Tasha had been tossing and turning all night. No matter how much she wished otherwise, her thoughts kept returning to Dimitri, and by extension Rose. By 5 pm she knew sleep was going to elude her, so she made the decision to speak with Dimitri. To tell him what she knew and encourage him to cool things off, at least until Rose had graduated. She and Dimka had been friends a long time; she didn't want to see him fired, or worse, over an infatuation.
Showering, and putting on her nicest pair of workout clothes, she walked purposefully towards the gym. She'd heard him joke so many times about Rose being tardy, so she was confident she'd get the opportunity to speak with him privately. But that wasn't the way it worked out. Walking through the open doors to the gym, she found Rose was already there, and already well involved with Dimitri!
He had her pressed back against the side wall of the gym; her sports crop top yanked up, her full breasts on display. Well nearly on display. Dimitri was bending down, his lips attached to the nipple of one, one of his large hands toying with the other. Rose's eyes were closed, and she was groaning as he mouthed her, one of his long legs pushed hard in between hers.
Staring at the couple in disbelief, Tasha started when she heard Rose grumble as Dimitri transferred his mouth from one breast to the other before her excited gasps resumed with his renewed oral assault. Watching the man she loved pleasure another woman, his student, nearly broke her. Knowing Dimitri loved another woman was entirely different to seeing it. And as Tasha silently lifted her phone and started to record the travesty she was witnessing she felt her heart shatter within her chest. She was angry at Rose, but more than anything it was Dimitri Tasha was furious with. He should want that sort of action with her, not his teenaged student.
Watching almost transfixed, Tasha could taste bile in her mouth as Rose wrapped her arms around Dimitri's neck, the tall guardian hoisting the smaller Novice up until she wrapped her legs around his hips. She could see him grinding himself against Rose, pushing her hard against the wall as the curvy Dhampir groaned with want. And as she observed, so did the video camera of her phone.
"Please Dimitri? I know we shouldn't, but I need you to make love to me again," Rose begged softly, her eyes still closed as Dimitri kissed the slender column of her neck. Tasha had seen enough. It was pretty clear the sort of training Rose wanted Dimitri to lead her in this morning. She understood. It was the same thing she'd fantasized about for months as she'd worked up the courage to make her suggestion to Dimka. A proposal that had apparently come too late. Pocketing her phone, Tasha turned, slinking away from the gym unseen. She'd had no sleep, and didn't want to act rashly, so she returned to her room in guest quarters. She refused to believe this is the way things were meant to work out – she just needed to think about it.
Back in the gym, Dimitri pulled himself away from Rose panting, carefully setting her back onto her feet before adjusting himself.
"Milaya! We can't do that. Not here. Anyone could walk in and see us. We have to be careful. It's not that I don't want to make love to you right here and now. But we can't."
"I know," Rose grumbled, her nipples still wet from her lover's lips and tongue. Pulling her crop top back over her breasts, she let out a long sigh. "Come on, Comrade. I think it's finally warm enough to do laps. Care to join me?"
Dimitri looked at his love, blessing her with a tender smile. "Let's go, milaya. We need to keep your endurance up."
"Ha!" Rose laughed, slapping him on his ass as she sprinted out the gym doors. "I think it's you who's going to need their endurance, grandpa!"
Chuckling Dimitri followed his irreverent woman from the gym, his long legs easily closing the distance her sprint had created between them. They ran companionably side-by-side as they completed the first of their many laps. Things weren't perfect, far from it. But they were together, in love and happy. And right now that was enough for both of them.
"Good weekend little Dhampir?" Adrian asked sardonically at lunch, dumping his tray beside Rose's.
"Yeah it was ok," she answered eyeing him warily. With Adrian's capricious nature she was never quite sure where she stood. Yesterday he'd promised to keep her secret, but there was no knowing whether the Moroi playboy was of the same bent this morning.
"Someone doesn't like me sitting here," he teased quietly, his eyes flicking across to where Dimitri stood twenty feet away against a wall observing them coolly.
"I'm sure you're imagining things," Rose quickly replied, noticing the slight set of her lover's jaw.
"I told you, auras don't lie little Dhampir," Adrian laughed, looking at the mistrust and jealousy emanating from Dimitri's life being, followed immediately by the pinks, reds, and yellows as soon as he looked at Rose. "Oh that they did," he added morosely as Rose's aura reflected her lover's.
The two were soon joined by Lissa and Christian, and a little later Tasha appeared.
"Did you have a good weekend away?" Tasha asked Rose. "Learn a lot?"
"Yeah, it was ok. Lots of hiking, setting up tents, trying to start a fire in the middle of the snow. All good fun," Rose replied not meeting the older Moroi woman's eye.
"You can come light my fire anytime, little Dhampir," Adrian joked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.
"Ugh!" Christian groaned scrunching up his face. "Tell me you don't use pickup lines like that on women for real?"
"Fine – I won't tell you," Adrian laughed. "And I won't tell you how often they work, too!"
"Unbelievable," Christian murmured shaking his head.
"Don't worry, you're still hot stuff to me," Lissa giggled, soothing Christian's ego.
"I think I want to barf," Rose joked, looking up from her lunch. "What did you guys get up to on the weekend?" she asked, quickly changing the subject.
"Lots of spirit practice," Lissa said brightly. "Adrian and I are going to be working with Ms. Carmick every morning on spirit."
"Every morning? Ha! That means you have to get up early," Rose crowed, laughing at Adrian.
"Don't remind me, little Dhampir," he groaned. "I don't think I've been up before midnight in years. There's something unwholesome about getting up at 8 pm!"
"Ha! Try getting up to workout at 5 pm," she laughed.
"Do you do that every morning?" Tasha asked curiously.
"Yeah most mornings," Rose said guilelessly.
"You must really love working out," the older woman countered curiously.
"Some days more than others," Rose said, not giving Tasha's words much thought.
Tasha nodded, looking at Rose intently for a moment.
"Well if you excuse me, I have things I need to do," Tasha said standing up. Her eyes ran around the perimeter of the room until they found where Dimitri stood. He didn't look as though he'd even noticed her; his eyes trained intently where Rose sat. Taking a deep breath, and picking up her bag, Tasha said her farewells.
Adrian watched the Moroi woman leave with curiosity. That woman's emotions were a hot mess. Love, lust, anger, envy, guilt, self-delusion, protectiveness, determination; it was all there. Tasha stopped outside the cafeteria, taking a moment to run through her arguments in her head. She had to get this just right. Finally smoothing her thoughts and her countenance, she asked a guardian where she might find Alberta Petrov's office. She was the key to handling this, Tasha was sure.
Alberta looked up from her desk in surprise at the Moroi woman standing in her doorway. She'd been wrestling with guardian rosters, her least favorite task of the month, but she had an ominous feeling she'd rather be attending to that than have the conversation she was about to.
"Ms. Ozera, how can I help you?" she asked, gesturing to a seat in front of her desk.
"Tasha, please," she replied nervously. "I need a private word please, Guardian Petrov," she said, shutting the door.
Alberta raised an eyebrow slightly. A closed-door discussion. It looks like her instincts were right. She regarded the woman in front of her calmly, waiting for her to speak. In her early thirties, Tasha Ozera was an attractive woman. Everyone knew the story of how she'd protected a young Christian Ozera from his parents when they'd willingly turned Strigoi; keeping them at bay until the guardians had arrived. But not without personal cost. As well as the scars running down one side of her face, she'd also shouldered the responsibility of her orphaned nephew – becoming his legal parent after his own were staked.
"Guardian Petrov? Alberta? I find myself in a very difficult situation," Tasha started, looking at her hands where they rested in her lap. "I have become aware of some information which has the potential to destroy people's lives. Indeed already has potentially caused irreparable harm. But it involves friends here, so I am not sure how to proceed. I don't want the people involved punished, but I think this is information that needs to be shared," she rambled.
Alberta nodded, turning the woman's words over in her mind. "Can you be clearer, Tasha? Perhaps if you start at the beginning?"
Tasha's piercing blue eyes met Alberta's. "It all started with Spokane. As you know Christian was involved in the tragedy that occurred there, and I have been visiting to try and support him through that. As part of our discussions, I asked him how Novice Ashford knew about the concentration of Strigoi in Spokane, and he told me Mason had learned of it through Rose. At first, I assumed Janine Hathaway had carelessly let something slip to her, but then I discovered it had been Dimitri. Guardian Belikov."
"Well, they are to be guarding partners in four months. While he shouldn't have told a Novice classified information, I can see why he might have thought he could trust her," Alberta said, sounding troubled.
"I agree," Tasha said hastily, "And I am not blaming either of them for what happened. It was a tragic set of circumstances, and there was a range of decisions that led to what happened," she assured the stalwart guardian. "But it did open my eyes to the way Dimitri and Rose interact. For a little while, I've been concerned that maybe their relationship isn't what it ought to be."
"I need you to speak plainly, Tasha," Alberta said with a sinking feeling in her stomach. What Tasha was saying corresponded with errant thoughts she'd been quick to dismiss from her mind.
"This should make it clear," Tasha said regretfully, putting her phone onto Alberta's desk and playing her the clip she'd recorded this morning.
"Nooo!" Alberta hissed, watching one of her most highly decorated guardians and his student getting very hot and heavy in the gym.
"I went to the gym this morning to try and speak with Dimitri about my suspicions, but this is what I walked in to find. I didn't make my presence known," Tasha explained. "Dimitri is a good friend of mine. If this gets out, his career will be ruined. Rose's, too - before it's even started. I understand how an attraction can form between two people when they're working so closely together. I like them both, but I can only see this leading to disaster. And I worry that if I've worked out what's going on, others can't be far behind."
Alberta was rubbing her forehead in frustration. She could feel a headache coming on. This wasn't the first time she'd had to deal with an inappropriate relationship on campus, although it was the first student/staff one she'd encountered. She inwardly cursed. How could Belikov have been so stupid? She knew he respected Rose. Cared for her, even. But not in this way. It should never have come to this.
"Thank you for bringing it to my attention, Tasha. You're right; this can not be allowed to continue. There'll have to be consequences…"
Tasha's eyes flicked up in alarm. "That's exactly what I was hoping to avoid! Neither of them deserves to have their careers ruined by a reckless mistake. We don't have enough guardians as it is, let alone one with Dimitri's skills. I understand Rose is also top of her class and due to guard Lissa. We can't afford to lose her either!"
"Then what do you suggest? This can't go on," Alberta replied.
"Maybe speak with Dimitri? Let him know there have been questions about his relationship with Rose and suggest he transfers away from the Academy? That will stop the situation, and no one has to be any wiser."
"It's a thought, but a reallocation request outside the main round always raises eyebrows. Whoever takes him on will be bound to ask questions…"
"I wouldn't," Tasha said. "I'm Royal and entitled to a guardian; I've just never requested one. Dimitri could guard me for a few months and then apply for a new allocation in the main round if he wished. It would keep his record unblemished, Rose's too. Like I said – we're old friends. Their secret would be safe with me."
Alberta looked at the young Moroi in front of her appraisingly. "It would solve a lot of problems," she admitted. "I'd hate to see two futures ruined because of a bit of stupidity."
Tasha smiled tightly. "I'd prefer Dimitri didn't know I was the one to speak with you about this… It would be awkward having to live with him if he suspected I was the one who'd discovered his… indiscretion," she posed delicately. "I'd prefer you didn't even suggest me as an allocation. I'll wait until he comes to speak with me about what's happened and I'll suggest it then."
"Good idea," Alberta assured her. "I'll put it in such a way he doesn't suspect it was you. Thank you so much for letting me know about this, and for being so generous to give them a chance to move on from their foolishness. Not many people would be so kind."
"Like I said, I've known Dimitri a long time. I just want what's best for him," Tasha said, shaking the old woman's hand and leaving her office. She schooled her face into a calm mask, inwardly cheering as she set off to put the second part of her plan into motion.
Half an hour later she saw Dimitri in the distance walking towards the wards. Perfect! They wouldn't be interrupted out there.
"Dimka! Wait up!" she called out.
"Hi Tasha," Dimitri said with a guarded smile. They hadn't spoken since he'd turned down her offer and she knew he was worried things would be awkward.
"Glad I caught you! Sorry I didn't let you know I was coming to campus. My boss in Minneapolis was sick of me worrying about Christian, so she surprised me with a week of leave to come see him," Tasha explained. "So I get over here to spend quality time, and it turns out his most pressing concern is finding time to make out with his girlfriend," she laughed good-naturedly. "How've you been?"
"Yes good, thank you, Tasha," he said, only a little formally. He wasn't sure how she was feeling about things and didn't want to upset her further. "I saw you called yesterday. Sorry I didn't call back. I was off campus all weekend, and then I was sleeping. By the time I woke up I had to get to morning training, and I've been on shift since then," he explained, it sounding like excuses even to his ears.
"No biggie," she said carelessly. "I was just checking if you were at a loose end. Although I did want to make sure we're still good after the Ski Lodge? I don't want things to be weird between us."
"They won't be," Dimitri assured her. "We've been friends for a long time, Tasha. That's not going to change."
"Good," she teased, banging him teasingly with her shoulder. For the next half an hour they talked about mutual friends and general chit chat. Dimitri could feel himself relaxing as they spoke. He respected and cared for Tasha a lot – just not in a romantic sense. But he was glad he could still count her as a friend. When he and Roza were finally free to be open about their love, he'd be sure to speak with Tasha, letting her know the full reason he couldn't accept her offer.
"So when are you returning home?" he asked.
"Tomorrow. I need to do something at Court first, and there's an Academy plane heading there tomorrow. It'll save the two hour trip to Missoula to catch a commercial flight, so I'm catching a lift on it."
"Well, perhaps we can hang out after dinner tonight?" Dimitri suggested. He knew Roza would want to spend time with him, but after the way things got out of hand this morning, he thought it might be wise to put a little distance between them. Just for the evening. They couldn't afford for anyone to get suspicious about the amount of time they spent together. Besides, Tasha was an old friend, and after his rejection at Christmas time, he felt he owed her a bit of his time. Hopefully Rose would be ok with it.
"I understand," Rose said two hours later, smiling at her Russian God with loving eyes. "It's ok; she's an old friend, and you want to spend time with her."
"You're not upset?" Dimitri asked cautiously. He had three sisters and had grown up in a household of five women. He knew the phrases 'I understand' and 'It's ok' were potentially dangerous; open to wildly different meanings, depending on a woman's mood.
"Well I'm a little put out you won't be spending time in my room continuing what you started this morning," she said, looking at him from underneath her dark lashes, "but we need to keep things on the down low, and you should spend time with your friend."
His relieved smile settled any niggling concerns Rose had. Dimitri loved her. He'd spent all weekend showing her that in every conceivable way. She didn't need to be a possessive, insecure girlfriend.
"I love you, Roza," Dimitri said happily. "The last week has been the happiest of my life."
"Mine too," Rose grinned.
The two of them continued their workout. They were staking this afternoon, Dimitri working on one mannequin demonstrating then standing back while Rose copied his actions on a mannequin beside his. It didn't give the opportunity for casual touching like some of their other routines did, but after this morning that was probably for the best. Rather than slaking their desire, becoming lovers had increased it exponentially. Their passion was a dry tinderbox just waiting for a spark to ignite it, dragging them in as willing participants.
They were just about to wrap up when they became aware of a presence in the gym watching their session.
"Hey, Alberta!" Rose greeted happily. "You should see how good I'm getting with a stake!"
Alberta smiled at the Novice she considered almost a daughter. She'd seen her grow up since she was four years old, and it was hard to reconcile her memories of skinned knees and a gap-toothed smile with what she'd seen on Tasha's phone a few hours before. Somehow Rose had become a young woman without Alberta noticing it.
"Yes, I saw. You're doing well," she praised. "Guardian Belikov, can I see you in my office when you're finished training?"
Dimitri nodded. "We're done now. I'll just shower and be right up."
Alberta took her leave, walking to her office with a heavy heart. She wasn't looking forward to this.