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Rami made a thoughtful noise. “Ric is a good man. The five of us have experienced…great loss. He’s held our family together. His father is a powerful politician, but he is cruel. That cruelty is often directed at Ric.”

I realized my mouth had fallen open and I snapped it shut with a clack of teeth. That was not what I was expecting to hear, and a surprising anger trickled through my veins at the mention of his mistreatment. “When will he be home?”

“Soon.” A muscle twitched in his jaw, making me question his confidence in his own answer. “He’ll be very happy to meet you.” That part he sounded more sure of.

“Do you think he’ll be part of all—” I gestured vaguely “—this?”

Rami moved his hand from the gear shift to my thigh, just above my knee. He squeezed it gently. “Of course. We are bonded brothers. Family.”

My smile faltered as grief settled in my gut like a stone.

Rami glanced over, sensing the sudden swing. “What is it?”

My shoulders twitched up, and I forced the smile back on my face. “Nothing.” My voice trembled the slightest bit. “Sometimes I just…Deva was my only family, and she’s gone.”

He squeezed my thigh again. “But we’re here. We’ve always been your family, kulta. You just hadn’t found us yet.”

Tears pricked at my eyes, and I picked up his hand, holding it between both of mine in my lap. “That’s Finnish, right?” I sniffled. “Kool-tah. What does it mean?”

Rami just gave me a look full of promise. “Some day I will tell you,” he teased as we continued down the dark tree-lined road. “You’ll have to stick around to find out.”

Little did he know, I didn’t think I could leave now even if I tried.

28

CORDELIA

When we got back to the apartment, Rami insisted on walking me right to my door. Then he nudged his way inside before I could say goodnight. My heart skipped at having him in my space. Before I could apologize for the dirty bowl in the sink and the unmade futon—I was running late this morning, okay?—Orion charged over and read me the riot act with his chirpy meow.

“I know, sweet boy! I’m sorry!”

Rami watched in silence while I pulled a can of cat food out of the cupboard and popped it open. Orion’s cries got more plaintive until the plate of food was in its proper spot on the floor. I distracted myself by refreshing his water bowl, still not ready to address the elephant in the room. And by elephant, I meant the gorgeous wall of muscle that was filling my space with the wild scent of juniper and frost.

“That is the biggest cat I’ve ever seen,” Rami said, watching the furry behemoth chow down.

“He’s a Maine Coon.” I set the water bowl down and scratched at the top of his big head before straightening.

“What’s his name?” Rami still hadn’t moved from his spot inside the entryway.

I wandered over to the window and twisted the vertical blinds closed. “Orion.” Nerves jittered under my skin. “He was a gift from Deva on my sixteenth birthday. I was so excited to have something alive that I could cuddle, you know? And Orion is the best at snuggling, aren’t you, sweet boy?” The feline dutifully ignored me while he focused on his late dinner.

“You may find that debatable,” Rami remarked. “He’s no longer the only one craving your affection.”

Fire crept over my cheeks. This was dangerous territory, and I didn’t have a map or a compass, so naturally, I dove for the emergency exit instead. “Well, thank you for the ride home, but it’s been a long day soooo…”

Rami surveyed the small footprint of the studio and the complete lack of privacy it offered. “I won’t keep you up.” Then he shocked the hell out of me when he lowered himself to the floor with his back against the front door.

“Wait, what are you doing?”

“I told you.” He looked up at me like it should be obvious. “I’m not leaving you alone.”

My heart skipped when his intention dawned on me. “But you can’t sleep here!” I sputtered. “You can’t sleep on the floor!”

“Listen to me, Cordelia.” His firm tone didn’t allow for protest. “I will sleep here, or I will sleep in the hall, but I cannot leave you tonight.” He paused, and then added, “Please.”

I shivered at his intensity. And really, who was I to argue? Truth be told, for all my resistance, I didn’t want to be alone either. No one was going to bust into my apartment, but Rami made me feel safer than I’d ever felt.

“Fine,” I sighed in surrender. “But you still can’t sleep on the floor.”