“You meanstrip club,don’t you?”
Vadka pulls out a chair and slouches into it, stretching his legs out like he’s settling in for a show. He tips his whiskey towardSemyon in a salute. I notice the thick gold band glinting on his hand, the same one that matches his wife’s.
Wordlessly, he pours her a glass of white wine. “Oh, don’t stop now,” he drawls, his deep voice laced with amusement. “Ilovethis story. The one where those two idiots tried to scam their way into the most expensive strip club in St. Petersburg.”
Matvei shakes his head. “Of course you guys have to bring this up when it’s just me on the execution block, and Rodion’s free and clear.”
“I didn’t hear about this one,” Matvei’s father cuts in, taking another sip of wine.
“I handled it,” Rafail says simply.
“There were a lot of things you didn’t hear about,” Matvei mutters. He drags a hand over his face and groans. “Hell, Semyon, why’d you have to bring that up?”
“Excuse me, thewhat?” His mother’s shooting daggers at me with her eyes, so of course I need to hear every detail.
Matvei smirks into his drink. Goddamn… it’sadorable.I lean in and whisper to him, “Are youblushing?”
Semyon’s eyes twinkle at Vadka, who leans forward, grinning wide, all charm and amusement.
“It was beautiful. Matvei walks in like he owns the place, claims he’s an inspector sent to check their business permits.” Vadka chuckles, shaking his head. “Rodion, meanwhile, is in the VIP section, helping himself to free drinks like a fucking king.”
A buzzing sounds at the end of the table. Rafail glances at his watch with a scowl but nods to Vadka to keep going.
“We were young and stupid,” Matvei says, rolling his eyes.
Semyon snorts. “As if you’re both too mature to pull that shit now.”
Matvei shrugs and deadpans, “We’d just get away with it now.”
I laugh into my hand. Matvei pours me another drink. It feels…right.
“And the two of you were absolutelyfuckedthe second you saw Rafail walk in.”
Matvei winces as if remembering it all in vivid detail. Hooo, boy. I get the feeling Rafail wasn’t the type to fuck around.
“Caught red-handed?”
Matvei smirks and shakes his head. “I can still remember what Rafail said.”
Everyone quiets as he grins, with straight white teeth and perfect charm. My heart turns in my chest. I swallow. It has to be the wine.
“What’d he say?”
“If you two assholes are going to run a scam, at least make it a profitable one.” He shakes his head. “Then he hauled us out of there by our collars.” He turns to Vadka. “Youwere there. You could’ve helped a brother out.”
Vadka takes a slow sip of his drink, unbothered. “And interrupt that level of stupidity? Nah. I was way too busy enjoying the show. If I remember correctly, you did get some time with a pretty little redhead before you were caught.”
“Vadka,” Mariah says, elbowing him.
My fingers tighten around my wine glass. I’m not super into hearing about him with another woman. Matvei grunts and shakes his head but leans in and whispers in my ear, “Jealous,solnyshka?”
I give him a too-sweet smile and shrug. “Not at all,” I whisper back. “I’m just wondering if the girls gave you a refund.”
His grip on my thigh tightens.
Excellent.
I note how Rafail excuses himself from the table. Polina looks after him with interest.
