“Yes. Omar asked after you. I told him you said hello and asked for the staff to have an extra holiday this month as a favor to you.”
“They deserve a full month off of work for putting up with you.”
Oleg smiled, and she saw the glint of his fangs.
It was enough to bring the heat to her body.
Budapest could not come soon enough.
“How was your meeting with Ivan?”
“Delightfully deceptive.” He plucked at a thread on his cuff. “I left Ludmila and Oksana in Moscow to babysit him.”
“He should love that.”
“That is the hope. Ivan is going to be at this conference in Budapest next month.” He sat up straighter. “I don’t suppose you?—”
“I’m so busy right now.” She pointed to a stack of files on her desk. “Trying to move product east without using Ivan’s people is proving to be problematic, but I’ll figure it out. I know it’ll be better in the long run anyway.”
“Ah.” Oleg nodded. “Of course.”
A tiny, devious part of her thrilled at the idea of surprising her mate for once. Rumi was right—he was usually the one catching her off guard.
“So while Ivan is in Budapest, Ludmila and Oksana will be spying on his people?”
Oleg nodded. “Exactly.”
“Good plan.” Tatyana wondered whether she should do something similar. Who could she trust enough? “I am wondering whether I need to have my own spy. A Mika of my own, or someone like that.”
Oleg frowned. “Are you worried about sabotage?”
Tatyana shrugged. “We worked very hard to root out anyone who was part of Vano and Ivan’s little scheme, but there is always a chance that we missed someone.”
“It’s not a terrible idea to have an insider watching your organization, but the Poshani are a very closed society. You would have to choose carefully.”
Tatyana nodded. “I’ll think about it.”
“Ask Rumi. She will be your greatest resource in that regard.”
“Agreed.” She propped her chin on her hands and stared at the screen. “It’s not enough.”
“What?”
“Talking to you like this. Through a screen.”
“Volchitsa, I told you” —Oleg’s voice was a low growl— “don’t make me invade Poland.”
Chapter 5
Oleg
Budapest, Hungary
The Báthory Summit, so often an inconvenient obligation, was this year a welcome distraction for Oleg. His plans with Ivan were progressing well, and Ludmila and Oksana reported that grumbles of dissatisfaction were growing louder within his brother’s organization.
But this was an international conference.
Oleg would have the opportunity to mark Ivan as irrelevant on an international stage, and he was looking forward to it.
