for local residents and long-term support for those displaced. A personal aside: ABCCM also has an awesome medical clinic serving uninsured folks and they were the only medical service I could find that would treat a tick born illness that I had when I first arrived in the US from Canada (I did not yet have health insurance). To donate to their Helene response, go here.

Schools & Youth

FernLeaf Community Charter School (Fletcher) - FernLeaf was partially destroyed by Helene (one of the school buildings was entirely lifted off of its foundation then dropped several feet away in a truly remarkable display of the power of water from a small nearby creek). Donate to FernLeaf here.

United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County - The local United Way typically works on youth/child food security, educational support, and physical and mental health care services. The org is helping with immediate natural disaster response and long-term support for flood victims. Donations can be made online here.

Other

Blue Ridge Public Radio - obviously these NPR folks have been working around the clock to keep people informed in the old-fashioned way, over the airwaves. You can support them here.

#since this was sent in an email I've edited it slightly to avoid sharing any personal info but otherwise this is unchanged!#there's no shortage of disaster relief cases going right now but wanted to share for reference if nothing else #disaster relief #north carolina #hurricane helene #hurricane relief #donations #signal boost

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wyattjohnston · 4 months ago

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with the posting of the masterlist, the summer fic exchange 2k24 has come to an end! 33 fics written by 31 people. i am eternally grateful that these exchanges are still going strong and that people are having fun with it!

please read all the fics below, even if it's a player you don't normally read for. a lot of work has gone into these fics and they all deserve your time. make sure to reblog and leave comments when you've read it!

please respect all warnings at the beginning of fics. if a fic has been marked as smut or 18+ and you are younger than, do the right thing and do not read it.

i'm still unsure if i'm running a winter exchange or if i'm going to maybe reconsider the timing, but please come back and feel free to ask questions around november/december if i haven't said anything!

the summer fic exchange 2k24 masterlist

Boston Bruins

Jeremy Swayman

Indoor Cat by @nhl-stories for @ bqstqnbruin

Carolina Hurricanes

Andrei Svechnikov

i’ve been yours since you stepped through the door tonight by @writingonleaves for @ callsign-denmark

Third Time's the Charm by @typical-simplelove for @ kurlyteuvo

Frederik Andersen

But Baby, It Feels Like Love by @callsign-denmark for @ mp0625

Chicago Hawks

Teuvo Teravainen

I Think I Dreamed You Into Life by @kurlyteuvo for @ lila-rose

Colorado Avalanche

Nathan MacKinnon

hide the sun by @ohmyeyesmyeyes for @ wyattjohnston

Edmonton Oilers

Connor McDavid

i'm half-doomed and you're semi-sweet by @offside-the-lines for @ hiding-from-reality-56

Leon Draisaitl

… but you're going to by @senditcolton for @ thewintersoldierdisaster

Blue Hair and Pronouns by @hiding-from-reality-56 for @ nhl-stories

Florida Panthers

Matthew Tkachuk

always attract by @dunnerlars for @ sc0tters

truth or dare by @boqvistsbabe for @ ohmyeyesmyeyes

Montreal Canadiens

Cole Caufield

four weddings and a funeral by @thewintersoldierdisaster for @ prettytoxicrevolver

Juraj Slafkovsky

Summer Vacation by @prettytoxicrevolver for @ lam-ila

New Jersey Devils

Dawson Mercer

Baseball and Love by @lam-ila for @ hischier-papaya

Jack Hughes

CHASING YES by @puckology101 for @ tonsypep

Nico Hischier

home is just another word for you by @fallinallincurls for @ puckology101

felt like magic by @laurenairay for @ selfindulgentpoorlywritten

good luck, babe by @nol-pat for @ fallinallincurls

turbulent by @wyattjohnston for @ dunnerlars

walked in and dream came trued it for ya by @gravestrain for @ nol-pat

New York Islanders

Mat Barzal

First Time Feeling by @huuuuughes for @ ahockeywrites

truth or dare by @dunnerlars for @ writingonleaves

Matt Martin

I can't help it if I like it by @laurenairay for @ comphy-and-cozy

New York Rangers

Alexis Lafreniere

Romance in The Hamptons by @lifeofpriya for @ wildrangers

Matt Rempe

MEDICINE by @lila-rose for @ 2 manytabsopen

Pittsburgh Penguins

Anthony Beauvillier

one night standards by @comphy-and-cozy for @ offsidethelines

Tattoos of You by @bqstqnbruin for @ senditcolton

Ryan Graves

The First Time by @selfindulgentpoorlywritten for @ gravestrain

Seattle Kraken

Philipp Grubauer

Pfirsich by @mp0625 for @ huuuuughes

Toronto Maple Leafs

Joseph Woll

sunset by @hischier-papaya for @ lifeofpriya

William Nylander

I Wish You Would by @wildrangers for @ typical-simplelove

Vancouver Canucks

Quinn Hughes

somehow still stuck on you by @matthewtkachuk for @ boqvistsbabe

walkin' with his head down, i'm the one he's walking to by @tonyspep for @ laurenairay

if the person you wrote for hasn’t read and reblogged your fic, please tell me.

i only tag the person who wrote the fic as there are limited tags.

#nhl fic #nhl imagine #hockey imagine #hockey fic #the summer fic exchange 2k24 #exchange masterlist

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v6quewrlds · 2 months ago

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⁎⠀┉⠀welcome to my masterlist!

disclaimers: some fics are tagged as mature containing sexual content. please do not read/interact with these works if you are under 18. i am not responsible for your media consumption, so please be sure to proceed with caution. i am a black woman and write for black women. all are welcome to read & interact but please mind yourself. when requests are open, feel free to send in your ideas but please be patient with me. please do not send in requests involving non-con/dub-con & death.

THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE.

JOE BURROW, the cincinnati bengals. JUSTIN HERBERT, the los angeles chargers. TEE HIGGINS, the cincinnati bengals. JALEN HURTS, the philadelphia eagles. ANDREI IOSIVAS, the cincinnati bengals.

THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE.

MATHEW BARZAL, the new york islanders. JAMIE OLEKSIAK, the seattle kraken. ANDREI SVECHNIKOV, the carolina hurricanes. MATTHEW TKACHUK, the florida panthers.

THE NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE.

LAMELO BALL, the charlotte hornets. DEVIN BOOKER, the phoenix suns.

FORMULA 1.

LEWIS HAMILTON, scuderia ferrari. LANDO NORRIS, mclaren formula 1 team. CARLOS SAINZ JR., williams racing.

FOOTBALL.

TRENT ALEXANDER-ARNOLD, real madrid cf. JUDE BELLINGHAM, liverpool fc. MASON MOUNT, manchester united fc.

SERIES COLLECTION.

NO NUT NOVEMBER, 2K24 ┉ a collection of smuts based on the concept of "no nut november". featuring: andrei svechnikov, tee higgins, lando norris, devin booker, mathew barzal, joe burrow, jude bellingham, carlos sainz jr., andrei iosivas, trent alexander-arnold, & mason mount.

#&. cassie's masterlist.#joe burrow x reader #joe burrow x black!reader #andrei iosivas x reader #lewis hamilton x reader #lewis hamilton x black!reader #carlos sainz x reader #lando norris x reader #jude bellingham x reader #trent alexander x reader #mason mount x reader #devin booker x reader #mat barzal x reader #jamie oleksiak x reader #andrei svechnikov x reader #tee higgins x reader

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mendeshoney · 1 year ago

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take me back to eden (part 2/2)

Summary: Andrei’s retired, Assistant GM of the Carolina Hurricanes, and a little lonely, so he decides to be a little like Edward Lewis.

Part One.

Pairing: andrei svechnikov x f!reader

Part 2 Word Count: 22,150

Warnings: nine year age gap, older man x younger woman, basically “pretty woman” with andrei, love at first sight(Ish), he falls first, she falls too, he falls harder, sugar daddy vibes, angst, fluff, smut, penetration, finish inside, unprotected sex

December

You two decided you can’t possibly wait until it gets closer to Christmas to celebrate together, so you celebrate ahead of time, wanting to spend as much time together before you leave to go visit your family and he leaves to visit his family.

He takes you out to dinner and a movie, something lowkey and relaxed before you both head home to exchange gifts before bed.

You’re waiting in his living room after you showered together, relaxed in cotton shorts and an old Hurricanes shirt of his, wet hair freshly brushed (by him, of course, how could he not?) and smelling like the honey and almond lotion you put on your body before bed. You’ve even got those little under eye patches on your face, and he doesn’t think there’s a single thing you could wear that would make him believe you were anything but drop dead gorgeous.

He’s going first, so he grabs your gift from a hidden spot in his office before trailing back out into the living room, sitting on the ground in front of the couch in his sweatpants, his naked torso resting back against it. The gift box in his hands feels simultaneously like it’s too much and not enough all at once.

You grin excitedly, holding your hands out and he places the box carefully in your palms. “Can I open it now?”

“Of course you can,” he laughs, and you let out a small squeal, carefully peeling away the wrapping that definitely did not take him twenty minutes to figure out, eyes gauging your reaction as the wrapping falls away and you lift the lid off of the box.

He got you a brand new sketchpad to draw in, one bigger than the current journal you have, along with pencils, charcoal, and colored pencils, and a tote to keep and carry them all in. It felt…so simple, buying them for you, he wasn’t sure it was enough.

But then you’re putting the gift box aside and launching yourself at him from your spot on the carpet, tackling him to the plush material and peppering kisses all over his face as you whisper “Spasibo” over and over into his skin.

He’s laughing like a maniac by the time you both sit back up, and you frame his face with your hands, eyes wet with happy tears. “Thank you, Andrei. It’s the best gift I’ve ever received.”

“You’re welcome, malyshka. I’m happy you like it.”

The kilowatt smile that spreads across your face is worth it, and you bend to kiss the tip of his nose. “I love it. Now you have to open your present.”

“You are my present, almaznyy,” he says quietly, thumb rubbing the remaining happy tears off of your face. “The only present I’ve been selfish enough to give myself. I don’t need anything else. I don’t want anything else.”

You smile softly, shaking your head. “Too bad, we agreed on getting each other one gift. This is mine to you and you have to open it.”

Before he can protest, you’re scrambling up and off of him and running off to…somewhere in his house. He thinks it’s the sunroom? But then you’re running back into the living room, and you’ve got a box and an envelope in your hands, and you’re placing them in front of him very carefully.

He narrows his eyes at you playfully, but you just stick your tongue out at him. Andrei scoffs, “That’s cute, almaznyy. Get it out of your system now.”

“Will you just open it, Andrei?” You practically whine, and he laughs.

“Which one first, the envelope or the box?”

You glance at both before you point to the box, and then he’s removing the wrapping, carefully opening the lid and lifting the tissue paper.

When he dips his hands inside, he feels something ceramic, and then he’s lifting it out of the box.

It’s a white bowl with a circular lid, and on the lid is an extremely accurate, hand-painted Carolina Hurricanes logo. Both sides of the jar have your perfect cursive on them, the word “sakhar” on both sides in Cyrillic script.

Sugar.

He laughs out loud, and your smile widens, a soft and breathy laugh leaving your lips.

“Very cute, malyshka, I love it.” He says, leaning over to give you a kiss, but you press a finger to his lips, shaking your head.

“Nuh uh, open the envelope next, and then you can kiss me if you still love it.”

He obeys, gently setting the sugar bowl between his legs before opening the envelope and pulling out a voucher.

It’s for a place called “The Spinning Wheel” in Raleigh, a pottery making and pottery painting studio. The voucher indicates a reserved time for a couple of days from now, in the evening for a “Wine and Wheel” event, and then a pending time for a second session called “Wine and Design.”

He’s quiet for a moment, soaking it in. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees you fiddling with your hands, and you clear your throat, clearly anxious about his reaction. “I uh…that’s where I painted the sugar bowl for you. The owner of the studio is someone I met through Eden. She opened it when she left, and told me about these events. Usually they’re sold out, since a lot of couples tend to do it, but she managed to save us a spot. I checked your game schedule, and you’re free that night, so I thought…well,” you laugh, a nervous sound. “I thought it might be fun? To do it before we leave for the holidays.”

He doesn’t say anything at first, too stunned at what he’s holding in his hands, and then words are spewing from his mouth, far too fast for him to process. “Are you asking me on a date?”

Now it’s your turn to be quiet, but it only lasts for a few seconds before you burst out laughing, not in a mocking way, but in a delighted way. He knows your delighted laughs anywhere, and it brings him comfort.

“I guess I am,” you admit, and his heart pounds uncontrollably in his chest.

You’re asking him on a date.

A date!

You’re the one planning to spend time with him, and you’re basically asking him on a date.

He feels nothing like the thirty two year old man he is and instead like he’s a teenager all over again. It’s absolutely perfect, and not just because he gets to go on a date with you, but also because he knows how much you love art, and he just wants to do anything that's going to make you happy and make you think of him.

He carefully moves his gifts aside, careful not to knock over the bowl or ruin the voucher, and then he’s grabbing you by your ankle, dragging you over to him and into his lap, hands descending into your wet hair and pulling you down for a kiss.

You relax into him, hands resting on his shoulders and opening up for him the way he loves, allowing him to ease the kiss into the right side of filthy, one of his hands escaping from your tresses to band around your back so he can turn you both, laying you on the carpet.

Your lips form into a small smile that he continues to kiss, and then you’re giggling, and he laughs, pulling back a little. “What is it?”

“If I knew you were going to kiss me this much I would’ve hung mistletoe.” You tease.

Andrei shakes his head, “I don’t need to use a silly plant as an excuse to kiss you, I’ll do it anyway. As many times as I want.”

“Sounds good to me.” You say, but when he bends his head to kiss you, you stop him again, pressing a finger to his lips.

He groans in frustration, pretending to nip at your finger before resting his forehead against yours. “What is it?”

“You didn’t give me an answer.” You whisper, and when he raises a brow in confusion, you smile shyly. “If you’d go on a date with me.”

He groans, a happy one, pressing his lower half into yours. “Almaznyy, the answer is always going to be yes. If it’s not, I want you to start planning my funeral, got it?”

You burst out in laughter, and Andrei swallows your happy noises as he kisses you, feeling like a believer in Christmas miracles for the first time in his life.

A few nights later, you’re at The Spinning Wheel, both of you sitting on your own stools with a pottery wheel in front of you. There’s a side table on either side of him just like there is for everyone else, one side holding a glass of wine and a plate of tea sandwiches, and the other side holding a bowl of water and a couple of supplies for people to use to shape or trim their pieces.

There’d been a quick demonstration by Hallie, your former co-worker at Eden and current owner of the shop, showing everyone how to center the clay and then eventually morph it into either a vase, a pot, a bowl, or a plate, and everyone had also been shown how to make a lid if needed. It all looked so easy, yet Andrei felt a bit like he was a baby again - learning to skate for the first time and falling on his ass every third step.

You however, of course, had been doing great, and after his third attempt at trying to center his clay and failing, he sits up with a frustrated noise, dipping his hands in the bowl of water before wiping it on the towel resting on his thigh. He reaches for his wine glass, content to just drink and watch you enjoy yourself.

It’s like watching a good player step onto the ice for the first time. The way you expertly move and maneuver yourself and the clay, similar to the way a good player glides across the ice, handling the puck like it’s an extension of themselves.

He doesn’t know how long he watches you for. His eyes skate over your hair gathered in a ponytail, stray strands falling out and framing your face, watches the way your brows pinch together in concentration and how your lip gets trapped between your teeth when you’re focusing particularly hard. He observes you, sipping on his wine until you’re sitting up from where you hunched over the wheel, wiping your forehead carefully with the back of your wrist, and then you’re glancing at him with a small smile.

Andrei returns your smile, gesturing to your mini hexagonal vase. “Nice job, malyshka.”

“Thank you,” you beam at him, then look at his wheel, and back up to his face. “Are you taking a break?”

He shakes his head. “Giving up for now, I can’t center it.”

You scoff a little, like you don’t believe for a second there isn’t a thing he can’t do, abandoning your wheel and instructing him to put his wine glass down, ordering him to switch places so that you’re both sitting on opposite sides of his wheel, but now your foot is in control of the pedal. You grab the clay from the board and size it down to match the little vase on your wheel, slapping it to the center once it’s kneaded enough.

He gathers a little bit of water on the sponge like Hallie told them to, squeezing it onto the mound before tossing it back into the bowl and putting his hands on the clay. You place your hands atop his, beginning to guide him through the motions.

“Press tight, like this,” you say, and Andrei obeys, welcoming the guiding pressure of your hands on his as he sneaks glances at you.

“You’re good at this,” he notes.

“My brother’s the sculptor, really.” You respond, voice soft in the loud room, moving his hands to squeeze at the clay a little more, bringing it upwards. “He taught me about pottery, even bought me my first pottery wheel. I liked it, for a time, but drawing always felt more natural to me.”

“How long did you do it for?” He asks, watching as you bring your thumbs to the center of the clay, slowly forming a hole

“Pottery? Maybe five years.”

He nods absently, pinching the sides of the clay with you. “Why’d you stop?”

One of your shoulders lifts in a shrug. “I lost the joy in it when my brother started acting more like a teacher and less like a brother about it, so I just stuck to drawing.”

He nods, then swallows. Hesitates. “You’re not close?”

“Not so much,” you admit. “He’s still my brother and I’ll always love him, but we lead different lives. Can you grab that wood rib?”

Andrei frowns in his head because he wants to ask more about your family. You already said you weren’t missed by anyone back home, and still seemed reluctant to head back for Christmas. A strained relationship with your brother explains some things, but not everything, and he wants to know everything he can about you.

About his almaznyy.

Still, he follows your lead and drops the subject, doing as you ask, grabbing the wood rib as you shut off the wheel, then placing your hand on his. Together, you shape his small vase into a similar fashion to yours, and then grab the wire cutter to separate both your vases from the board, placing them on a little stand for them to be fired on.

After that, Andrei’s content to continue watching as you make little matching lids, poking holes in them and presenting them to him with a shy smile. “They can be salt and pepper shakers,” you say, “to match your sugar bowl.”

And who is he to ever say no to anything you suggest? To deny planting more parts of you, of the two of you, in his house?

A week later, you both head back to The Spinning Wheel to paint your salt and pepper shakers.

You insist on the fact that they don’t have to look perfect, and though Andrei disagrees, he lets you persuade him into blindly choosing random colors to paint the shakers with, and the two of you sit for another hour and a half painting them.

Another week and a half later, when you’ve gone back to Manhattan and he’s getting set to head out to San Jose, he goes back to The Spinning Wheel and picks up your matching salt and pepper shakers.

To anyone else, they probably look hideous - a mishmash of turquoise, yellow, pink, and green, but to him, they look so cute and silly, and he takes them straight home, where they quickly become the most out of place things in his completely lavish, state of the art kitchen, right next to his new sugar bowl.

January

He wakes up to his two year old niece, Mila, jumping on his chest, babbling her demands that her uncle wake up and entertain her.

“Mila,” her mother calls from the doorway. “That’s enough honey, let’s let Uncle Andrei get ready and then he can spend some time with you okay?”

Andrei brings Mila close to his chest and presses a kiss to her temple, before lifting to hand her off to Sara.

“Mama’s made breakfast,” Sara says as she leaves. “It’s ready when you are.”

“Thanks,” he calls after his sister in law, before she shuts the door to the guest room behind her and Andrei falls back against the pillows.

He’s been here at Evgeny’s house for about a week now, enjoying some much needed time with his family celebrating the New Year and Russian Christmas. Not that he doesn’t miss being with you, but he hadn’t realized in the whirlwind of being swept up in your orbit that he had kept in touch with his family, but hadn’t really paid attention.

Evgeny and his mom still regularly sent him photos of Mila, his two year old niece, and Luka, his three month old nephew, but he didn’t realize how big they’d gotten since he’d last seen them, so it was nice being able to just be with them before they got too old to care or think he was still the cool uncle.

He grabs his phone on the bedside table, answering some emails and responding to meeting requests for when he’s back in Raleigh next week. The team has been doing so well over the last couple of months, making his days pretty even keel, and with the All Star Game approaching next month, things are probably going to start picking up again, especially as the team makes a push for the postseason.

The second he reaches the bottom of his inbox, he’s texting you, asking if you’re up and if he can call or FaceTime with you.

You answer by FaceTiming him first, and he smiles wide, swiping the green button and feeling peace settle in his bones when your face lights up his screen.

“Privet krasavitsa,” he says, voice still raspy from sleep. Hi beautiful.

You blink, laughing a little. “I’m sorry, did you need a second to wake up?”

He shakes his head. “No, I’ve been up for a bit.” You nod, and he takes note of the plain white walls of your room. “You with your family?”

“No,” you say, a strange tone in your voice. “I’m at my apartment.”

“Oh,” he says, a small crease forming between his brows. “Everything okay?”

You flash him a half smile. “Yeah, better now. What about you? How are things going with you and your family?”

“Good,” he says, settling back against his pillows a little more. “It’s been good to see them again.”

“That’s good, I’m happy you’re having a good time.”

“Wish I could’ve brought you, almaznyy,” he murmurs, thumb rubbing over the screen, pretending he’s caressing your cheeks. “I miss you.”

You smile softly at him, eyes alight with fondness. “I miss you too, Andrei.”

“After this,” he starts, feeling a little hesitant. “Would you want to come back to Raleigh with me? You don’t have to, obviously, if you’re busy.”

You laugh, shaking your head. “No Andrei, I’m not busy. I’d love to go back.”

“Good,” he says, releasing a relieved breath. “I liked having you there.”

“I like being there,” you agree. “With you.”

“I’ll be back next week on Wednesday.”

“Then I’ll be there Thursday.”

“It’s a date, almaznyy,” he says quietly. “Don’t keep me waiting.”

You smile softly at him, shaking your head. “I won’t.”

The day after you come back to him, Andrei has to go into the office at PNC Arena, but he ends up being able to head home early. He picks up lunch for the both of you on the way from your favorite bistro, along with roses, and pints of your favorite ice cream and all of your favorite toppings.

When he pulls into the driveway and heads inside, he toes off his shoes, surprised to find that the house is quiet, and he goes about putting the ice cream away, setting your lunch on the counter, and resting your roses in a vase.

He listens for you, but when he doesn’t hear the shower running, or any sign of movement from the living room or dining room, he sighs happily to himself a little, knowing he’s probably going to have to play your little game of hide and seek. He sheds his blazer, resting it on the counter before starting on his little diamond hunt.

The usual spots you’re in come up empty. You’re not in the kitchen or else he would’ve seen you as soon as he got home. You’re not in his office, the living room, the sunroom, or relaxing out back on the patio. He knows you wouldn’t be in any of the guest rooms, because he’s made it clear you have no business in there since you’re not a ‘guest.’

You fought him a little on that, because technically you are a guest, but all it took was him threatening to put your name next to his on the deed to the house and a few kisses to get you to see it his way.

He makes his way down to the basement instead, and pauses in the small living space to decide which way you could have gone. He doesn’t hear any noise in the entertainment room to his left, so he opens the door to his right that leads to his home gym, and immediately stops in his tracks, eyes fixed to your body and his entire attention and focus on you.

You’re laying on one of the yoga mats, your headphones in and doing what looks like yoga in front of the mirrors along the wall.

A smirk on his face, Andrei crosses his arms over his chest and leans against the doorway, content to just watch you through the mirror. You’re in a sports bra and tighter than should be legal bike shorts, and you’ve got your eyes closed as you listen to music and work through the movements.

You’re currently in a low forward lounge, your forearms resting on the mat as your head hangs a little bit. It makes your ass look amazing, and all he can think of doing is heading over, pushing you down on all fours, tearing those shorts off of your body, and taking you in front of the mirror till you beg for more.

Actually, that’s exactly what he’s going to do. He’s just biding his time now, waiting for an opening to touch you.

His brows raise a little in anticipation as he tilts his head, watching as you switch legs effortlessly, lunging on your other side. When you bring your extended leg back in, and move into a bridge position, then downward dog, his pants tent at the view of your full ass staring at him, and he loosens his tie a little, unbuttoning his sleeves and rolling them up his arms until they rest at his elbows.

You press backward, extending your legs a little, and your head hangs, eyes still shut as you mouth along to the music in your headphones, and then for a second, he thinks he can hear the song change, and when it does, your eyes open slowly, and then you’re looking at him from your spot upside down.

He smiles when you blink in surprise, your body faltering a little, but still staying put, and then you’re smiling, letting out a nervous laugh.

“Hi,” you mutter out, reaching one hand up to remove your headphones and put them to the side.

“Hi almaznyy,” he practically purrs, openly checking you out.

You move slowly until you're kneeling again, sitting up as you look at Andrei in the mirror with your hands on your thighs. “What are you doing home so early?”

Home. He loves how that word sounds on your lips.

“Got out early, so I thought I’d surprise you. I even bought us lunch.”

“Oh,” you say with a smile, “Well, let me just clean up and shower and I’ll-”

“No no,” he’s quick to interrupt, finally moving from his resting spot against the doorway and entering the home gym. “I think you’re gonna stay there for a little bit longer.”

You hold eye contact with him in the mirror as he comes up behind you, tilting your head at him curiously. “Am I?”

“If you want your presents, then yes.” He says firmly, getting onto the mat and settling on his knees behind you. He wraps his arm around you from behind, his hand coming to rest at the base of your throat. You both watch as his hands gently stroke at the skin there before trailing to where the strap of your sports bra rests against your shoulder.

“What kind of presents?” You ask, your breathing starting to deepen, chest rising and falling as he continues to touch you, running his fingers across your collarbone.

“The kind you like.” He says, “The sweet kind.”

You pout a little at him in the mirror. “That could be anything.”

He leans down, pressing his lips gently to the shell of your ear. “Then I guess you’ll just have to trust me then, won’t you?”

Slowly, he brings both of his hands to the middle of your back and presses down gently, murmuring “On all fours, almaznyy.”

You obey, moving forward until you’re resting on your forearms, shins to the ground and ass high in the air.

Andrei tries to maintain a modicum of decorum and works very hard not to drool at the beautiful heart shape of your ass.

“Krasivyy,” he murmurs. Beautiful.

He grabs at the waistband of your bike shorts, pulling them down your legs slowly like he’s unwrapping the perfect gift, pulling them off and carefully folding them before placing them beside him on the floor. He helps you out of your sports bra next, careful to fold that too before placing it atop your shorts and lowering you back down on all fours.

He palms your ass cheeks in his hands, spreading them until your pussy opens up to him like a rose, and all he sees is sweet, shiny pink staring back at him.

“Andrei-” you call out, but you’re cut off when he buries his face into your core from behind, a loud cry leaving your mouth instead.

He licks you for a little while, content to just taste you for his own pleasure. It’s noisy and messy, and he can tell when you start to squirm that you’ve had enough of his teasing. You push back into his face, searching for more friction, more of his mouth on you in the places he knows you need, but he squeezes your flesh tighter in his hands, keeping you where you are so he can devour you until his heart’s content.

It’s only when you start to shake in his hands, your breathing coming out in little whines, that he feels his heart twist a little bit, and he pauses to speak against your skin.

“Do you want to come?”

He meets your eyes in the mirror, watches as you blink slowly, blissed out and yearning, and you nod, your lower lip captured between your teeth.

Andrei rises up on his knees then, removing his tie and he wags his finger at you in the mirror, beckoning you to sit up.

You do, rising up and allowing Andrei to maneuver you until your hands are behind your back, wrists crossed over one another at the base of your spine. He secures his tie around your wrist, making sure it’s not too tight that it digs into your skin, but that it’s still tight enough for you to move your arms a little in case you get uncomfortable.

Slowly, he helps lower you down until your cheek presses against the mat, and then he’s unbuttoning his dress shirt, removing his belt, and unbuttoning and unzipping his pants. He pushes them down to his thighs, followed by his boxer briefs, and he hisses a little when his cock springs free and hits his belly, feeling far too sensitive.

He locks eyes with you from your place on the mat, watches you watch him as he strokes his cock a couple of times before running the head between your wet folds. You whine a little when the head of his cock catches on your entrance a couple of times, then the third time it happens, he finally pushes in, watching in amazement as his cock disappears inch by inch until he’s fully seated inside of you.

Your mouth is open on a silent cry, back arching and pressing into him, almost like you’re trying to get him deeper.

Andrei’s never taken you like this before. He much prefers looking at you the whole time, enjoys watching you and taking in all of your facial expressions, the way your body moves and responds to him.

There are perks to this though.

Like the fact that as he pulls his hips back and pushes back in, he can watch you take him over and over again, completely fascinated by the way you grip him. Or the fact that when he starts to fuck you in earnest, your hands start to squirm, so used to reaching up and tugging on his hair or leaving scratches down his back, his chest, his abdomen. He gives you one of his hands to hold onto, the other remaining secure on your waist so he can pull you back onto his cock and keep things to the pace he’s setting.

He also really likes the fact that you keep your cheek pressed to the mat, making sure he can see every single expression on your face as he drives into you over and over, getting you closer and closer to your orgasm that it makes him pump his hips to fuck you deeper, just a little harder, and loves how your thighs smack together against his with the change of pace.

You cry out his name, and then your eyes are screwing shut, bottom lip trembling, and Andrei squeezes your hand in his, pulls you onto his cock over and over as more whines spill from your lips.

“Come for me, almaznyy,” he says, leaning over you to whisper in your ear. “Come for me while I fuck you in front of this mirror.”

Your eyes fly open then, head turning a little to meet his gaze in the mirror, and he watches you, watches for that blissful expression to cross your face at the same time that your pussy clenches down on his cock, so impossibly tight, and then you’re whole body is shaking under him, a silent cry leaving your lips as your orgasm floods through you.

It’s so beautiful, such a gorgeous thing to watch, that he’s coming inside of you, body going rigid as he pumps his come deep inside, feeling you clench pulse against him as he does.

As your orgasms subside, Andrei carefully removes the tie from around your wrists, watching as your arms fall limply to your sides. He gently rests over you, gathering his thighs close to yours as he rolls you both onto your sides, careful to keep himself inside of you as he goes.

He reaches up, brushing your hair away from your neck to press a kiss there, murmuring “My almaznyy.”

You hum, completely content in his arms, pressing your body further back against his. “Does that mean I get my presents?”

Andrei barks out a laugh, wrapping his arms around you to keep you close. “Like I could ever say no to you after that.

Later that night, you’re sitting on the barstools in front of his massive kitchen island, eating the ice cream Andrei bought straight from the tub.

You grab the can of whipped cream beside you and dollop a little on both of your tubs, grabbing the caramel drizzle next and swirling it around. He smiles, tacking on a “Spasibo almaznyy” before he digs back in.

“What does it mean?” You ask him after a beat, and Andrei’s too caught up in watching the way you lick your ice cream off of your spoon to register what you’re asking. You laugh when you notice what he’s looking at, and nudge him a little with your shoulder. “Hey!”

He blinks, snapping out of his daze. “Huh?”

“What does it mean?” You ask again, and his brow furrows.

“What does what mean?” He says, taking a lick of his ice cream, and feeling satisfied when your eyes track his mouth.

But you don’t get caught up in it the way he does. “What you always call me, ‘almaznyy,’ what does it mean?”

He laughs, tilting his head. “You haven’t Googled it yet?”

You shrug, “I would have, but I’d rather hear it from you. What does it mean?”

“It’s a nickname,” he explains, which is technically half true. It’s his nickname for you.

“What does the nickname mean?” You push, bending your head a little to steal a lick at his ice cream. He feigns upset for a split second before he’s smiling at you again.

Even when he’s trying to be fake mad, he just can’t do it.

Belatedly, he wonders if this is what it will be like if you two ever do fight, if he’ll just take one look at you and the anger dissipates from his body.

He has a feeling that’s probably what will happen.

He can’t seem to say no to you, can’t seem to feel the need to deny you anything.

“Andrei,” you pout.

His thumb rubs at your bottom lip. “It means ‘diamond,’ malyshka.”

Your mouth drops open in a soft ‘O’ and Andrei feels his skin heat. “Where’d you get that from?”

Andrei shrugs, gathering another spoonful of his ice cream but feeding it to you instead. “It just seemed fitting, I guess.”

After taking a moment to swallow the chocolate off his spoon, you raise a curious brow at him from your barstool. He waits for you to say something else, but you don’t, instead digging back into your tub, and the two of you continue to finish your ice cream, exchanging dollops of whipped cream and caramel sauce.

A thought pops into his head to prop you up on the kitchen island and put the whipped cream and caramel to good use, but he restrains himself.

He feels it then, the normal electric tension between the both of you feels…different now. It feels both like something more, and then it also feels like…like there’s a newly growing space between you. It’s small still, but not small enough for him to ignore.

Andrei thinks it has something to do with your time at home over the holidays, but he’s a little too afraid to ask. He can’t seem to get more than a few sentences out of you about your personal life, or the part of your life involving your family, and he doesn’t want to disturb the peace you’ve both managed to settle into now that you’re back together.

Belatedly, after you’ve both showered the day away and he takes you against the tiled wall of his shower, pressing ‘almaznyy’ to your skin between heated kisses and strokes, he lays in bed, with your naked body wrapped up in his arms, and he hopes whatever he’s feeling is just his imagination.

February

With the All Star Game going on in Denver the weekend of Valentine’s Day, Andrei suggests taking you away for the bye week in the schedule. He doesn’t use Eden’s services to book a single thing, paying for the trip himself.

He flies you both out to Malibu for the week, booking a beach house on AirBnB with a view of the Pacific coast. You spend the first day settling in, buying a little bit of groceries to make some meals at your AirBnB instead of eating out all the time. Andrei would gladly drop whatever amount of cash it took to feed you at any restaurant of your choosing without complaint, but he also enjoys cooking together with you, so he realistically doesn’t mind either way.

The second day you spent going around Malibu playing tourists, and on the third day, which is Valentine’s Day, Andrei surprises you by taking you on a date to LACMA.

You’re wearing this pretty white dress, your hair falling around you softly, and all he can seem to do is watch you when you stop to look at each and every piece that interests you.

There’s something about the way you seem to immerse yourself in the art, how you manage to focus on the things he can’t see, like it’s a secret between you and the piece in front of you, and Andrei’s content not knowing. He’s happier to just be in your orbit, to observe you and enjoy the way you turn back to him with a happy smile, reaching for his hand and towing him toward the next piece you want to look at or into the next exhibit hall.

You’re currently looking at a Grecian style bust, the sunlight creeping in through the vast windows behind it, casting a heavenly glow on you and illuminating your silhouette under your white dress.

He can see it then - you’re not wearing a bra, and the lace of your underwear calls to him like a beacon.

He doesn’t think he’ll ever stop craving you in every way imaginable.

As you back away a little from the statue, Andrei approaches you from behind, and your body presses against his. He smiles as he wraps his arms around you, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

“Isn’t it gorgeous?” You ask, looking at the bust.

“Extremely,” he murmurs, eyes on you.

You turn in his arms then, chuckling softly when you notice where his eyes are, and you rise up on your toes, pressing a kiss to his lips. “You’re not even looking at the art, Andrei.”

“I am,” he insists, and when you go to back away, Andrei’s arms wrap around you and keep you close. A small gasp escapes as he pulls you against him, and then backs the two of you against the wall in a tucked away corridor, hidden from the main exhibit. “The art is all I’m looking at, almaznyy.”

He reaches beneath your dress, finding where the fabric rests at the juncture of your thighs, pulling it to the side and running his finger through your wet folds. You gasp again when he brings his finger up to your clit, circling it a little, before his finger’s dipping back down and sinking into you to the knuckle.

He moves his finger in and out slowly, watching the way your face shifts into that blissful expression he’s come to adore so much, and his free hand comes to rest on your waist, guiding you to follow his hand, to take what you need. “It’s okay, you can take it, I want you to.”

“Andrei,” you breathe out, trying to keep your voice down as your hips move in time with his hand, “What about the rest of the museum?”

“Fuck the museum,” He murmurs, lips brushing against your temple as he pumps his fingers in and out of you. “You’re the most important work of art in here, almaznyy.”

Now that you know what your pet name means, your eyes twinkle in delight at him, tilting your head to the side to willingly provide him access to your skin, and Andrei doesn’t wait any further, pressing his lips to your neck and gathering the bottom of your dress, pulling it over your ass to rest around your waist.

“Take me out,” he demands.

Your eyes widen a little, pupils blown out. “Here?”

“Here.” He confirms with a nod. “Now. Take me out, malyshka. Don’t make me ask you again.”

Fumbling, your hands shake a little as you unbutton his jeans and lower his zipper, and Andrei lifts one of your legs up, tucking his forearm under your hamstring and opening you up to him.

The second his cock is free from its restraints, he’s thrusting his hips forward, notching at your entrance and using his free hand to cradle your face in his hands. “This is okay, right?”

You nod, swallowing a lump in your throat. “Be quick.”

He pushes the rest of the way in, burying himself to the hilt and crowding in closer, pressing your body back against the wall. He fucks you in quick, deep, and brutal strokes. It’s the least romantic he’s ever been with you thus far, the most careless, and he’d think to be concerned about it if it weren’t for your fingernails digging into his shoulders from where you’re holding on to him for dear life.

Heavy breathing is all that can be heard between the two of you, and he tracks the way you’re biting down on your lower lip, trying to stifle your moans, and he buries his face in your neck, sucking bruises into your skin and inhaling the sweet smell of your perfume, his thumb rubbing in soothing motions on your cheek.

“Close,” you whisper, digging your nails in, and he tilts his hips in a way that angles your hips up a little more, and then he’s pressing in a little further, and your back arches off the wall. “Yes, please!” You cry into his ear.

Andrei drives into you in a frenzied pace, eyes on your face and watches your eyes glaze over, can hear the stutter in your breath, and he’s moving his hand from your cheek to cover your mouth when you finally squeeze down on him, body seizing against his and his own body locks up, the orgasm nearly buckling his knees, but he keeps steady, doesn’t move a single inch as he fills you up and your body’s shaking comes to a cresting halt.

He takes a couple of seconds, letting you calm down and catch your breath before he’s carefully pulling out of you and pulling your underwear back in place, pressing kisses to your forehead as he sets you down on both your feet and helps you rearrange your clothes. He tucks himself back into his pants and lets you fuss over making sure he’s put back together as well.

Once the lust filled haze finally clears from his mind, he leads you out of the hidden corridor and back in view of the floor to ceiling windows, feeling the awe return when the sunlight immediately casts the heavenly glow back on you.

“Show me more,” he says to you softly, tilting his chin towards the next exhibit hall.

With a smile, you take his hand, then take him to look at more paintings.

Later that night, after you’ve had dinner, dessert, and more dessert in the shower, you lay on his chest and he wraps one arm around you, the other folded behind his head as he stares at the ceiling.

It occurred to him as the two of you were in the show that it’s already been six months, but he doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to this - having you here, sharing his time with you, being intimate with you - and his mind runs rampant.

There’s so many things he knows about you, but still so many he doesn’t. There’s uncharted territory in his map of you, and he wants to amend that.

Immediately.

So he takes a deep breath, steeling himself, and throws caution to the wind.

“I know you probably don’t want to talk about it, but…” His voice trails off, running his fingertips gently over your naked spine. “How many clients do you have?”

He doesn’t know if it’s the wine from dinner, or the fact that he gave you three orgasms back to back in the shower and completely wore him out, but you actually answer him, and it takes him by surprise. “In the past, when I was working for Eden to get through school, I had a total of five clients the entire time. Two were short term, one for about nine months and the other for a year. The other three I saw on and off again pretty regularly over the four years.”

“Some of them saw you when you were eighteen?” Andrei asks, concern etching his brow and lacing through his voice.

You snort a little, lips brushing against his chest as you speak. “They weren’t…it wasn’t like that. They try to match the ages up correctly, or as correctly as possible. And we can say yes or no if they bring them to us and we don’t feel comfortable.”

“Well that’s a relief,” he mutters.

Your fingers drum on his chest as you continue. “The first client I started with at eighteen had just turned twenty one. He was some trust fund baby, but shy. Needed a date to his ex’s wedding to make her jealous. They’re married now, actually, her marriage to the other dude lasted all of a year. But she had my client in her wedding party, and he needed to play the long game for a little to make it seem like he’d moved on.”

“That was nice of you,” Andrei replies, genuine. “Very kind.”

“It was what he paid me to do,” You say with a shrug, then he can feel you smile. “They asked me to be at their wedding, once they got their shit together. It was kind of nice.”

He nods, then swallows past the lump in his throat. “And the others?”

“I met the guy I was seeing for a year when I was nineteen, a couple of months after I finished the job with my first client. It was a lowkey thing, he just needed a friend really. He was going through a bit of an identity crisis. Once I told him we could just…be friends, and that he didn’t have to pay me anymore, we stayed in touch.”

“Oh,” Andrei says. He’s not jealous. Not suddenly suspicious of this unnamed guy who-

“He’s my brother-in-law now.”

It’s silent for a moment, and then Andrei laughs, jostling you on his chest, and then you both end up laughing, you throw an arm over your eyes as you giggle, and he turns on his side, wrapping you up in his arms and pulling you closer. “I’m sorry,” he says between laughs. “I just-”

You nod, nose brushing against his chest as you do. “I know, it’s okay.”

He scoots down the bed a little so he can nuzzle his face into your neck. “I just want you all to myself,” he murmurs into your skin, punctuating his statement with a soft kiss.

“You have me,” you assure him, combing your fingers through his hair. “I’m right here.”

He nips at your neck. “You know what I mean.”

“I do,” you nod. “I meant what I said.”

Your statements hang in the air, and he sighs. “What about the others? The ones you saw off and on?”

“Two of them were twenty three, and the third was twenty five. They were businessmen from London, young tycoons, and they were trying to expand their business to America. They mostly just invited me out to different charity events, galas, functions, you name it. It was convenient that the three of them were best friends, so they often coordinated who's date I was and when and where, and most people who knew them knew that they liked to share. But they didn’t, not with me anyway, in the sexual sense. I just played arm candy and hung out with them until they eventually were able to acquire the merger that they needed.”

Andrei hums. “They still in your life too?”

You nod. “They were, for a bit. They actually gave me the normal job I told you about after I graduated. Once they opened their office in Manhattan, they hired me as an assistant to one of them, and I’d see the other two every now and again, but we didn’t interact much other than the occasional check in. They all sent me a Christmas card, though. It had a check for ten grand in it.”

A surprised noise leaves his throat. “That’s generous.”

You laugh a little. “I’m pretty sure it was a ploy to try to get me to come back and work for them, but I just put it in my savings.” He hums, and then you go quiet, pushing him a little.

Andrei raises a brow. “What is it?”

“I don’t know if they tell you this, when they send you my blood panel results. But at Eden, it’s a rule that if you sleep with your clients, you have to report it, and then we have to tell our clients so they’re aware.”

He doesn’t know if he likes where this is going, and he ignores the green flame of jealousy sparking in his body so he can say “Okay.”

“I’m not sleeping with anyone else, Andrei.” You tell him. “And I’ve never been with anyone else. You’re the first and only client I’ve ever had sex with, the only one I’ve felt comfortable with, the only one I’ve had a connection with, the only one I’ve felt safe with.”

And that…well that fucking turns him on.

All the way on, like…rock hard again in seconds.

But even more, it unlocks something within him that has his entire world screeching to a halt.

You might not be all the way in, but he is. Especially now.

He’s in love with you.

He is undoubtedly head over heels in love with you and -

His movements are lightning quick as he tackles you, pulling you on top of him so he can kiss you fucking senseless.

If he didn’t know any better, he’d say that you knew exactly what you were doing to him by admitting something so…so….so fucking svyashchennyy.

Sacred.

After a minute, you giggle, and press smaller kisses to his lips, and then his jaw and neck as you climb off of him, resuming your spot beside him. “Alright alright alright, your turn.” You say, drawing circles with your fingertips on his chest. “Tell me something about you.”

He pauses for a second, trying to pull up something, anything, something interesting to tell you, and he starts to worry when too many things pop up at once, but then he zeroes in on the bracelet on your wrist, the one attached to the hand that’s touching him, and he smiles a little.

Gently, his fingers circle that wrist before capturing your hand in his, pressing a gentle kiss to the back of it. “I guess you could say I have a pretty obvious love language, or two, maybe. Acts of service and gift giving. It’s mainly because I didn’t have…well…anything, growing up, really. It was tough, back home. So the second I signed my first professional contract here in the states, I bought my mom a car. I got her all the gifts I’d always wanted to get her, and I still do it. I guess…I know what it’s like not to have anything, feeling like even the smallest of things isn’t enough to express how I feel, so I try my best to do it all the time. Like with this.”

He runs his finger over the bracelet. The one you haven’t taken off once since he put it on you, the one he feels signifies that you’re his, even if you’re not.

“I felt…appreciative. Before we even met, I was appreciative that you chose to agree to meet with me. I just wanted to get you something that said thank you, that I felt lucky.”

Your brow furrows, and he can see there’s words in your eyes, things you want to say, but instead, you cup his face in your hands, and pull him closer to you, capturing his mouth in a gentle kiss.

“I’m the lucky one, Andrei.” You whisper between kisses. “Your heart is worth its weight in gold, never let anyone tell you otherwise.”

His heart beats in his chest and he surges forward, rolling you onto your back as your kisses turn slow, sensual, and then he’s settling between your legs and slipping inside of you, making you come on his cock and his mouth over and over again until you’re both absolutely exhausted, and the night turns black outside the windows.

As you finally drift off to sleep in his arms, he belatedly realizes that while he got to talk to you about your past clients, he still didn’t know how many clients you have now, and there’s still a few gaps in his knowledge about you that he feels are more like gaping holes.

Selfishly, he doesn’t want you to have anyone else, no one other than himself, and he makes a note as he drifts off to sleep to fix it when you both get back to Raleigh.

The following week, when Andrei arrives at his office in the morning, he dials the number always listed at the bottom of the emails from Eden, and after speaking to a receptionist, waits a few moments before a woman’s voice comes to the phone.

“Hello, Mr. Svechnikov, this is Ava Price, CEO and founder of Eden. How may I assist you?”

Andrei drums his fingers on his desk. “I’m calling to ask you about my…um, my companion,” he says, trying to sound as professional as possible.

“Of course sir, is there a problem?” Ava asks, a touch of concern in her voice.

“Not necessarily. I just wanted to inquire about her employment contract with you.”

There’s a pause, and then Ava clears her throat a little. “I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean, Mr. Svechnikov, has your companion mentioned that there’s something wrong with her employment contract? As you know, all of our companions are employed with us voluntarily, and they may come and go as they please.”

“I know,” he insists, trying not to sound pushy. “I wanted to ask…to ask if you could tell me why she came back? She had mentioned that she left for a little, and then came back because she wanted something else. Is it money? Is she in debt? Is she in trouble?”

Another long pause greets Andrei’s ears, and his nerves start to twist and flutter uncomfortably in his belly.

“I’m afraid that’s your companion’s business. Listen, Andrei, I’ll be frank with you. Even if I was at liberty to discuss something like that, I don’t know that I would, given that it seems evident to me that your companion clearly has yet to tell you her actual name. That tells me that you may not be as close as you think you are. So I’ll ask this, why exactly are you inquiring about her employment contract?”

Andrei gathers the courage he had the other night, when you were wrapped in his arms and he swore to himself that if he tried hard enough, he could make this real. Could make the two of you real. “If it’s about money,” he begins carefully. “I want to pay for it. Whatever the amount, I’ll pay if it means you release her.”

“You want to buy her out?” Ava asks, incredulous. “That’s not necessary. As I said before, all of our companions work for Eden voluntarily. As generous and heroic as your interests are, there is nothing to ‘release’ your companion from. She is free to leave on her own volition, whenever that may be.”

Andrei blows air out of his nose. “I understand.”

“If I may, Mr. Svechnikov, I’ll do both of us a favor and pretend this conversation never happened, but perhaps it would be best for you to bring up your concerns with your companion directly.”

March

Andrei glances at himself in the full length mirror of his walk in closet, adjusting and readjusting his suit.

Tonight’s the Cane’s Bash, the organization’s renamed Casino Night, and it also happens to be his birthday.

You’d arrived in Raleigh this morning after having to return to Manhattan briefly for what you told Andrei was “personal business,” and he tried his best to not make assumptions or draw unnecessary conclusions about what that “personal business” might actually be.

Not that he thinks you’d lie to him, but there’s still gaps, things he doesn’t know, and after his phone call with Ava, he seems to be dwelling on that more and more lately.

You’re in his bathroom getting ready, and he can hear you humming along to the music playing from your phone on a low volume. If he leans back a little, he can see you in the mirror, finishing up with curling your hair and dressed in a baby pink silk robe, the black dress you’re wearing tonight hanging on the back of the bathroom door.

“Almost ready, almaznyy?” He calls out, stepping out of the closet and into his bedroom. He heads toward the nightstand on his side of the bed, grabbing for his watch.

“Yes malysh,” you call out, the music in the bathroom cutting out. “I just have to slip on my dress.”

“Your heels are by the front door,” he reminds you, fastening his Rolex onto his wrist.

“Yes dear,” you call back, voice teasing.

He chuckles to himself, shaking his head.

Gaps and his phone call with Ava aside, he feels happy that things still feel completely natural with you, and it’s so easy for him to slip into this domestic role. There’s a part of his brain that wants to pretend this is just a regular old date night for the two of you, and he’s getting ready to take you to dinner just because.

If he allows himself to get lost in his imagination, he can picture that this is something he’d prefer to do weekly with you - taking you on a date just because, coming home and telling you to get ready, surprising you with dinner and a movie or taking you somewhere fancy. He’d be proud to show you off, proud to take you around with a rock on your finger that screams “she’s mine.”

But he can do this for now…right?

When you finally step out of the bathroom in your black dress, your hair curled and smile wide, almost as if you’re asking him “What do you think?” his entire world narrows down to just you.

And now…now he feels like he has to tell you.

He wants to own up to his call with Ava, and wants to confess to you that he wants this to be more than what it is.

“You look beautiful,” he says, holding his hand out to you.

You go to him easily, allowing yourself to be swept up into his arms and accepting the kiss he presses to your hair.

“Okay, let me just get my bag and we can go,” you start, going to pull away, but Andrei pulls you closer instead, bending his head for a kiss, which you grant him easily.

He puts his all into it, holding you tightly against him, kissing you like this might just be the last time, just in case you don’t like what he has to say, in case you get angry with him for going behind your back to talk to Ava.

When he pulls away, he swallows. “Almaznyy, I-”

“Andrei,” you cut him off suddenly, taking a step back and out of his immediate space. “There’s something I have to tell you and it’s kind of important.”

Andrei tilts his head, a little surprised. “What is it?”

“I went back to Manhattan to try to find you the perfect birthday gift,” you confess, eyes on your feet as you speak slowly, almost like you’re trying to make sure you’re choosing the right words to explain yourself. “But in the end, nothing I looked at or found made sense or seemed like the right thing to give you. So in the end, I thought of something, and it’s not much at all, and probably a really lame gift. I mean, I hope it’s something you want? Or like. But I didn’t know if you…well, here.” You turn, going into the nightstand on your side of the bed and pulling out a wrapped, rectangular box with a little bow on it, then turn back and extend it to him.

Andrei smiles, accepting the gift and taking a seat on the edge of the bed. He undoes the wrapping carefully, taking the lid off of the box and removing the tissue paper to reveal a carefully bound book.

He opens it with gentle fingers, and when he sees the first page, his breath is almost stolen from him.

It’s a drawing.

Your drawing.

Of him.

He recognizes the setting almost immediately. It’s of him, sitting on that bench in front of The Met, the coffee cups in his hands as he waits for you. He’s looking off to the side, searching, and Andrei can feel his mouth drop open.

“But…how…” His voice trails off in disbelief, looking up at you.

You’re blushing, a shy expression on your face. “I was watching you,” you admit. “I was sitting down a little bit away from the museum, waiting to see you, and then I saw you sit down, and I just…I sketched you, really quickly. It’s not the best, but I just thought…”

You take a deep breath, glancing down at your bare feet. “I thought that I missed you, and maybe if I drew you, then I wouldn’t miss you as much after you left.”

“You have dozens of pictures of us, almaznyy.” He points out kindly.

“It’s not the same,” you start to say, but then Andrei flips to the next page, and your words die on your lips as Andrei takes in the second sketch of him.

This one is of him in a suit, sitting with his knees on his elbows and a serious look on his face, hands clasped under his chin. He recognizes it immediately, and laughs a little. “Is this from the game? At the Garden?”

You nod. “You came up on the jumbotron a couple of times during the third period, when the score was still close. So I sketched you then too.”

Andrei can’t speak, can barely breathe at what he’s looking at.

He’d wondered about the sketches in your journal. Had thought about what you’d drawn over a dozen times, had thought about all the possibilities of what you’d sketched when you sat in the corner of his office and in your spare time.

Never in his wildest dreams did he think you were drawing him.

As he flips through the rest of the book, there are at least a dozen more on the small A5 paper, of him bent over his laptop at his home office desk, on the phone and writing something down, on the phone and facing the window in his office, looking outside.

There are others too, intimate ones he didn’t think you were around for. Of him standing at the counter, sweatpants hung low on his hips, torso naked, his reading glasses on as he brewed a fresh pot of coffee for you after a particularly long night of fucking.

He remembers it well - being surprised that he’d woken up before you did, surprised that he didn’t have to embark on his usual scavenger hunt to find you each morning, even though it’s one of his favorite unofficial games with you.

There’s another of him sleeping on his back, one arm bent behind his head, the other cast out and left open atop your pillow on your side of the bed. The sheets are gathered low across his hips, and he doesn’t think he’s ever seen himself look so at peace.

“These are beautiful, almaznyy,” he murmurs quietly, and he thumbs over to the next drawing of him, one where he’s in the closet getting dressed, his back facing you, your view probably from your side of the bed.

It’s then that his eyes catch on something in the bottom right corner, and he brushes his finger over it.

It’s a signature.

Yours.

When he sees it, he flips back through toward the beginning, putting a pause on looking through the rest of the sketches for now, and finds the signature in the same spot on nearly every page.

Andrei lifts his head and finds you staring at your feet, a worried look on your face.

“Almaznyy?” He calls. “What’s…what’s on the bottom of the pages?”

Your mouth opens, then closes again, and you take a deep breath, eyes still on the ground for a second longer before you’re looking up at him with an expression that reads determination, hope, and just a little bit of fear.

Then you say a name.

And nothing else.

But then it clicks.

It’s your name.

You just told him your name.

And before he can even fully process it, he’s repeating it, the letters and syllables sounding and feeling perfect on his lips. He says it to himself a couple of times, then whispers it into the air between you, and when you hear it, you smile a little.

Fuck the gaps.

Fuck Ava.

Fuck all the nonsensical shit that isn’t just him and you, and this, and ‘us.’

The next thing he knows, he’s carefully setting the journal to the side, shooting up from his sitting position and surging forward, pressing you against the door and seizing your lips in a blistering kiss that steals the breath from his lungs.

It’s the best birthday present he thinks he’s ever received, and temporarily, he manages to forget about Ava, forget about the gaps, and just focus on you.

He introduces you to nearly everyone, using every opportunity he has to say your name out loud now that he’s earned the privilege of knowing it.

Now that he knows a little about your background, it explains how comfortable you are in environments like this, how you manage to be friendly to all of these people around you and make them like you when they only just met you.

It fills him with pride in a selfish way, and he can feel himself walking a little taller, can feel his ego inflating every time someone mentions to him how wonderful you are and how lucky he is.

I know, he wants to say. She’s a diamond isn’t she?

When you make your way back to him after someone’s wife pulled you aside for a brief chat, he wastes no time in draping his arm around your waist and all but hauling you to his side, pressing a kiss to your temple, murmuring your name against your skin. “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you, you look handsome tonight.” You return, resting your hand atop the possessive grip he has on your waist.

Out of the corner of his eye, he can see another couple approaching, and gets ready to put on his best Assistant General Manager face, when he hears you squeal, and then someone else squeals, and you’re out of his arms and a couple of steps away from him in a second.

He turns his head to where you’re hugging a young woman with long black hair, and she’s squeezing you back particularly hard as the two of you speak to one another in a stream of rushed but happy noises he can only assume are words.

Eli’s standing not far off to the side of the brunette, watching her and you with a curious brow, and all at once, Andrei’s stomach bottoms out.

The brunette…she couldn’t be from Eden…could she?

When the two of you part, your hands on one another arms and keeping you slightly embraced, there’s a bright smile on the other woman’s face as she listens to something you say, her eyes casting over to Andrei for a brief moment. The next thing he knows, you’re excitedly leading her over to him, and Eli follows behind, the curious look still on his face.

“Malysh,” you say, smiling brightly at him. “This is Charlotte, one of my oldest friends. Lottie, this is Andrei, my boyfriend.”

Charlotte.

He remembers.

The one who introduced you to Eden.

Great. So she’s definitely Eli’s date.

“It’s nice to meet you,” he says. He sticks out his hand with a smile, shaking Charlotte’s hand politely before taking a step towards you, allowing you to rest against him.

Eli approaches from Charlotte’s other side and wraps a hand around her waist, leaning into her side. “Small world,” he says, glancing quickly at Andrei. It makes his back teeth clench.

Charlotte introduces you to Eli, who shakes your hand, and from a few feet away, Andrei can clock Olly and Mason watching the four of you with interest, abandoning the blackjack table they’d been hovering over and beginning to wander toward you.

He goes to pull you back to him, to pull you away and bring you anywhere else, but then Olly and Mason approach, and they’re asking Charlotte about you, and then you get pulled into a conversation.

It’s fine, realistically, he knows that. And he’s content to just sit back and watch you, drinking from the beer he’s been nursing for the last half an hour.

He’s so tuned in to you that he doesn’t notice Olly approaching him from the side until he’s resting a hand on his shoulder, and Andrei turns, brows furrowing. Olly gestures with his head toward the doors leading to the hallway, and he nods, following Olly out and down the hall to a quieter, more secluded spot.

“Something on your mind, Huntington?” Andrei asks, leaning against the wall and folding his arms.

Olly frowns slightly, stepping forward and speaking lowly. “I know.”

Andrei can feel his heart thump uncomfortably hard in his chest. “Know what?”

“I know about your girlfriend,” Olly says, gesturing his head back toward the way they came. “I know she’s from Eden.”

Silence engulfs the hallway, and any explanation Andrei may have had completely vanishes.

Olly’s the one who breaks it, resting a hand on Andrei’s shoulder. “I promise I won’t tell a soul. Neither will Mason or Eli, we all swore.”

“They know?” Andrei chokes out.

“They guessed when Charlotte spotted your girl from across the room. I was the only one who knew. You used my name as a reference on the site. They sent me a voucher for a thousand dollars for it.”

Andrei feels like he could punch himself in the face.

He completely forgot he’d even done that in the first place. So much had happened in the last six months, he’d almost managed to forget what brought you to him.

“I swear I won’t tell, Drei.” Olly repeats, squeezing his shoulder. “I won’t and they won’t. Your secret is safe with us.”

“Thank you,” is all Andrei can say. He’s still in shock, he thinks, still caught up in why he’s suddenly so bothered by all of this, and then it hits him.

His conversation with Ava.

He’d been so caught up in his present from you that he’d forgotten to tell you about his phone call with Ava.

And how he’d planned to ask you to leave Eden and be with him. Actually be with him.

Olly nods before leaving Andrei alone in the hall, and he takes a few minutes to try to collect himself.

This is neither the time nor the place, but he makes a promise to himself to bring it up with you once the two of you get home tonight.

After a few minutes, he makes his way back out to the Bash, and spots you almost immediately with Charlotte and two other men who aren’t anyone on the team or from the organization, and certainly not anyone he recognizes. You’re tucked away from a majority of the party for the most part, and there’s no one around, but Andrei doesn’t like what he’s seeing at all.

You’re arguing with one of the men, the other trying to remain between you both to stop your heated verbal disagreement, and Charlotte is trying to pull you away.

There’s a fierce look on your face, a hard set to your jaw that Andrei’s never seen before, and you’re spewing a slew of what Andrei hopes are venomous words at whoever decided tonight was the night to piss you off.

As he approaches, he remains slightly out of sight of the four of you, and when your heated conversation makes its way to his ears, his stomach begins to twist again, and he isn’t sure if he can handle it this time.

“Admit it! This is about your inheritance!” The man you’re arguing with spits.

“This is not about my inheritance. As far as I’m concerned, the terms are bullshit and I don’t want it.”

“Then why are you here? With Andrei Svechnikov of all people?!” The man demands, and your face hardens.

“He’s my boyfriend, and you don’t get to say his name if you’re going to be a fucking asshole.”

“Maybe you two could stop this and have this conversation at a more apt time?” The other man asks, and Charlotte nods.

“I agree,” she says, then turns to you, saying your name softly. “Let’s go find Andrei.”

“What are you even doing here?” You demand, ignoring both Charlotte and her ally in trying to calm you down.

The man’s face hardens. “I’m here because Sam’s company is a sponsor for the Hurricanes. The company got invitations to the Bash, and they sent Sam as a representative.”

You scoff. “You expect me to believe that a national company sent a representative from their Manhattan office as opposed to an office based here in Raleigh? Or closer?”

The man, Sam, steps closer to you then. “The Manhattan office is the closest. It’s not that big of a deal, I swear.”

“Well then I suggest you support your husband and his company, and leave Andrei alone.” You spit, turning to follow Charlotte back to the Bash, until the other man speaks again.

“I would, except I’d hate to miss out on the opportunity to tell Andrie that my sister’s a gold-digging whore.”

The silence that follows his statement is heavy, charged, and dangling on the precipice of an all out brawl.

Fitting, that if there was a fight, they’re in PNC Arena, so it isn’t like there isn’t blood on these floors already.

Andrei’s included.

But then the words settle into Andrei’s veins and twist their way around his heart like barbed wire, squeezing painfully.

Sister.

Gold-digging whore.

This man you’ve been arguing with is your brother. And if Sam is his husband, then that means…

Sam’s also your former client. The one you helped through his identity crisis.

And of course if he married your brother, then your brother has to know you’re working for Eden, which explains his hostility.

Your brother thinks that you’re here as an employee, that his little sister is toting around here as a prostitute.

Which…as much as Andrei doesn’t want to admit it, is pretty much what is happening.

And moreover, your brother thinks you being here and working for Eden is…some ploy at an inheritance?

He’s so lost it’s ridiculous.

Andrei doesn’t understand, but he also doesn’t want to hear anything else, especially if your brother intends on hurting you like this.

Before he can convince his brain to make his feet move, you’re whipping around so fast and lunging at your brother.

Andrei’s feet kick in then, but thankfully Charlotte catches you around your waist, pulling you back as Sam gets between you and your brother.

“Joshua,” Sam hisses.

Ah. Joshua.

So now Andrei’s potential brother-in-law had a name.

Potential being the key word, because if he continued to speak to you like that, or god forbid, made you cry, Andrei would punch his lights out here and now and Joshua would not be invited to the wedding.

Andrei finally makes it to your group, grabbing you from Charlotte and parking you directly behind him.

“I think you need to walk away,” Andrei says to Joshua. His voice is deadly calm, and he’s sure his face looks pretty similar. He’s had a long career to fine tune it, and it’s worked for him pretty well a time or two. He towers over your brother by about six inches, so it would be a fair fight, if your brother did know how to fight, but Andrei really doesn’t want to fuck up his potential brother-in-law the first time they meet.

“She’s got you fooled.” Your brother spits, fighting against his husband’s hold. “Whatever spell she’s got you under? Break it yourself. She’s not worth it.”

“Wrong.” Andrei says, stepping forward, looking Joshua dead in his eyes. “She’s worth everything.”

“Even if it means she uses you for an inheritance she can’t have unless she lures some poor sucker into her trap?” Joshua spits.

Andrei’s blood boils, and his hands curl into his fists at his sides.

Maybe you’d forgive him for one punch. Just the one. Right?

Sam shoves at him, pointing in the opposite direction and saying “Joshua. Walk.”

“You’re such a little bitch.” Charlotte says from where she’s comforting you from behind Andrei.

“Listen to your husband and walk away.” Andrei says. It’s his last warning, but Joshua doesn’t need to know that.

“Or what?” Joshua challenges, shoving against Sam’s hands from where they’re pushing at his chest.

“Or we’ll make you.”

The five of you turn your heads to see Olly, Mason, and Eli standing off to the side, and Andrei recognizes the look on their faces all too well. He’s seen it enough when he played with Olly and Mason, and seen it on all three of them nearly a dozen times so far this season.

They’re ready for a line brawl if they’re needed.

Joshua seems to do the wise thing for once and weigh his odds, which don’t bode well for him anymore. Finally, he decides to listen to his husband, and Sam ushers him away quickly, but not before sending a very sorry look to you, Charlotte, and to Andrei.

Andrei turns to you, finding you locked in Charlotte’s embrace and vibrating with anger. Olly, Mason, and Eli get closer, Eli resting a comforting hand on Charlotte’s shoulder and Mason and Olly coming to Andrei’s side.

“You guys okay?” Mason asks, casting worried looks between Andrei and you.

Andrei nods, patting Mason and Olly on the back. “Yeah, thanks.”

“Need us to kick that guy out?” Eli asks, gesturing towards where Sam and Joshua disappeared.

“Almaznyy?” Andrei asks, and you cast a glance at him, the expression on your face nearly breaking his heart. “Do you want them to leave?”

You let out a heavy sigh, but shake your head. “Leave them. He’ll keep his distance now.”

“He’d better.” Olly scoffs. “Don’t worry, if he tries anything else, we’ll be there.”

“Thank you,” you murmur.

After a couple of minutes of reassurance, Andrei sends the four of them away, then finally turns to you, a frown on his face.

He’s quiet for a second, trying to figure out where to start, and he doesn’t plan on it being “What was he talking about?”

Your eyes flick up to Andrei and your nostrils flare. “He just likes instigating, that’s all.”

“I can see that,” he agrees. “But what did he mean? About an inheritance?”

The gears in his head start to turn, and as much as he doesn’t want to admit it…it makes a little bit of sense.

It explains why you’ve never divulged as to what you would get out of you being with him. It wasn’t like you were always with Eden, and this was a normal gig for you - you’d made that clear on the first night. Yes, your heart was pure and you genuinely seemed to want to help him, to enjoy being with him, but…

But if it had all been for show…

You didn’t want his money, you said that much too. It would make sense if you didn’t want it because you were bound to have your own.

But none of that could be true…could it?

“There is no inheritance.” You tell Andrei, unwavering. “None that I stand to gain.”

He’s quiet for another moment, brain running a mile a minute.

Between his phone call with Ava, who refused to divulge anything, and then his conversation with Olly, and now your brother showing up, he’s not exactly had the best few weeks.

But this…this isn’t making anything better.

His silence stretches for too long, he realizes belatedly, because when he doesn’t say anything, you take a small step back from him, and he feels it. Feels it like the first crack in the pavement.

“You don’t believe me,” you say with realization, voice hushed and a little pained.

Andrei feels his gut twist uncomfortably. “I want to,” he says softly, “but you’ve never told me what was in this for you.”

“I did,” you insist. “I’ve said it. You just haven’t listened.”

Your words ring in his ears, but he doesn’t understand. He works to find something, anything to say to you, to try to…patch up whatever is happening, but nothing comes out. And with more of his silence, he can see you start to shut down in front of his eyes, putting up walls that have never been there in the entirety of your relationship.

“Let’s…let’s just go back to the event.” He offers, “Get some drinks, get some food in you, okay? I think I’m just in shock, that's all.”

You don’t believe him, and he can tell by the way you walk ahead of him, not waiting for him to follow.

You’ve never done that before.

Andrei follows after you, joining you from where you’ve found Charlotte and Eli again, Olly and Mason hanging around. When he gets closer, Olly rests a comforting hand on his back, and Andrei welcomes it, uses it like an emotional crutch and tries to put his best Assistant General Manager face on.

He wraps an arm around your waist that you don’t lean into like usual, and instead of the bright and bubbly person you’d been at the beginning of the night, now you’re just the right amount of nice and kind to the people who come up to you.

The little group of four hovers around the two of you protectively, and Andrei sees Sam making it a point to keep a wide berth between Andrei and Joshua.

You don’t make any conversation with Andrei, answering his questions only with a shake of your head for ‘no,’ or a small nod for ‘yes,’ and the longer it goes on, the more Andrei can’t take it.

Even from the beginning, he’d never experienced such distance between the two of you, and now, the very same night you gave him your name and he was prepared to lay his heart on the line, he’s starting to lose his grip on the best possible thing that’s ever happened to him.

He needs to get you home, and now.

Just when Andrei’s getting ready to excuse the two of you from the current group you’re speaking to, Skyler approaches, along with a couple of Andrei’s former teammates you met earlier in the night.

Sebastian, Marty, Martinook, and Jarvy seem a little liquored up and happy, and Sebastian pats Andrei on the back as the others hover around Charlotte and her three shadows.

They start talking about the current season, and then it eases into a conversation about the “glory days,” and that is definitely Andrei’s que to get you the fuck home.

He is not listening to this conversation.

But then, because the universe hates him, and he always seems to move too slow, he gets dragged into it.

“Right, Svechy?” Marty asks, and whatever was said, Martinook seems to agree with it.

“Of course he could!” Jarvy says. “Are you kidding? He could lace up and play tomorrow.”

Andrei winces internally.

Der'mo. Shit. This cannot be happening.

“Nah, he’s better using that brain for the front office, right Andrei?” Sebastian asks, ruffling Andrei’s hair.

Andrei scoffs, annoyed, and he can see you staring at him from beside him.

Dvoynoy trakh. Double fuck.

“What do you mean?” Charlotte asks, seemingly on your behalf, her eyebrows furrowed as she glances around.

Eli must be able to sense the rising discomfort, because he wraps an arm around Charlotte’s waist to lead her away, and Mason and Olly look ready to jump in again.

“I have post-concussion syndrome. That's why I had to retire early.” He blurts out, figuring it’s better that it comes from him than from the others.

They don’t know what they’re doing, not really, and they’re not trying to be cruel.

“Oh,” Charlotte says. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Andrei says, and he can feel you. He can feel your eyes staring into the side of his head and can feel you beginning to inch away from him.

“He found out after we won the cup last year,” Skyler adds. “He had to make the decision in the off season when he should’ve been celebrating. But we made sure we celebrated a little bit, didn’t we?”

Andrei smiles, a weak laugh leaving his chest.

It’s partly mortifying that he’s being singled out like this, albeit unintentionally, and also wholly embarrassing because he doesn’t want you to think less of him, or pity him the way everyone else had for a while.

The conversation goes on about the epic parties that had occurred last summer, and it eventually teeters out, but not quick enough.

However, this time, you’re the one who’s helping to usher him home, to get him out of the venue and say his goodbyes. You don’t say goodbye to Sam or Joshua, but you do say goodbye to Charlotte and Eli, and Olly and Mason as well, thanking them for being helpful earlier.

Once the two of you are in the car and on the way home though, Andrei’s waiting for it, waiting for you to make a comment about the injury, but it never comes.

You turn to him just as he turns the car off in his driveway, reaching across the console and resting your hand atop his on the steering wheel, and he steels himself, not really wanting to get into this conversation right now, and-

“Are you okay, Andrei?”

He blinks, head swiveling toward you. “Me?”

You nod, a pout to your lips as you frown. “Yeah, you. Are you alright? I can’t imagine people talking about you like you’re not there is fun for you.”

“I…” he’s dumbfounded. “I…I guess not, no.”

“I’m sorry they did that to you,” you say, squeezing his hand.

He blinks again. “You’re not…mad?”

You tilt your head, bewildered. “Mad? Why would I be mad?”

“I didn’t tell you,” he says, fumbling through his words as his hand joined with yours falls to his lap. “About the injury.”

“Andrei,” you say carefully. “I Googled you, remember? I already knew about the injury.”

Akh blya. Oh shit. He’d almost forgotten that too.

“Oh yeah,” he mutters. “You did.”

“C’mon,” you say, gesturing your head toward his house. “Let’s go inside. We have a lot to talk about.” You squeeze his hand before climbing out of the car, and he follows you, leading you into the house before shutting and locking the door behind him.

As you’re taking off your heels, and it settles in his bones that the two of you are finally alone, the heavy weight of the evening feels like too much to bear for a second longer, and the words pour out of him all at once.

“Olly knows.” Andrei says. “About us. That you’re from Eden.”

You pause, putting your heels on the floor, looking at Andrei with a confused expression. “I mean, I figured as much. I thought Charlotte would have told him.”

“No,” Andrei admits. “He knows because of me.”

“You told him?” You question, slightly surprised.

“Not exactly.” He says, and takes a breath. “I found out about Eden through him. Well, through Olly, Mason, and Eli. When I signed up, I used Olly’s name as a reference to expedite the registration process. I didn’t know it would notify him that I did.”

You nod, following along, but it’s clear you’re still unsure as to where this is going. “Okay.”

“He’s technically not supposed to know. No one is.”

The silence that ensues drives him crazy, starts an uncomfortable throb under his skull, and you’re just staring at him, shell shocked, and all you can say is “Oh.”

He plows forward, needing this off his chest. “After I made my decision, things just…sucked. It seemed like once I said I was stepping away, everyone else moved forward and I stayed behind. Sure, they gave me the Assistant GM job almost right away, but it didn’t…it didn’t help. I guess I felt lonely, and abandoned. That’s…that’s why I looked into Eden, to stop it all.”

“I…” you begin, and he can see your brain trying to work to understand what’s happening. “I don’t know that I get it, Andrei.”

If everything was coming out, if he was coming clean, he had to do it now.

“My brother brought up how I was by myself, all the time, and then I heard Olly and Mason talking about it with Eli, so I said fuck it and signed up. I just wanted to feel less lonely, less alone. I kept seeing my friends moving forward while I felt stuck, and I didn’t want that anymore.”

He takes a deep breath. “Everyone around me was getting married, having babies, and I had nothing because I didn’t have time for anything else. My whole life changed in the blink of an eye. I thought I had years left of my career, and then I didn’t, and I had nothing. I wanted someone who could give me something, someone who could fit into my schedule and just…give me anything. It didn’t matter who it was, I just needed someone.”

Your breath is stolen from you in a whoosh, the room going dead silent, and then Andrei realizes his mistake.

It didn’t matter who it was, I just needed someone.

Someone. He said. Someone, meaning anyone.

Not you.

Even after he told you anyone else wouldn’t have been good enough.

He sees it, the moment his words sink into your skin, and he curses himself. “That’s not - I didn’t mean it like that.”

“No,” you say, quiet as a mouse. “I understand.”

Andrei’s heart sinks. “Almaznyy-” he starts, and then you wince.

You wince.

Fuck.

He’s about to lose you. He knows, and he can’t seem to derail this train fast enough.

Your name falls from his lips in a plea, and you shake your head, wrapping your arms around your middle protectively. “It’s alright, really. Clearly we both haven’t been honest about our motives. It’s not your fault.”

“It’s not yours either,” he insists, taking a step toward you, reaching for you.

You take a step back almost immediately, and Andrei freezes in his path, hand falling limply to his sides. “I think,” you start to say, voice shaking. “I think I need to go back to Manhattan, Andrei.”

“Okay,” he acquiesces, hands fisting at his sides. He can’t really leave Raleigh, not right now, but if it means being with you and making sure that this, that the two of you are okay, he’ll do it, he’d do anything for you. “Okay, just let me pack and we-”

“Alone,” you clarify. “I need to go back alone. I think - I think we need some time to just…let things cool down. I think we need some space.”

He swallows the puck sized lump in his throat. “Okay.”

You turn away, heading to the bedroom to pack. He stands there, frozen to his spot with his heart at his feet, tongue twisted.

He doesn’t know what to do. He’s never been good at this part - what to do after fighting with a girl he cares about. He isn’t sure whether he’s supposed to run after you and beg you to stay, or just…stay here and do nothing, even though he wants to do anything but nothing.

In the end, it’s all he can do. Just stand there and wonder how this night started off with such relief - him being ready to tell you he was in love with you, you completely derailing his plan by finally telling him your name - and ended in such a fucking mess.

A car pulls up outside, the headlights bouncing off the walls through the front windows, and then you come out of his room, duffel bag and suitcase in tow. You don’t say anything to him as you approach, just rise up to kiss his cheek, and then you’re out the door, taking his battered soul with you.

READER’S INTERLUDE

“Are you sure about this?” Ava asks. “You agreed to the booking for this weekend already. That will be your last one?”

You’re sitting across from her in her office in the Manhattan skyscraper that houses Eden’s offices, and you’ve never felt more sure about something in your life.

You have to do this.

You have to quit Eden.

In your email inbox, you’ve got an email waiting from Felix, Chris, and Morgan, waiting for the greenlight from you so they can rehire you and move you to London to work in their main office.

It’s a stark contrast from where you were six months ago.

When you’d gotten the email from Eden all those months ago that you had a potential assignment, you jumped on it immediately, wanting to get this whole scheme over with.

You’d loved working for Eden back in school, loved the girls you met, loved working for Ava, appreciated the agency and power Eden gifted its employees.

It wasn’t typical sex work, and that had been made clear to you from the jump. While your clients may need the services Eden provides, it was completely up to Eden and the companions they employed as to whether or not those clients received those services, and even if you did decide to cave, everything could be stopped the second you said you were done.

Joining Eden hadn’t been the plan. When you’d gotten into college, you’d been determined to make your way through the rest of your life on your own and leave your ridiculous family behind.

Your mom being a renowned painter and your brother being a popular sculptor had been the only thing interesting about you nearly your entire life. Your father had been an award winning and incredibly successful photographer and photojournalist before he passed from cancer when you were twelve and your brother was fifteen, and all the love your family seemed to have for one another died with him.

Before the fallout, you’d grown up in an obnoxious, aristocratic, and wealthy world, being fortunate enough to attend the best schools and never felt the need to want for anything. All of the so-called ‘friends’ you’d had growing up never failed to use your family’s wealth against you, claiming you never had any real problems since you had money.

But all the money in the world couldn’t buy you sanity, couldn’t buy you happiness, or peace of mind.

You’d cut yourself away from your family when you got into college. You had to pay your own way through since they made it clear that they didn’t want you going to college in the first place, not understanding the point when you could do what they did - hone your talent in drawing and make a living.

That was exactly why you had to leave. You needed out, needed to do things on your own terms and at your own pace and in your own way.

The last thing you’d done before going no contact with your mother and brother was attending a charity gala in your father’s memory, where your mother and brother had donated several pieces of theirs to raise money for cancer.

That was where you’d run into Charlotte.

Lottie had been a year older than you and was someone you’d known since high school. She was already going into her sophomore year at the college you were heading to in the fall, and was one of the rare people in your life who was nice to you, never cared about your family or your family’s money, and was the closest thing to a friend you had.

She asked you about how you were doing, about your college plans, and how things were going with your family. You’d poured your heart out to her, and in turn, she gave you a solution.

Eden.

You’d applied through her, and began work after your fall semester midterms concluded, and the rest was history. You’d planned to be in Eden for as long as it took you to graduate, and when you did graduate and ended up working for your last clients, Felix, Chris, and Morgan, that was it.

Until your brother, Joshua, had reached out and told you that he and your mother had conveniently forgotten to mention that your father had left you an inheritance, and that in order to gain access to your inheritance, you needed to meet with your family’s lawyer to review the terms and conditions.

The terms and conditions being a letter that in no uncertain terms said that in order to come into your inheritance, you had to fall in love and be with someone, on the path to marriage.

“We taught you everything but how to love - to give love, to receive love, to be in love - and for that my darling daughter, I am sorry. Should you fall in love with the right man, should you find you want to spend the rest of your lives together, the inheritance will be yours, and I want you to take that money and build a life for yourself and the love of your life. Build a life full of love, the life your mother, brother, and I, failed to give you.”

You scoffed at the note, disbelieving, until your family’s lawyer insisted that the terms were albeit colonial, but legal, and that your father was extremely serious, and well…

The only way you saw any of that being even remotely possible was by going back to Eden, and you originally only did it so you could find someone interesting enough, play the long game to meet the stupid terms of your inheritance, take the money, and never have to speak to your family again.

Even if it meant using your clients in a way they didn’t realize, a way they couldn’t consent to.

You’d faked being a happy daughter and sister for most of your life - you could surely fake being in love, right?

Wrong.

Because when that potential assignment had come your way, you hadn’t expected Andrei.

His name had rung a bell in your head, so you took to Google to do a little research before making any decisions. You’d found out that he was thirty two, recently retired from the National Hockey League due to a career ending injury that had surfaced during his final - and successful - cup run, and hired as the Assistant General Manager for the same team he’d just left earlier that summer. It was a huge undertaking, and it was clear to you that his life had become incredibly busy within the last several months.

Thanks to Eden, you also had access to his background check, which dug a little deeper into his life and revealed to you a little about his life before his career took off. His upbringing was a stark contrast to your own. He had grown up in poverty with his brother and parents, his parents who sacrificed everything so he and his brother could live their dreams, who helped him move to another country so he could be everything he’d ever wanted.

From that moment, you knew he had a heart of gold. Knew that this man, this kind of man, deserved better, deserved a wife and kids and someone with a better direction of life than your own.

But selfishly, you’d also wanted to be the one to give that to him.

So you’d said yes, took him on as your client, and vowed to keep moving forward.

When you arrived at the Premiere Suite that first night, you’d already known he was handsome, knew the sound of his voice from watching a few of his interviews, had practiced what little Russian you knew at the time just in case he felt more comfortable speaking in his native tongue.

What you didn’t know was how disarming he could be from that very first second. How with just one look in your direction, you suddenly felt catapulted into his orbit and tethered to a man you’d semi-known, but had only just met.

It didn’t help that you were the type of person to believe in signs, either.

From the fact that the second you’d looked him up you felt willing to be his companion, to the nerves that had blossomed in your stomach on the elevator ride up, to the way he’d attached you to him with one look, the electricity you felt between you as you passed him and wandered into the suite, and then, to the photograph on the wall.

The one he’d caught you staring at.

The one your late father had taken, that was now hanging up in the Premiere Suite of The Mark Hotel.

It was one of his favorites - a photograph he’d taken of a patch of flowers in bloom in Central Park, a shadow of two people who had just gotten married sharing their first kiss as husband and wife casted onto the grass beside the flower patch.

When you wandered into the living room, it was the first thing that had caught your eye, and you could almost hear your father quoting a line from his favorite poem to you. “Until at last, they enter the same door, and suddenly, they meet.”

Fate.

The word had echoed in your head until Andrei pulled your attention away from the photograph, and then the word sealed itself into a protected cage in your heart.

It couldn’t be possible, could it?

You weren’t sure, especially because the second you started to get to know him, you absolutely knew you would never, under any circumstances, tell him why you were working for Eden, and you would absolutely never, under any circumstances, use him to gain access to your inheritance.

He didn’t deserve it, and you didn’t have the heart to drag him into your mess.

He was so charming and sincere, thoughtful and kind, respectful and generous, and surprised you completely with the roses and the bracelet. When he had asked you what was in this for you, telling him you needed something more was half the truth, and though it felt wrong to give him anything but the whole truth, what choice did you have?

To tell him you’d been in it for money, albeit not his, but then decided not to be in it for money because he what…charmed you immediately?

Yeah, like that was believable.

It wasn’t his fault. He’d given you several opportunities to tell him about it, but you turned them all down because you felt that deciding against going for your inheritance and just choosing to be with him anyway would be enough.

You knew it wouldn’t be, so you kept your mouth shut.

Regardless of whether or not Andrei seemed like the type of person who wouldn’t mind your motives, you knew it was a secret you weren’t going to share, because it would never apply to him.

And it was still one you couldn’t share. Especially not now, not now that you actually had feelings for him.

“You can tell me you know,” Andrei had told you the night you first slept together. “You can tell me anything.”

You smiled, nodded and said “I know,” but beneath the surface, you knew you couldn’t.

There’s a part of you, a part that’s still healing, that hears that, hears it when people say “you can tell me anything” and know that they believe themselves to be telling you the truth.

But deep down, you know that telling them is only half the battle. Because once you do tell them, once the truth is out there, it doesn’t prevent them from lashing out or prevent you from facing the brunt of their emotions. It was a vicious cycle.

You could never control how other people felt or reacted, but you could control the thing that could cause those feelings and reactions.

And that ‘thing’ was you.

So when Andrei said “You can tell me anything,” you knew you wouldn’t be saying a word.

Because how could you? You’d gotten to know Andrei. You’d learned more about him than anyone else outside of his family ever did, he’d said as much to you.

And from the very second he opened that door to the Premiere Suite at the Mark Hotel, you’d been interested in him. He gave you roses, gave you the bracelet you never took off, took you on the kind of first dates he deserved to save for someone better, someone who wasn’t you, a twenty three year old escort who had come back to her escorting job with nefarious intentions, and who definitely had a crush on her client.

He let you into his space - brought you to see what he was like at work, invited you to his bed, his house, let you into his mind, into his life, opened himself to you and all at once, and you just knew.

You were falling in love with Andrei Svechnikov, and it was completely selfish.

You’d given him those drawings, a piece of yourself you’d locked away for so long, wrapping them and gifting them to him like an offering of your heart. Then to seal the deal, you’d given him your name, finally, stupidly thinking that it would maybe drop a hint to him that yeah, you liked him more than he originally assumed, and in turn, he just about broke your heart.

You already said screw it to your inheritance, but you couldn’t allow yourself anything further than…whatever it is you were. He didn’t believe you anyway, when you tried to tell him there wasn’t anything in this for you, no ulterior motives, but what did it matter anymore? How would it ever be worth it to have if you were in love, and had love, but you didn’t have Andrei?

Especially when Andrei never said he wanted love.

He admitted it to you himself - he sought out Eden because he wanted company. He wanted someone to make him feel less lonely, less alone. He had been envious of his friends who moved on with their lives, built themselves a home with a spouse and children and things to look forward to. He wanted someone to warm his bed, to fill in certain gaps in his life, make him feel whole and full on the days he felt particularly empty.

Someone.

Anyone.

Not you.

And even though you didn’t know the whole of it, on that very first day you had promised you could give him company - whatever it looked like. In the process, you indulged yourself in his presence, soaked up every bit of himself he offered you, tucked those bits away in a delicate box and stored it within the safety of your heart.

If it hadn’t been for Joshua, your idiot fucking brother, it might have been a better night.

But he can’t take all the blame.

You haven't been honest. Andrei may have led you on, given you false hope, but maybe it was your fault for believing there had been a chance in the first place. Perhaps, it was what you deserved for lying, for making promises you couldn’t keep, at least, not in the end.

You promised you could give him what he wanted, but that was before you realized that he didn’t want you, not actually you.

He wanted this, what you could give him, but not you.

And now, you weren’t even sure he’d want this anymore, because this, this was bad.

Here you were.

In love with your client.

In love with Andrei.

And there’s no way he could ever feel the same.

The way he told you no one was supposed to know about the circumstances of your relationship stung. In all the time you’d worked for Eden, you’d never been made to feel ashamed of what you did, but in that moment, even if Andrei didn’t mean it, the tiniest bit of shame sparked into your veins and set everything ablaze.

So now, sitting across from your boss’ desk with a shattered heart, you look at Ava, and finally answer her question.

“I’m sure.” You say firmly. “After this weekend, I’m done. I quit.”

April

A month.

Andrei hasn’t seen or heard from you in a month and his heart breaks a little more with each passing day.

Charlotte must have heard from you that things had gone south and told Eli, who probably told Mason and Olly what had happened, because they’d been giving him the same pitiful or sympathetic glances all week.

If any of them sent him another one, he was going to tell their Coach to bench them for the next three games.

He finally reaches his breaking point when Olly gives him a sympathetic pat on the back as he passes him in the hall at their practice facility, and Andrei knows he can’t take another day of it.

The second he gets home, he sends an email to those who need to know that he’ll be taking the upcoming weekend off of work for a family emergency, and logs into Eden, booking the Premiere Suite at the Mark Hotel.

It’s a shot in the dark, but that’s all he’s got.

He texts you immediately after booking the suite, his hands shaking the whole time.

Andrei: I know we agreed to give each other some space, but I just want to talk about what happened. It would mean a lot if you would be there this weekend

He doesn’t get a response from you at all, and heads to Manhattan with a growing pit in his stomach.

It isn’t until he’s waiting in the hotel room for an hour that he starts to worry that you won’t show, but then there’s a knock on the door, and he’s rushing for it, throwing it open and breathing a sigh of relief when he sees it’s you.

Memories hit him like a freight train.

He didn’t think that when he first opened the door to find you standing there that he’d feel so much joy.

Now, anxiety seeps into his veins, and he swallows past a lump in his throat.

“Hi,” he murmurs.

“Hi,” you mutter back, and Andrei steps aside to invite you in. He takes notice as you take off your shoes by the door and then pass him that you’re empty handed, and hopes your bags are with the front desk like normal. His eyes scan over your body, cataloging. You’re wearing black jeans and a thin white sweater, and your bracelet is still on your wrist, so he takes it as a good sign.

Before you make it to the couch, you turn around, retrieving a folded piece of paper from your back pocket and handing it to Andrei.

He raises a brow, hesitant as he takes it. “What is this, almaznyy?”

“Read it,” you instruct, voice quiet, and Andrei frowns, but does as you ask.

When he opens it up, the first line that he sees is “Last Will and Testament,” and his eyes fly to your face. He’s sure the confusion is written all over his face, but you gesture back toward the page, and he frowns, continuing to read.

He doesn’t exactly understand all of the legal terms, but he gets the gist. He gets to the portion of the page that’s handwritten, and his heart beats harder in his chest.

Andrei looks up at you and where you’ve settled on the couch, elbows on your knees and your head resting in your hand as you stare back at him. He’s completely bewildered, and the only thing he can think to ask you is “Is this even legal?”

“Unfortunately.” You say, tone void of any emotion.

He hates it.

You breathe through your nose, still looking uneasy. “I…the reason I didn’t say anything to you about it is because I didn’t want you to look at me differently. Because of my parents and their work as artists, my brother and I grew up in a fairly wealthy household. It was the complete opposite of what you had, Andrei, and I didn't want that to change your perception of me. I didn't want you to think that I'd always been this spoiled brat, because that was never the case. I can't deny the opportunities and privileges that were given to me, but the person I am now, the person that you met and got to know? That's who I've always been.”

Taking a deep breath, you plow forward. “When my dad passed away, he left me that inheritance. He left it, and I thought it would help me be rid of my brother and my mother once and for all.”

“And you…” he recalls how fierce you’d been against your brother, and it starts to make sense - how upset you got, how crestfallen you were that night when Andrei had questioned you about it. “You don’t want it?”

“I’ve never lied to you Andrei, and I’m not going to start now. I did want it, at one point. But that changed in an instant. I knew I didn’t want it anymore and that I wasn’t going to fight for it when I…” you voice trails off, and your eyes trail to the photograph on the wall, the one you stared at when you first met.

“You what?” He presses.

Your mouth closes, and you shake your head. “I don’t want it. Bottom line. I just…I wanted you to know. I wanted to make that clear. That when I told you there wasn’t anything in this for me, that I meant it.”

“I believe you.” He swears, and it’s true. Over the last month, he’s had plenty of time to think about it, and you’d never given him any indication of deception. He felt upset at being left out of the loop, sure, but he never felt like you played him, never felt like you were leading him on.

If anything, you let him take the lead, let him call the shots, and just follow along. You kept your promise and held up your end of the bargain.

“I don’t think you deceived me,” he continues. “I was upset, and confused, but I don’t think you lied, and I’m not angry with you. I promise.”

After a second, all he gets from you is a nod. He waits for a second, waits for you to say something, maybe say more, but instead, you look at him, and stuff your hands in the back pocket of your jeans.

“Then why’d you bring me here, Andrei?” You inquire, your body suddenly going tense.

“I wanted to explain,” he says. “What I told you that night, what I said? It wasn’t completely true.”

You shift your weight, clearly feeling uneasy. “What wasn’t true?”

He sighs, then gathers a deep breath. “I’d been feeling lonely, yes, and I signed up for Eden because I was looking for company, and I figured it would be a good idea. But, I was also ready to call the whole thing off until I opened the door and saw you. When I saw you for the first time, almaznyy,” he says, swallowing past the lump in his throat, “I knew it was going to work.”

“Knew what was going to work?” You ask, voice barely above a whisper.

It hurts, the way you’re trying to make yourself small around him, and he hates it. “This. Us.”

“Us?” You echo.

“Our…” he searches for the right word for a second. “Our arrangement,” is what he comes up with, but the way your face falls tells him that was definitely not the right word to choose.

“This was a mistake,” you whisper eventually, so quietly he almost didn’t hear it at first.

But he does.

The anger stretches across his face, and your mouth drops into a frown. “I’m sorry,” you murmur, and then you’re turning on your heels, every line in your body telling him that you’re about to walk out of his life.

He calls your name, halting you in your tracks on your way to the door. “I ‘m trying to tell you that I want you, can’t you see that?” He exclaims, running his hand through his hair. He’s so frustrated right now he feels like he could pull his hair right out of his skull.

You shake your head, lip trembling as the tears that have been pooling in your eyes finally fall, and it breaks his heart. “No, no you don’t, Andrei. No one wants me.”

“I do!”

“You don’t!” You cry, voice breaking. “You hired me. You hired me to fill a void, and now you’re confusing it for love, but it’s not love, Andrei. What you’re feeling? You just like the way me giving you what you paid for makes you feel.”

It stings.

Hearing it said that way stings so much in his heart he feels like he might crumble, but he persists.

“Maybe I do,” Andrei says with a nod. “Maybe you’re right. But you can’t stand there and tell me that you don’t like the way that I make you feel either.”

Your face crumbles. “You know I do, Andrei. But you don’t feel what I feel, not really.”

“What do you feel, almaznyy?” He all but begs, rushing forward and taking your hands in his.

“I love you, Andrei!” You exclaim, voice cracking. Your breath hiccups, and his heart feels so full in his chest, it’s like he’s drowning in your confession. “I’ve fallen for you. I broke the rules, broke our contract, and I can’t even find it in myself to care because I love you.”

He murmurs your name, and it sounds so soft, so delicate between his lips that he can see the way it nearly makes you crumble, and Andrei doesn’t hesitate to pull you closer. “I love you too, almaznyy. I swear it, I do. God, I’ve felt it since the moment I opened the door and saw you standing there that first night. You didn’t even say anything! I just looked at you and I knew, I knew there wasn’t ever going to be anyone else for me. Ever.”

There’s a moment in your expression where he sees it, the happiness, the relief, but then it’s just replaced with more sadness, and he can feel his heart beginning to deflate, splintering at the seams.

“But you can’t prove that, can you?” You say with a shaky breath.

“It’s real,” he pleads. “It’s real. This? Us? This is all the proof we need, it’s all I have, almaznyy. You’re all I have.”

You shake your head. “You didn’t even know it was going to be me. It could have been anyone.”

“That may be true, but ‘anyone’ isn’t good enough for me, you are.” Andrei insists. “If anyone but you walked through that door, I wouldn’t have gone through with any of it. I wouldn’t have let them in the damn room, let alone give them roses or a bracelet like that. Because they weren’t meant for them, it was meant for you. You and you alone.”

“Andrei,” you murmur, shaking your head again.

He cups your face in his hands, staring right into your eyes. “Eto sud'ba,” He whispers. It’s fate. “Fate. Destiny. Meant to be, almaznyy. That’s us. I would go to the ends of the earth for you. I practically have!”

Your brows furrow. “What do you mean?” You ask, sniffling.

He groans in frustration at himself, but knows he can’t avoid telling you about this, so he lays it all out on the line. “I called Eden. I talked to Ava Price and I all but begged her to let you out of your contract. I didn’t know the reason you went back at the time, so I offered to buy you out of it. Pay whatever amount it was you were trying to save up for so that you wouldn’t have to see any other clients anymore. So I could try to…court you, I guess. Svidaniye.”

Realization crosses your features. “Date me?”

He knew you were fucking taking lessons, you little sneak.

“Yes, date you, almaznyy. I just wanted you to myself. I know it’s selfish, and I know it was wrong. It crossed boundaries, invaded your privacy, and I’m sorry. But I just wanted you so bad. I was falling for you, and I was willing to do anything to have you for myself.”

“You…you spoke to Ava?”

“Da, almaznyy.” He nods, “I called her the morning after our night in Malibu, the second I got back to work. She told me I couldn’t do it, that you had to make the choice yourself.”

“You called her to…try to get her to fire me?”

“I did,” he admits. “I did it and I’m sorry.”

“Andrei, I quit Eden.”

He blinks, stunned into silence and so rocked by the revelation that he takes a small step back, his hands dropping to your arms. “You…what?”

“I quit two days ago. I…I quit because I didn’t want Eden to be the only reason that I was still in your life. I quit because I didn’t think it was me that you needed. I thought it was what Eden could provide. I quit because…because I realized that I love you. That I’m in love with you, and I needed to know for myself that you wanted me for me.”

“I do, malyshka, I do.” He swears, taking your hands again and stepping into your space. “I want you so badly, I could go insane with it.”

“It’s just been you, Andrei,” you say, pushing the words out with a breath of relief. “It’s only been you for me, too.”

He yanks you into him, wrapping his arms around you and kissing you like it’s the last time.

Except he knows it’s not the last time, not now. Not like this.

His heart is pounding so loudly in his ears that it takes him a second to realize you’re murmuring something, words forming against his lips as he kisses you, and he realizes you’re saying “only you” over and over again, speaking the words against his mouth like you’re praying to the heavens.

“I know malyshka, I know,” he says back, pressing the prayer into your lips.

But you shake your head, pushing on his shoulders a bit to put some space between the two of you. You look up at him, shaking your head again. “No Andrei, I mean. It’s only ever been you. You’ve been the only client I’ve had since I got back to Eden.”

He blinks, cock pulsing at your admission, heart going into overdrive. “Me?”

You nod, cupping his face with your hands now. “My one. My only. My last. Moy vozlyublennyy.”

His vision blurs as tears begin to gather in his eyes.

My beloved. You called him my beloved.

He’s gathering you in his arms in a split second, crushing his lips to yours and moaning in relief, practically running his hands all over you, trying to engrave you into his touch, his soul.

Ona moya, he thinks. She’s mine, she’s mine, she’s mine.

Andrei pulls away, looking into your eyes. He figures he probably looks like a fucking crazy person, gazing at you in both awe and disbelief. “Ty moya,” He proclaims aloud. “Ty moya, moya almaznyy.”

You’re mine. You’re mine, my diamond.

You smile up at him, tears making your eyes sparkle. “Da, ya tvoy, Andrei, ya vsegda byl tvoim.”

Yes, I am yours, Andrei, I have always been yours.

He growls, bending to nip at your bottom lip. “You have been taking lessons, moy malen'kiy kotenok,” he accuses, my little kitten, then bends and hauls your legs around his waist, promptly turning around and heading straight for the bedroom.

“Of course I have,” you say, like it’s obvious, and really, it should have been. “I know five languages, Andrei, and it’s part of my job to learn new ones. Russian’s been hard, but it’s been worth it for you.”

He clenches his teeth, trying to restrain himself from hugging you and squeezing you so hard that you’d probably bruise, and he drops you down to the bed. Andrei climbs over you, bending his head, nipping at your neck and going straight for your jeans.

You help him, tearing off your sweater and your bra as he peels your jeans and socks off of you, and he’s about to go straight for your thong and rip it to shred when -

That’s when he sees it.

It’s small, hidden behind the waistline of your thong, but the second he pulls the band down to confirm what he’s seeing, it’s staring him in the face.

A diamond.

It’s no bigger than the size of a quarter, but it’s there. It’s a diamond. You got a tattoo of a diamond.

And suddenly he can’t breathe.

All the air whooshes out of him in a stuttering breath, and his hand hovers over the skin, too shocked to do anything else.

“You can touch it.” He hears you mutter, “It’s healed.”

“How?” The question comes out in a rasp. “When?”

“I got it before the Canes Bash,” you admit. “I planned on showing it to you that night, but then, well, you remember what happened.”

He swallows, fingers gently brushing over the small tattoo, and his body is suddenly caught between wanting to fuck you so hard you can’t walk, making love to you till you can’t speak, or wanting to cry at how loved he feels, just based on the small pattern of ink alone.

He swears to himself when the morning comes, he’s going to get a matching one. He’d never thought he’d get a tattoo, didn’t bother getting one any of the times he won the Cup, and certainly never thought of getting a matching tattoo, but for you? He’d tattoo your name anywhere you wanted if you asked him to, so what did it matter if a diamond blessed his skin?

Too moved to speak, he bends his head, pressing a gentle kiss to the diamond, and then he’s moving to scoot lower on the bed, until you stop him.

He glances up at you, curious, and you’re shaking your head. “None of that,” you say, your voice all breathy. “It’s been a month, Andrei. I need you now.”

“Okay,” he says, coming up for one last kiss. He makes it sweet, whispering your name and a string of praises as he quickly takes off his shirt, then tears off his jeans and boxers. He swipes a finger through your fold and finds you soaked already, so he rubs the head of his cock along your pussy until it’s coated in your arousal, and then he’s sinking in, balls deep and crowding in close.

He withdraws his hips a couple of inches and then pushes back in, watching your face.

You’re watching him too, and you reach up, wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him down, capturing him in a whirlwind of a loving kiss. His eyes flutter shut, eyelashes brushing against your cheek as he tilts his head, slotting his mouth over your so he can slip his tongue inside of your mouth.

You both stay locked like that, making out as Andrei fucks you slow and deep, your legs locked around his waist as you wind your hips to meet each of his thrusts.

“Missed you,” he murmurs against your lips. “Missed you so much.”

“I missed you too,” you reply, one of your hands trailing into the hair at the nape of his neck, “never leaving you again.”

“Damn right you’re not,” he says, nipping at your bottom lip. “I’ll tie you to the bed before I ever let you walk out on me again.”

“Delay chto khochesh',” you say. Do whatever you want.

“You’re going to regret saying that to me,” he swears, punctuating his statement with a deep thrust.

“I won’t,” you swear. “I don’t regret anything about you.”

He can’t have you saying things like that, not when he’s buried inside you and too in love with you for his brain to function properly. He decides all he can do is keep kissing you, keep fucking you, and when your orgasm finally washes over, he follows suit, coming inside of you and whispering “I love you” over and over against your mouth.

“I love you too,” you swear once you’ve both calmed down. “From the very first day.”

“You’re the best decision I ever made, almaznyy.” He says, burying his face in your neck. “I don’t regret a single thing.”

“Neither do I, Andrei. Neither do I.”

ONE YEAR LATER

Andrei glances around the living area of the Premiere Suite.

He didn’t think he’d ever be here again after the last time. Thought when he shut the door behind him, that would be it.

Until tonight.

He’s not as nervous as before, and when he glances around the room, checking that the white roses he bought are in the vase, the champagne is in its ice bucket with two glasses at the ready, he feels comforted by the familiarity.

He doesn’t bother checking his phone, doesn’t bother pacing or fretting. He just waits, scrolling on his phone until there’s three soft knocks on the door.

With a smile, he places his phone on the coffee table and heads toward the door, opening it only for his smile to get wider.

You’re there in a white mini dress and matching white heels, your silver bracelet on your wrist where it belongs, and you’re wearing matching earrings and jewelry on your hand.

“Ty Andrei Svechnikov?” You ask, and his heart flutters.

A loud laugh leaves him, but he nods. “Da, ya Andrei.” Yes, I’m Andrei.

“Ideal'nyy!” you say, a bright smile stretching across your face. “Ya tvoy novyy pomoshchnik.”

Perfect! I’m your new assistant.

His brow furrows playfully as he steps aside, letting you into the suite and shutting the door. “I didn’t realize I was getting a new assistant.”

You turn to him, hair flowing around you as you do. “Well, with your recent marriage, it appears your former assistant was no longer suited to help you with your needs.”

“And that’s where you come in, I assume?” He asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

You nod, turning back toward the living room and grabbing the champagne bottle. As you go about opening it and pouring each of you a glass, you say “Exactly. I’ll be taking care of you going forward.”

When you spin around and hand him his glass, you both toast quickly, clinking your glasses together and taking a sip. “I see, and when do you officially start?”

“The second I walked in the door.” You respond, that cheshire smile of yours he loves so much creeping up your face.

“Oh?” He inquires, openly eyeing you up and down. A flash of excitement crosses your face as you watch him set the champagne down on the table, stalking forward playfully.

You take a step back with a hesitant nod, heading toward the bedroom.

The very place he took you for the first time.

The place he plans to take you for the first time as his wife.

“Idi syuda, zhena,” he orders, crooking his finger to beckon you to him. Come here, wife.

That cheshire smile is the last thing he sees before you’re whipping around and running toward the bedroom, and Andrei can only smile as he chases after you, his beautiful wife, the glittering of his wedding ring shining in the light of the suite as he goes.

#andrei svechnikov #andrei svechnikov x reader #carolina hurricanes #mendeshoney masterlist

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