Laughing, I looped my arms around his waist. “I love you, Mr. Sidorov.”
“I love you more, Mrs. Sidorov.”
“I promise… tentatively… but you know what would really make this lesson stick?”
He stared at me suspiciously. “What,malyshka.”
“You should drill it into my head… while you drill me through this mattress.”
His eyes darkened as he lifted me. “Oh, yeah? Say less.”
I shrieked as he sent me sailing through the air.
(Six MonthsLater)
The grocery store was crowded.
Not packed but crowded enough that I regretted stopping on a Saturday afternoon.
I stood in front of the produce section staring at two bags of grapes like the decision actually mattered. Green… red… green… red. At this point, I wasn't even sure I wanted grapes anymore. Maybe I wanted strawberries. Maybe I wanted both. Maybe I wanted to go home.
“Still overthinking everything, huh?”
I froze, then turned. “Malik?”
His face split into a grin. “Hey, girl, hey.”
I laughed. “Oh, wow.”
“It has been a minute.”
“It really has.”
He stepped forward and pulled me into a quick hug before stepping back. For a second, it felt strange seeing him. It wasn’t bad. He truly was a sweet man. It was just strange, like running into a chapter of my life that belonged to somebody else, even though it hadn’t even been a year.
Malik looked good, all relaxed and happy. I was glad. After everything, I genuinely wanted him to be happy.
His smile widened. “What happened to you?”
I laughed awkwardly. Lord. Where exactly was I supposed to start?
The last time Malik had really been around, I had convinced myself I could move on from Targen. Then Targen showed back up and there had been Russians and a wedding and a war—the main villain of that war was still missing, but I’ll leave that for my psychotic brother-in-law to explain—and finally, something like peace.
Yeah. It had been a lot.
“A whole lot happened,” I admitted.
He looked at me and chuckled. “I can tell.”
“I don't even know how to explain it.”
Malik folded his arms. “Try.”
I opened my mouth, then closed it, because there wasn't a short version.
“Well...”
Before I could come up with an answer, a familiar voice sounded behind me.
