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“Wow,” I say. “Look at you.”
Raising her arms, she twirls in a circle. “What do you think?”
“Mom, you look amazing.”
“Thank you,” she says, beaming. “I’m so much better already. I still have a few painful spells, but it’s nothing compared to how it used to be. I’m agile again. It’s amazing to do normal chores without discomfort.”
“I’m so happy for you.” She deserves this and so much more.
She smooths a hand over her dress. “All because of you, Alex. I can never thank you enough.”
“No thanks needed,” Alex says with a warm smile.
Mom glances over his shoulder at Igor and Leonid, who stand just inside the door. “Are they with you?”
“Yes,” Alex says. “Don’t worry about them. Traveling with bodyguards is protocol for me.”
Wait until she sees the men outside. At least their guns are concealed under their jackets. I don’t even want to know how Alex got the clinic to allow weapons inside.
“Really?” Mom tilts her head. “Does that mean you’re a kidnapping candidate, as in getting captured for ransom?”
“Not likely,” Alex replies with a chuckle.
“We brought some Russian food made by Alex’s chef,” I say quickly to change the subject. “I hope you like it. We thought it would be cozier to have lunch here than somewhere in town.”
“Not much in town is open tomorrow,” Alex adds.
My mom throws an arm around my shoulders. “There goes my diet.”
“Don’t worry.” Alex picks up the cooler bag at his feet. “I instructed my chef to only use ingredients that are allowed in your eating plan.”
“How considerate of you.” Mom flashes him a smile. “Just as well. Otherwise, I’ll be in trouble with William.”
“William?” I ask as she steers us toward the elevator.
The glow on her cheeks deepens to a flush. “Dr. Hendricks.”
I make big eyes. “You’re on a first-name basis?”
Lowering her voice, she says with a glint in her eyes, “We’re on first base too.”
“Mom!” I whisper-exclaim.
She winks. “I have a surprise for you.” She ushers us into the elevator when the doors open. “You don’t have to go to the B&B in town,” she continues. “Someone pulled out of the program—family emergency—so there’s a vacant room. William suggested you stay here to spare you the traveling to town and back. No charge.”
The elevator stops on the second floor.
“That’s very kind of him,” I say, glancing at Alex, “but we don’t want to impose.”
Alex holds the door for us. “Katerina is right. We should probably stick to the plan and sleep in town.”
“Nonsense.” Taking my arm, Mom leads me down the hallway and says over her shoulder to Alex, “He wouldn’t have offered if he didn’t want to.”
She unlocks the door at the end and goes inside ahead of us. “These rooms are a bit smaller than the ones on my floor, but they’re still comfortable. What do you think?”
I look at Alex for an answer. He’s put a ton of security measures in place. Changing everything will take major reorganization.
He surprises me by saying, “It looks great. If you’re sure it’s not an inconvenience to the management, we’ll gladly stay.”
“Great,” Mom says. “That settles it then.”
“I’ll let Yuri know to bring our bags up,” Alex says.
I look around as I unbutton my coat. The room is cozy. Despite the sleek, modern look of the building, the focus is on comfort inside. A double bed and nightstand take up one half of the room, and a desk, bar fridge, sofa, and coffee table the other half. The colors are neutral, soft shades of beige with accents of green. A large window frames the lake against the backdrop of the mountains, allowing for plenty of light.
“You can unpack your things here,” Mom says, indicating a small dressing room that connects to a bathroom.
I hang my coat on the hook behind the door and unwind my scarf. “Some of the food needs to go in the fridge. I’ll start with that.”
Alex carries the cooler bag Tima had packed to the desk.
“Let me give you a hand.” Mom takes the frozen dishes from the bag. “What’s all this?” she asks, bringing them to the fridge. “Your chef shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble, Alex.”
“It was no trouble,” he says, removing his coat.
“A lot of people didn’t want to interrupt their treatment and decided to stay here over Christmas,” Mom says as she stacks everything neatly in the fridge. “We’re having a special dinner tonight.”
“That’s very thoughtful of the staff,” I say, handing her the last plastic container.
She shuts the fridge and walks to the sofa. “They’re all amazing. Everyone here is so kind.” Sitting down, she looks between Alex and me. “What about you? How is St. Petersburg? Tell me everything.”
Smiling, I take a seat next to her. “I’ve already told you everything on the phone. What about your apartment? Is your neighbor taking good care of it?”
