Nalla doesn’t wait for Bambi to start shrieking, instead she uses her giant head to ram her body out of the way. The wayBambi’s feet get lifted off the ground, then loses her balance, makes me want to laugh. Too many people are watching our interaction, so I act like nothing is going on.
Though I stay focused on escaping, I walk slower than Santiago or Kade would like me to because we’re making a spectacle. And while hardly any of the staff speak fluent English, I still stop next to the lady I know who runs the kitchen.
“I’m going to freshen up. Could you please send drinks to Sergey? He’s in the sitting room. He has several men with him. Once I am back, we’re cutting the cake.”
I’m not being a gracious host out of the goodness of my heart; I’m creating a diversion. And giving a reason to the guests watching to explain why I’m walking away from my own wedding reception.
Roshka stalks through the milling crowd, and they move out of his way. He doesn’t stop until he’s at the door to my end of the house, and Kade’s pushing his hand against it.
“Your hand should work, too, Quinny. Let’s test the theory later, though. Let’s get you safe inside,” he says, his voice quiet, even though there’s no one around.
“You know I’m actually okay, right?”
“Of course you are.” A tired smile on his face confirms there’s no shade in his words. If anything, the confirmation he knows I can look after myself does better to soothe my nerves than a large glass of wine would.
The door lock mechanism makes the smallest sound, and everyone breathes a sigh of relief. Roshka makes a low bark and stares at us until we stop walking further inside our suite.
He and Nalla split up, and without making a sound, they check the other rooms. It’s unnecessary. I’m so oversensitive, I’d feel anyone else’s presence like sandpaper now, but they’re just doing their job.
No one speaks while they move from room to room until Roshka makes another sound, letting us know everything is safe.
I head off towards my bathroom, but Santiago catches my hand. “What did he mean, ‘it was you’?”
He doesn’t let go of my hand, and I change it so we’re holding hands properly, desperately needing his Alpha dependability and stability to counter the rage engulfing Aleksei and rippling through our bond.
I always figured I had a good understanding of bonding and the strangely romantic notion of scent matches. But it’s learned from medical books and my time with patients. I never quite believed the papers written about how consuming bonds could be, how primally instinctual they have the potential to be or how, in some rare cases, the connection between some people is so strong the bite doesn’t need to be reciprocated for it to snap into place.
Perhaps it makes sense that I’m in that category. I might not have bitten Aleksei, but that doesn’t detract from the bond we now share.
“I promise to explain everything after. Right now, I want to shower, change, and then get back down there as soon as possible.”
“You don’t need to do that. We can say you’ve got a headache or something.”
I shake my head, laughing under my breath before blurring all the lines I’ve worked so hard to put in place when I cup my hand against Santiago’s cheek and sink further into him. “That’s not who I am, Santiago. I’d rather face what is coming head-on.”
“What is coming?” Kade asks as he stands so close behind me, his warmth heats me.
“Again, that’s a question I’ll try to answer later.”
Kade drops his forehead to my shoulder. Of course, I’m worried how Santiago will read Kade being this way, as much asKade will question Santiago, and while I know they’ve spoken about our individual relationships, I also know they’re both vaults. My secret is safe with them.
As I walk away from the shelter they provided, I feel surprisingly steady.
Roshka lies in front of the closed door, probably sensing my urgency to wash Aleksei’s scents and ghostly touches from my body. I don’t banish them from my mind, by any means. I take the time to vividly remember our time, then bury it deep in my memory, each pleasurable touch locking out the revolting way we were pushed together. I focus on the good and only the good.
Washing Aleksei’s claim from my body is something I never want to experience again. I’m torn and lost in a gamut of emotions, tears track down my face, but I know I have to do it. I desperately don’t want too, though.
I redo my makeup, focusing a lot of time on hiding his bite again. I let down my updo, wearing it over one shoulder, giving myself somewhere to hide before letting the two-piece white Chanel pants and jacket set act more like armor than iconic fashion.
“Jesus, Quinny.” Kade whistles low when I stop, then do a little spin in front of them at the front door. “You look gorgeous.”
His comment comes from a good place, but it strikes a chord.
“Thanks,” I mumble, suddenly questioning and berating myself for dropping my guard.
Since they arrived and we’ve been spending more time together, and then with Aleksei just now, all the lines I swore I wouldn’t cross when coming to Russia seem to have slowly disappeared. It’s frustrating, because I’m not weak-willed, yet I feel like a failure in some respects.
“Don’t do that.” A rumble spills from Santiago’s chest as he speaks.
