Translation—get out. But I don’t move. Not yet.
This is the first time I’m seeing Yuri rattled—although just slightly—but it’s there. And somehow, instead of fear, what blooms in my chest is something much different.
Loyalty.
I pack up slowly, eyes on Spalding. He watches me right back. I hate that his gaze feels like he’s cataloging me. I hate more that he probably has a file on me I don’t know exists.
“Actually, I think I’ll head down to legal for those notes. Nice meeting you, Miss Jones,” he says before turning and walking away.
Yuri and I are alone once again.
CHAPTER 8
ASTRID
The door clicks shut behind Agent Spalding, thick silence following in his absence.
My heart is pounding in my ears. Not from fear exactly, but more like from the whiplash of being studied, sized up, and dismissed by a man with federal authority.
I turn back to Yuri. He’s leaning back in the chair like Spalding’s visit was merely an inconvenience, not a threat. But I can see the tension set in his jaw. The slight twitch in his fingers before he steeples them together.
“You okay?” he asks, voice low and deceptively soft. It reminds me of his tone on the plane, when he wanted to calm me down.
“I’m fine.”
The response is automatic and we both know it’s a lie. He doesn’t challenge me. Just looks at me like I’m a data set that returned an unexpected value.
I take a deep breath, trying to steady myself. “That guy wasn’t here for updates.”
Yuri’s mouth lifts at one corner—dry, humorless. “No, he wasn’t. He was here to make a point.”
I take a few cautious steps toward the desk, clutching my laptop with the portfolio I never got the chance to finish reading.
“Does that happen often?” I ask, watching his expression closely.
He tilts his head, eyes narrowing like he’s weighing how much to give me. “Only when someone’s trying too hard to catch us slipping.”
Us. Not me. Us. Interesting.
He studies me for a second, and I resist the urge to fidget. There’s something in the way he looks at me that sets my nerves on edge.
In response, I arch an eyebrow. “You don’t seem like the type who slips.”
He chuckles softly, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “You’d be surprised.”
His tone is almost wistful. I don’t know what to do with that.
I sit back down and open the portfolio again. My fingers feel clumsy, like they’re over aware of themselves. Still, I push through.
“So I’m guessing this is the part where I pretend not to notice half the people around here carry guns under their blazers?”
Yuri’s expression sharpens, but he doesn’t answer right away. “You’re observant,” he says at last. “I like that.”
I meet his gaze. “You have to be in this field.”
There’s a beat of silence before he stands and walks to the far side of the room, pushing a small button beside the window. The motorized blinds hum softly as they descend, blocking out the skyline.
“Too exposed,” he says.
