He tossed the half-smoked cigarette away. “Inside but—”
I ignored him and pushed into the warmth of the building, lifting my hand to the reception staff as I was buzzed through. I didn’t say a word, and neither did they. Maybe they took one look at my face and realized that now wasn’t the time for pleasantries.
The place was a hive of activity. The residents already been taken from their rooms to the common room. I almost didn’t look inside, but I was glad I did when I spotted the back of my grandfathers’ balding head and a familiar curly, messy bun.
Oh, she was in trouble, and this time I would do more than scold her. This level of disobedience deserved a real punishment, and my palm burned with the need to take my displeasure out on her firm, round ass.
“I thought I told you,” I hesitated, coming to a stop in front of them. The laughter died on both of their faces as they stared up at me.
“Oh, you’re here as well, Alexei,” my grandfather said with a wide grin. “I have to admit I’m a little surprised you are out of yourbedroom. If I had such a beautiful new bride, I wouldn’t let her leave the bedroom for at least a month.” He winked, and Amy blushed, her eyes looking everywhere but at me.
Was she reliving last night? It sure looked like she was.
“When I first married your grandmother—” he went into one of his stories. His whole face came alive.
Pulling up a seat, I stared at her until she met my eyes.
“So, what are you doing here, Alexei?”
“I could ask the same about my wife,” I said pointedly, when there was a lapse in his story telling. An uneasy silence fell. Amy looked down at her shoes.
Looking between us, Nikolai frowned. “What is going on here?”
“I told Amy that she couldn’t work anymore. In fact, I expressly forbid it.” I waved my hands in front of me. “And yet here she is.”
Even with her head lowered, I could see the deep line between her eyebrows as she frowned.
Silence fell, not just from us, but from the other residents and carers, so maybe I said it too loudly. People weren’t looking at us directly, but I could still feel their eyes on us.
“We will discuss this when we get home, which will be soon. I have guests coming—”
“I’m not working,” she whispered.
“What?” My head swung around to glare at her.
“I am not working,” she said more firmly, lifting her chin to meet my eyes.
“Is that so?” I asked coldly. “So why are you here?”
If there was one thing I hated, it was being lied to, especially to my face.
“To visit—”
“She came to visit with me.” My grandfather said coldly, and I could hear the judgment in his voice like I was a rebellious teen again. “To sit and listen to some of my stories because she knows it makes me happy. You, on the other hand—” He left the rest unsaid, and I did a double take.
“I see,” I said softly. “That changes things, doesn’t it?”
It did change things, so why did I still want to bend her over my knee and spank her ass red?
“You really do need to give your wife some slack, Alexei, she is trying and you are—”
I am what? I wanted to scream, but I didn’t because the old man was the only person in the world that I would not argue with.
What Nikolai wanted, he got.
“I’m sorry, Amy,” I said, and the words felt strange and foreign on my tongue. I didn’t even remember the last time I had apologized.
Had I ever?
