Dimitri Read Free Page A

been
interviewed one week. Dimitri's private security firm had been
showcased the next week. Using his background in the military and a
windfall from a shrewd investment in timeshares, Dimitri had
founded a small firm that selected and trained bouncers for the
city's hottest nightspots. Some of them also worked security at
places like Ivan's elite mixed-martial arts gym.
    With all the money he had, I often wondered why
the heck he stayed here in this apartment. Even with the
improvements he'd made to the space—the hardwood floors and
gorgeous tiling—it was still an apartment with no backyard and very
little privacy.
    Dimitri finished loading his dishwasher and
joined me in the living room. He tried to pour more wine into my
glass but I put my hand over the cup. "I shouldn't."
    "You should." He gently pushed my
fingers aside and splashed more of the dark, rich wine into my
glass. "It's your second glass. Enjoy it. Relax ."
    It was the relaxing part that
worried me most. Being in his home, sitting at his table and eating
the delicious dinner he'd cooked for me had been more wonderful
than I'd ever imagined. His friendly offer had given me a glimpse
of what I'd craved for so long. I tried to ignore the pang of
longing growing heavier and heavier in my chest. Why can't you see me ?
    Dimitri settled onto the other end of the couch
and turned so he could look at me. With one foot resting on his
knee, he looked so at ease. "Let's talk about the
business."
    I sipped my wine and grimaced at the very idea
of opening that Pandora's Box of fiscal nightmares. "Let's
not."
    "No," he said firmly. "You need to talk about
it. I can see that it's eating you up. I'm terrified you're going
to have a heart attack or stroke from the stress of it all." He
nudged my bare foot with the toe of his boot. "Talk."
    How could I deny him anything?
    With a sigh, I said, "I'm struggling to make
ends meet." Because that wasn't quite the truth and I hated to hide
anything from him, I clarified my statement. "Actually, I'm
basically holding it all together with chewing gum and duct tape.
It's…bad." My gut soured as I admitted, "I haven't drawn a salary
in ten months and I withdrew from classes last week because I can't
afford to keep going right now. I wanted to finish my degree but
it's not feasible at the moment."
    Dimitri let out a shocked sound. "Ten months,
Benny? How the hell are you surviving?"
    "I had some money left over from Mom and Dad's
life insurance payout. It's running low so I've got to make some
drastic cuts to my home budget."
    "Why didn't you tell me? I would have loaned
you money!"
    I squirmed uncomfortably. "I don't want your
money, Dimitri. That would make things weird. No money between
friends, right?"
    His pale blue eyes seemed to darken. I could
tell he wanted to say something but he bit his tongue. Instead, he
asked, "Can you recover?"
    I nodded. "It will be painful, but
yes."
    "How?"
    I ran my finger over the rim of the wine glass.
"I'm going to sell the house."
    He went rigid. "Your home? But where will you
live?"
    "I'm not sure. I'll probably try to get an
apartment closer to here." Trying to make myself feel better about
losing the house I'd grown up in, I said, "Johnny and I don’t need
that much space. We're never there so we don’t get to enjoy the big
yard or the pool. The market is really hot in our neighborhood. We
own the house outright so I hope we can get enough from the sale to
clear the business debts."
    Dimitri downed the rest of his wine and set
aside his glass. "You should move in here."
    At first I didn't understand him. The wine made
my thoughts a little fuzzy. Then it hit me. "You're moving out?
When?" My voice climbed higher and higher as I spoke but I had to
know. "Why?"
    He peered at me so intently the fine hairs on
my arms and the back of my neck stood on edge. "It's time. This
place was always supposed to be a transition for me but I got
comfortable here."
    "Isn't that a good thing?" I couldn’t