Her head snaps toward me. “Wait, what?”
I glance down at my hands. “He showed up. Ripped Wesley off me like it was nothing. Then his men dragged him off somewhere.”
“Go Aleksei.” Emilia smiles. “Maybe I’ve been too hard on him.”
“Nope. We still hate him.”
Her grin widens. “Right. Of course. Carry on.”
I shift, hesitating. “I didn’t see Wesley again, but…somehow, Aleksei and I…”
Emilia leans forward. “Yeah?”
Her smirk is pure mischief now.
“We…”
“Use your words, counselor.” She’s really having too much fun with this.
Groaning, I cover my face, peeking at her between two fingers. “We slept together.”
“Oh, what was that?” She cups a hand to her ear.
“You heard me.”
“I did. I just wanted to hear it again.”
I toss a napkin at her. “Shut up.”
She swats it away, eyes gleaming. “So…how was it?”
“Better than last time,” I mutter. “At least it wasn’t up against a tree.”
Her eyes grow.
“I’m sorry, WHAT?! You’ve been holding out on me?” She folds her arms across her chest.
I sigh. “It’s a long story.”
“Oh, we’re not leaving until I hear every detail. Start talking.”
“I didn’t mean not to tell you. I just…didn’t want to talk about it. It was awful. Not the…you know… That was…” I wave a hand. “But the fact that I let it happen. Twice. What the hell is wrong with me?”
Her expression softens. “I’m not judging. Obviously.”
She holds up her left hand, flashing the diamond that could blind a man.
“This is it, though,” I say, trying to convince both of us. “I scratched the itch. It’s done.”
“Totally.” She nods like she believes me. “Whatever you say.”
“I mean it.”
“I believe you.” She pauses. “I just think it’d be fun if we were sisters-in-law.”
I groan. “You’re insane. I would never,evermarry that man.”
“Sure.” She sips her water, unbothered. “But if you want kids, you’re going to have to actually start dating again.”
