Between two kops

Chapter eighteen

Christina

I pulled notebook, history textbook, a few blank sheets of paper, and two pens out of the bottom drawer, laying them out one by one on my wooden desk. My back was turned to Steven the whole time, but somehow I could clearly feel his warm gaze beneath my skin. I had no idea whether it was just classic me, making up stupid scenarios in my head, or if he was genuinely checking me out without shame with those devious dark eyes of his. And honestly... I didn't have an ounce of courage to turn around and check.

Instead of feeling relaxed and free in my own room, I was tense because of a guy who was sitting completely at ease behind me on my own bed. Am I really such a coward, f**k? Yes, Christina, you're a huge coward... a ruthless inner voice instantly cut through my head. I'm literally acting like some immature little girl who's seeing a guy for the first time! Steven only came over so we could finish that history project and get this obligation out of the way.

Christina, pull yourself together already and turn around to face him! Don't be such a freak, the guy's gonna think I'm crazy!

And realistically, I probably am... sitting here having a full blown dialogue with myself while he silently watches me from behind.

I closed my eyes and tried with all my might to summon at least a bit of courage inside. Three... two... one... I finally turned around toward him, and his gaze was still completely focused on me. He's actually staring at me shamelessly... I wasn't wrong in my assessment after all.

His face was totally beat up. A split lip, a few blue bruises across his arms, and a scraped knee sticking out beneath his designer cargo shorts. He looked like he'd survived a war last night. I can only imagine what that crazy head of his was up to after the Derby... drinking till dawn, brawling, picking up a chick at the end as a main ritual. I knew his type to a tee.

"Shall we... um, get started?" I asked quietly, desperately trying to shake off that stupid nervousness in my head.

"Yeah..." he got up slowly from the bed and walked over to the desk.

I opened the textbook to the assigned topic and placed it right smack in the middle of the desk so both of us could follow the text and images from that era without a problem.

He sat right beside me on the metal chair I'd brought up earlier from the kitchen, making himself comfortable on its soft black cushion that my dear mom paid an arm and a leg for in Italy, supposedly designed by some famous artist from Rome. His eyes briefly flicked over the blank sheets and the textbook, while I pulled the first paper toward myself and slowly wrote out the title of the lesson we were supposed to cover together. The Battle of Mišar.

The Battle of Mišar was fought between the Serbian Rebel Army under the command of Karađorđe and the Ottoman Turkish Army in Mišar near Šabac from August 13 to August 15, 1806. This battle was...

Ugh, s**t! The damn pen stopped working right at the moment I needed it most... I shook it in the air a couple of times and tried writing on the paper again, but there was definitely no ink left in it.

My gaze drifted toward Steven once more, this time a bit anxiously and confused. The guy was staring dead straight at me with unbelievable persistence, not shifting his eyes by even a millimeter.

"Um... Why are you looking at me like that? Do I have something in my hair?"

Without waiting for his answer at all, I immediately ran my fingers through my hair and followed my eyes along the desk to see if anything fell out. At that, he just gave a subtle, barely noticeable smirk with the corner of his lips and slowly shook his head. Then why the hell are you staring at me so persistently?!

I had no idea anymore whether I was getting more annoyed in this room or actually secretly enjoying that rare attention he'd been giving me ever since he set foot inside. I'm annoyed, of course, but deep in my gut, there's a strange, pleasurable feeling from the way he watches me with those piercing, dark eyes.

I had tons of questions lined up in my head right now... What happened to his face last night? Why has he hated me so much since day one? Why does it constantly bug him that I come from a wealthy family? And yet, despite all of that, he keeps casting glances at me. Like right now in my room, and every single day in school during class. Sometimes I just pretend not to notice, even though I feel his warm gaze every single time.

"Nah, nah... Trust me, your hair's top tier," he said quietly.

"Oh, am I hearing this right, f**k?" I fired back ironically on the spot, leaning back slightly in my chair.

"What?" he raised an eyebrow, confused, while a subtle smirk played on his split lip.

"Are you actually giving me a compliment, Mr. Grumpy?"

"Ha, hilarious, princess... Look, the whole room is shaking from your jokes!"

"Hey, don't make me smack you right now!" I said jokingly, raising my hand in the air as a threat. Just to show him how serious I was.

I'd smack him good with these sharp, manicured nails of mine, so his other cheek would be covered in scars too... Though, to be completely honest, my scratches would look way better on that beat up face of his than those current bruises from other people's fists he took from somewhere last night, and plenty of them at that. Realistically. I know, I'm crazy, you don't have to tell me.

"Oho, what kind of threats are these now?" Steven asked, tilting his head toward me in a provocative way.

"You better not find out, grumpy..." I shot back, looking him straight in those dark eyes.

In that moment, our elbows gently brushed on the table as he tried to subtly and slowly slide closer to me. At first, I thought the guy was straight up trying to make out with me right there at the desk, and total chaos erupted in my head, fuck... I had no idea what to do. Should I reject him immediately because of Nick and everything else, or just let him?!

I'd be lying to myself if I said I didn't want to feel those lips of his on my skin...

And then... Instead of ending up on mine, his lips drifted right past my long strands of hair and stopped right next to my ear, practically touching me.

His warm breath brushed directly against my bare neck, sending goosebumps through me for the millionth time. My heart rate accelerated, and those childish butterflies in my stomach, I felt them all over again just like I used to.

"And what if I... actually want to see that aggressive side of yours..."

"Oh, really..." I barely got out, my voice trembling more than I cared to admit.

"Yeah..."

I tried frantically to spit out something coherent, but my tongue tied itself into a thick knot the second Steven's warm fingers gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. That single gesture gave him an unobstructed view of my entire cheek and neck.

Why the f**k are you blushing now, Christina?! Pull yourself together, woman! I screamed at myself in my head as heat burned across my face.

Our eyes remained locked, pinned to each other. I sat completely frozen in the chair, losing all control and literally letting Steven do whatever he wanted with me in that moment. I forgot about the Battle of Mišar, and the project we met up for. There was only him with his beat up face and me, flustered before him with my dirty thoughts.

He leaned in another millimeter closer. Close enough for me to catch the heavy smell of tobacco mixed with some unfamiliar cologne that struggled to surface through the dominating scent of smoke on his body.

His gaze slowly drifted down from my eyes. To my lips. I did the same, eyes, lips, eyes again, on repeat...

Just like that, he stared at them with such desire that I could almost physically feel the pulse between my legs vibrating from pure nerves and lust for him. He got so close our lips were practically touching, just a few millimeters separating us from a fresh sin against Nick. And that completely broke me.

I felt the slight crack on his lower lip, its dryness and warmth just millimeters from mine. One thing was certain. The blood was boiling inside our uncertain bodies.

My eyes shut automatically, ready for our lips to finally meet and end all our doubt. Ready to forget who I was and where I was.

But... nothing. Dammit. He stopped right there. Just like that.

I snapped my eyes open faster than I meant to. Stefan hadn't kissed my lips. He had pulled back just a couple of centimeters, staring straight into my pupils with that devilish look. Is he playing with me?

"You scared, princess?" he whispered barely audibly. His voice was so raspy and heavy it sent a shiver straight down my spine.

"Me? Never. I'm not scared of you, Steven," I said softly, trying to sound bold, but coming off as anything but convincing...

"You're lying... you lie so well..."

And before I could shoot back a defense, his lean, strong hand slid from my hair down to the back of my neck, gripping me gently but firmly. This time there was no waiting, no games.

He pulled me in and finally pressed his hot lips to mine. f**k. We kissed!

Time seemed to freeze between us. It was just him, me, and our first kiss. I caught the faint metallic taste on his split lower lip, but I didn't care at all. My hands moved on their own, completely bypassing my brain, wrapping around his neck to pull him even closer.

When his tongue brushed against my lip, I let out a strange half sigh that clearly only fired him up more. The kiss deepened, becoming more passionate and aggressive, as if we'd been waiting for months for this one f*****g moment to admit everything we were hiding inside.

I didn't even notice when he got up from the chair. Before I could do anything else, his hands slid from my waist straight down, cupping my bare thighs beneath my shorts. Without warning, he easily lifted me off the chair like I weighed nothing and carried me two short steps onto the bed behind us.

He glanced at me briefly with dark, hazy eyes that held no room for jokes anymore, then laid me down cold bloodedly in the middle of the bed.

His right hand left the mattress and slowly tracked up my bare leg. He started trailing soft kisses along the same path, starting down at my calf, creeping up millimeter by millimeter with his lips. I threw my head back and closed my eyes, completely surrendering to this unexpected passion that had totally taken over and freed me from all my fears.

His lips moved over my knee, up to my trembling thighs, until he hit the edge of my short shorts. Right there, he paused once more, raised his head, and looked me dead in the eyes.

"You sure you want this, princess?"

"Yeah..." I nodded without a single thought about the consequences, Nick, or anyone else. Just don't f*****g stop.

He smirked with satisfaction and continued kissing my toned stomach, his tongue circling my belly button while his fingers readied to pull off my shorts.

He was so skilled and gentle with every move, like he did this and practiced it every single day.

His rough fingers slipped under the cotton fabric of my shorts until they met the firm waistband of my panties. And right when he was about to dive beneath them... my bedroom door flew wide open at full speed, without even a knock.

Shit! How is it possible that for the first time in my life, someone walks into my room without knocking?! Like there's no damn respect for privacy in this giant house!

In total shock, I snapped my head up and caught my dear mother standing on the threshold, frozen solid by the scene in front of her. Horrified, with unprecedented disgust and fury in her eyes, she watched as Steven and I scrambled off the bed at lightning speed, frantically adjusting our clothes...

"What on earth is going on here, Christina?!" Mom shouted, her voice strict and trembling with shock as she stared at the two of us standing in front of the bed.

"Mom... It's really not what it looks like, I swear!" I leaped to our defense first, my heart hammering violently in my chest. Dad is literally going to kill me if he finds out about this...

"Steven, I think it's more than time for you to leave this house immediately," Mom said coldly, stepping aside from the doorway, but keeping her furious gaze locked on his beat up face.

"Yeah... It's late anyway. Goodbye," Steven said briefly and darted out of my room without another word, casting just one final glance back at me right as he exited.

The second the front door slammed downstairs, Mom stepped into the room and literally got right in my face.

"Christina, my child?! What did I tell you about this boy?!"

"We were just working on a history project, Mom! The teacher paired us up!"

"Oh, I see... Working in bed, very nice and intimate!" Mom cut me down, dripping with sarcasm.

"Nothing actually happened..."

"I've told you a hundred times already that I don't want to see you in the company of that boy! He's dangerous for you, I made that crystal clear to you!"

"Mom... You can't dictate who I get to hang out with! That's strictly my f*****g business!"

"Oh, yes! I damn well can and I will! Look at yourself, what do you look like?! What are you doing to yourself, Christina?! What if I hadn't burst into the room, huh?! Would you have slept with him on this bed without using a single grain of sense?!"

"We just kissed, f**k!" spilled out of my mouth before I could catch myself.

"I don't care at all! I don't want to see him anywhere near this house ever again! Do you even know who he is?! Besides, here... Look at his police record, and see for yourself what kind of thug you brought into our home!"

With a furious flick of her wrist, she hurled a printed sheet of paper directly onto my bed and stormed out of the room without a word, slamming the door so hard behind her that the windows rattled.

I stood rooted to the spot, staring at that large piece of paper lying conspicuously on the bed. Did she seriously go poking around in his personal life through her connections just like that?! I f*****g hate her! Where does she get the damn right to do something like that... Ugh!

She doesn't even know him, and she already has a terrible opinion of him. She's just like Nick arrogant and obnoxious.

I sat down furiously on the bed, right beside that printed paper, and listlessly glanced at it once more. Should I even peek inside? It wasn't fair to Steven at all to snoop into his past behind his back, yet... some inexplicable, powerful force was pulling me to see what exactly was hidden on those official documents from the Ministry of Interior.

I sighed, picked up the paper, and cast a quick glance at the text. But what was written on those pages... literally threw me off completely.

He had been brought in multiple times for participating in mass brawls, inflicting severe bodily harm, and that much, let's say, I could have guessed. He's a fan, after all... They do that all the time around town, and besides, my Nick pulls similar s**t because he's bored and doesn't know what else to do with his money and his life.

But petty burglaries of summer houses and heavy, open clashes with law enforcement... Now that, honestly, I hadn't expected from him in my wildest dreams. Steven actually had a real, serious criminal record that could easily land him directly in prison for several years if he kept making the same mistakes on the street.

Okay, that's enough, Christina... I said aloud to myself in the empty room. Stefan must never find out that I even looked at this record; this really isn't fair to him at all. No matter how bad or dark a past he had behind him, it didn't automatically mean he was still that exact same guy.

Or at least deep inside, with all my heart, I hoped he had changed... Even though it had only been a short time since all of that.

Decisively, I got up from the bed, gripped that paper tightly in my fist, and headed down the wide staircase, searching for Mom throughout the whole house. I wasn't going to let her break me and blackmail me over a piece of paper from Steven's past under any circumstances! She wasn't going to win this game against me so easily. She forgets that I'm her own daughter, the daughter of a top tier lawyer. I have an ace up my sleeve for this game of hers, too.

I found her in the living room. She was sitting all alone on the leather sofa, listlessly watching some show on tv. I stepped directly in front of the screen, blocking her view, and right before her eyes, demonstratively tore that same paper into a hundred tiny pieces, letting them fall onto the carpet.

"I hope you finally realize what kind of scum you're dealing with now, Christina, sweetheart..." Mom said calmly, but with that cold, haughty attitude in her voice.

"He's not scum at all, Mom! And don't you ever call him that again! I don't give a damn about your papers or your opinion!"

"Christina, I've told you once and I won't repeat myself!" she snapped, her eyes narrowing guardedly.

"If you keep hanging out with him, I swear to God, I will ruin his life completely! And you will be the sole cause of his hell. I will do literally everything to make every single upcoming day bitter for him if you keep being this stubborn!"

"You're disgusting, Mom... You're so disgusting..." I fired straight into her face with pure contempt. I hate her!

"One day you'll thank me for everything I'm doing for your own good! Break off all contact with that boy immediately and go make up with Nick properly!" she yelled after me as I turned and headed back upstairs to my room.

Yeah, right, Mom... You're not marrying me off to Nick, that plan you and Dad cooked up without my own input isn't going to work. It doesn't go like that.

I closed the door behind me and immediately threw myself onto the bed where I had been lying with Steven just moments ago, covering my head with a pillow. I hate this life! I hate it!