Sloane
Sure, but nothing is going on between us, so get those dirty thoughts out of your head.
Mandy
The more you tell me to get them out of my head, the more they come barreling in…and damn, they’re filthy.
Sloane
You’re insane.
Mandy
I’m a hopeless romantic. Sue me.
Sloane
Kirill and I are just friends. And now I’m his son’s nanny, so there is negative five hundred chance anything is going to happen.
Mandy
Ha! I’ll take that bet. Loser tells winner, “You’re the smartest person I know, and I will never argue with you again.”
(I will be screenshotting this.)
Sloane
I’m rolling my eyes so hard it hurts, but fine. I’ll take your ridiculous bet. Nothing’s happening. So when you lose, I want a handwritten apology. I’ll make sure to get it laminated too.
Just as I hit send, the front door creaks open. I don’t even need to look up to know it’s him. His footsteps move through the house, and every inch of me tightens before he even steps into the room.
When he appears in the doorway, something low and warm unfurls in my stomach, spreading between my thighs. I swear, this is all Mandy’s fault. He’s in a black dress shirt with two buttons undone and dark gray trousers that mold to his muscular legs, and I honestly don’t know how I’m supposed to keep my thoughts from becoming dirty when he looks like that.
“Privet,” he says to Lev as he steps into the room, glancing at me with a small smirk.
I can’t help but smile, my stomach doing that flip it makes when Kirill looks at me.
Lev slides his headphones off and hurries over, arms going around his father’s waist, and Kirill catches him easily, holding him there before easing back.
“Did you have a good day?”
Lev nods, hugging him again.
“And you?” His gaze pins me, and my foot bounces, afraid that he can somehow look in my eyes and know where I was today.
“I’ve had a nice day too, thanks.” Tucking a piece of hair behind my ear, I force a smile that I hope he can’t read through.
He stares intently, and every cell in my body turns icy.
He knows. He definitely knows…I think.
“That’s good.” He nods, moving toward the sofa and settling across from me with Lev on his lap. “You didn’t get to do anything fun all day? I don’t want you to feel like you have to stay in the house. You can come and go as you please.”
I shrug. “Nah, I had nothing to do.”
Liar.
The word pulses in my brain as soon as it leaves my mouth, because of course he’s going to find out, and I have no idea what he’ll do when he does.
