prompt: "Sleepy prompts: Darklina + 40: 'I'm gonna carry you to bed if you keep arguing with me about not needing sleep.'" —vesperass-anuna (on tumblr)

rating: T

genre: modern/non-magical au, business au, boss & employee, fluff

summary:"Someone has to take care of you. Since neither you nor your boyfriend appear to be willing, the job falls to me." In which Aleksander insists that his beleaguered assistant get some much needed rest.

a/n: as always, fixing the russian surnames in modern au's.

INVOLUNTARY

Alina hadn't meant to fall asleep. No, actually she did. She hadn't meant to sleep through the alarm she set on her phone. Lately there weren't enough hours in the day between doing her job and helping Mal do his.

"This presentation could lead to a big promotion, Alina. That'll change everything for us."

Us. She should be glad that he's finally talking about their future, and she was. They'd been stuck in a holding pattern for years, the corporate climb always taking precedence. Right now, though, she'd be grateful to catch more than an hour or two of sleep at night. In few days, they'd be in the same timezone again—the six hour difference was not helping.

Until then, she'd just have to catch a power nap when she could.

"Miss Starkova."

That familiar baritone pulled her out of a dream where she was lounging on a white sand beach, and she wanted to groan. A furious blush followed in the next second when she remembered where she was: the small study in her boss's hotel suite.

"Mr. Morozov!" she exclaimed as she sat bolt upright. "I'm sorry. I was just—" She shuffled through the papers on the desk, cheeks burning brighter at the bit of drool on the quarterly financial report. Great.

Aleksander Morozov, CEO and president of Ravka Enterprises, leaned against the door jamb, arms crossed. She'd seen him out of his usual three-piece suits before, but somehow the dark grey slacks and black button-down, collar undone, sleeves rolled to his elbows, seemed more intimate. A sight reserved for a date rather than his harried assistant.

His expression was unreadable as he cocked his head. "You were just...what?"

Alina bit back a frustrated sigh. If she'd woken with the alarm, he wouldn't have caught her literally snoozing on the job. She would have been done with the reports, caught up on emails, and updated his schedule before he returned from drinks with—who was it, again? She ran a hand over her face.

She had at least another hour of work ahead of her, two more like, and Mal would be calling any minute. She could laugh, but she'd probably cry instead.

"I can take this to my room." She stood, gathering the files and printouts. "I'll have tomorrow's schedule in your inbox before you wake up, and—" She cut off at the soft press of his hand over hers.

He was behind her, so near she could feel the heat radiating from him. She resisted the urge to inhale the subtle mix of cologne and bourbon. God, she needed sleep.

"What's wrong?" He moved his hand to her shoulder, encouraged her to turn toward him.

She shook her head and tried to smile up at him. "I'm fine. Just tired is all."

He frowned, searching her face with those dark, lancing eyes. "Yes," he said. "I've noticed. You've been tired this entire trip. Why?"

Alina grimaced. Apparently she hadn't been keeping up appearances as well as she thought. "It's nothing." At his flat look, she admitted, "Mal has an important presentation coming up, and I've been helping him at night. It won't happen again." Sleeping at work, she meant. Of course she'd help Mal.

A good girlfriend was available whenever she was needed. A good girlfriend wasn't resentful. And a good girlfriend's stomach didn't flutter when her older, unfairly handsome employer stood close enough that she had to crane her neck to keep her gaze on his.

"Ah, Malyen." Aleksander said his name with what almost sounded like a note of derision. "And he can't manage this presentation without you?"

The question sent a spike of indignation through her. Worse, though, it pricked too close to her own three a.m. thoughts. "Of course he can."

"Good." The corner of Aleksander's mouth curved up a hair. "Then you can get some rest." He nodded toward the paperwork and laptop. "That can wait."

"Really, I'm fine." Her body betrayed her in that moment by yawning.

He raised his brow as if daring her to keep arguing.

She was pretty sure her cheeks were permanently red now. "Right." Her hand unconsciously reached for the pile of work, and she stopped herself. It felt strange leaving all of that undone. "I'll just head downstairs."

Her phone buzzed as she picked it up from the desk, and he plucked it out of her hands with a stern look. His expression soured further when he looked at the screen. She squeaked out an objection when he accepted the call, bringing the phone to his ear.

"Mr. Oretsev." He held up a finger as Alina opened her mouth again. "I'm afraid Miss Starkova is unavailable for the rest of the night. I need her to be at her best for tomorrow's meetings, and that means several hours of uninterrupted sleep."

Alina glared at him as he listened to Mal's reply. She set her jaw against another yawn, determined not to prove Aleksander right.

"Yes, I'm aware," he said coolly. "However, since I am the one paying her salary, I must insist that she is well rested and sharp when she is on the clock."

Mal's voice grew louder on the other end of the line, and though she couldn't make out the words, Alina could guess what was being said. Mal didn't like her boss, thought the man was too arrogant, too entitled—particularly of Alina's time. In her less charitable moments, she felt it was rather like the pot calling the kettle black.

Aleksander seemed unfazed by the tirade he was receiving, only hummed as if in agreement. "Then as her boyfriend, I assume you are even more invested in her well-being than her employer."

Alina rolled her eyes. She was going to get an earful from Mal about this later.

"Oh, and Mr. Oretsev," Aleksander said, " a word of caution. You may not work for me, but you'd do well to remember that Keramzin Capital is one of my subsidiaries." He ended the call without waiting for a response.

And now there was yet another fire for Alina to put out before she could catch any shut-eye. "Thanks for that." She glowered at him, holding out her hand expectantly.

He kept his eyes on hers as he slipped her phone into his pocket.

"You can't just take my phone!"

"Someone has to take care of you," he said. "Since neither you nor your boyfriend"—there was no mistaking the derision in his tone this time—"appear to be willing, the job falls to me."

She opened her mouth to balk, but it turned into another jaw-cracking yawn. She hated the vindication that flashed across his features. "Fine. I'm going." She tried to inch around him, but he wouldn't budge.

He held her gaze for a beat, and her exasperation gave way to a different kind of warmth. Embarrassingly, she swayed on her feet, the combination of acute exhaustion, whatever this odd moment was, and the impending drama with Mal entirely too much.

Aleksander grabbed her wrist and her heart leapt into her throat as he lifted her over his shoulder.

"What are you doing!?" she gasped.

"Putting you to bed."

She was mortified at the idea of being carried through the hotel corridors like a misbehaving child, but her breath caught when, a minute later, he dropped her onto a plush king-sized bed—his bed. She tried to sit up, but he pushed her gently back down into the pillows.

"This is where you belong," he said, and she was certain her fatigue-addled imagination was conjuring up an implication that wasn't there. "For the next eight hours, at least."

"But where will you sleep?" she asked around yet another yawn. The bed really was luxuriant. Her eyelids started drooping against her will.

He gave her one of his rare grins as he moved to the foot of the bed. "There's a sofa bed in the other room." He slipped off one of her shoes, then the other, fingers grazing across each ankle, sliding down each foot.

Or was that another figment of her crumbling consciousness?

He helped her get under the feather comforter, and she was glad that she'd chosen business casual as her attire today. Because there was no way she was getting up again.

"Rest as long as you need," he murmured with a tender expression that made her chest tight.

"But the meeting with—"

"I'm perfectly capable of handling things on my own," he said over her. She couldn't help but hear a throwback to his earlier disdainful question about Mal's capabilities. "Now, sleep. That's an order."

Her eyes were more than happy to obey even as she scoffed lightly. "Not on the clock anymore."

He breathed a quiet laugh. "And you won't be until I say so."

She heard him pad toward the doorway, and suddenly, she couldn't let him leave without recognizing his uncharacteristic kindness. "Thank you, Mr. Morozov." Because he was right; she desperately needed this.

He didn't respond, and she looked up, thinking he'd already left. He was still there, though, standing at the threshold, hand hovering over the light switch. He glanced back at her over his shoulder.

"Call me Sasha," he said, barely more than a whisper. He flicked off the light. "Goodnight, Alina."

Blessedly sleep overtook her before she could ruminate on his peculiar behavior.

~FIN~

a/n: thank you so much for reading. reviews are better than chocolate!