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“My mother is not feeling well this evening, so unfortunately, it will just be me representing the Petrov family this evening,” he said, congenially. He smirked at me when no one was looking, and I wanted nothing more than to punch him in his handsome face.
I nodded. I probably should have just poured myself a drink and kept my mouth shut. That had been my plan for the evening. Though I was not going to roll out the red carpet for the man, I figured that I could at least pretend to tolerate his presence.
That all flew out the window when he looked at me as though I was nothing more than a doll he would soon get to play with.
“Where is your brother?” I asked, my voice full of saccharine sweetness. “He was a delightful addition to last night’s party. I was hoping that I might be able to get to know him better. After all, we will soon be family.”
The cool smile never left Leo’s face, but I could tell from the way his dark eyes narrowed ever so slightly that my question angered him. Good. Fucker.
“Unfortunately, he too has fallen ill.”
His eyes did not leave mine as I took a seat across from him. I made a big show of situating myself in a ladylike manner, likely surprising my family with the good manners I had but rarely used.
“That’s too bad,” I said. “He was such a hoot.”
The rest of my family began taking their seats around the small coffee table. “It is a shame,” my grandmother said. “But I have heard that there is a cold running around. I will have to send you home with some borscht. The taste of that will wake them right up. My mother used to give it to me when I was ill, and I would be back on my feet in a matter of hours.”
I rolled my eyes so hard I worried that they might end up permanently glued to the back of my head. “Your mother had our cook?”
My grandmother glared at me, and I was sure if she could reach from her seat, she would have smacked me.
But Leo looked at me with a small smirk playing over the rim of his glass.
“Thank you,” Leo said, addressing my grandmother. “I am sure that the two of them would appreciate your thoughtfulness.”
My grandmother preened at his words. Leo was making a good impression on her. Though I suspected that almost anyone who was not me would be able to make her happy.
“I hear that you are attending NYU,” Leo said.
I clammed up. I did not want Leo to know anything about me, but I guess it would not work considering that the two of us were supposed to be getting married soon.
“I am.” I expected him to have some sort of snarky comment in response. Most of the girls in the Bratva were married when they were done with high school, and the few that did attend college, usually never did anything with their degrees.
Most men saw an educated wife as something that would devalue her.
Given what I knew about Leo’s control issues, I suspected that he was likely the same.
“What are you majoring in?”
I blinked, trying to understand the question. It was not one that I expected.
“She’s majoring in business,” Natasha interjected. I was grateful that she was sitting next to me.
“Interesting,” he said.
My brow rose, and I felt anger starting to fill my chest. “Why? Because I’m a woman?”
My father released a heavy sigh, and I knew that he was going to give me a dressing down at any moment, which would be the height of embarrassment.
“Do not be so combative,” my grandmother snapped. “You are always spoiling for a fight.”.”
Leo gave me a small smile. “I wasn’t surprised because you are a woman. I know that women are more than capable of anything a man can do.”
I felt Natasha perk up next to me. “Kat is very capable. She has always been able to learn something new simply by reading about it.”
I felt my cheeks starting to pinken slightly.
“I was surprised because I also majored in business.”
