I swallow the lump of sympathy. Sasha doesn’t look sad when he mentions her, more like factual. But something delicate in his sweet little voice makes me reach out and touch the corner of the paper.
“She must’ve been really, really proud of you,” I say softly.
He nods, his attention on his drawing again. A comfortable silence follows, me happily eating my pancakes, washing them down with the delicious coffee the staff brought in. Sasha continues to draw, his attention solely focused on his art in the same way I get when I’m in the zone.
Then he says something that sucks the air out of me. “Papa says I can’t stand near windows. Because the bad people are still out there.”
I freeze mid-chew and slowly lower my fork to my plate.
Andrei flicks his eyes up from the paper. “Sasha.”
Sasha blinks at him. “What? It’s true.”
The back of my neck tingles. “The bad people?”
Sasha opens his mouth to speak, but Andrei beats him to it. “His mother,” he says. He speaks slowly, choosing every word carefully. “She was taken from us unexpectedly. Mr. Barinov has reason to believe the threat remains.”
My stomach tightens as the room seems to contract around me. I look at Sasha—this bright, sensitive little boy—and suddenly the guarded hallways, the armed men, Roman’s constant tension, it all fits.
“I’m so sorry,” I whisper to Sasha.
He’s back to concentrating on his drawing, so I leave him to it.
“I can’t imagine living like that,” I say to Andrei. “Always having to watch over your shoulder.”
He studies me for a long moment. “Understandable. Most people cannot.”
Yet Roman does, apparently. This is the world he navigates, the waters he swims in. No wonder he’s so hard and cold. No wonder he did a double background check on me—he needed to be sure I wasn’t a threat in disguise.
Ridiculously, part of me already wantshim to look at me for other reasons. I want to see the flash of heat in his eyes again, the near-smile on his lips when he said he didn’t bite.
I shake the thought away. No way. Absolutely not. I can’t think of my new boss like that. It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours.
Besides, I am already lying to him about Kyle. My brother said danger could find me if word of what he’s doing got out to the wrong people. Does that mean danger could find Roman and Sasha?
I push all of it out of my head. I can’t think about it right now.
Sasha sets down his marker softly. Then, slowly, he pushes the paper toward me. “That’s for your room. There’s no art in there. You can have this.”
My throat tightens again but in a good way. I smile, gently brushing a curl off his forehead. “Thank you, Sasha,” I whisper. “It’s perfect.”
And for the first time since stepping into the Barinov mansion, I feel something bloom in my chest that’s not fear, attraction or confusion.
It’s resolve.
Whatever happens, I’m going to take care of this little boy.
And if I have to guard my heart from his father, so be it.
CHAPTER 4
AMALIE
Ican’t sleep.
The house is way too quiet.
Finally, I reach the point where I realize sleep just isn’t going to happen. With a frustrated groan, I throw off the sheets and plop my feet on the floor. Moments later I slip into the hallway barefoot, wearing a T-shirt, sleeping shorts, and my oversized cardigan.
