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her kitchen chilling, yet it wasn’t weird. He looked completely at home, a feat that only he could pull off no matter where he was.
    As if sensing her presence, Misha spoke without looking up. “Good morning.”
    “If you keep breaking in, I’m going to report you to the police.”
    Misha folded down one side of the paper and looked over at her with a haughty, entertained expression on his handsome face. “You do realize I have a key, don’t you?”
    “So, I’ll just change the locks.” As far as threats went, Tionne was aware it wasn’t all that scary, a thought that was reinforced by the amused grin Misha wore.
    “Do you really think that something as simple as a new lock would keep me out if I wanted to come in?”
    Not for a second, but that didn’t mean she was going to let him have the last word. “Stalker.”
    Misha snorted in lieu of a reply and righted his paper.
    Grinning, Tionne made her way over to the pot and poured them both what she knew from experience would be a very strong cup of Turkish coffee—Misha’s preferred blend. “Is it just the two of us this morning, or did you bring the entire SEAL Team Six with you?”
    He lowered the paper a bit and peered over the top. “Just you and I in the condo. Darby is outside the door, but if you feel the need for backup, I can always invite him in.”
    “No, just you is fine.” Even though she was sure her neighbors thought she was the kept woman of some unsavory type, Tionne was well aware of the need for Misha to have guards with him. Not only had Misha inherited his late father’s vast holdings and oil fields as far as the eye could see, he’d also acquired all the enemies that came with such a fortune. If she had to choose between his safety or her neighbors’ nosy looks, she’d pick him every time. Besides, she loved moments like these, lived for them, when it was just the two of them. Misha was such a busy man that even when they did have dinner, a good portion of the time it was with clients, with her playing the role of hostess as he wined and dined them, or if it wasn’t business, then Nicholi and his flavor of the month was with them. And although Tionne loved Nicholi and tolerated the different women he had come in and out of his life, Tionne preferred when she had Misha to herself. “I think I can handle you myself.”
    “If anyone can, it’s you.”
    “Tell me something I don’t already know.” She doctored her coffee to her liking, then did the same to his before joining him at the table.
    As soon as she sat, he closed the newspaper and set it aside, then accepted the mug she handed him with a nod of his head. “How’s your back?”
    “Fine.”
    “Really? Maybe I should take a look at it.”
    “Don’t start,” Tionne warned. It hadn’t even been five minutes yet. “Don’t you have a job you should be at?”
    “One of the many luxuries about being me is work starts when I want it to and not a second before.”
    “It’s good to be the king.”
    “It is.” Misha took a sip of his coffee before speaking again. “Did you sleep well?”
    “What are you doing here?” She countered his question with one of her own. It wasn’t like she wasn’t happy to see him. She was always happy to see him, but if he was just here to talk about her back, she was going to be upset.
    “I wanted to see you,” he said simply.
    “Didn’t you get your fill last night?”
    “Of you. Never.” He held her gaze as he answered, leaving no room for doubt in his words.
    “Well…fine…” She told herself she wouldn’t be moved by his words, but a part of her was just the same, and it caused her to stumble and lose her way for a moment. “But did you come to see me, or did you come to see about my back?”
    Misha seemed amused by her question. “Will you always question my motives?”
    “Out loud, no,” she teased. “But if you recall, it was you who told me to trust no one.”
    “I’m sure I said trust no one but