Here, it was a month after I searched out that perfect antique Russian ring for Lilia and risked death by proposing in front of almost her entire family. And we still weren’t married. I imagined we’d take a quick trip to a courthouse, but no, my beautiful bride, who was no longer that shy as long as I was around, wanted a nice, long engagement.
She and her cousins were planning her dream wedding and taking their sweet time, and I was fine with it as long as she moved back in with me. I wasn’t exaggerating when I said I couldn’t live without her by my side.
With my crew completely overhauled and all the rats exterminated, my secret mansion wasn’t so secret anymore, but it was completely safe. I could wait as long as she needed for that trip down the aisle that was so important to her, as long as she was in my bed in the interim.
When I wasn’t working to rebuild the LA branch of the Collective, we were busy visiting just about every tourist trap in Southern California. We had taken a surfing lesson, toured vineyards, held our arms over our heads, and shouted as we sped down roller coasters. She even managed to get me to a pottery class, citing that she missed the last one because of me.
It’s been fun. I was no longer obsessed with the things that used to get me out of bed in the morning. The Collective was on its way back to being respected and feared, and we were getting along well with the Petrovs, both organizations gaining riches and power without stepping on the other’s toes. But the most important thing would always be Lilia.
Her family was still clearly scoping me out, waiting for me to slip up, but I kept warning them not to hold their breaths.The scrutiny was mildly annoying but worth it. It was all worth it now that she was truly mine.
The doorbell rang, and Lilia scampered past me to answer it, pausing to shake her head at my fake scowl. “It’s going to be fun,” she said.
She hustled her cousin Rurik inside, and he gave me the same nod I gave him as we headed to the back, where I had a barbecue set up. Rurik hoisted a big cooler, swearing the steaks he was bringing would blow our minds.
The man who tried to kill me had turned out to be my greatest ally in getting their cousins to accept me, and even though I liked to tease Lilia and pretend he was a thorn in my side, we got along great.
So great, in fact, that we had started up an import business, almost completely on the up and up. Before we were even seated around the pool, he was excitedly telling me about the renovations in the office building we just bought.
“Ugh, enough work talk,” Lilia said, pouring bright red margaritas from a big pitcher.
“Hey, I’m excited to be in charge for once,” Rurik said.
“Just don’t forget your silent partner.” I grinned as we clinked glasses.
“Since you’re never silent, I don’t know how that would be possible,” he joked.
Lilia beamed at us, then answered a video call from Nataliye, Aleks’s firstborn daughter, who was almost overly invested in our wedding going off without a hitch. For the next hour or so, Rurik and I talked about the business, which he would be the face of, and would do most of the managementtasks. He was already in the process of hiring staff while I was busy getting the goods lined up for shipment.
If we happened to smuggle in some things that weren’t strictly on the shipping manifests, that was just part of being in the Bratva. We could only be so legitimate without getting bored.
The steaks were as sublime as Rurik promised, and we had a rousing—if that was even possible—game of Scrabble, before I was giving Lilia little glances to get rid of her cousin.
Yes, I was learning to enjoy being around her exuberant family members, but it had been hours since we were alone. I craved her like oxygen and was getting antsy.
Finally, finally, he was out the door. “See you tomorrow,” he called as he got into his brand new sports car.
“What the hell is happening tomorrow?” I asked Lilia.
She shrugged. “I invited him to go with us to the observatory. I think he’s lonely. He’s the only one of us left who’s single.” She got a twinkle in her eye that I quickly shut down.
“This is not a rom-com,” I said. “No matchmaking. But speaking of rom-coms… What movie are we watching tonight?”
She nestled under my arm as we walked toward the theater, where I had instructed Varvara to bring us the special dessert she had planned, but that got punted to the side when Rurik also brought a store-bought cheesecake. If it was there, it meant she was no longer pouting about that slight.
“Oh, thank goodness,” Lilia said when she spotted the tray with the special cherry-covered blinis on it. “She’s not mad anymore.” She gave them a suspicious sniff. “She still scares me.”
“She’s scared me since I was a kid,” I said. “Nobody’s pissed her off more than me, and I’m still alive.”
We fell onto the couch, laughing, and she handed the remote to me. “It’s your turn to choose.”
I scrolled through until I found one she had been wanting to watch, keeping an eye on her reaction. It didn’t disappoint. “I finally finished it,” I said, referring to the original novel this movie was based on.
She moved closer, pressing her hands to my chest in her excitement. “You really read the whole thing?”
“No Cliff’s Notes,” I promised, taking the hand her ring was on and kissing it.
“So, did you love it?” she asked.
