“Yes, sir.”

“Wait. My phone is in the hotel room,” she admitted. “I’m going to need it.”

“You were out with no security and no phone?” I could barely contain the fear in my voice as all the possible scenarios of something happening to her played in my mind.

She shrugged, her lips lifted in a sheepish smile. “Well, you wouldn’t stop texting and calling. I knew if I took my phone, I’d eventually give in and call you back. My self-control has been stretched really thin lately because I’ve missed you so much.”

Muttering a curse, I turned back to the guard. “Bring all her things here. We can sort out the other details later.”

Pietro gave a firm nod as he followed us to the door. Inside, two guards were sitting in front of the elevators, another behind a desk watching the feeds of all the CCTV cameras from every angle around the building itself. Theo had added more and more cameras over the years, making sure that Tavia and their little family were as secure as humanly possible within the walls of this building. I could rest easy knowing Nova was protected inside my temporary home.

But I would ensure that the construction of our house within the compound started immediately.

25

Nova

Ryan didn’t give me time to do more than glance around the apartment when he stepped off the elevator and straight into his living room. While he carried me, I got a quick impression of an overly masculine leather couch, huge entertainment center, and a few random pictures on the walls as he stomped angrily toward what I could only assume was his bedroom.

“You will not leave this building without Pietro,” he gritted out as he opened the bedroom door with me still secured in his arms. “If you step foot outside without him, I will spank your ass until you feel the imprint of my hand every time you sit down.”

“Sure, sure,” I dutifully agreed with a nod as I fought a smile.

Reaching the bed, he tightened his arms around me. “Mock me all you want, but I assure you, the sight of my handprint on your lush ass will be my reward if you disobey me, Nova.”

There had been a few moments in the back of the SUV earlier that had made me wonder if Ryan was a Dominant. It hadn’t really surprised me. He’d always been overzealous about my safety, barking orders to everyone, including my dad, over the years. But this was an entirely different side of his need for control, and I couldn’t hide the fact that I liked it. My nipples were diamond-hard and ultrasensitive, my thighs coated in the arousal he’d been responsible for dripping out of my core as I squirmed in his arms.

As if I were made of glass, he placed me on the end of the bed and started unbuttoning his coat. When he pushed it and his jacket off my shoulders, heat filled my cheeks as I sat before him in nothing but my silk panties once again. I’d been just as bare on the drive from Iron Hand, but the lighting had sucked, and he hadn’t been able to see all my flaws. Now there was no hiding my every imperfection.