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“Come on.” Her smile returns, softer this time. “You’re already here.”
“No. We’re leaving.”
She rolls her eyes. “Don’t be a spoil sport.”
“Are you drunk?”
“No.”
“Come on, we're leaving.”
Her smile disappears. “What? No, I’m not. I just got here.”
“Aurora.”
“I’m having fun.” She gestures toward the dance floor. “If you don’t want to dance with me, that’s fine. You can leave me alone. I’ll come back to the hotel later.”
I stare at her for a moment, trying to decide whether she’s deliberately testing my patience or genuinely doesn’t understand the situation.
“Maybe you don’t understand,” I say, lowering my voice. “I’m not asking you to leave. I’m telling you we’re leaving.”
She folds her arms. “No. You’re leaving. I’m staying.”
A loud whistle comes from somewhere behind me. I close my eyes briefly. Maxim. Of course.
I don’t have the patience for this tonight. “Fine.”
I bend down, scoop her up, and haul her over my shoulder.
“Roman!” She pounds her fists against my back. “This is ridiculous. Put me down!”
She continues protesting as I carry her through the crowd, while Maxim’s laughter follows us.
“See you later, Aurora!” he calls.
I hear him turn toward the dance floor. “Come here, sweetheart,” he calls to one of the women nearby. “Come to Daddy.”
I shake my head as I carry my furious wife toward the exit. The moment we get into the car, I set Aurora down in the seat beside me. She immediately turns on me, her eyes flashing with disbelief.
“What the hell is wrong with you? Why did you have to carry me out of there like that?”
I stare at her. “What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you?”
Her brows pull together.
“Have you forgotten who you’re married to?” I demand. “Showing up at a nightclub dressed like that, dancing in the middle of the floor—”
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” she shoots back. “And what’s wrong with dancing? If going to a nightclub is so terrible, why do you own one? You have several. I didn’t realize supporting one of our own businesses was a problem.”
I look at her like I’ve lost the last of my patience. “What the hell are you talking about? And why were you even letting that idiot get close to you? Have you forgotten you’re married?”
“I wasn’t dancing with him,” she says firmly. “If you were actually looking, you would have seen I was keeping distance between us.”
She folds her arms, glaring at me. “I didn’t invite him onto the dance floor. He came over, and I moved away from him. I kept much more distance from that guy than Katerina ever did from you.”
Chapter 22
Aurora
