My fingers tighten around the cup as I give a noncommittal nod. “By the way, is there anything new on the investigation?”
“Nothing really.” She grabs her cup, a furrow appearing in her brow.
“Surely, you don’t believe Dimitriev is behind this like Uncle Kyle is saying?”
“No, but he had an agenda that night.”
“How do you know?”
“He said it himself to your father, Markov, and the leader of the Seattle branch. If any of them were to offeran alliance with him via marriage, he’d offer shares in a prestigious medical empire he’s invested in.”
My heart thunders, and I place the cup down, so I don’t spill the coffee.
“Marriage?” I’m surprised I sound composed enough, considering the chaos brewing inside me.
“Yes, through his daughter.”
Oh. It’s Alina, not Yulian.
Fuck. It’sAlina.
I doubt Yulian knows anything about this or he’d go berserk.
The sad reality of political marriages in our world is probably something that will never go away, and I’m not sure how Yulian can stop his father from sending Alina down that path sooner or later.
“What did Dad say?” I ask.
“That Yaroslav can go fuck himself, and his son isn’t for sale.”
I smile. Sounds like Dad all right.
“Did either of the other two take Yaroslav up on his offer?” I ask.
“Not that I know of, no. I’d be worried about the poor girl if that were the case.”
Me, too, Mom. Me, too.
But I’d also be concerned about what the hell Yulian would do when the time comes, and Yaroslav does marry her off.
Knowing him, he’d clash with his father and come out with worse injuries and bruises. Maybe he’d do something radical that would get him seriously hurt…
My thoughts trail off when I realize I’mworriedabout Yulian.
I’m actually scared something will happen to him.
I’m royallyfucked.
22
YULIAN
Someone is still playing hard to get.
It’s been about a week since I came back to the island, and he still hasn’t graced me with his infuriating presence.
So I decided to pick the tatters of my pride off the ground and forget about him.
Vaughn who? Don’t care about that guy. I have a dozen other people lined up for me.
