Page 75 of Mr. and Mrs. Novak

And very gently, as if to seal this promise, his lips claim mine. It's not a passionate or urgent kiss, but a caress, a silent declaration. His lips are warm against mine, and I feel his hand slip into my hair, the other resting in the small of my back. My body responds before my mind has even decided, my arms wrapping around his neck, drawing him closer to me.

39. Interception

SOPHIA

Something pulls me from my sleep. And before I even realize where I am, my gaze falls on a beautiful orange tulip. It has bloomed! Despite my excitement, I avoid moving, not wanting to wake Ruslan. A smile spreads across my face when I see two other open flowers and the others about to bloom. They are magnificent. And at the sight of them, a strange tenderness overwhelms me for the man who prepared this gift. The attention he paid to this present is a silent promise. The promise of a brighter future for us.

As I contemplate them, I realize something: Ruslan's hand is holding my breast, and the pressure around it is anything but innocent. Then I feel something warm and very hard gently rubbing against my bare buttocks. And without warning, I go from wonderment to raw desire. I press my body more firmly against Ruslan's. His arm tightens around me, and the pressure of his hand becomes stronger on my chest. He inhales the scent of my hair, covers my neck with kisses, and nibbles my ear until my inner walls moisten with longing. The pressure against my buttocks grows stronger, and Ruslan slightly raises himself to meet me and capture my mouth. His feverish and passionate kiss captures me, and I melt under the expert caress of his tongue.

Very gently, as if afraid of hurting me, he slides between my legs and enters me inch by inch. I moan under his thrust that fills me so perfectly.

"It feels good," I whisper to him. "It feels so good to feel you inside me."

"I love you, Sophia," he finally confesses. "I have never loved anyone but you."

And very gently, he begins to move, coming and going inside me with a tenderness that brings tears to my eyes.

We make love like this for a long time, as if time has stopped and we have eternity ahead of us. Then, his breathing quickens, and his thrusts become stronger and deeper. After another kiss on the nape of my neck, he pivots us, placing me crouched on the bed, my head against the pillow and him behind me, while he continues to pound into me. Our embrace is now more animal, more raw, but I like that aspect of our relationship too. We are passionate beings in all aspects of our lives. I anchor myself on the bed to better meet him. Our moans mingle as our skin slaps against each other. Ruslan rises to his knees, his hands firmly gripping my buttocks while his movements become frantic.

"If you knew how sexy you look from here," he tells me as he watches the spectacle of his sex entering and leaving me.

I feel his testicles contract before he thrusts into me several more times. My body clenches around him as a devastating orgasm seizes us. After two final pushes, he ejaculates inside me and fills me with his seed. Then he pulls us both down onto the bed, tightly embraced.

God, how I love this man.

Much later, standing in front of the screens at the operation center, I face those present. The chief, my team of analysts, and the representatives of the intervention forces are all there, gathered around the tactical table. The silence is tense, charged with anticipation.

I take a breath and begin my explanations.

"With Ruslan Novak's help, I’ve traced the path of Stanford’s 'ghost' containers. They’re now moving under the flag of his partners and through their own shell companies."

A murmur runs through the room, quickly silenced by the chief’s sharp look.

"Continue, Sophia," he orders in a neutral tone.

I scroll through images on the central screen: maritime routes, offshore company names, falsified cargo manifests.

"We now have confirmation that a massive shipment is planned. Stanford is cornered. His 'clients' are growing impatient after the last three seizures. He’s going all in with six simultaneous shipments—three weapons, three drugs—split between road transport and the ports of Marseille and Le Havre."

I keep going, pointing at the data on the screen.

"Some shipments are already on the territory, in transit via different road carriers and logistics hubs. Others are set to arrive in Marseille and Le Havre. In total, three weapons deliveries and three drug shipments."

"If we time it right, we can take them all down by acting fast. We’re planning a simultaneous operation in forty-eight hours. They’ll never recover from this."

"Do you have available teams?" my chief asks the intervention force representatives.

"Yes, we can organize. Our units will intercept the convoys on the ground, and customs will handle the containers at the port. Three teams are ready to apprehend Stanislas Stanford."

"And his partners? Any progress, Sierra?" my chief asks, turning to me.

I swallow imperceptibly before responding.

"Yes. And that’s where things get much more concerning."

I bring up a series of faces, names, and connections between various groups on the screen.

"Diving deeper into his partners, we uncovered an underlying connection between them. They’re not just traffickers lured by profit. They’re all part of a far more structured network that actively supports neo-Nazi movements."