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“Let us know when you’ve arrived safely, sweetheart.”

Vadim and I slip into the sedan. Once the doors are closed and the engine starts, I can finally breathe. Vadim, meanwhile, buries his face in his hands and exhales loudly.

“Do you have any other surprises in store for me, Lancaster?”

“Things are thorny with me, remember?”

That playful smirk returns as he slips his hand into mine.

And takes me back to the place where our lives turned upside down twelve years ago.

29

Alma

Sixty-eight degrees in the middle of the night, in October. Yep, we’ve definitely just landed in L.A.

Another vehicle and another driver are waiting for us at the airport. During the short journey to the fashionable, upscale neighborhood of Bel Air, I doze on and off, curled up in Vadim’s arms. The eleven-hour flight was far from relaxing. We had to work, a little. Kiss. A lot. Reminisce about the past, see how far we could push each other, butt heads. Nonstop.

Turns out, not much has changed.

“Wake up, Koala.”

I open my eyes and realize I’m clinging to him like a tree-dwelling animal to its branch.

“Welcome to my humble abode.”

“Humble? Yeah, that’s exactly the word that comes to mind,” I say as I get out of the car, astounded.

Laughing, Vadim takes me by the hand and leads me along. The architectural masterpiece I’m admiring must be over ten thousand square feet and looks straight out of a futuristic movie. It’s almost one in the morning, but the façade is lit up, allowing me to take in every detail. From the outside, it looks like the ultramodern mansion is composed of several interconnected sections, each lined with towering glass windows. The building is surrounded by extensive woodland and protected by a massive light wood gate. At one end of the house is a long terrace with a view of a natural pool that resembles an exotic lagoon, surrounded by lush vegetation.

“Honestly? I expected better,” I tease.

Vadim laughs again. “Sorry, Lancaster. Were you hoping to find some rich dude here, perhaps?”

Our eyes meet. Neither of us has forgotten that, back then, money was a difficult subject.

“We both know that real wealth is found elsewhere, don’t we?” I murmur.

“Easy to say when you’ve never gone without.”

He smiles at me for a moment, then turns away to look at his house.

“In any case, I want you to feel at home here,” he finally says. “Come on, let’s go inside.”

I nod and follow him, making an effort to stay upright. My current fatigue and innate clumsiness are a dangerous combination. When the heavy front door opens, a smiling face appears. A pretty woman in her mid-twenties, wearing an understated, navy blue dress, greets us politely.

“This is Abigail, my housekeeper,” Vadim explains to me in English, as he gives her a warm smile.

“Welcome to Los Angeles, Alma!” she exclaims cheerfully, shaking my hand.

So, she already knows my name.

“Sorry to bother you in the middle of the night,” I say, a little embarrassed.

“Don’t apologize. It’s my job to be available twenty-four hours a day! And besides, I haven’t seen enough of Vadim lately.”

They seem… very friendly.