When he glances up, I see relief and frustration, then something softer. But that only lasts a second before the hard, controlled expression returns.
“You’re back.”
“Yes.”
“Sit.”
I don’t. “I just wanted to make sure Sasha was okay.”
“He is. He’ll be better when he sees you at breakfast.”
I nod, then brace myself. “Andrei told me you’re adjusting security. I noticed more guards outside.”
“That is correct.”
“Roman—”
“You were nearly kidnapped,” he says flatly. “That ends the discussion.”
“It doesn’t,” I snap, fear and irritation coiling inside me in equal measure. “I can’t live in a prison-like environment. I won’t.”
He steps closer, those sharp green eyes on me. “And I can’t pretend the world is less dangerous than it is.”
“This is paranoia.”
He shakes his head slowly. “No. This is experience.”
I don’t know what to say to that.
“You think I don’t know it’s exhausting?” he continues. “You think I enjoy living like this?”
I open my mouth to argue, then stop, thinking better of it.
“Today should have been a good demonstration for you of why I live the way I do.”
My stomach tightens. “Roman…”
He turns away, his jaw clenching, and stares into the fire. When he speaks again, his voice is rough. “The robbery that killed my wife was not a robbery.”
The air rushes from my lungs. I remain silent.
“Sasha was with her. Just a baby in his stroller.”
My hand flies to my mouth, my blood running cold. “Oh, my God.”
“Andrei was near enough to take the bullet intended for my son. He saved his life. But Elena…” he exhales. “She did not survive.”
The room suddenly feels tiny, claustrophobic, even. He’s never spoken about this to me before.
Roman throws back the rest of his whiskey. His eyes remain on the fire as it crackles and burns. “Garin ordered it, I’m certain, but I’ve never been able to prove it. He covered his tracks too well.”
My mind flashes to the day Garin showed up at the mansion uninvited. I think about the unsettling way he looked at Sasha. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper.
“I’m not the way I am without good reason.” He finally looks away from the fire, his gaze landing on me, raw and unguarded. “Now you know why I do not gamble with safety.”
I cross the distance between us without thinking, wrapping my arms around him. He stiffens at first. Then he sags against me, his forehead pressing into my shoulder. I can feel the weight he’s carrying, all of it, in the way his hands grip my back like I’m an anchor.
“I’m so sorry,” I say again.
