Page 78 of Daddy's Reluctant Queen

But I’m afraid it might’ve found me somehow. I’m not sure yet what to do about it. She’s probably upstairs with stars in her eyes about the whole thing. I need to make sure to bring her back down to earth.

Or maybe to bring myself down to earth as well.

I finish my breakfast and head inside. I should check in on Ignat first. I walk up to his room and as I approach, I notice the door is ajar… and I hear Sofia talking.

“I just mean, somebody should probably have changed these bandages sooner. You’re going to get an infection.”

I peek through the cracked door to see Sofia sitting on the bed dabbing Ignat’s back with a damp rag, a bowl of brownish water on the night stand. He leans forward and winces with every touch.

“That burns,” he says.

“Of course it does,” she says. “The stitches are all inflamed. You tell Doc when he comes through to wash his hands the next time he stitches somebody up. He also needs to get somebody here at least twice a day to change these wounds.”

As amusing as this is, I interrupt them, pushing the door open. Ignat looks up at me and tries to smile, but he only ends up wincing as she presses the rag to his wounds. “Good morning,” he says.

“Morning.” I watch Sofia for a few seconds longer as she discards the rag into the water and grabs a bandage, pressing it to the wound. “Didn’t know you could also play nursemaid.”

She glances up at me briefly. “I know basic first aid, that’s all. And don’t get any ideas. This isn’t my job.”

“It is if I say it is, Princess,” I retort, arching my eyebrow.

I see a flicker of a smile appear, then she turns her attention to Ignat, finishing the bandage. “There. All patched up for now.”

“Thank you,” Ignat says with a sigh of relief.

She stands and wipes her hands on the yoga pants she’s wearing. “Follow your own advice,” she says with a smile as he leans back in bed.

I clear my throat. “Can we talk, Sofia?”

Her eyes get large for just a moment, then she says, “Sure.”

She follows me out of the room and we walk down the hall toward the living room. “Last night,” I start, then my mind goes blank. What do I say here?Don’t let my proclamations of love go to your head. It’s not that deep.I suppose I could say that. It wouldn’t be truthful, though.

I start again. “I want to talk to you about last night,” I say slowly. “My mind has been clouded with all that’s going on. I’m thankful you were there to comfort me.”

She doesn’t say anything. She doesn’t look at me, either. Her eyes are down, looking at her hands, and her mouth tightens into a thin line.

“Sofia?”

“Sorry,” she says quickly. “It’s just… you just thanked me, and this is going to sound weird, but I didn’t think you had it in you.”

I smirk at her. “You didn’t think I had it in me to thank you?”

She opened her mouth to respond, but then she closes it, thinking better of whatever she’s about to say. She takes a short breath and says, “I don’t mean that you’re not capable. I just didn’t think you cared enough about me to bother.”

I stop and she stops with me. How could she think that after last night? I need to set her straight. “Sofia?—”

My phone buzzes in my pocket. Shit. “Hold that thought,” I tell her as I answer the phone. “Yes?”

“Good morning, sir. It’s a lovely day today, isn’t it?”

It’s Cyrus. My jaw clenches. “You have a lot of fucking nerve?—”

“Whoa, hey. It’s too early for foul language. Let’s keep this conversation civil, all right? Or else I might get upset and take it out on your boy.”

Rage nearly sends me over the edge. I step away from Sofia and hiss, “If you lay a finger on him?—”

“He’s fine,” he says. “So far, anyway. He’s a handsome kid, you know. Looks nothing like you. Guess he got Angela’s looks. Or maybe he’s someone else’s? I mean a D.A. with morals low enough to fuck a Bratva can’t be taken at face value, can they?”