Page 52 of Essence of Fear

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Viktoria moved from one thing to the next in her kitchen, and while Pav thought to help as much as he could, he found it was far more interesting to watch her. There was something enthralling about this woman, and all the secrets she held tight to her chest.

She seemed innocent, in some ways, and sinfully wicked in others. He was caught by the way her hips moved as she slid from one end of the counter to the other. Her icy blonde hair was slightly more tamed than it had been earlier, now falling in soft waves halfway down her back. She’d pulled on an over-sized sweater to wear, but her legs were still bare, and he just now realized she walked on her tiptoes.

The woman had no idea about the things he knew. She wasn’t aware that he knew her darkness and why it was there. He didn’t feel it was right for him to know without her having been the one to tell him, but he didn’t know what to do about the things he’d been told, either.

Did he tell her?

Let her tell him?

He knew one thing for sure … she was amazing, but he didn’t think she knew it. She didn’t have the slightest clue of her strength, or worth.

And wasn’t that a shame?

“Are you satisfied with just watching me from over there?” Viktoria peeked over her shoulder at him, and he could tell by the glint in her gaze that she was teasing. “What do you plan to do, just eat my food and run?”

“Where would I run to, woman?”

“Well …”

Pav cocked a brow. “You’d know where to find me.”

Viktoria laughed and went back to attending the eggs and bacon mess on the stove. “You’re right, I do know where to find you.”

“But would you come?”

He thought that was the better question to ask because he didn’t know what her answer would be. He could guess a lot about Viktoria and the way she might react to something. However, she consistently had surprises when it came to him. And he had absolutely no idea what the two of them were doing with one another.

Was this a test for her?

Fun?

What was it?

Pav didn’t know anything about women. Not on an emotional level, or how to deal with them in that sort of way. He was going to have to take his cues from her and go from there. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have the first fucking clue of what to do here.

“Well?” Pav asked when Viktoria stayed quiet. “Would you come to find me, or no?”

He caught the sight of her grin, but she was quick to turn her head away to hide it. “We’ll see.”

“And until then?”

“Until then, you can come over here and help me cook instead of staring at my ass.”

“That doesn’t sound like a fair trade.”

“I’m a Boykov, Pav. I never give when I’ve only been taught to take.”

The two of them were halfway done with their breakfast, sitting side by side at the kitchen table, when the purr of an engine neared the house. Pav didn’t look up from his plate, but Viktoria did. She didn’t even get the chance to get up out of her seat to check the window before the front door of the house was unlocked and opened.

Her gaze narrowed. “Konstantin, I told you to give me back my keys!”

“I forgot,” came the smooth reply before the man in question darkened the entryway to the kitchen. Just behind him stood another man—Kolya. Pav didn’t miss the way Kolya’s ice-blue eyes drifted to him sitting at the table. Or how his gaze narrowed as he considered how close Pav’s position was to Viktoria.

This didn’t take a fucking genius to figure out. It was incredibly early in the morning. Viktoria looked like she’d just rolled out of bed, and despite being dressed, Pav wasn’t in a better situation. It wasn’t like he walked over here from the Compound that morning, so the more obvious explanation was that he’d stayed the night.

With Viktoria.