“Sorry you had to make the flight,” I tell him, but he cuts me off with a look.
“She understands. I’m going to be here when you tell them, Damien. That’s not up for discussion.”
I nod, because it’s pointless to argue. I’d do the same for him, and he knows it. When I see that Sitka’s only taken one bite of her lunch, I nudge her plate towards her. She grabs it, hiding her big smile behind a bite.
Talia joins us a few minutes later. Wallace is at her heels and Lyra’s a ball of energy after her nap. She squeals at seeing my brother and laughs when he picks her up and kisses her cheeks. While the others talk, I lean into Sitka. “I want to be there when you tell your dad. I don’t want you doing it alone.”
She hesitates before saying. “I’m not sure that’s going to help things.”
“I don’t like the idea of you doing it alone,” I say.
“Do you mind if I think about it?”
“Of course not. Let me know what you think is best. I don’t want to make things harder for you.” I cup the back of her neck and kiss her temple.
She leans into my touch and nothing has ever felt so right as having her next to me while my family laughs and talks around us. I want this with her. Every day, I fucking want this. I want the mundane shit of drinking morning coffee together and watching movies at night, the millions of boring moments that make up a life that suddenly take on a whole new meaning when you’re spending them with the right person. For me, that person is Sitka, and I never want to be apart from her.
Right as I think the words, we hear a knock at the door. Sitka stiffens at the sound, shooting me a panicked look that’s like a punch to the gut. Cupping her face, I give her a kiss and say, “I love you. One more day,besyonok. Just one more day.”
“I love you,” she quickly whispers as Max warns, “It’s Misha and Yuri.”
Sitka gives me one more quick kiss before grabbing her plate and lunging for the other side of the kitchen, putting as much distance between us as she can right before her brothers walk in.
Misha scans the room, his face an unreadable mask, but he manages a smile when Lyra claps her hands and reaches for him. He grabs her, and I assume that means he won’t be reaching for his knife for at least the next few minutes. Yuri, on the other hand, walks in and immediately looks at me and then over at his sister. Sitka’s at the table, pretending to be deep in conversation with Talia like she doesn’t have a care in the world and hasn’t even noticed her brothers’ arrival. If I didn’t know it was a complete act, I’d be a little hurt by her complete indifference to me.
I finish my lunch, noticing the way Luka walks over to grab a drink and then stands next to me instead of going back to where he was. If Misha and Yuri notice, they don’t let on.
“So what are you two up to?” Talia asks.
“Not much,” Misha says. “We were just about to take care of some business and thought we’d stop by.”
“Yeah,” Yuri says, looking across the island at me while one of his psychotic smiles tugs at the corner of his mouth. “We thought Damien might like to come along.”
I raise a brow at that while Max asks, “You want Damien to go with you?”
“Yeah,” Misha says. He grins down at Lyra, probably in a well-played move to make him seem sane. “We assumed Ev would need to stay here and study.”
“I’m probably not going to study that much today,” Ev says.
“You don’t want to get behind,” Yuri tells him. “Plus, there’s limited space in the truck. We’ll catch up with you later.”
Luka huffs out a laugh. “I’m sure there’s room in there for me.”
Misha holds his stare, but there’s no way in fuck my brother is backing down on this one. He realizes it too because he finally gives a slight nod of his head and says, “Fine.” He kisses Lyra’s head before handing her back to Talia and says, “We’ll be back soon.”
“Misha,” Max starts to say, but Misha claps him on the back before he can finish.
“Don’t worry, Max. We’ll bring them both back safe and sound in a couple of hours.”
I share a look with my brother before finishing off the last of my sandwich and setting my plate in the sink. Sitka gets up and does the same, meeting me at the counter just long enough to let her fingers brush against mine when she puts her plate in the sink. Too many eyes are on us for me to do what I really want, and I can’t wait until she tells her dad about us tomorrow, because I’m sick of hiding us. I won’t be able to do it for much longer.
Sitka walks off to grab Lyra, putting all her attention on making her niece smile while I try very hard to not think abouthow good she looks holding a baby. Her brothers watch me like a hawk as I cross the room to grab my shoes.
“Text me if you need me,” Max whispers to Luka. “They won’t do anything stupid. They know they can’t hurt you.”
“We’ll follow the rules if they do,” my brother says.
Max and Ev look less than thrilled about watching us walk out the front door with two Medvedev men, but I know it’s a scare tactic, and I’m not worried. If they knew what I’d done to their sister last night, they would’ve already tried to stab me. They suspect, but they don’t know, and they won’t act on a hunch. I’m not sure what they have planned, but I’m guessing it’s designed to make me crack. I shoot my brother a quick grin before opening the door to Misha’s truck and getting in the back. They’re about to find out just how goddamn stubborn I can be.
