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Cringing, I sigh with defeat. “Come in.”
She walks in with a satisfied smile on her face. “You should know I have amazing hearing. I’m half-bat.”
“Like the kind that flies around at night?”
“Another thing we have in common. We’re both nocturnal.”
“Ah, that’s good to know. You can be on night duty when the baby comes.” I only meant it as a joke, but Bee’s face twists uncomfortably. I can’t tell what exactly has turned her off, though. Was it the assumption that she will be an active part of the baby’s life? Or perhaps I just reminded her that I’m the baby’s mother, whereas she will only ever be an exterior appendage—biologically speaking, at least?
Or maybe the sourness on her face has nothing to do with anything I’ve just said. Maybe she’s just here to tell me to stay away from her man.
“I’m just kidding,” I add with a forced smile that turns into a grimace.
“I knew that.” She points at the edge of the bed. “Can I, uh… can I sit?”
“Of course. You don’t have to ask. It’s your house, not mine.”
She sits down on the corner of my bed and slides flat, resting her chin on her folded arm. “Is everything alright with you?”
Frowning, I nod. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“It’s just…” She glances towards the door as though there’s someone standing on the other side of it. And who knows? Maybe there is. Is she here because Dmitri sent her in to do recon on his behalf? “You’ve been a little off the last couple of days. Pretty much since the concert.”
My heart plummets. “Oh, have I?”
She gives me a look. You know the one. The you-know-exactly-what-I’m-talking-about-so-don’t-play-dumb look. “If there’s something on your mind, something you’re worried about, you know you can share it with me, right? I’m here for you, Wren.”
I push myself off the bed and walk to the window. I genuinely can’t look at her now. If I do, she’ll see the guilt all over my face. “You don’t need to be here for me, Bee.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means you’re his wife. Your job is not to take care of me.”
In the reflection in the glass, she looks puzzled. “What if I want to?”
“You wouldn’t if you knew—” I stop abruptly, realizing that I’d just said that out loud.
Bee pushes herself to an upright position and cocks her legs. “What should I know?”
I shake my head. “I can’t.”
“Is this about Dmitri reading you the riot act the other day for not telling him yourself about my father hijacking you in that department store?”
Of course, the first thing that jumps into my head is the ass spanking Dmitri promised me. “No,” I mumble with a cringe.
She gets to her feet and joins me at the window. “He’s a hot-headed bastard most of the time. But honestly, it’s only because he’s protective of the things he cares about. Don’t take it personally, Wren.”
“He threatened to spank me!” Oh, God. I did not just do that!
Bee doesn’t look at all bothered by that revelation. In fact, she’s got a saucy smile on her face that almost looks apologetic.
“Well…” Before she can get a word out of her mouth, laughter snorts out through her nostrils and she slaps a hand over her mouth. “Shit, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be laughing.”
“Why are you laughing?” I demand, close to tears.
“Because you look so guilty,” she explains. “And I don’t understand why.” I bite my bottom lip and Bee’s eyes widen with realization. “Ah. You like the idea of him spanking you, is that it?”
“Bee—”
