Ember pounced, nodding quickly. “Yeah. We’d like that,” she glanced at Grigori, looking hopeful, “Right?”
Grigori nodded slowly, staring at her. “Yeah. We’d like that.”
Ember smiled great big, her shoulders actually lowered as if a weight had been lifted, and I was pretty sure her chin trembled for the barest heartbeat…and no one missed it before she looked back at Zane even though she played it off well. “Thank you. It’ll be fun.” She shrugged, playing it cool now. “Even if it is mundane.”
Zane nodded, playing it just as cool, but watching her just as closely as Grigori. “Maybe we’ll even go bowling.” His eyes went wide. “Or maybe to an arcade. I haven’t been to one of those in years.”
“Dude, I’d so kick your ass in Golden Tee,” Mary stated factually, popping her hand on the other and pushing forward with her palm like she was teeing off.
“What’s Golden Tee?” Grigori, Ember, and Zane all said together.
I laughed outright, nudging Mary when her eyes went wide. “The beauty of hanging out with the older crowd.”
She blinked and shrugged. “It’ll make it easier to kick their asses.”
I leaned over into Daniil and watched everyone enjoying their time together, and after a bit, I said to Daniil softly, “This is nice.”
“What is, my sweet?” Daniil asked just as softly, sipping on vodka.
“This. My family. Your family. Just…it’s peaceful. I never would have imagined that.”
Daniil kissed my head and wrapped his arm around me.
Itwaspeaceful, just like I had said.
Watching and listening to Mary sing was like a whole new insight into her. It was always a shock to the system when I saw her sing. It was beautiful…but eerily twisted. She sang songs you would normally pick during a break-up with a boyfriend. She sat in the middle of the stage in a chair with her band members behind her, a pianist, a guitarist, and a cello. The light shone down on just her with the other shaded in blue spotlights. And she wore black. All black—which was nothing like her normal crazy attire.
I sipped on my water and glanced around at our surroundings, wondering what Daniil thought of it. It wasn’t exactly his four-star restaurant or even Crimson City or Obsidian City worthy. It was just a small dive, in a not so great part of town, catering to your normal average Joe New Yorker, which really wasn’t saying much since half of them had purple or pink hair, and the other half wore flannel shirt and baseball caps. It really was a mix of the middle class.
The place had four walls and a roof, halfway clean tables that were only slightly sticky, and a decent sized dance floor that looked good and scuffed—well used and well loved by the way it still managed to shine through the couples slow dancing to Mary’s music.
“Bored?” I asked Daniil softly. This was the type of place I would hang out with my family. Busy, but not too rowdy…and the drinks were inexpensive if I weren’t pregnant.
He shook his head, staring at Mary. “No. Not at all.” He glanced at me, his eyebrows puckering. “Do you want to leave? Are you getting tired?” He glanced at his watch.
I placed my hand over it and shook my head. “No. I don’t want to leave. That was just my polite way of making sure you were all right with these surroundings.”
Daniil glanced at me, and around at everyone in the club, and slowly, he turned his head back to me, a slow smile lifting his lips. “Be careful or I’ll think you’re calling me a snob.”
I snorted. “You are.” I pointed at his perfect feet. “You have your feet manicured, for God’s sake.”
Daniil’s grin increased. “I’ll have you know that this is the exact type of place I loved to go to in Moscow.”
I blinked. “Seriously?” He looked like he was telling the truth.
He nodded, moving his head in closer to mine. “Yes. Seriously. I may know that an establishment like this doesn’t make that much of a profit, so I would never open one myself, but do you want to know why I came to places like this when no one was around?”
I shook my head, mystified.
He kissed my lips softly. “Because it was easier to do this without anyone grumbling.”
“To do what?”
He reached over, placing a hand on Roman’s shoulder. “You’ll see.” He leaned over saying something against Roman’s ear…who groaned but nodded. And they both stood up and started making their way across the dance floor, and stood at the edge of the tiny platform, waiting…Jesus, what?...they walked onto the stage when Mary stopped singing, and she glanced at them smiling.
Daniil bent down and asked her something, and her eyes widened, but she nodded. And then Daniil went and tapped the guy on the shoulder at the piano, the same as Roman was doing to the guy on the cello. And my jaw dropped when Daniil and Roman took their places.
“Oh, my God.”
