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“That’s okay.” He took the seat next to me. “I can get them from my roomie.”
It must be nice to have a roomie. Kristoff didn’t allow me to stay on campus, for fear I’d get abducted or something. He was paranoid like that.
“Oh, good.” Then, I took a leap. “Perhaps you can send them to me?” Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I waited for him to make up some excuse, but to my astonishment, he took out his phone.
“Sure. I’m Jake, by the way. If you give me your number, I’ll send you a message when I get the notes.”
Not looking a gifted horse in the mouth, I pulled out my phone and we exchanged numbers. Jake had an innocent look, something I wasn’t used to in my life. He was more like a golden retriever instead of the wolves I normally dealt with. How refreshing.
“What are you doing this weekend?” he asked.
Aside from packing my bags because Kristoff didn’t want me anywhere near the house for a few days? And why is that, you ask? Well, there’s going to be a mob gathering at the mansion and the last time I ended up at one, it didn’t end well for me.
A guest assaulted me, and Kristoff cut off the asshole’s ear. Kristoff’s solution was to send me away for the next gathering. I didn’t want to be part of that world anyway, and it was only for a weekend, but it still chafed at me. I´d done nothing wrong, yet I was the one being sent away. It was the principle of the thing.
“Actually, I’m meeting up with some friends out of town.” And by friends I meant Yuri and a half dozen Bratva soldiers.
Jake was silent for a beat. “That’s too bad. I was wondering if you wanted to get some coffee.”
My eyebrows hit my hairline. “You were?”
He nodded. “I mean, um, I don’t believe the whole mafia princess thing.”
An awkward silence fell between us. He flushed, looking embarrassed.
I’d attended SFU for almost four years, and he was the first to mention the rumor straight to my face.
“I appreciate your honesty,” I admitted.
“So, you wanna go out sometime?”
I wished he didn’t remind me of an adorable puppy. I wished I felt even a tiny spark of desire to see him again. Instead, he left me cold. Maybe I was becoming too jaded. Perhaps it was time to get out there before it was too late.
“I would love to. Sometime.”
A hint of guilt pitted my stomach, but I ignored it. Kristoff had a strict policy of doing extensive background checks on anyone I came into contact with. And he wasn’t the only one. The rest of the guys were just as protective, if not worse. Like my honorary uncle, Viking. It’d be better to leave Jake alone, because the guys might eviscerate him if he looked at me the wrong way. Then again, I hadn’t discussed dating with Kristoff yet, so maybe he wouldn’t make such a big deal out of it.
I thought about the two girls in the back who’d been discussing me. Maybe it was the universe telling me not to bother. What was the point? Jake might not see me as a mob princess right now, but he would eventually. No one wanted to be ostracized, let alone because they were associated with a pariah like me.
***
I made it out of class and sauntered off toward the parking lot. The chatter of passing students washed over me. Some were eating as they walked, others were headed toward the cafeteria in a group. Right before I passed the library, I noticed a shadow from the corner of my eye.
It was a bald man in a gray suit and he was staring at me. The next second, he disappeared. I debated mentioning this to Yuri, but I shrugged it off. I must have imagined it. There was no need to give Kristoff ammunition to yank me off campus. If it were up to him, I’d follow all classes online, surrounded by private tutors.
Yuri waited for me at his usual spot at the front entrance of the building, his eyes watching everywhere at once. He got several come-hither looks from girls passing him by. I suppose he was good-looking, bulky and blond, but all I saw was someone who was like a brother to me and who made living at casa Romanov bearable. He was part of the Bratva, but unlike the rest of them, he lacked a certain coldness that seemed to go with the territory. His gaze scoured me and then the long hall behind me, and everything in between.
“What’s wrong?”
He plastered a smile on his face. “Nothing.”
Yuri couldn’t lie to save his life. We walked to the car and I waited until he got in and sat next to me. “Please tell me what’s going on.”
He pondered that for a moment. “Fine. I guess it will help you be more on your guard. There have been some threats. Kristoff asked me to keep close to you.”
I huffed. “If you get any closer, people are going to think we’re conjoined twins.”
He revved the engine and drove off. Every now and then he glanced in the rear-view mirror. When he didn’t turn on the radio, I knew something was up. It was useless trying to get the whole story out of him though. So I changed the subject to one I liked even less—my upcoming banishment.
