“I’ll be thinking about it, too,” I tell him, making him smile again.
He leads me out into the kitchen where Katya is already setting the table for the three of us. Svetlana gives me a big smile and then discreetly watches as Vasily leans down to give me another kiss before shouting for Andrei and Ilya in Russian. All three men are in suits tonight and make an impressive picture that I’m sure will draw every eye to them. It makes me wonder where in the hell they’re going. Vasily told me he owns strip clubs, but surely that’s not where they’re going. I wish I’d thought to ask him when we were alone. He cups my face one last time and kisses me. When I meet his eyes, he gives me a wink before turning and joining his men.
Once the door shuts, I feel completely alone and awkward in this giant house with two women that I barely know. Ruslan comes up and nudges my hand with his head, reminding me that I’m not as alone as I think I am.
“Wow,” Svetlana says, breaking the ice and making me feel instantly better. “I’ve never seen Vasya like that before.”
“He’s your boss,” Katya reminds her daughter, but there’s a smile playing at her lips.
“He is, but I also grew up with him. I’m used to quiet, brooding Vasya, notI’m in loveVasya.”
“Oh, he’s not, I mean, we haven’t really talked about that,” I quickly say, wanting to stop the rumor mill before it starts.
“He doesn’t need to say it,” Svetlana says, bringing the salad plates to the table. “It’s written all over that man.”
I know I’m falling hard for him, but I don’t want to assume it’s hitting him as quickly as it’s hitting me. Wanting to change the subject, I say, “So what about,” but the sharp shake of Svetlana’s head and the desperate, pleading look she gives me has me quickly saying, “Ilya?” instead of asking about her and Andrei. “He seems to be quite the ladies’ man,” I add, hoping I didn’t fuck that up bad enough for it to be noticeable.
Katya is busy scooping potatoes onto our plates and doesn’t seem to have caught my blunder because she laughs and says, “Ilya’s problem isn’t that he can’t find a girl, it’s that he finds too many. Ever since he was a teenager, he’s had girls hanging all over him. They all have, but the others are pickier than he is.”
We sit down to eat, all my worries and anxiety disappearing as they tell me stories about Vasily when he was younger. I love learning new things about him. They tell me all about how he and Svetlana and his two brothers used to pick mushrooms when they’d go to the dacha and then tell each other ghost stories until they were too scared to go to sleep. It gives me a glimpse of him as a young boy, and it makes me hungry to know more.
After supper when Katya asks if I want to see some photo albums, I quickly say yes and join her on the couch. I pore through the albums, laughing as she and Svetlana tell me stories and point everyone out to me. I smile at a photo of Vasily with his two brothers. Vladimir, who they all call Volodya, is only slightly shorter than Vasily with a broody scowl on his face that makes it clear he doesn’t care for having his photo taken. Valeri, the youngest brother, has a huge grin on his face and a dimple in the middle of his left cheek, making him look younger than he is. They’re all three gorgeous, and I’m guessing a lot of Russian girls had their hearts broken by the three Medvedev brothers.
Another photo shows the three sons with their parents. Their dad’s sitting at the dinner table with a laughing woman on his lap. Her head is thrown back mid-laugh, and the surprised look on her face makes it obvious that he’s just grabbed her and pulled her down to him.
“Their parents look so happy.”
Katya sighs and smiles at the photo. “Yes. They were so much in love. After Konstantin was killed, Tatiana never got over it, poor thing.”
“Vasily mentioned that his mom spends most of her time at their dacha.”
“That’s where she feels closest to Konstantin. Her best memories are there, so that’s where she prefers to be.”
I look at their smiling faces again. I’d never know by looking at the photo that the man smiling at his wife was the head of a Bratva. He seems so approachable and happy. Of course a photo only gives you a glimpse of a single moment in time. This is how he was with his wife. I’m guessing he was a very different man with his men. We look through several more photos before Svetlana lets out a yawn, sending off a chain reaction. I’ve been trying hard to not worry about Vasily and whatever it is he’s doing, but the longer he stays away, the more I start to worry.
“Thank you so much for showing me these,” I tell them as we all get up and they start getting ready to go back to their apartment.
Katya puts the albums back on the shelf. “They’re right here if you ever want to look through them again. He’s a good man, Nina. I’m not going to lie and say the man’s an angel,” she says with a soft laugh, “but he’s a good man.”
I smile at her, glad that Vasily’s had Katya watching out for him all these years. I give them both a hug and notice that Svetlana’s lingering behind a bit. As soon as Katya leaves she turns to me and says, “Thanks for not asking about me and Andrei. My mom doesn’t know about us yet, and even though I’m thirty fucking years old,” she says with a laugh, “I’d really rather avoid the mom lecture. I don’t think she’d approve, and I just don’t want to deal with it.”
“I understand, and don’t worry, I won’t say a word.”
“Thanks, Nina.” She gives me another hug. “I’m really glad Vasya found you. I’ve never seen him so happy.”
Smiling at her words, I wave goodbye to her and walk with Ruslan to our bedroom. Not wanting to face the bed alone, I go and sit on the balcony and grab the phone he gave me. I don’t want to bother him, so I don’t text. I just keep it on my lap so I’ll hear it if he calls or texts. Eventually I drift off to sleep with Ruslan lying beside me.
Chapter 10
Vasily
“Ican’t believe that bastard fucking ruined my suit.” I look down at the blood splattered all over my newest Tom Ford and let out another angry string of Russian.
Ilya laughs and smacks my shoulder. “That’s what happens when you nearly slice a man in two, Vasya.”
I hadn’t meant to be so aggressive, but the thought of this bastard forcing his way into my Nina had sent me into an all-consuming rage. I’d lost myself completely in my anger, and by the time I’d gotten control of the situation, the man was closer to two pieces instead of one, well, more like closer to several pieces instead of one.
“On the plus side, you did make it a lot easier for the guys to get rid of the body,” Andrei says.
