Nothing Gold Can Stay

By Sarah Milks

 

            Grace Miller entered the building and was immediately caught off guard by it’s icy feeling.  She shouldn’t have been so surprised.  It was, after all, an ice arena.  But the coldness shocked her anyway.  She fiddled nervously with the all access pass hanging around her neck and tucked a stray auburn curl behind her ear for what felt like the millionth time that day.  No amount of preparation could have made her ready for this moment.  A figure skating enthusiast for as long as she could remember, she was only moments from meeting some of the top competitors in the world.  Her stomach did a triple flip, just wanting to remind her of how important this day was.  She had been the proud owner of ice side tickets to this event for months in advance.  But it had only been two days since she had called in to a local radio station on a bet and hung up with a backstage pass.  It still hadn’t quite sunk in.  But it was about to.  

            “May I help you?” a young woman dressed in a black and gray usher’s uniform questioned Grace kindly.

            Grace smiled and held up her pass.  “If you could tell me where to go to get backstage it would be much appreciated.”

            “No problem,” the usher responded.  “Follow me.”

            A few short minutes later Grace was standing in the middle of a cement-walled room, still fiddling with her pass.  To the left of her stood two-time Olympic Bronze Medalist, Philippe Candeloro.  To her right, surrounded by several young women, was Olympic Silver Medalist Elvis Stojko.  Grace was fairly certain that if she tried to move she would pass out from the sheer excitement of it all.  Thankfully, American champ Timothy Goebel approached her and immediately set her mind at ease.  They made quaint conversation and, noticing her slight shyness, he took it upon himself to introduce her to several other stars that were milling around backstage.

            Grace had been backstage for nearly an hour when Timothy turned to her suddenly, a look of epiphany on his face.  “There’s one more person you have to meet!” he told her matter-of-factly, his flamboyant attitude bringing a smile to her lips.  “He’s been touring with another show for the past couple of months.  This is his first week with us.  You probably didn’t even know he was going to be here.”  He winked at her playfully.

            “Who?” Grace questioned, winking back.  The majority of her nervousness had dissipated long ago.  She was completely at ease with this world famous skater.  “I don’t think anyone could possibly top Philippe,” she continued, only half joking.  Philippe overheard and grinned at her from a few feet away.  Timothy laughed.

            “You just wait.  Come with me!”  He excitedly took her hand and led her around the corner to what looked to be a private dressing room.  Grace’s heart sunk.  Nervousness returned.

            “Timothy,” she said seriously, pulling him back just slightly.  “I don’t want to interrupt anyone.  Whoever it is, if they didn’t come out to the meet and greet then I’m sure they don’t want to be disturbed.”

            “Nonsense,” Timothy brushed off her concern.  “I know him.  He loves fans.  He would come out eventually.  I just don’t want you to have to wait anymore.”

            Grace couldn’t help but giggle.  “You’re insane,” she informed him, a smile tugging at her lips.  “If you get me kicked out…”

            “Hush,” he interrupted, feminine hand gesture and all.  “This is fine, Gracie.  I promise.”  When Timothy had decided that he was close enough to Grace to refer to her as Gracie, she wasn’t sure.  But she kind of liked it.  The young man may have been gay, but he definitely held her interest.  “You just wait right here.  I’ll be back.”  And the next thing she knew, Timothy had disappeared inside the dressing room.

            Grace stood awkwardly in the hallway, running down the list of performers that were expected to be at this show.  She couldn’t think of one that she hadn’t already met, or at least seen for a fleeting moment.  The longer she stood there, the more her nervousness returned.  Who was Timothy attempting to introduce her to?  And was it really okay?  The last thing she wanted was to get in trouble with security, especially after coming so far and having such a good time.  Grace was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn’t notice the door opening in front her or the young man who stepped out into the hallway.  Her back was to him.  When she felt a light tap on her shoulder she almost jumped out of her skin.  What she did manage to do was spin around quickly and bump her head against something hard.  A shoulder.

            “Grace, no?” a lightly Russian-accented voice questioned.  Grace looked up, rubbing her head.  Her chocolate brown eyes widened and she had to remind herself to breathe.  He was standing so close.  Of course, he would have to be if she had been able to hit her head on his shoulder.  But logical thought didn’t mean much to Grace at that point in time.  She vaguely saw Timothy making a retreat down the hallway.  Beautiful blue eyes looked down on her inquisitively.  “Are you alright?”  The owner of those eyes smiled hesitantly.

            “Oh, yes,” Grace forced herself to squeak out.  Then she began to ramble.  “I’m fine.  I’m sorry.  You just surprised me.  I’m Grace.  Yes.”

            The young Russian man laughed and reached out for what she assumed would be a handshake.  When it turned into a hug and a kiss on the cheek she nearly lost it, not mentally able to remind herself that this was a typical greeting in nearly every part of Europe.  “My name is Alexei Yagudin,” he said when he let her go and she took a step back.  “It is good to meet you.  Tim said you are a fan, no?”

            Grace was standing in front of the current World Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist.  His blue eyes were shining down at her.  His massive thighs, muscular arms, and sculpted chest were only feet away.  She forced herself not to think about it.  If she thought about it she would no doubt do…well…something she didn’t want to think about.  She tried to make normal conversation.  “I’m a fan of the sport,” was what she came up with.  Alexei looked only slightly hurt.

            “But not me?” he asked, his smile growing even larger.  Grace could have kicked herself.

            “No, no, that’s not what I meant.  I just…oh…”

            Alexei laughed again and put his hand on her arm.  “It is okay.  I was joking.”  He paused momentarily; Grace thought that he looked like he was contemplating a serious event.  But that could have been her clouded judgement wanting to brush the piece of dark blonde hair that fell in his eyes from his forehead.  She silently thanked God that her hand remained at her side.  Score one for self-control.  “Would you like to come in?” Alexei finally asked, gesturing towards the door he had exited from just moments earlier. 

Grace must have been quite the sight to see.  Her mouth dropped open in genuine surprise.  She had no idea how to respond to that question.  Part of her thought he had never really asked it in the first place.  She managed a remarkably inarticulate, “uhh.”

“You do not have to,” Alexei said hurriedly.  “I just thought…” he stopped abruptly when he realized that he was partially thankful for Grace’s hesitance.  What was he thinking?  Inviting a complete stranger into his dressing room?  A cute stranger, no doubt, but that was beside the point.  His coach would be less than pleased, even if this was just an exhibition.  But upon seeing Grace he suddenly had no desire to go out and speak with the other fans.  Meet and greets were usually one of the best parts of his day.  But now it seemed relatively pointless.  He assumed that talking one on one with the pretty girl in front of him would be much more interesting. 

“Well,” Grace did her best not to stumble over her words.  “Don’t you have to go out to the meet and greet?  There are a lot of other fans out there that I’m sure would jump at the chance to get to talk to you.”

Alexei had to force himself not to laugh at the irony of her question.  But he knew she was right.  “You come with me then.”  It wasn’t a question.

“Okay,” Grace replied, a normal smile finally returning to her soft pink lips.  “Sounds like a plan.”  She happily followed him down the hallway and out to the main waiting area. 

Twenty minutes later security entered the fan-packed room and began escorting people out.  Apparently the final hour before show time was reserved for the various skaters to get mentally and physically prepared.  Only family or extremely close friends were allowed to remain during this portion of the pre-show ritual.  Therefore, Grace was more than a little taken aback when Alexei told the security guard that was approaching her that she could stay.  She glanced at Alexei, her eyes questioning him thoroughly, but she said nothing.

Alexei shrugged his shoulders and turned to Grace as the guard left.  “I just have to stretch.  We can talk while I do that, yes?”  She smiled in spite of herself.  The way his Russian accent crept in at the end of his sentences was endearing.  It would be very easy to get used to.  Grace checked that thought as soon as it entered her mind.  This was just a skater being kind to a fan, nothing more and nothing less.  The fact that she was one of the only people left backstage made that hard to believe, but she gave it her all.

“Yeah, sure.  I talk; you stretch.  I think I can do that.”  She pushed an unruly curl out of her eyes, skeptically noticing that Alexei was no longer staring at her face.  Grace tried to ignore it as his gaze returned to eye-level.  “So,” she cleared her throat, slightly uncomfortable.  “Where do you stretch?”

“Anywhere,” was his nonchalant reply.  “But tonight, I think my dressing room is a good idea.”  He stood up and reached for Grace’s hand.  She had no choice but to follow him.  Not that any other choice would have appealed to her right then.  She did her best not to notice Timothy winking at her as she and Alexei passed him in the hallway.

“So, where are you from?” Alexei asked as the two entered his dressing room and he closed the door behind them.  Without waiting for an answer he got down on the floor and began to stretch.  Grace opted for a chair in the corner of the room.

“Here…umm…Chicago,” she answered, staring down at her hands as to avoid being caught drooling at the sight of Alexei’s taught body flexing beneath his warm-ups.  “I moved here when I graduated from college.”

Alexei lifted his head as his hand stretched effortlessly down his leg and to his Nike clad foot.  “College?” he inquired.  “How old are you?”  He had taken her for being in her late teens at the most.  A little young for his twenty-two years, but nothing he couldn’t overlook.  He shook his head.  What was he thinking?

“Yes, college.  I’m originally from Connecticut, but I went to college in Michigan and then came here last year.  I’m 22.  But, I know…I look younger than that.  You don’t have to remind me.”

“I say nothing,” Alexei responded, switching legs.  Grace caught a gasp in her throat at the fluidity with which his forehead bent down to touch his knee.  She quickly crossed her legs, pleading with her mind to think of anything but what was currently running through her head.  “I live in Connecticut now,” Alexei interrupted her quickly spiraling thoughts.  “Is nice.  You not like it?”

“No, no, I liked it.  I just wanted to get away from home.  I miss all the great skating though.  Everyone trains in Connecticut, it seems like.”

Alexei, his legs remaining in a split position, leaned forward until his chest was lying flat against the light blue carpeted floor.  He rested his chin on the carpet but kept his eyes, remarkably close to the color of said carpet, on Grace.  “Do you skate?”

“Not like you,” Grace responded honestly and, perhaps, a bit too quickly.  She bit her lip as she felt the redness rise in her cheeks.  “I mean, I’m far from being a professional.  It’s just recreation to me.”

“But you skate?” Alexei continued to pry.

“Yes,” she nodded timidly.  “I skate.”

Alexei smiled.  “You don’t look like skater.”

Grace arched an eyebrow.  “I didn’t know skater’s had a certain look.”

It was Alexei’s turn to be embarrassed.  “I just mean, you have real body.  All Russian girl skaters are so tiny.  You could break them,” he chuckled, a sparkle in his eye.  He had apparently picked up on some American slang since his move to the States from St. Petersburg, Russia. 

“That’s exactly why I’m not a professional,” Grace informed him, fully aware of how long he had been able to remain in that stretch position.  He was so flexible it hurt her to think about it.  “All my coaches wanted me to lose weight when I was a kid.  But it never happened.  I guess I just wasn’t meant to be that small.”

“Smaller is not always better,” Alexei replied deviously.  Grace couldn’t help but blush at the double meaning of his words.  He sat up slowly and stretched his arms high above his head.  His triceps flexed accordingly.  Grace recrossed her legs.  “Where are you sitting tonight?”

“I have front row seats on the left side of the ice, almost center.”

“Impressive,” he quipped, bringing his arms back down and fully standing up.  He bent at the waist until his forehead was again touching his knees.  He wrapped his arms around his legs.  Grace was left with an amazing view of his back muscles constricting underneath his flimsy white t-shirt.  “Must have been expensive.”

“I’m sure it will be worth it.”  Grace swallowed hard.  Each passing second was making it more difficult to concentrate on the conversation at hand.   

Alexei raised his head and gave Grace a lopsided grin.  “I hope so.”  He quickly changed the subject.  “What did you go to college for?”  It took Grace several seconds to compose herself.  Alexei only seemed to be egged on by her lack of resistance to his charms.  He began to jog in place, waiting for her to answer.  The gold crucifix that always hung around his neck bobbed up and down smoothly.

“Umm, English,” she finally responded, shaking her head and looking away from him.  “I work in Public Relations right now.  But I want to be a writer someday.”  This seemed to once again pique Alexei’s interest.

“A writer of what?”

Grace shrugged and toyed with the silver cross lying in the opening of her blouse.  “Fiction.  Romance, maybe.  But not trashy.  I want to be a legitimate author.”

With the same ease with which he stretched, Alexei managed to knock any words right of Grace’s mouth.  “Perhaps you could write about meeting handsome athlete and falling in love.  It would sell, yes?  I would buy.”  Grace giggled for lack of anything better to do.  Alexei chuckled as well.  “Maybe you should get to your seat now,” he suggested, surprisingly not out of breath.  “The show will be starting soon.”

Grace nodded as Alexei stopped jogging.  “Yeah, okay.  That’s probably a good idea.”  She stood up and reached out her hand to him.  “It was a pleasure meeting you.”

Alexei looked down at Grace’s hand and then up to her eyes.  He caught her gaze and held it for several seconds, complete silence in the room.  Finally, he spoke.  But not before he had taken hold of her hand and kissed it softly.  “I do not say goodbye yet.  Come back after the show.  We will have dinner.”  The fact that Alexei didn’t pose it as a question made Grace weak in the knees.  She had no option but to agree with him.

~*~

            The ice show was spectacular.  It was everything that Grace had expected and more.  She had cheered with the best of them for each and every skater that took the ice.  Their talent amazed her as always.  While she had watched the show, her encounter with Alexei had been pushed from her mind.  But now that she was walking all alone towards the backstage area again, she couldn’t help but think about it.  She had absolutely no idea what to expect.  That was intriguing and frightening all at once.  When she passed through the security checkpoint without even a second glance the reality of the situation caught up with her.  She quickly scanned the large room for a place to sit down.  Grace made it to an overstuffed leather chair just in time.  Her knees would have given out on her had she waited even a second longer.

            “Hey Gracie,” she heard a somewhat familiar voice say from beside her.  She looked up to find Timothy Goebel once again standing next to her.  He easily took a seat on the arm of the chair as he toweled off his wet hair.  Grace assumed he had just come from the shower.  “You alright, sweetie?”

            “I’m fine,” she lied, forcing a smile.  “Just a little overwhelmed.”

            Timothy put his arm around her shoulders and leaned down to kiss her cheek.  “Don’t be.  He’s just a normal human being like me and you.  He doesn’t bite, I promise.”  He winked, insinuating that he knew something that Grace didn’t.  A small laugh found it’s way past her lips.  “That’s better,” Timothy told her.  “And hey, let me tell you a secret, just between you and me.”  He leaned in closer to her ear.  “Alexei isn’t nearly as confident as he seems when it comes to this kind of stuff.  Don’t let him intimidate you.  He’s probably just as nervous as you are.”

            “Thanks, Tim,” Grace answered sweetly.  “I appreciate it.”  But part of her didn’t.  Her stomach once again sunk as Timothy walked away.  What did he mean by, “this kind of stuff”?  Grace wasn’t sure that she wanted to be able to comprehend it.

            A very sweaty Alexei entered the room and Grace realized that she had run out of time to think about it.  “Hi,” Alexei greeted her, pulling his tight black costume shirt over his head.  His bare chest glistened.  Grace refused to look anywhere but at his eyes.  “You stay here…or come, whatever.  I take shower, then we go.”

            “I’ll…I’ll stay here, I think,” Grace managed to say in some sort of coherent manner. 

            Alexei winked.  “I be back in ten minutes.”  True to his word, he returned just over ten minutes later.  He was now dressed in slimming khaki pants and a soft blue pullover sweater.  His hair was wet but surprisingly unmessy.  He looked amazing.  Grace wanted to tell him so but decided against it.  Instead, she simply smiled.

            “You ready?”

            Alexei nodded as Grace stood up.  “Yes.  Where should we eat?”

            Grace looked down at the silver watch around her wrist.  “Well, it’s getting a little late.  There isn’t a lot open…at least not in the good part of town…on a Sunday night.”

            “You could come to the hotel,” he suggested.  Grace quickly dropped her eyes down to her feet.  “There is nice restaurant at hotel,” Alexei explained, chuckling at what Grace had inferred.  “Open all night.”

            Clearing her throat, Grace hesitantly looked back up into his smiling eyes.  “Okay, we can go there.  Where are you staying?”

            “The Double Tree.”  He held out his hand.  “I drive.”  Grace stared at him like he had lost his mind.  But he didn’t put his hand down.  Reluctantly, she pulled her keys from her purse and tossed them to him.  He smiled.  “Where is your car?”

            “In the ramp outside,” she replied, beginning to walk towards the exit.  She somehow kept herself from stumbling when she felt Alexei’s hand come to rest on the small of her back. 

The two made idle chitchat as they walked to Grace’s car.  Alexei was never far from her side, his hand always touching her ever so lightly whether it be on her back, her arm, or elsewhere.  She liked the feeling of his skin against hers.  The heat growing between them was hard to miss.  When the arrived at her shiny forest green Saturn, Alexei opened the door for her and let her in.  Grace scrambled to collect her thoughts as he strolled leisurely around the small car and then got in the drivers side himself. 

The next twenty minutes were a lesson in patience and self-restraint for Grace.  Alexei had clearly not learned how to drive in the States.  She held on for dear life as he barely made it through traffic lights, tailgated every vehicle in front of him, and cut through parking lots in order to skip stop signs.  Grace just held on for dear life and prayed.  She was much too frightened to attempt a conversation.  She didn’t want to distract Alexei in any way.

“We’re here,” Alexei said casually as he pulled to a stop in front of the large hotel.  Grace gave out a sigh of relief and opened her eyes.  She had never been so thankful to be anywhere in her entire life.  While she was saying her silent praises, Alexei laughed, exited the car, and walked around to open the passenger side door for her.  As she got out, he slowly ran his hand down her arm until their fingers were intertwined.  With his free hand, he tossed her keys to the valet.  “Sorry,” he said softly.  “My coach says I skate better than I drive.”

Grace laughed nervously.  “You could have told me that before I gave you the keys to my car.”

Alexei winked, his smile stretching widely across his lips.  “I make up for it later.  I promise.”

The two continued to make small talk as Alexei ushered Grace inside of the hotel and towards what he had called the restaurant.  It was definitely more of a lounge than anything else.  But the menu boasted something about the city’s best hamburgers so Grace figured it couldn’t be all that bad.  Continuing on with his gentleman-like persona, Alexei pulled out Grace’s chair and waited for her to sit down before he took a seat himself.  She smiled at him from across the table, pleasantly surprised with these formalities.

“You skated very well tonight,” Grace began, suddenly realizing that she hadn’t yet complimented him on his performance.  Alexei smiled but shrugged it off.

“Was just an exhibition.  No pressure.  Only fans.  But it is good to skate without judges.  Much more fun.  Have you ever competed?”

“When I was younger,” she replied, looking over the drink list and trying to decide what form of liquid courage would go best with chili-cheese fries.  “I stopped once I hit high school.  It got too expensive.  Besides, I wasn’t winning much.”

Alexei looked saddened by that.  “My family lived in one room apartment in Russia so I can skate.  When I won first big competition I give them money to get house.  Was least I could do.”

“Do you think they’ll ever move here to live with you?” Grace asked, intrigued by the sadness that plagued his sea-blue eyes when his family was discussed.  She had read in several different articles that he was extremely close to his mother.  She guessed it must be hard for him to be away from her.

“I think no,” Alexei informed her, closing his menu and laying it on the table in front of him.  The subject seemed to be closed as well.  “Tell me more about you.  I think you know enough of me, yes?”

Grace once again found herself blushing.  But she didn’t mind fulfilling his request.  They spoke quietly for the next hour or so, nibbling at the large order of chili-cheese fries Alexei decided that they should share and sipping at their drinks.  A Corona for Grace and a Smirnoff Ice for Alexei.  Grace found herself in a situation she had not initially expected.  She really liked this man.  Not Alexei Yagudin the Olympic Gold Medalist.  Just Alexei the young man from Russia who had a sincere passion for life.  He was exceedingly easy to talk to, but, more than that, he was easy to listen to.  Alexei wore his heart on his sleeve and, as he revealed to Grace, this often caused him more pain than anything else.  It had been longer than Grace cared to remember since she had felt this at ease with any man.  She tried to force from her mind the thought that she would probably never see him again after this night.  Fate, it seemed, was again playing a cruel trick on her heart.  Grace could envision herself falling in love with Alexei in the future.  But she wouldn’t, because she knew there would be no future.  Not for them.  It wasn’t possible.

            As the waitress was coming back to their table to bring them each their third drink, Alexei looked down at his large gold watch.  “I think we should be done, Grace.  Yes?”

            Looking down at her hands folded neatly in her lap, Grace nodded.  “Yes, I suppose it is getting a little late.  I should probably head home.”  She made no attempt to move from the table.  “I…I had a good time with you tonight.”  Her eyes never met his.

            Alexei reached across the small table and put his hand beneath Grace’s chin, lifting her gaze just slightly.  “Don’t be sad, Grace.  You,” he paused for a brief second, clearing his throat.  “You could stay.  Just for a little longer.  My room is upstairs.  I do not share with anyone.”

            The left side of Grace’s mouth lifted a tiny bit.  Not quite a smile but definitely not a frown.  “I don’t know, Yashka,” she said timidly, calling Alexei by the nickname that he said most of his friends used.  “Maybe it is for the best that I go now.  I don’t want things to be…awkward.  My memories of this night are too good to ruin now.”

            “Ruin? No, Gracie,” he said sincerely, his eyes boring into her own.  “Nothing will ruin this.  Stay.  Please?”  He gently removed his hand from beneath her chin and ran it down the side of her neck, letting it come to rest on her shoulder.  He fingered the wide collar of her blouse.  “Please?” 

Against her better judgement, Grace nodded her head.  Alexei stood up, quickly slipping a fifty-dollar bill out of his wallet and onto the table.  He walked around to Grace’s chair, pulled it out for her, and kissed her cheek quickly before taking her hand in his own.  “You will not regret,” he whispered in Grace’s ear, slowly leading the way to his room.

~*~

            “Gracie?” Alexie barely whispered as he closed the door to his hotel room behind them.  She turned around and smiled shyly, suddenly aware of how attracted to this beautiful man she really was. 

“Yes?”

            “I would like to kiss you.”

            Try as she might, no verbal comment seemed a worthy answer.  She simply nodded in agreement and reminded herself to breathe as he inched closer to her.  The touch of his lips against hers was numbing.  Softer than she had anticipated, she hoped he would never stop.  When his tongue pressed gently against her lips she opened them accordingly.  As she did, his strong arms slipped blithely around her waist and pulled their bodies closer together.  Grace was thoroughly out of breath when Alexei eventually stepped back from her.  Her eyelids drooped as she looked up at him.

            “Wow,” she mumbled, reaching out and touching his structured jaw line with the back of her hand.  “You can do that again if you want.”

            Alexei chuckled and pulled her back to him.  His toned body seemed to melt right into hers.  And Grace didn’t mind.  She wanted to give him all of her.  Even if it was just for one night.  She could make one night be enough.  His kisses clouded her entire being.  She vaguely felt him moving her backwards to the bed, but she didn’t fully register what that meant.  It wasn’t until her head hit the pillows, Alexei’s hands undoing the buttons on the front of her blouse one by one, that she understood.  And still, she didn’t care.  She knew what she was getting herself into and she just couldn’t bring herself to care. 

            “Yashka,” Grace whispered, arching her back and closing her eyes.  She needed him to feel more of her.  All of her.  He pushed her blouse from her shoulders and his fingers found their way to the front closing clasp of her silky bra.  As he undid it Grace wrapped her arms tighter around his back, moving her hands down until they rested just at the bottom of his sweater.  She wanted it off of him.  She wanted to feel the muscles she knew were there flexing beneath her touch.  But first she wanted to revel in the feeling of his nimble fingers rolling her nipples playfully.          

            Alexei seemed to understand Grace’s need.  In one swift movement he pulled the sweater over his head and tossed it onto the floor.  Grace’s blouse soon followed.  Her bra lay open, but Alexei didn’t remove it at first.  Instead, he brought his mouth down to her breast and took one nipple between his teeth.  He nibbled it gently before sucking it fully into his mouth, causing it to become a hardened peak.  Grace thought she would lose her mind.  She carefully scratched her manicured nails down the flesh of his back, memorizing each ripple.  There was nothing about him or this moment that she would ever want to forget. 

            Only when Grace felt the cool air of the hotel room on her skin did she realize that Alexei had pulled away.  She opened her eyes and looked up at him, questioning.  “What’s wrong?”  He smiled down at her graciously.

            “Nothing. Only, you are beautiful.  I wonder how I get so lucky.”

            Grace felt the heat race directly to the apex between her thighs.  Men had called her beautiful before.  But never a man as spectacular as this one.  To think that he thought of her as anything more than mundane was an extreme compliment in her eyes.  She once again cursed fate for making him who he was.  Walking away from him was going to be one of the hardest things she had ever done.  Blinking back tears, Grace swallowed hard and pulled Alexei back down to her.  She kissed him hard, feeling his obvious erection grow against her thigh. 

“Yashka,” she said again, almost pleading this time.  “I need you. I need this.  Please, make love to me.”

He whispered something in return, something in Russian.  She couldn’t understand it but she knew it must have been good for it was accompanied by his fingers slowly pushing down the zipper on her classic black pants.  Piece by piece, slowly but surely, the rest of their clothing came off.  Grace did her best to take to memory every aspect of Alexei’s body.  But her mind shut off as she pushed his khakis down his muscled thighs and quickly realized that, off the ice, he didn’t wear underwear.  Her eyes were immediately drawn to his erection.  The male anatomy, on the whole, had never been overwhelmingly attractive to Grace before.  But, as in most other aspects she had seen, Alexei was different.  He was simply magnificent.  He stood tall and proud, larger than the spandex he wore on ice had ever really revealed.  Grace once again found herself repeating in her mind that she must breathe.  She wrapped her hand around him and he groaned, falling against her and burying his head in her neck.  He tongue kissed her there as her fingers worked their magic on him between their bodies.

“Gracie,” he ground out between various phrases in Russian.  “You have no idea.  It has been so long.”  It did her heart good to hear this.  To know that bringing a fan back to his room was not an every night ritual for Alexei.  It never even crossed her mind that he could be lying.  He sounded too sincere for that to be a possibility.  This sweet torture continued on for several minutes before he finally pushed her hand away, begging with her to stop.  His breath came in short gasps but his words were clear.  He wanted to please her now.

All coherent thought fled from Grace’s mind as Alexei made his way down her body.  His fingers, lips, and tongue seemed to touch everything.  Not a patch of skin was left uncharted.  He touched her in ways that she hadn’t previously known were possible.  It had never occurred to Grace that having the spot where her leg connected with her hip tongue kissed could be a turn on.  It revealed itself to be so erotic that she nearly passed out.  But that was nothing compared to what she felt when his tongue darted between her now dripping folds.  She cried out his name and arched herself off the bed.  Alexei reached up and placed one strong hand on her abdomen.  That hand was all it took to hold her in place.  She writhed about mercilessly, but she never pulled away from his tongue.  Before long he had pushed her over the edge into oblivion, recklessly calling out his name.  Stars flashed before her eyes.  But he didn’t stop.  Once, apparently, was not enough for him.  His fingers now joined the assault.  He kept it up until she spilled into his mouth a second and third time, until Grace simply couldn’t take it anymore, literally sobbing and pushing him away.

Grace had little time to recover.  Mere seconds later his lips were once again on hers.  She could taste herself in his mouth, something that she found less than pleasing with other men but with Alexei it seemed only right.  He pulled away and kissed her forehead, his blue eyes now darkened with lust.  Again, he spoke to her in Russian.  What she wouldn’t have given for a translator at that moment.  But, in reality, it didn’t matter what he was saying.  The tone with which the words flowed from his lips was enough.  Alexei brought his head down until their foreheads were touching, their eyes mere inches apart.  His erection dug into her inner thigh.  Grace was lost to herself.  She was his now.

“I want to be inside you,” Alexei whispered.  Grace could only bring herself to whimper in return.

Alexei’s hand slipped between their bodies and he positioned himself at her entrance.  She took him in with little trouble.  The gasp in her throat never leaving her mouth for the kiss he placed there instead.  Only one thrust and he was buried inside her.  She had never felt so full.  She doubted she would ever feel this way again.  Her eyes drifted shut as they found their rhythm.  Slow at first, tediously slow.  But Alexei knew what he was doing.  He brought Grace just to the brink but wouldn’t allow her to fall over into that bliss she so wanted.  He left her craving for more.  More of him.  Grace’s left leg snaked over his right, attempting to pull him closer.  Closer wasn’t a possibility.  There wasn’t even room for air between them.  The only things moving were his hips.  His strong, magnificent hips.  How he could fill her over and over again with such little movement, Grace wasn’t sure.  But she liked it.  She liked it a lot.

“Yashka,” Grace purred, her hands tugging at his hair.  “Please…more…” the words faded from her lips as he increased the intensity of his movements.  He shifted just slightly causing the ridge of his hipbone to brush against her clit with every thrust.  Grace collapsed down into the bed, her entire body giving out on her.  Her fingers clung to the crucifix around Alexei’s neck for dear life.  He smiled and dropped his head, picking up the tiny silver cross that lay on her chest with his teeth.  He sucked it into his mouth and winked at her.  The cross slowly slipped from his mouth as she pulled him down for another kiss.

The words that Alexei chose to whisper into Grace’s ear for the next several moments were some of the most erotic she had ever heard.  And she didn’t understand a single one of them.  But the way he looked at her when he said them, every ounce of his being so intense, was translation enough.  Her breaths came in quick gasps.  Their sweat mingled.  He intertwined their fingers and brought her hands above her head, giving him just that added bit of leverage.  She felt his lips on her neck as he continued to whisper whatever it was that he was saying.  Grace never wanted it to end.  But then, out of nowhere, it hit her.  It hit her like a ton of fast moving trains.  Alexei’s tone switched from erotic to encouraging.  She knew he was coaxing her on.  And that made it all the easier to let go.  Grace did more than tumble into much needed bliss.  She catapulted there.  Alexei was not far behind, exploding inside of her and shouting out her name.  Anyone staying on the same floor of the hotel could have heard them.  But they didn’t care.  The universe was theirs at that moment.  No one else existed.

Neither Alexei nor Grace made any move to untangle themselves from each other’s arms for several minutes.  Alexei didn’t want to leave the warm and welcoming confines of Grace’s body.  Grace was in no hurry to let him go.  But finally he did slip from her, kissing her sweetly on the lips as he went.  Still, they remained side by side, legs and arms continuing to mingle together.  Again, Alexei whispered something in Russian.  Grace’s curiosity got the best of her.  She smiled shyly.  “What does that mean?”

Alexei kissed her earlobe as she placed her head on his chest, his fingers running up and down her arm.  “Golden,” he replied softly.  “I say that you are golden.” 

It took every last bit of strength Grace had to not break down right then.  She swallowed hard and kissed his chest.  “No, not me.  You are the golden one, Yashka.”

“I think no one ever sound so good calling me that,” he chuckled lightly.  “And many have called me that.”

Grace was silent for several seconds, not wanting to disrupt the reverie that she was in.  But she knew it couldn’t last forever.  “I should go,” she finally forced herself to say the words she had been thinking.  “I’m not good with goodbyes and there is no need…”

“Quiet,” Alexei interrupted, soft but serious.  “Now is not right time.  You leave in morning.  Night is not yet over.”  The kiss he placed on her neck sealed the deal.

Grace decided to stay.  She and Alexei made love again that night and into the early morning.  The amount of times did not matter.  They all blurred together into one earth-shattering ordeal, anyway.  It was only after they were both thoroughly spent that Grace rolled over to look at the tiny bedside clock.  Dawn was fast approaching.  Silent, she rolled out of the now messy hotel bed and slipped into her clothes.  She did her best not to look at Alexei’s sleeping form, but it wasn’t easy.  Tears slid down her cheeks as she gazed upon him one final time before leaving the room.  Goodbye would only complicate things, she told herself.  So she left without ever saying it.