But laughter that meant family.
Avgust guided me inside and led me towards the large glass doors at the other end of the massive living room. The house was huge, immaculately designed, and beautiful paintings adorned the walls. I wanted to stand and look at every single one of them, but I had no desire to look like a gawking idiot in front of Avgust’s family.
“Will everyone be here?” I asked, suddenly feeling nervous.
“Yes,” Avgust nodded, “I am sure Zhenya gathered all of the Chernykh siblings. But you don’t have to worry at all since it will be no one but our immediate family.”
“Easy for you to say.”
Avgust chuckled softly and finally pushed the glass doors open, several pairs of eyes turning to look at us all at once. Their glances shifted between Avgust and me in surprise. Except Timofey. Who was already looking at the whole thing with a smirk on his face as if he knew exactly what would unfold.
“Look who finally decided to come back home,” Lukyan said, standing up from the sofa and coming towards Avgust for a hug.
Avgust smiled and allowed the man to hug him, Iosif getting in line next. Once the brothers had moved away, a girl who looked about my age or a little younger walked towards Avgust, and the way she hugged him was enough to tell me that she was Zhenya.
“I have missed you,” she said, a happy smile spreading across her beautiful face.
“And I have missed all of you,” Avgust replied, moving back towards me, his hand sliding around my waist. Before anyone could ask any questions, he announced, “Everyone, please meet Ilana. My wife.”
Timofey let out a small chuckle while everyone else looked at Avgust as if he had lost his mind. I could not blame them. If one of my brothers came home with a girl someday and suddenly said the woman was his wife, all of us siblings would be just as concerned and shocked. Although the only thing that mattered was that there was no hesitation in his voice. No explanation. Just certainty.
“Welcome,” a woman said, walking towards us and squeezing my hands as if she had known me forever. There was a warmth in her, and I immediately liked her a lot. “I am Clara, Iosif’s wife, and it seems to me I finally have someone to rant with about the Chernykh men.”
“Hey, I thought you had me,” Zhenya quipped, but Clara shook her head.
“You are a little too loyal to your brothers,” Clara replied, and everyone burst into laughter.
Iosif walked ahead and wrapped his arm around his wife, exactly the way Avgust had his arm around me, and looked at the two of us.
“I’m glad you are here, Ilana. Welcome to the family. You are a Chernykh now,” Iosif said, nodding once, approval heavy in the gesture.
It only took a few seconds after that for everyone to surround me. Timofey grinned and hugged me as we had been friends forever, but no one questioned the gesture, probably used to his flirtatious nature. Zhenya and Misha hugged me outright and made me feel accepted immediately. Lukyan congratulated me as well, holding my hands warmly. For the first time in weeks, my chest felt… light.
Just as Ilana was done meeting everyone else, another girl entered who looked exactly Ilana’s age and quickly looked at everyone.
“I’m so sorry I am late,” the girl said, her gaze landing squarely on Ilana. “So you are the very special guest my brother was bringing home.”
“Ilana, this is Elisse,” Avgust made the introductions, “And Elisse, this is my wife, Ilana.”
“Wife?” Elisse’s eyes widened, but she quickly engulfed me in a hug. “So we are sisters now, and if you play your cards right, I might even like you more than I like Clara.”
“I heard that Elisse,” Clara said, making everyone laugh.
As we all sat down, they continued to talk over each other and teased Avgust mercilessly. Zhenya and Clara fumbled over me, asking me if I was warm enough, hungry, or comfortable. Someone pressed a glass of wine into my hand, and Avgust draped a small blanket over my exposed legs when he saw me shiver lightly. No one looked at me like I was fragile or property, and no one asked any questions either. I hadn’t realized how lonely I had been until that moment. Even with my brothers in my life, I had never known a family like this. This was completely foreign to me.
“Ilana, have we bored you to death?” Zhenya asked from across the room. She was sitting beside Timofey.
“Absolutely not,” I answered quickly. “I just wanted to thank all of you for accepting me into your home.”
“You are Avgust’s wife, your place is in this house,” Iosif replied, a small smile dancing on his lips.
“But please don’t be mistaken that I am not angry with the two of you,” Zhenya added, “You got married without me present for the ceremony and then did not even tell me about the whole thing for weeks, I am sure. I will always be holding this over your head.”
“We didn’t really have a ceremony,” Avgust shrugged.
“What, why?” Clara asked, her eyes narrowing.
“The circumstances were not as happy as one might think,” Avgust replied, glancing at me as if silently asking for approval with his eyes. I only smiled, letting him know I did nothave a problem with him sharing the truth with his family. If anything, they had a right to know.
