“No.”
“Echo, what the fuck.” She says, twisting in her seat and scowling at me. “What about my car?”
“I’m sure it’ll be fine for a few more hours.”
“And the store?” She asks, glancing down at the time on her phone before looking back up at me. “I’m supposed to open in an hour.”
“When’s the last time you took a day off?”
She opens her mouth and pauses, trying and failing to come up with an answer.
“Exactly.”
She exhales through her nose and sinks back into her seat as her arms cross over her chest. The fire in her eyes dims slightly. “At least tell me where we’re going.”
I consider telling her before I think better of it and keep my mouth shut. There’s no way to explain where we’re going without explaining why, and there’s no way to explain why without scaring her off.
“You’ll see.”
“I don’t like surprises.”
“I know.” I glance over at her. “But you’ll like this one.” I pause. “You trust me?”
She’s quiet for a beat, then sighs as she turns to look out her window. “Unfortunately.”
The secondwe pull up to the gates in front of the Sannikov estate, Bambi’s eyes go wide. She leans forward in her seat, and her lips part as she stares at the long driveway ahead of us.
I head up the driveway, and as soon as the house comes into view, she sucks in a breath.
“Is this where you live?” She asks, swiveling her head between both sides of the property.
I give her a nod.
“It’s…” she pauses, chewing on her lower lip, “big.”
I laugh. “It’s not just mine. I share it with my brother and sister and our best friend.” I cut the engine, slip out of the car, and open the passenger door.
“Come in with me.” I say, nodding my head towards the house. “It’ll be quick.”
Bambi agrees, and she follows me inside, her footsteps soft on the marble floors. I can sense her taking everything in. The high ceilings, the expensive art on the walls. The luxury touches that don’t announce themselves, but can’t be hidden either.
I've lived within these walls my entire life. I know every room, every corridor, every corner. But seeing her in it makes it finally feel like home.
“Wait here,” I say, guiding her into my room. “I’m just going to grab a key from my office. I’ll be right back.”
She nods, looking around the room like she’s trying to piece together who I am based on my belongings.
I leave the room and head down the hall to slip into my office. The key is at the bottom of my desk drawer, and after digging for it, I pocket it and turn to leave.
“Hey.” River says, standing in the doorway with his arms crossed and his expression unreadable. “You got a minute?”
“What’s up?”
He glances down the hall towards my bedroom, where Dahlia is waiting. “You brought someone home.”
“I did.”
“You’ve never done that before.”
