“Good answer,” I reply with a smile, to which Lidiya rolls her eyes at me.
“You know, I could ask you a similar question. What about girls? When are you going to bring one home for us to meet?”
“Nice deflection, Lidiya. We aren’t talking about me, we’re talking about you,” I say in an attempt to redirect the conversation.
“You are thepakhannow, Ivan. You need to be showing the rest of thebratvayou can take us into the future.”
“You’re starting to sound like Mikhail,” I retort.
“That’s why he’s your advisor,” she reminds me. “He knows what to say in the right situation.”
I mumble under my breath as we pull up to the gala. I really don’t like these kinds of events, but as Mikhail has pointed out on multiple occasions, I need to keep up appearances. I escort my sister inside, shaking hands with city leaders and introducing Lidiya to them and their wives.
“Let’s go get a drink, and then you can mingle,” I tell her as we make our way to the bar and order drinks.
“Good idea. You need to do your thing, and I see a friend. Come find me when it’s time to eat.” She takes her glass of wine and walks away while I grab my vodka and make my way through the crowd in the direction of the mayor.
The mayor is surrounded by cronies and those trying to curry favor with him as I approach.
“Mr. Mayor, a word, please.” I step in between two others and hold out my hand for the mayor to shake.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Kiselyov?” he asks while returning the handshake. The group of people standing around him disperse. They know who I am and what I can do, and don’t want to be caught eavesdropping.
“The warehouse district. What are the plans for the area?” I ask him, getting straight to the point.
“The city is currently including commercial and residential interests in the zoning plan,” the mayor responds.
“What about private interests?” I press.
“The city needs to finish acquiring properties in the district first. Why the sudden interest?”
“Business investment, of course,” I tell him while I take a sip of vodka. The mayor has known me long enough to know not to ask too many questions, let alone probing ones.
“Of course,” he says with a look of suspicion. He probably doesn’t believe me, but I really don’t care. “Look, Ivan, I can only say so much about plans for the warehouse district since the information is not publicly available. What I can tell you for sure is that you not the only interested party in that real estate. There are other parties whose presence would not be good for either of us.”
“I understand, Mr. Mayor,” I say to him, smiling as I shake his hand and turn away. I finish off my vodka and stalk towards the bar for another one. They don’t serve the best vodka at these events, but it’s serviceable. While the bartender preps my drink, I feel a hand running up and down the arm of my tuxedo jacket.
“Hello, Ivan.” The voice is feminine and calculating—and I know exactly who it belongs to.
“Hello, Samantha,” I say, not bothering to turn and look at her. “Why are you here?”
“I was looking for you. I hoped I would see you tonight,” she simpers while trying to push her body against mine. “It’s been a long time.”
“Not long enough. What do you want?” I reply dryly.
“For us to spend time together,” Samantha answers, her voice sickly-sweet.
“No, you don’t. You want something else, and you think by seducing me that you’ll get it. So I’ll ask you again, Samantha, what do you want?” I reply, my temper simmering underneath the surface. The bartender hands me my new drink, and I’m glad I have something to hold onto so I don’t do something stupid.
“Fine,” she says as she huffs out a sigh. “Daddy wants you as an investor in his new business venture.”
“I’m sure he does. He should also know better than to send you as his messenger. Your tactics are embarrassing,” I tell her as I take a sip, getting more annoyed by her presence with each passing moment.
“I’m good at what I do,” she says defensively as she stands up a little straighter.
“Look, Samantha,” I say, finally turning to look at her. “You and I both know your charms don’t work on me. It’s frankly insulting that you and your father thinks it works on anyone. Now leave me alone and never approach me again. You and your father won’t like what happens if you do.”
Maybe that last part came out a little harsher than I intended, but if it finally gets my point across, then I don’t care. I watch as anger and sadness flash across her face before she walks away. My sister walks up behind me, apparently having seen at least some of the exchange.
