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“Thank you, Doctor,” Sergio says, shaking the serious man’s hand after he packs his medical tools away.
“My pleasure, as always.” Dr. Faraday departs with a curt nod to each of us.
For the briefest moment, my eyes find Alina’s startlingly blue ones, and in their depths, I can see her desire to speak with me.
Then Sergio’s looming form moves between us. “Care to join me in my office? I think it’s time we discuss what kind of position you’re best cut out for.” He gives a low chuckle as he claps me affectionately on the shoulder, jarring my ribs. “Though bodyguard seems to be a pretty solid fit, I think you’re going to prove a far more valuable asset in a… more elevated role.”
I give a single nod and follow Viktor as he gestures for me to follow.
I don’t dare meet Alina’s eyes again.
21
ALINA
Watching Mishka walk away with my father raises conflicting emotions in my chest. I’m glad for Mishka if he’s rising in the ranks. He deserves a good job for all he’s done for me and my brother. Since he’s come into our lives, he’s put his health and safety on the line multiple times to protect us. And he’s done it without a second thought.
It makes me like him all the more.
But his gaining my father’s approval and earning a higher position will also make it harder for us to have a secret relationship.
I wish we could just tell my family. Mishka saved my life, and that should be more than enough reason for them to accept our feelings for each other. That should be enough to make him worthy of me. But the sad truth of it is that I know my father would never permit it.
Because not even his highest-ranking captains would be deemed fit to marry me. They don’t bring enough power or prestige to the family.
I was born into a family of wealth and fortune, and already, my parents have been dropping hints that I should pick a man of high station, someone who would help our family’s climb to power—a wealthy socialite, a prominent businessman, a politician, someone who can increase our strength.
And as much as I care for Mishka, after hearing about his humble upbringing, I know he couldn’t offer the kind of value as a husband that my father would consider acceptable. So instead, we’ll have to keep our relationship secret—at least until I can come up with a plan that won’t get Mishka killed.
Sighing, I stoop to scratch Boris behind the ears, lavishing him with attention to soothe us both. He’s been glued to my side ever since I got home. Poor pup. He was nearly frantic when he first saw me.
“You like Mishka, don’t you, boy?” I murmur as I bury my face in the soft fur between his ears. “Shall we go listen in and see if we can learn what the boys are talking about?”
Boris licks enthusiastically at my face, drawing laughter from me.
“Come on,” I encourage, racing him out of the room and down the hallway toward my father’s office.
The cool wood floor is soothing to my blistered feet, and I’m determined to go barefoot for at least the rest of the day. But I don’t mind the pain. It brings back my time alone with Mishka, and I keep reliving our secret moments in my mind.
Addictive is too weak a word to express what his touch is to me. I felt it from the first moment he stopped me from falling on my butt after I slammed into him. It’s magnetic. Electric. I’m drawn to him on a cellular level, and kissing him only confirmed that.
But the sex is something beyond. It’s as close as I’ve ever gotten to spiritual.
“Get it, Boris,” I encourage, snatching one of his toys up off the ground and launching it down the hallway.
And as he scampers off, I slip into the cigar room beside my father’s office. I’ve gone in here on occasion when I’m dying to know what he and my brother discuss in private. The vents are open enough that the voices sometimes carry between the rooms.
Boris joins me a moment later, and I wrestle him for his toy as I keep one ear turned toward the decorative antique copper wall register. My lively dog gives a low, playful growl as he tugs on the stuffed yellow duckling, making me smile.
I can just make out the three distinctly masculine voices on the other side of the wall. My father’s booming voice is easiest to distinguish. Mishka’s deep, muted tone is near impossible to understand. Viktor adds something on occasion, and it’s his steady baritone that finally reveals they’re speaking in Russian. But the language is too fluid to make out through the walls.
Sighing, I lean closer to press my ear to the wall. Boris taps my palm with his nose, demanding my attention as he holds his toy at the ready.
“Okay, okay,” I whisper.
I’ll just have to ask Mishka what got said and hope he’s more willing to open up about it than my father and brother are. Settling onto the floor, I play with Boris as I wait. But I keep one ear out for what’s happening in my father’s office as I wait for Mishka to come out of his meeting.
Finally, it sounds like they’re wrapping it up. With a giddy quiver in my stomach, I get to my feet and tiptoe to the door, leaving it open just wide enough to catch Mishka as he walks by.
