Triston took advantage of the call to ask me a lot of questions about my change of bride. He’s already suspicious, as well he should be.
Which means, more than ever, I need to keep Sasha calm and happy as I decide how to deal with Sver and keep my family and Dimitri as allies.
It’s a delicate game and I’m walking a razor’s edge. But I can make my life easier by playing by the rules and keeping Sasha out of harm’s way.
Which means, Sasha and I are sticking close to home.
Sasha’s question was the right one to ask. This building is as safe as it gets. Cameras, reinforced stairwells and elevators, a full-time security team.
It’s built to survive earthquakes, bombs, holocausts.
Which is why I’ve invited the family here tonight, rather than going to Triston’s house, where we’d normally meet.
Triston suggested that Dimitri join us. And I agree. While I didn’t tell my brother about the extra casinos, I did tell him about the Russian hitman. And I’ll tell Dimitri too.
I’ll likely need his help as I figure out how to clear out the Beast, Sver, so that I can face Ivan Ivanov. I’ve got a promise to keep to my wife.
The problem is that Sasha has gone into full freakout mode and with Dimitri coming, I need her to relax. I can’t have Dimitri change his mind about the marriage now, because then all of this will be for naught.
Pocketing my phone, I leave the kitchen and head for the bedroom. Last I saw Sasha, she’d made her way in here with the bags and I haven’t seen her since.
I find her, not in the bedroom, or the bathroom, but in the windowless walk-in closet.
She’s not put a single thing away.
Instead, the bags are spread around her as she sits on the floor. Her jacket is tossed on the bench, her hair cascading down her back, her knees drawn up to her chest, as her chin rests on them. “Sasha.”
She jumps, her surprised eyes swinging to mine, looking haunted. I squat down next to her, reaching for her hands. “You’re all right.”
She shakes her head, nipping at her lip. “Maybe.”
“What are you afraid of?” I ask, leaning forward to brush my lips across her forehead. Sasha needs to get used to casual intimacy from me. It’s how we’ll appear legitimate to her family and the world.
Also, and I know I’m fucking losing it, but I just like touching her.
“That Sver is here to finish the job my father started,” she answers, pushing up to standing. “That he’s here to end my life.”
I follow, reaching for one of the bags on the floor. We might as well do something productive while we talk. So, grabbing out the contents, I start hanging the clothes.
One of the items is a casual floral dress. The green tones bring out the color of her eyes and the pinks in her skin.
Holding it in my hand, I shake my head. “I’m not going to let that happen.”
She looks away, also grabbing a bag, and begins to hang the clothes, crossing to the built-in bureau to put several items away. “I appreciate how your family protected me that night that my father tried to kill me and Dimitri,” she answers, balling the T-shirt she’s holding tight in her fists. “But my father paved his way to the top of the largest Bratva family in Russia with the bodies of his enemies. And Sver? He was the man who did all the dirty work.”
“You think I can’t keep you safe from him?” I ask, turning to face her. She needs to feel safe, so I’m going to say what she needs to hear. To myself, I acknowledge that she’s got a point. Killian knows how to operate in the shadows. I might need some lessons.
She looks at me then, her eyes uncertain. “I’ve never met a more dangerous man.”
“The building—” I start, trying to calm her fears.
“I got out, and I’m not even trained,” she answers with a small shrug of her shoulder. “He can get in whenever he wants.”
Shit. Another fucking good point. “Want to tell me how you did it?”
“Not really,” she whispers as she starts hanging clothes again.
“How can I fix the hole in the security if you don’t tell me what it is?” I set the dress on the bench, pulling out more clothes from another bag.
