“You’re as good as married already, Nik. You just don’t know it yet.”
I followed Alex out of the mansion’s gardens and towards the Aston Martin idling in the driveway. It was Eduard’s car, and as sure a sign as any that he was beginning to hand the reins over to Alex.
Glancing up at the house as we pulled away, I caught sight of Katya standing in the window.
She stared down at the vehicle, dress off and tits bared for all the world to see, and she pushed her hand pointedly against the glass.
Middle finger on display and her message crystal clear.
I chuckled and looked away, the image burning into my brain.
If only she were someone else.
Chapter Two
Katya Vasiliev
“Katya.” My mother's soft voice called for me and I groaned as I sipped my champagne. I wanted something stronger, but the second my fingers had curled around a bottle of Father’s single-malt, Mother had tutted disapprovingly and moved the scotch to a locked cabinet. The message was clear; ladies drank champagne. Only men drank liquor
Goddamn Alexander.
Goddamn Marisha.
Goddamn Bratva traditions.
I slid further down in my chair, hoping to hide from my mother’s view, but there wasn’t exactly anywhere else to go. Our private plane may be big, but with only a handful of people on board there wasn’t exactly anyone to hide behind.
Alexander, Marisha, Father, Mother, five or six security guards and Nikolai.Obviously,he had to come. Even if he wasn’t actually family, everyone treated him as such and always had. He was basically an annoying older stepbrother who I’d grown to loathe and couldn't escape from no matter what I tried. And Ihadtried.
But wherever my brother Alexander went, so did Nikolai. I wondered briefly how their relationship might change now that Alexander was finally marrying. They had been each other's wingmen since they were old enough to pull women, but now that was all about to change.
Still, here he was, coming on my family holiday…no, there was no escaping Nikolai. At least not yet. Maybe marriage did have one tiny silver lining--being tied to a man would put a fast and furious halt to Nik’s constant taunts and flirtations. I mean, unless the idiot wanted to die. My mouth quirked at that, because Nik was the biggest moron I knew.
“Katya.” My mother called again, sounding irritated with me and I groaned.
I already knew what she wanted to talk to me about; Alex, being the good twin brother he was, had already warned me, but I was avoiding it. I was avoiding a lot of things, just like he had done. But there was only so long I could dance around the subject, especially now that he’d found Marisha. I would never deny him his happiness, and I found that I actually really liked Marisha, which was surprising, but Alexander and Marisha had opened a can of worms and doomed me to a life I wasn’t ready for.
Marriage and babies were not the future I wanted. At least not yet.God, even getting away from Nik’s sorry ass isn’t worth bending to that future,I admitted to myself sullenly.
I pulled my eye-mask down and pretended I was sleeping, hoping to sidestep the conversation with my mother for a little longer, but I already knew it was futile. My mother was as stubborn as I was. Even more so, some days. And she typically won. The fact that I was wearing a pale blue sundress and a cardigan was proof positive of that.
Though, I’d been sure to tuck the tawdry slip of a dress into my suitcase after changing. I’d wear it on vacation day one, and let her scold me. Fiji was made for freewill and sun-soaked nakedness.
Her footsteps came closer as she moved towards my seat and I made my breathing even, hoping to fool her, but my mother was anything but a fool.
She tsked and sat down next to me, her sweet perfume washing over me, and I pushed up my eye-mask and picked my champagne back up before taking a sip.
“Everything okay, Mother?” I asked.
“I do wish you wouldn’t make me do that,” she scolded, “you’re not a child anymore, Katya, you’re a woman and I shouldn’t be yelling so many times for you when you’re perfectly capable of simply replying.”
“Sorry,” I replied petulantly.
I wasn’t sorry though and by her stern expression she knew it.
Alexander was treated as a man now, but despite her words of warning she still treated me very much as a child. I was her little girl, and I would be until the day I married.
“I wanted to warn you, your father has arranged for you to meet some suitors when we arrive in Fiji,” she spoke each word casually, already knowing how pissed I was going to be about it, not realizing Alexander had already warned me.
