“Evening,” Alexey said.
“Long day?”
This was the longest she had stayed with anyone.The broccoli was cooking in the skillet with a tiny bit of butter and some oil, and she grabbed the wine from the fridge.It was a nice, deep red wine that was supposed to go well with pot roast.She would be using the leftovers tomorrow to make a pie.
Jane stopped as she realized how domestic she sounded.It was crazy that this was currently her life.
“Yeah, it was long.”
Alexey never talked about work.He would occasionally give her an update on Morello.From what she knew, things had not been going well in the past couple of months.Morello was pissed because Alexey had cost him a few million in drug money, by blowing up his shipment.Jane hadn’t thought it was funny.Alexey had.Even Nikolai, Igor, and Makar had found it funny.From time to time, they stopped by to enjoy some food and talk with Alexey.
She liked all his friends, which was a shock to her.At least they all had his back.She had come to see herself as quite a good judge of character.It helped her survive a lot over the years.
They were good men.Sure, they did bad things, but there were a lot of bad men out there.It was rare to findgoodbad men.She knew it was weird, but it made sense to her.Alexey was a good man.
She handed him a glass of wine and made her way into the kitchen to serve them some pot roast with broccoli.She opened the fridge door, grabbed the parsley she had chopped earlier, and quickly sprinkled it across the roast before serving, then she added a little more for decoration at the end.It looked so damn good.This was not the first pot roast she had made.
“So, I was thinking, and this is a crazy thought, but I was hoping you would consider letting me perhaps take a small walk in the park tomorrow.I’m talking ten minutes tops.I just walk from one end of the park to another and come back,” she said.
Every time she had suggested leaving the apartment, he didn’t even give her a chance to beg.It was always a strict, “Hell, no.”Jane looked at him, and the fact it was taking him a few extra minutes to answer was indeed a miracle.She waited.
He looked at her.Then, he nodded his head.“Yes, I’ll take you to the park tomorrow.”
“You don’t have to do that,” she said.“I know the guards would be more than capable of doing it.I don’t want to put you out.”
“Jane, the only way you’re getting to that park tomorrow is if I’m by your side.”
“No other chance?”
“Not a single one,” he said.
“Then I guess we’re going to the park tomorrow.Now, eat up, this is supposed to be super good for you.It’s got your meat and veggies.”
“And I see you put broccoli on my plate,” he said.
“It’s so silly for you to not like broccoli.It makes absolutely no sense to me.”She offered him a smile, and Jane was a little afraid, because in that moment she realized she really liked living with him.
****
Jane looked way toohappy.
He hadn’t locked her up as punishment.The few people that had snuck past his guards had gotten lucky.He was shocked when she did kill the cleaning lady, not that she had any choice.
Jane was not like a lot of women.She was a fighter.
After the attacks, rather than argue with him, or leave, she had dug in and dealt with it.She cleaned his apartment, learned to cook and bake.His guards adored her, and she had won them over with the power of her food.It helped that she was a good cook.Even his friends had adored her.
She had killed for him as well.Nikolai liked to point that out time and again.Morello was pissed off, intent on war, and was acting irrational.He had even attempted to ambush him during a meeting, but Alexey had seen right through his tricks.Morello wanted the girl.
Alexey looked down at the girl at his side, and he saw the delicate smile on her lips.She had closed her eyes and tilted her head up.She was happy.
Her eyes opened and she turned toward him.He had never considered brown eyes to be all that attractive, but Jane held warmth within hers.He never noticed it before, but she possessed a couple of cute dimples in her cheeks.
“Okay, just between us, but I might be getting high a little on all that Vitamin D.”She let out a little giggle.
It was summer.The heat waves had been a nightmare, not that Jane had felt much of them, because he kept the apartment at the same temperature.While most people were sweating their balls and tits off, Jane had been pleasantly cooking up a storm in their apartment.
Alexey reached down and did something he never did with a woman.He held her hand and locked their fingers together, so he could keep her close.His men were all around the park, looking for any sign of Morello.He had no doubt Vincent had men around, waiting for the moment to strike, but he wasn’t going to let that happen.
