The Marriage Ultimatum (City of Dreams Series) by Charlotte O'Shay

compelled to explain the reasoning behind why they were targeting someone in a smear campaign. And he had no specific idea who had approached her. All she would need to know or care about was that she had money in her pocket.
    His gaze traveled over the threadbare rug and shabby curtains. Not that it looked like she was spending it yet. The apartment was a shambles aside from the professional photos of her son that filled every available wall space and nook.
    She crossed her arms under her chest throwing her rounded breasts into prominence. He could see the tracery of her lacey bra underneath the T-shirt. Blood rushed straight to his groin as if programmed. He turned away in an effort to relax his wayward body and blank his mind to the vision of her in just that bra and the lacey thong he knew matched it.
    He decided to elaborate a bit. As much as he hated to reveal the smallest bit of information about himself, he could see the wisdom in having her working with him, not against him. Maybe if he could get her out of that defensive posture and on his side…
    “I, ah, support a number of charities that cater to orphans in Russia. It would be a coup for people who want to see me fail to make the public believe I fathered a child out of wedlock, a child I supposedly proceeded to ignore. Donations might drop off and worse.” He felt his jaw harden. “I will not let that happen. No matter what they told you or paid you. I will not let that happen.”
    Sabrina stared into his eyes and he looked back at her, schooling his features into an impassive mask. “That’s all I will say about it. You have no job. If you choose to assist me, I will repay you handsomely though you hardly deserve that kind of consideration. If you refuse, I’ll see that you never work in New York again.”
    He folded his arms across his chest. Checkmate. She had to decide in his favor, but he waited for her to admit it.
    ****
    His eyes were as cold as the depths of the Hudson River in winter. This was the Vladimir Grigory whom business rivals feared and his own staff avoided crossing. There was no hint in his face of the Vlad who had been her lover for a day and a night less than twenty-four hours ago.
    She had no choice, but damned if she would let him see the pain his words caused.
    He hustled them out of the building and into the tiny sedan she had exited minutes before. He was on and off his cell phone the entire time. Sabrina set Alex next to her in the backseat buckled into a seatbelt. She didn’t have a toddler car seat, never had a use for one before. She had never gotten a driver’s license even. They traveled by subway or walked. Once she had secured him enough to prevent him from sliding out of the belt, she took a moment to relish the almost relaxed feeling of riding in a car, even a small one, with Alex as opposed to the stench and grime of the subway. It was a treat to be savored.
    She had thrown a few of Alex’s best clothes in a backpack. Sad to say that practically his entire wardrobe plus some of her own things fit inside it. They owned nothing more than the bare minimum. Alex grew so quickly, it didn’t make sense to stock up his wardrobe even if she could have afforded it.
    They drove past a group of vehicles near the entrance to the underground garage, and Sabrina instinctively ducked her head in the backseat. But it was okay. Perception was a funny thing. The paparazzi didn’t expect to see Vladimir Grigory driving a Prius.
    At his Manhattan apartment building, an imposingly handsome new tower near the tip of Manhattan, the private elevator took them straight to the penthouse overlooking lower Hudson Bay. The rooms were surrounded on all sides by sun-dappled views of the water and Lady Liberty. The center of it all was the huge living area from which five different paths led to various rooms of the apartment: kitchen, office, bedrooms, and all with an unimpeded view of the harbor. Sabrina felt like she was at the prow of a