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He tried to breathe out the pain. He’d known this would be bad.
“How did you find this place?” Her tone was faintly accusatory.
“Margot told me,” he admitted.
“Oh. Yes, I catered Jeannie’s christening party last week,” she said. “Such a cute baby. Margot brought her in when she came in to choose the menu. Adorable, with all that fuzzy red hair.”
“Yeah, she’s real cute,” he said mechanically. “Margot told me she’d seen you. But you weren’t at the party.”
“Oh, no. I had to work another event that night. We’re super busy on weekends,” she said crisply. “Carrie did the McCloud job. She’s working for me this summer, you know?”
“You were avoiding me,” he said baldly.
Becca stared at him, and did not respond. He sighed and dug into his pocket. He pulled out a battered envelope, handed it to her.
She took it gingerly. “What’s this?”
“For Josh,” he said. “From Sveti. She has a huge crush on him. Six pages, thanking him for what he did. Jumping Yuri, and all that. She made me translate it for her.” He rolled his eyes. “Very fervent.”
“Oh,” she murmured. “I see. I’ll give it to him.”
“He’s a good guy,” he offered. “Brave. It was the first nice thing anybody had done for her in months. It made a big impression on her. I think she’s hoping he’ll keep himself pure for her until she grows up.”
“Hmm,” Becca murmured noncommittally. “I wouldn’t hold my breath, if I were her, knowing Joshie. Is she, um, OK?”
“She’s fine now,” he said. “The McClouds flew her mom over from Kyiv right away, while I was still in the hospital. She and Sveti went back home to Ukraina last week.”
“And the others? What about Pavel’s son?”
“Back with his mother and brother. The kid’s marked for life, but he might pull through. The rest of them are still stateside, in protective custody. When this thing hit the news, there were thousands of offers to adopt them, so we’ll see. All except for Rachel, that is.”
“What about Rachel?”
He rolled his eyes. “Tam,” he said. “Rachel’s with Tam.”
Becca’s eyes got huge. “No way!”
He couldn’t help but grin. “Way,” he said. “They hit it off. Now they’re inseparable. Who’d have thought, huh?”
“Oh, God. That poor little girl!” Becca said, dismayed.
“It’s OK. Tam’s good to her, in her own weird way. Rachel worships her. And there’s something to be said for a mom who could take out a squadron of Delta Force soldiers using nothing but her tits and her earrings. The McCloud crowd thinks it’s a great joke. I saw them at the party. They look good together. Surreal, but good.”
His hands darted out and grabbed her wrists before she could jerk out of range. He pulled them forward to examine. The scars from the cuffs were still angry red. In time, they would fade.
But she would always bear the marks.
“Do they hurt?” he asked softly.
She yanked them back. “They’re fine. Please, Nick. I’ve got a garden party this afternoon, and I’ve got to finish my prep, so—”
“I’ve had enough chitchat too. I’ve figured out that catching a bullet for you hasn’t earned me enough points for you to take me back. But it sure as hell ought to earn me a fucking private conversation.”
Becca’s eyes fell. She bit her lip. The blond girl’s eyes got big.
“I’ll say what I need to say in front of an audience if I have to,” he went on grimly. “But you’re the one who’ll be embarrassed. Not me.”
“Manipulative bastard,” she whispered.
