A/N: Yaaaay for fast updates!

All of you are fantastic, I am blown away with the response I got for last chapter :) Thank you!

Dimitri. and. Roza. 4E, you're amazing. You edited this chapter with Strigoi speed. You're my Beta Queen! Thank you so much.

Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns Vampire Academy. I just own this military academy plot :)

Chapter rated M for strong language and explicit scenes.

DPOV:

I was thirty minutes early for practice. I couldn't deny it anymore…I was so excited to see her. I paused before walking through the doors, hating the spike of nervousness that shot throughout my body. What did I have to be anxious about?

Roza.

God, I was in love with that woman. I lost all control when I was around her. But it was so worth losing my moral sense of right and wrong.

I checked the two cups of hot cocoa in my hand. Lids were in place, so no spills. And Roza's was overloaded with mini marshmallows. I chuckled, recalling the discussion we'd had the first time I'd brought her hot chocolate.

"Disgusting," Rose's nose scrunched up. She brought the tip of the paper cup to her lips, blew on the steam, and took a small sip. "This is awful. Absolutely awful."

I disdainfully rolled my eyes and took a swig of my own hot chocolate. "It's early, Rose. Don't start."

"How does that not burn your mouth?" She motioned towards the cup nuzzled between my palms. "My tongue is scorching. It feels like a thousand tiny ice skaters are sliding across my tongue with little fiery skates."

I chuckled. "You have to be the strangest person I've ever met."

A happy smile twisted her mouth, as if she was touched. "Thanks. Now, answer my question."

"What question?"

"How does that hot cocoa not burn your mouth?"

"It does, a little. But, unlike you, I don't run my mouth and bitch about it." I smiled dryly.

Rose glared and flipped me off.

"You know, in some countries, they'll cut your finger off if you do that." I crushed the empty cup and tossed it in the trash can.

"From that pissed off look on your face, I'd say you're thinking about pulling out a Swiss army knife and chopping my middle finger off."

"I'm tempted." I said. "By the way, I wouldn't use a Swiss army knife. A hunting knife would do the job just fine. It'd be a lot less…messy."

Her large eyes got bigger.

"Go do your laps." I instructed.

"Fine," Rose set the paper cup, which was still full, on the ground. "Next time," she pointed to it, "I want two packets of cocoa and tons of mini marshmallows—or else I won't drink it."

Bringing her hot cocoa everyday wasn't much. But it was my small way of showing her that I cared for her.

I opened the doors and frowned. Roza wasn't there. But Tasha was.

"Hey, baby. I missed you. How was your day?" She walked up to give me a kiss.

I cleared my throat harshly and took a step back before her mouth made contact with mine.

"We need to talk,"

Her forehead creased in confusion. "Okay. Whatcha' want to talk about?"

I ran a hand threw my hair and blew out a shaky breath. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

I needed to hurry this talk up. Roza was coming soon. I didn't want her walking in and assuming something was going on between Tasha and me. I hated lying to Roza, but this situation called for it. Truth was: Tasha and I did have a tiny thing.

How was I supposed to break that to Rose though?

I have deep feelings for you, but I used another woman for sex. Oh, and one more thing…the reason I had sex with her is because I'm trying to keep myself and body away from you.

I don't think so.

Besides, Rose was already extremely jealous of Tasha. There was no need to put more gasoline on that roaring fire.

"I'm sorry for what happened between us the other night."

"Don't be," she smiled. "It was all I could ever want. It was wonderful. It was…"

"Never supposed to happen." I finished her sentence.

Tasha's jaw clenched, her ice-blue eyes became hard. "Never supposed to happen?" she laughed bitterly. "Care to elaborate, Dimitri?"

I sighed and massaged my temples. "It's just…I, uh..."

"Stop mumbling and spit it out already," she snapped. "I am a grown woman. I can handle rejection."

"I don't feel the same way you feel about me," I said. "What happened between us the other night should have never happened. It was a mistake. And I'm sorry that I led you to believe there was something more between us."

Tasha's eyes glossed over, her chin trembled. My chest constricted. I hated seeing her hurt, especially if I was the one to hurt her. But she needed to know the truth.

"Listen, Tash, I care about you…I really do," I gently rubbed a stray tear off her cheek. "But the only thing I feel for you is friendship. Nothing else. I'm sorry."

"Do you fuck all of your friends? Huh?" Tasha mocked. I flinched. "Give it to them good and hard like you gave it to me the other night? You seemed to have enjoyed yourself immensely….And I'm pretty sure our "friendship" was the last thing on your mind."

"That was different." I said menacingly. I was done being careful and nice with her.

"How so?" she demanded.

"I only used you for sex. That's it." I said. "I needed physical relieving…and you were all too willing to relieve my needs."

Anguish contorted her features and I immediately wished I could take back my hurtful words.

Tasha pulled her hand back and hit me hard across the cheek. My skin stung from where her palm had made contact.

I gritted my teeth and tried to keep my anger under control.

When her fist clenched and she swung for my face, I grabbed her wrist and held it.

"Ouch, Dimitri, you're hurting me." Tasha pulled on her arm. "Please let go."

I dropped her arm. "Get the fuck out of here. I don't want to see you ever again."

"Fine!" she stomped to the door. "I don't ever want to talk to you again."

"Fine by me," I casually took a sip of my hot cocoa. "And I don't want to hear of you calling my mother again. Do you understand? If I do, I will find you, and I will make sure that you'll never want to speak to her again."

"I hate you." Those words were spoken with such venom and hatred that it took my breath away. "I hope I get kidnapped and killed by that maniac. That will make your life a lot easier for you, wouldn't it? Don't worry, Dimka. I am no longer a problem of yours."

The doors swayed shut behind her.

I scoffed remembering her calling herself a "grown woman." Rose acted more mature than Tasha does sometimes.

"What have I just done?" I rested my head against the wall and closed my eyes.

I'd known Tasha my whole life. We'd been great friends up until four years ago when I decided to give our romantic relationship a chance. Things had gone smoothly at first, but after a year into the relationship, is when things started taking a turn for the worse.

My feelings for her hadn't gotten any stronger or more intense over time. It still felt like she was just a friend. And at times, it was awkward for me when we were sexually involved. I could tell she was deeply in love with me, and with her constant "I love you's" and me never returning those three words because I knew I didn't mean them, I knew I had let our relationship go too far.

The day I told her it was over; was the day Tasha told me that I couldn't leave her because we had conceived. I was hesitant to believe her at first, considering we always used protection, but after some more convincing, I bought her story. I became a great partner to Tasha. I proposed to her, bought us a home, insisted that she stopped working, and provided for my family.

But then I started to notice a pattern. She wasn't gaining any weight. Her stomach wasn't growing. She never allowed me to go with her to the doctor's appointments. Looking back now, I realize how stupid I'd been to believe anything that came out of her mouth.

Whether it was a boy or a girl, we were going to name our baby Emerson. Tasha loved that name, and I was all too eager to please my fiancé back then. The name Emerson now brought a bitter taste to my mouth.

It was all a lie. Everything we had was a lie.

I shook my head to clear all the bad memories and took a deep breath.

I was deeply upset that I had hurt Tasha so badly tonight. I knew I had broken her heart. But I told her the truth. And there was no taking my words back now. I was relieved. I'd set my ex fiancé straight. I'd done everything that needed to be done. Now it was time for practice with Roza.

I glanced at my watch and realized she was fifteen minutes late for practice.

I growled and paced back and forth, waiting for her to show up. I finished off my hot cocoa, did my warm-up stretches, and set up the sparring mats before checking my watch again.

Rose was thirty minutes late. Something was wrong. I slammed the gym doors open and went searching for her.

RPOV:

When Adrian told me that Dimitri had sex with Tasha, I didn't believe him.

Right before my daring escape, I had accused Dimitri of having hardcore sex with Tasha right after I'd caught him in his destroyed apartment with her. But Dimitri had explained to me a few days ago, at practice, that they just had a pretty nasty argument. He claimed there was nothing going on between him and Tasha.

Right now…I didn't know who to believe.

My gut was telling me to hear Adrian out, so I did.

"How would you know? Did Dimitri tell you they did it?" The painful lump in my throat formed. I bit my lip to stop my chin from trembling.

"No," Adrian said gravely. "But while I was out and about, smoking my cigarettes, I saw Tasha sneaking out of Dimitri's apartment early yesterday morning. She looked pretty darn smug, too."

"Maybe they were just having a talk." I said. "I really don't think Tasha and him are a couple. Dimitri would have told me."

"You're in serious denial, Little Cadet," Adrian sat down on his leather couch, I joined him. "Oh, and I don't think him and Tasha were just "having a talk". That girl looked too damn happy. Her hair was a mess, clothes wrinkled, makeup smudged. Tasha just looked plain…dirty. She had definitely had some serious naughty time with someone in his apartment."

"Her hair was messy?" My throat constricted.

"Yep."

"No," I shook my head and roughly wiped a tear away. "Dimitri wouldn't do that. He's not like that."

"Aw, Little Cadet. Your view of the cradle robber is demented," he paused and ran a hand through his hair. "He's not the perfect man you have painted in your head. You practically worship him, so you are unable to see his faults. He makes mistakes. He's human. You just need to see past that fascination you have for him"

"You make me sound obsessed," I sniffled.

"Ah, but you are," he lit a cigarette and offered me one.

"No, thanks," I grabbed a tissue and dabbed my eyes.

"You are obsessed with Dimitri in the same way I am obsessed with Angelina Jolie," He paused, then added, "or myself."

I laughed, despite the fact that I was bawling my eyes out. It kind of hurt my throat.

"Why did you tell me this?" I asked.

He shrugged and took a drag. "Because I care about you."

"If you care about me, then you wouldn't have told me all this."

"I…What?"

"Because, by telling me this, you knew it would hurt me." I laid my head on his shoulder. "I wish you wouldn't have told me. My heart can't take any more pain."

"Would you rather me have not told you?" he countered. "Then when you did find out, you'd feel betrayed and hurt by me. I couldn't have that."

"How do you know that I would have found out?" I asked. "If you hadn't told me about Dimitri and Tasha, then I would have been left in the dark. Ignorance is bliss."

"You would have found out eventually," Adrian said. "Believe me, the truth always comes out—whether you want it to or not."

"I want to bite Dimitri's head off right now!" I growled.

It always went this way with me when I dealt with situations I couldn't handle. First came sadness, then anger, then sadness again.

I was currently in stage two.

Adrian smirked. "Which head?"

"Both!"

"Ouch," he grabbed his crotch area protectively.

"How could he do this to me?" I sighed tiredly. "And Tasha of all people? That bitch is crazy. I've read her files."

"She's hot," Adrian shrugged. "That's probably all he was thinking about when they…you know. We men are visual creatures."

"Men are pigs."

"Say what you must," he pulled me closer into his chest. I inhaled the familiar scent of cloves and musky cologne as I gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly. "But I would never deceive you in the way Dimitri did. If you were my girl, I'd shower you with love and loyalty. On our first date, I'd take you to the moon, and let you have the world."

I rolled my eyes and smacked his arm. "You're so corny."

"It's the truth," I heard the smile in his voice. "And yes, I am corny. But you love me just the way I am."

"Yes, I do." I tilted my head ever so slightly to gaze at his emerald green eyes.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"For what?"

"For being honest with me," I said. "For always being there for me."

Without breaking eye contact, I tentatively leaned my face towards his. When I was just a centimeter away, I paused, letting his warm breath tickle my mouth and nose. Adrian closed the distance that separated us and pressed his lips to mine. I needed this, a kiss from someone who I knew wouldn't pull away the next minute and tell me it was wrong.

We broke apart, gasping for air.

"You know, if you want to get back at Dimitri...I'm an expert at revenge." Adrian smiled dazedly.

I kissed him again, more aggressively. I pulled off my shirt.

"What are you doing?" he mumbled, his eyes were wide and trained on my naked chest. Whoops, I'd forgotten to wear a bra today. Good.

"Getting revenge." I unbuttoned his jeans.

"Whoa, Little cadet. Slow down," Adrian held my hands. "Don't start something you can't finish."

"Believe me, I want to finish this." I ground my hips against his in invitation. "I'm going to finish this."

He groaned and pulled me towards him. "Are you sure? I don't want to take advantage of you."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course you do!" I paused. "But I want to you make me forget all of this pain. I want to feel numb. Make love to me, Adrian. I know you want to. Make me feel something besides betrayal."

He didn't need any more encouragement. Before I knew it, all of our clothes were thrown all over the room.

"God, you're so fucking sexy," Adrian gazed at me appreciatively. "I love revenge."

I grinned. "Payback's a bitch, isn't it?"

"Maybe for Dimitri," he leaned over to the table besides the couch and pulled out a condom. "But for me, it's wonderful. I get you."

I straddled his waist and grabbed the condom out of his hands. "Let me do it."

I ripped at the wrapper with my teeth.

"That's so sexy," Adrian licked his lips. "Yeah, get it! Bite it with those tiger teeth!"

I laughed and tossed the wrapper to the ground.

I was leaning down to put the condom on Adrian when I heard it. A huge bang, followed by a gush of wind that blew my hair around.

"Oh, bloody hell." Adrian mumbled, face deathly white.

I turned around to see what had made Adrian so terrified.

My heart stopped.

Someone had barged down the door.

That someone was Dimitri.

He stood there in all his six-foot-seven glory, arms crossed, staring straight at me with those cold and hard brown eyes. He looked deathly and lethal, like an avenging God.

That's when I remembered that I was on a couch, naked, and straddling another man. How the hell did he find me? More importantly, how was I going to get out of this?

If I didn't die of embarrassment, then Dimitri sure as hell was going to kill me. Probably with that hunting knife of his.

I scrambled off Adrian, grabbed a nearby blanket, and clutched it to my exposed body, trying to cover as much skin as I possibly could.

"How did you find me?"

"You're late for evening practice." He growled. "I now see what was keeping you preoccupied."

Adrian started hurriedly dressing, falling on his ass a few times in the process.

Dimitri never even spared him a glance. His cold eyes were trained on me, practically burning holes into my face. I'd never felt so uncomfortable in my life before. I felt more heat rising to my cheeks.

"I'll leave you two to sort this out amongst yourselves…just try not to break anything." Cautiously, and probably afraid my mentor would start pounding on him at any given moment, Adrian walked passed Dimitri and out the door.

Right before he shut the door, Adrian shot me an apologetic glance, blew me a kiss, and gave me a thumbs up.

"Traitor." I muttered.

I glanced at Dimitri, who was still in that same statue-like stance he was in earlier. He hadn't moved and inch since he'd practically knocked down the door.

His face was hard, jaw clenched, hands balled into fists. Yeah, he looked like he wanted to rip my head off.

"Seeing you with him," Dimitri sneered. "It makes me want to stab something."

I gulped.

"Get dressed, now!"

I did.

It was humiliating. Dimitri watched me the entire time, disgust contorting his face.

"Stop looking at me like that!" I pulled on my shirt and smoothed down my hair. "We didn't do anything, got it?"

"You didn't do anything? You didn't do anything?" He threw his head back and laughed harshly, the sound slithered across my skin like snakes. "You were naked with a man, placing a condom on him. How can you possibly say that?"

"If it makes you feel any better," I shrugged. "The penis didn't actually penetrate the vagin—"

In a flash, he stood right in front of me. He gripped my biceps tightly. I gasped in pain.

"Stop talking, before I hurt you."

My fear turned to anger. I kept picturing him naked with Tasha.

"Don't touch me," Venom dripped from my words. I ripped my arm away from him. "I don't want your hands anywhere near me. I don't know what kind of STD's you carry."

Fury flashed across his dark eyes. I knew I'd just crossed the line.

"I use protection, Rose," He hissed. "I can guarantee you I am cleaner than a whistle—which is more than I can say for you."

I gaped. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Dimitri's eyes traveled up and down my body painfully slow, he made no effort to hide the disgusted expression from his face. "I think you know what it means."

"Are you implying that I'm a whore?"

"What you just did right now," He pointed to the couch, then to me. "You don't need my implication. The proof is right here."

I pulled my hand back and slapped him hard across the face. I went for a second blow, but Dimitri intercepted it by seizing my arm. His face was like the devil. I'd never seen someone so still before…so angry.

"I'm going to tell the principal that you called one of your students a whore," I said. "I'll also tell them that you made certain advances towards me. How would you like to lose that General title, Comrade? Don't worry, if you're lucky, they might let you be the janitor."

A smile twisted his lips. It wasn't a happy one. It was predatory smile. It reminded me of one a serial killer gave to their victims right before they sliced them up into tiny pieces.

"Don't threaten me, Ms. Hathaway. I control this school. Who do you think they'll believe? A respected General and former lieutenant who graduated at the top of his class and holds the respect of all his former colleagues and guards? Or a seventeen year old, trouble-making, rule breaking, student?"

"Whatever, I've heard enough, just, just…" I pulled at my hair. "Just get out of here. Go back to your whore!"

Immature? Check. Satisfied with my comeback? Eh, not so much. I could have been a little more original. But the words had already come out. No turning back now.

"My whore?"

"Tasha!" I screamed. "And don't look so surprised...Adrian caught you two together. So don't even try to deny it."

I shoved passed him and walked out the door. Once I got outside and into the freezing winter air, I headed in the opposite direction. I had no clue where I where I was going, I just knew that I had to get away from him.

Dimitri's footsteps sounded behind me, his leather boots pounding aggressively against the concrete ground. Yeah, he was still angry.

"Stay away from me!" I screamed.

"No."

"Why are you chasing me?" I asked, feeling defeated. "Just leave me alone! That's all I want."

"I have to explain myself."

I swiveled around and slammed right into his steel chest. I steadied myself before pointing my finger in his face. "I've already let you explain yourself, remember? I'm done hearing your bullshit. I trusted you, damn it. And you threw it away like it meant nothing you."

"It means everything to me, Roza," his voice was raw with emotion. "I cannot begin to tell you how sorry I am— "

I waved my hand in the air. "Save it for someone who cares."

Dimitri reached down and crushed his lips to mine. Even though all I wanted to do was melt in his arms and have him kiss me until I couldn't breathe, there was no way I was going to show him the affect he had on me. Instead, I pulled away and made a sound of disgust. "God, don't ever do that again. I have no clue where your mouth has been," I spit on the ground and made a dramatic show of wiping my mouth. "Wait, on second thought—I think I do. All over Tasha's body," I shuddered, "Hold for a minute while I go throw up."

"Rose, stop acting so immature!" He grabbed my arm.

No, no way in hell. I wanted to make him feel so disgusting and cheap about himself…just like the way he made me feel every time he pushed me away.

"It was a mistake, Rose." He pleaded. "I'm a normal human being who makes mistakes."

I shook my head, gathered all of my self control, and turned my back on him. My voice was a weak and defeated whisper, "I'm done, Dimitri. I'm done waiting on something that's never going to happen. You had your chance, and now it's gone. I'm sick of you playing with me."

I forced my feet to move, one in front of the other.

Dimitri didn't make any effort to pursue me. Maybe it was a good thing that I gave him up. He obviously didn't love me the same way I loved him. If he did, I'd have been chased down and begged for. He would've told me how much he loved me and how he never wanted to be with anyone else. But he didn't.

I looked over my shoulder and gave him one last weak glance. He just stood there. Face crumpled in anguish. A single tear slipped out of his eye, he quickly wiped it away, as if embarrassed.

What happened to fighting for the ones you love?

He hissed a Russian curse. "I don't know why I can't stop caring about you, Rose."

My feet slowed down, my brain involuntarily wanting to hear what else he had to say.

"Tasha is the only girl I've ever slept with," he whispered. "If I could take back time, and have you be the only girl...then I would."

I let out a small sob and hugged my chest, trying to keep myself from shattering into a million pieces. Why was he torturing me like this? It would only make my decision harder to go through with.

"I cannot be around you, Roza. I lose all control when I'm with you," His voice was strained. "I want you. I've always wanted you. Only you."

I stopped dead in my tracks. There it was.

"I'm so in love with you and I'm not ashamed about it." Dimitri sounded so broken...so vulnerable. "I don't want to be away from you anymore...I need you..."

I raced over to him and crushed my lips to his.

=X=

"Do you ever think about making love to me?" He asked, carrying me to his apartment.

"All the time. Every day." Being so close to him, I was able to study his features. His healing nose, sensuous lips, knife-edged cheekbones, strong jaw line, the scar above his brow, and finally...those dark, dark eyes. I sighed with contentment.

We passed Alberta on our way. Dimitri nodded in acknowledgment, not caring that we'd been caught. Ah, the advantages of being the big boy around town.

She raised an eyebrow at me, shrugged, then nodded. "Good evening, General Belikov."

And she went on her way.

"Do you ever think about making love to me?" I asked.

"I dream about it," Dimitri said. "I've spent so many nights awake thinking about you. Kissing your lips, caressing you skin, touching you..."

My body flushed with heat.

God, I wanted him so badly.

He opened the door to his apartment, locked it, and brought me to his room. I stared at the bed with disgust. "Have you changed the sheets since Tasha paid you a little visit?"

Dimitri closed his eyes, like he was in pain. "I cannot begin to describe how regretful-"

"Shhh," I placed my finger against his lips. "I just want to know if you have changed the sheets. That's all."

"I did." he assured. "And I washed the blankets, too."

Dimitri fell back on the bed and pulled me with him, so my body was crushed on top of his.

"God," he moaned. "You have no idea how good this feels."

He kissed me roughly. I slipped my hands under his shirt, feeling the mountains of heated muscle under my fingertips. "Why don't you show me how good it feels?"

"I didn't bring you here to do that," Dimitri whispered. "I want to hold you in my arms. Have you sleep by my side so I can keep you safe. I want to kiss you all night."

"I want this, Dimitri. Please...I need you," I begged shamelessly. "Forget all that Zen crap. It's just me and you tonight. Just Dimitri and Rose."

"I like the sound of that." he covered my mouth with his.

"Make love to me, Dimitri. I am yours," I whispered, touching the rough and sexy stubble on his face. "My body is yours. Take it."

His shirt came off, then mine. Then his jeans and my skirt...then everything else. Everything landed in a pile on the floor.

Dimitri went to put on a condom, but I stopped him with my hands. "Don't. That's not necessary."

I was going to use a condom with Adrian because he was sort of a...man whore. But with Dimitri, I didn't want to use one. I didn't want any barriers to keep us apart.

He looked puzzled. "Why not?"

"I'm on birth control,"

A furious expression crossed his face. "You have been with other men?" he growled, possession wrapped around his words. I had to admit, it was a big turn on. "Who is it? Adrian? Mason? Tell me who it is."

I laughed. "This is my first time. And it's not what you think it is...I don't use birth control for that."

"Well, what is the purpose of it then?"

I felt the heat creep up to my cheeks. "No…I, uh…I use it to regulate my periods."

"Oh," his fingertips gently traced my cheeks. "There is no reason to be embarrassed about that. I cannot tell you how relieved I am."

"Why are you relieved?" I asked. "Happy that you don't have to make any late-night runs for a box of Tampax?"

He chuckled and nibbled my ear. I closed my eyes. "No, it's not that. I am relieved because I know that you haven't been with anyone else but me. The thought of you in the arms of another man," he growled slightly, "It's too much to bear. I want to have you all to myself. I want to claim you as mine."

I arched my back towards him.

Dimitri kissed me long and hard, holding my neck to keep me in place. He tossed the unused condom on the ground. "I am so glad I don't have to use that."

"Why?" I sucked on the soft skin of his neck.

"Because I want to feel you on me…" he whispered. "All of you. Every single inch."

I moaned at his words. The heat rushed between my legs. My skin tingled and puckered.

"God, I love that sound," his hands and mouth consumed my body. "It's addictive."

"What sound?" I didn't know how I was forming full thoughts, let alone complete sentences. Dimitri's lips were sort of mind numbing.

He took the sensitive flesh of my naked breast into his mouth. I gasped with surprise, arched my back, and moaned in pleasure.

"That sound." he said. "I've never heard anything so beautiful before. I've never seen anyone so beautiful…"

And then he pushed his body into mine, making us one.

I bit my lip and closed my eyes, feeling the stinging pain.

"Roza? Roza?" Dimitri's voice was frantic. "Did I hurt you? Please baby, talk to me."

When he tried to pull back, I gripped his hips and held him there. "Don't. I need this. I need you."

"I can't. Not if it's hurting you—"

"You're not hurting me," I brushed his wavy hair behind his ears. "You never could."

He kissed me. So soft, gentle, and loving that I had the absurd urge to burst out in tears.

The naughty part of me came out to play. I raked my nails down his neck and squeezed his cute ass. I got the satisfaction of hearing him groan.

He kissed me as he started moving his body with mine. Dimitri hissed something in Russian and closed his eyes. "God...how badly I've wanted to have you like this. How badly I've wanted to take you."

I'd never felt so alive before. My whole body lit in fire. The air around us was thick with our fresh sweat and heavy breathing. When Dimitri wasn't kissing me, he always kept his dark eyes on mine. They were heavy with passion and lust and something so much more…love. I felt so beautiful and desirable under his gaze.

He chanted my name over and over again. Roza, Roza, Roza, Roza…

I was intoxicated with desire when he started to speak to me in Russian. I had no idea what the words meant, but I loved the way he said them in that thick, velvety accent.

Afterwards, we lay in a mess of tangled, naked limbs. My legs were caught in his, my arms gripping his abdomen, my face stuffed in the crook of his neck. My tongue whipped out and gave his salty skin a quick lick.

"How are you feeling, Roza?" he stroked my hair soothingly. "Do you hurt?"

"A little," I smiled blissfully. "But most of all...I'm so tired."

"You will be," he chuckled. "It was your first time."

"Thank you," I smiled goofily.

"For what?"

"For what we just shared," I said. "It was more than I could have ever imagined."

Dimitri stroked my hair and started humming something in Russian. The sound was soothing and I immediately felt myself drifting off to sleep.

The humming turned into singing. It was beautiful and my breath caught in my throat. Dimitri, the emotionless, hard-ass General, had the voice of an angel.

=X=

"You're letting me off practice?" I gaped.

"Yes, after all…don't you think we've already had our workout?" He poured a cup of fresh coffee and handed it to me.

I blushed. "You know…I don't think we have. Maybe we could now though…"

"No." he said firmly, lips pursed. I laughed inwardly. He was battling off his own desires.

"But," I kissed his lips. "Don't you want to make love to me again?"

Dimitri groaned and threw his head back. "Yes, that's all I want to do. That's all I can think about. " He rubbed his eyes and kept them closed when he faced me again. "And it's not helping that you're wearing my t-shirt. But we can't. Go get some fresh clothes from your room."

I frowned, the lump in my throat formed. "You want me to leave?"

He looked alarmed. "No, of course not. I want you to go get some fresh clothes, and then come back here and take a shower."

"Me and you, naughty time in the shower?" I asked hopefully.

He shook his head and laughed. "No. But I will make you breakfast."

"Bacon and eggs?"

He nodded. "And toast."

"Okay, I'll go." I raced to the front door.

"Wait," Dimitri called out, placing his leather duster on my shoulders. "It's freezing out there, wear this."

I laughed. "This is too big. I look ridiculous."

He eyed me thoughtfully. "That's not true. You look incredibly sexy."

"I look like a giant potato."

Dimitri rolled his eyes. "You look like a beautiful woman wearing a duster. There's nothing wrong with that."

"I'll wear it under one condition," I said.

He arched a dark eyebrow. "What is that condition?"

"I get to ride the cowboy when I get back." I winked.

Dimitri closed his eyes and swallowed hard. His voice was husky and thick when he spoke again, "You already rode the cowboy last night."

I grinned evilly. "I rode the cowboy good and hard, didn't I?"

He smacked me on the backside. "Get out of here, now." It wasn't a request, but more of a command. "Before I become extremely uncivilized and take you right here on the sidewalk."

I gulped, nodded, and took off.

=X=

I ripped open the door to the high-school campus building and bumped into my best friend. She was in her pale pink nurse scrubs, hair tied back, makeup perfect, lips frosted over in her favorite lip gloss.

"Morning, Rose." she smiled.

"I envy you for being so perfect and pretty in the morning."

"Oh, my god!" her mouth dropped open as she took in my assemble. "You had sex!"

I blushed furiously. "I did not!"

"You're glowing and you've got the biggest grin I've ever scene. Don't try and deny it. Who was it?" She grinned.

I smiled so widely I thought my face would split. "Dimitri!"

"I knew it!"

We jumped up and down, letting out a bunch of girlie squeals.

"Hello, Roza." I heard that low and wonderful voice behind me.

I smiled. "Just couldn't get enough of me could ya, Comrade? I said I'd be back shortly."

A small white cloth was pressed over my nose and mouth before I knew what was happening.

I breathed in the bitter aroma and gagged. The whole world went fuzzy, I swayed, and fell to the ground. I heard that accented voice again.

"Don't worry, I've got you my dear…"

"ROSE!" I think that was Lissa screaming for me. I had no clue.

"Run!" I gasped. "Run as far as you can. Don't look back!"

She didn't move.

"Oh, bloody hell..." My head slammed against the ground.

"Don't worry, I've got you my dear…"

Shit, things weren't looking too good for me.

I passed out.

Can you guess who it is? :D