Sunlight trickled in through the window early Saturday morning, beaming golden rays onto Dimitri's bed where he and Rose lay sleeping. After Friday night yoga class, in which Dimitri spent the entirety of the time eye-fucking her as usual, Rose had spent the night at his apartment. Since the first time Rose had stayed the night, Dimitri had revoked the 'no sleeping over' rule, realising there were considerable perks to waking up next to her – seeing her naked first thing in the morning was just one of them! Not to mention the warm feeling he felt when she unknowingly nuzzled closer to him as she slept. He would never admit this of course, not even to himself. If he didn't think about it, didn't acknowledge it, maybe the feeling would go away.

A movement beside him awoke Dimitri from his sleep, and he rolled over to find Rose rubbing the sleep from her eyes lazily.

"Morning, Roza" he greeted her in his deep, sleepy voice that never failed to make Rose's heart do somersaults in her chest. How could she find just his voice so sexy? His accent always seemed thicker in the mornings, too, and she felt she would never grow tired of hearing it.

"Hi," she smiled.

"Did you sleep okay?"

"Hmm, I guess," she uttered with a stretch, groaning slightly as her muscles ached in protest.

Dimitri furrowed his brows.

"You guess?"

"I was achy," Rose explained, shooting him a look that told him it was all his fault.

"I wonder why," he chuckled.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Oh I don't know, maybe something along the lines of you 'teaching me a lesson' which involved you spanking my ass."

"If you don't like it, you shouldn't wind me up."

"But what would be the point in that?"

With a hearty laugh, Dimitri gestured her to roll onto her front. Complying, Rose shifted onto her stomach, ignoring the ache she felt in the muscles all over her body. It hadn't just been Dimitri's hand that made her achy, it had been sex with him in general. When they fucked, they fucked hard. And just when she got used to it, it always seemed as though Dimitri took it up another notch.

When she was positioned on her stomach, Dimitri moved so that he was straddling her, his knees nestled either side of her thighs. Gently, he lifted up her top – one of his that she always chose to sleep in – and pulled her underwear downward to assess the damage. Her asscheeks were slightly on the redder side, but there were no major marks on her skin. He smoothed his hands over her softly, aiming to ease some of the ache she was feeling, before covering her back up and returning to her side.

"You're fine. It's just a little red. I won't do it so hard next time," he told her as she rolled back over to face him. "I don't have to do it all if you don't want me to. And you can always tell me to stop."

Rose pouted at him.

"I didn't say I didn't like it."

"Oh?" Dimitri urged with a smirk and one eyebrow raised in the way that Rose always thought was kind of hot.

"I sort of like the ache the next day," she explained. "It's like a little secret between just you and me. Like when you leave a hickey or a mark where only I can see it."

Dimitri groaned at the thought. It was something that turned him on too. The idea that she could be hiding his sensual bruises beneath her clothes, that she'd wince slightly every time she sat down, all because of the pleasure he'd inflicted on her... Of course, he would never intentionally bruise her or harm her, but marks created in the midst of their passion were addictive to him.

With darkened, heated eyes, he reached out and brought their lips together. Rose matched his hunger, kissing him back fiercely. She whimpered as one of his strong hands snaked into her lustrous hair, tugging slightly as the other dug into her hips. It didn't take long before she was moaning and writhing beneath him, eager for his touch where the heat pooled between her legs, but frustratingly, he pulled away.

"What do you want to do today?" He asked her nonchalantly, as if they weren't just making out like teenagers in his bed.

"You," she groaned breathlessly, urging him to continue kissing her.

"That's a given," he chuckled, "but I meant, do you want to go and do anything today or do you have to work?"

Rose's expression quickly changed from one of desire to one of clear confusion, her brows furrowing and eyes narrowed. Dimitri had never asked her to spend the day with him in the entirety of their time together. With them it was always, sex, sex and more sex, with maybe dinner or takeout thrown in between.

"Don't you have classes today?" she asked.

"I closed the studio today," he explained. "Perks of being self-employed."

"Oh," she uttered. "I don't have a shift at the diner until tomorrow afternoon."

Where was he going with this?

"Do you want to go somewhere for breakfast then, maybe?"

"Uhh, why?"

"Why not? I'm hungry and I haven't had time to get any food in where I've been working so much recently."

Although she was slightly taken aback by the impromptu request to hang out, Rose quickly agreed, not wanting to pass up the opportunity to spend time with Dimitri platonically. The more time she spent with him, the more she wanted to get to know him, to find out about him as a person, and not simply as someone who made her come so hard that she saw stars. The Dimitri she saw at the baby shower was different from the more reserved, shielded Dimitri she experienced when they were together. Sure, over the last few weeks Dimitri had been opening up to her more, letting his guard down – something Dimitri was confused by even himself – but still Rose craved more. Spending the day with him, might be a step in that direction.

It didn't take long for the pair to get ready. Ever since the unexpected incident of Dimitri's mother and grandmother turning up on his doorstep, with Rose naked in his bed, she always took it upon herself to keep a spare outfit and a toothbrush in the gym bag she took to yoga. Now that she was staying the night more, it just made sense that way.

Pulling a simple sweater over her head, Rose exited the bedroom and informed Dimitri that she was ready to go. Dimitri had just been putting on his shoes, but instead of heading towards the door, he walked towards Rose instead.

"Before we go, I have something for you," he told her.

"Is it my bra I lost two weeks ago?"

A hearty laugh escaped Dimitri's throat as he recalled an incident a few weeks ago where the pair had gotten hot and heavy at his studio – something that was a regular occurrence now, considering they could hardly keep their hands off each other for more than the duration of the yoga class. During the particular incident Rose was alluding to, they had been in such a rush that her bra and been aimlessly tossed somewhere in the storage cupboard, never to be seen again.

"No, I still can't find it. One of my instructors will probably come across it eventually," Dimitri said, unable to help but grin at the slightly traumatised look on Rose's face. Nevertheless, he guided her over to the sofa, prompting her to sit beside him.

Against his better judgement, Dimitri had bought the bracelet he and Ivan saw while looking for a gift for Sonja. He had spent the last few days arguing internally with himself about whether he should give it to her, but he had ultimately decided that there surely would be no harm in doing so. It didn't really mean anything, other than the fact that it had reminded him of her when he saw it. At least, that's what he was telling himself anyway.

Reaching into his duster pocket, Dimitri pulled out a narrow, rectangular box, hesitating for an eighth of a second before passing it to a clearly apprehensive Rose. He watched her as she took it, his expression purposefully blank. He tried carefully to appear nonchalant and indifferent, but Rose could see the hint of vulnerability in his eyes. First asking to hang out with her, and now this? Today had been a rollercoaster ride, and it was only 9am!

Unsure what to expect within the box, Rose opened it tentatively. A quiet gasp escaped her lips and her breath hitched at the sight of the object inside. A bracelet as delicate, as gorgeous as the one in front of her was not something she was expecting at all!

"It's beautiful," she said finally, reaching out to trace the delicate chain and the silver and blue gems set within it.

Rose recognised her birthstone instantly. Smiling, she carefully lifted the bracelet from the box, holding it up to the light to closer inspect and admire the intricate design.

"Do you like it?"

"Dimitri, I –"

"I can still return it if you don't. I kept the receipt."

Rose frantically shook her head.

"No, I love it! Thank you," she smiled widely at him, resting her hand gently on his muscular forearm. "But, why?"

"Why what?"

"It's not my birthday or anything, why are you buying me a present?" She questioned.

"Because."

"Because..."

"Just because," he shrugged. "Because I can. And because I want to."

Dimitri looked at her, trying to find any hint as to what she was really thinking, and he could tell that she was thinking about the 'rules', the conditions of their 'arrangement'. He knew she was sceptical.

"I'm allowed to treat you, Roza."

"Well, thank you," she smiled, attempting to mask her confusion, her apprehension. "Can you help me put it on?"

Rose felt that Dimitri was sincere, that there was no underlying reason for the bracelet, but the moment it fastened around her wrist, his fingertips brushing gently against her skin, she couldn't help but notice the fleeting flash of pride on his face. A look that told her maybe there was something slightly more to the bracelet, whether they both knew it or not. Wearing this gift from Dimitri felt right. It almost subtly marked her, told others that she was with somebody – despite the fact that the pair were adamant they weren't 'together'. It wasn't a collar or anything like that, it wasn't a billboard that said 'Dimitri was here'. It wasn't explicitly a sign of ownership or possession, but without meaning to, it branded her as his. This wasn't a gift she would have bought herself – it was clear that it was gifted to her. It was clear that she was taken.

Looking down at the diamonds and aquamarine gems decorating her wrist, she couldn't help but wonder how much it must have cost him. She knew he had the money - he owned his own business after all – but she didn't want him to splash it out on her. She wasn't the kind of girl to be with someone for their money or the expectation of gifts. She hoped he knew this.

Rose opened her mouth to say something, to question him, but as she did, something inside her made her stop. Gifting her this bracelet was clearly a big deal for Dimitri - something that was clearly against the rules – yet he had given it to her anyway. Who was she to question that? No, she would just accept the gift without dispute. Besides, the feeling it brought her as it hung delicately on wrist, was one that she had been craving for a long time.

"Thank you," she said instead.

"You said that already."

"I know, but seriously, thank you."

"You're welcome," he grinned, sincerely. "Now hurry, we need breakfast before we start to waste away."

Rose laughed. Dimitri was a giant compared to her – it would take a long time for him to lose his muscles and waste away to nothing. Even so, the rumble of his stomach as they left the apartment told Rose that he was indeed in need of a big breakfast!

This was initially part of a longer chapter, along with the next part, but I decided to split them up. I'm about halfway through writing and editing the next bit.

Thank you for the reviews on the last chapter. Keep them coming! They always make me smile :) (And more motivated to write!)