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Then I walked in on my roomie and Baran making out.Ugh.I cleared my throat and Lily practically bolted off the bed.
I scowled at Baran. “Excuse me, but what are you doing here?” He was supposed to leave me alone. One overprotective bodyguard posing as a student was enough.
“He was just leaving,” Lily said, looking flush.
Baran smirked. “No, I wasn’t.”
I cut him a look. “I think you were. No boys are allowed in this room. It’s dorm policy. If you don’t leave right now, I’m going to call campus security.”
His lips twitched. “Are you now?”
“You want to try me?” I asked, silently reminding him of our understanding. I didn’t mind keeping an eye on his wife, as long as I got some normalcy around campus. Him being in my room did not meet that criteria.
Lily looked at him pleadingly. “Please leave, Baran.”
He grinned. “Until next time, Tiger Lily.”
I rolled my eyes as he leaned closer to his wife and said something I didn’t quite catch.
I took some underwear out of my top dresser drawer and sat on my bed.
My roomie closed the door behind Baran. “It’s…brave of you to stand up to him but not the smartest thing to do. He’s not someone you want to mess with.”
I realized she was trying to protect me. “Ha! Trust me. The same could be said about me.” I removed the towel to air dry my hair. “What exactly was that all about?”
Lily sighed. “A mistake.”
“So I’ve heard.” When Lily looked up at me, I hastily added, “I mean, I hear you, girl. Haven’t we all been there?”
I wondered how long Baran wanted me to continue this ruse. It didn’t seem fair to keep our association from Lily. A heavy feeling of something akin to guilt settled into my gut. When I’d agreed to become Lily’s new roommate and pretend like I didn’t know who Baran was, I hadn’t given it a second thought. He hadn’t given me any details about his sudden marriage, but judging by the bite in his voice, something about it was off. Of all the Bloody Ones, Baran was the eternal bachelor. I’d sensed a hint of anger toward his bride, but seeing them together, he obviously had conflicting feelings about her.
I pondered how this might affect my relationship with my brand new roomie while I started folding my laundry.
“You need help with that?” Lily asked. “It’s been a while, but I worked a summer at the Gap. Stacking clothes neatly came with the territory.”
“I can manage. I was recently told that if I wanted to live in the big, bad world, I shouldn’t need any help. I should be able to do this myself.”
Lily gave me a sympathetic look. “Parents giving you a hard time?”
“Oh no, it’s the guy I live with. Long story. He likes to micromanage my life and is doing his best to make me miserable so I’ll go crawling back home. He needs to learn that I can take care of myself just fine.”
She gave me a dubious look as I continued folding. “You’ve never done your own laundry before, have you?”
I dropped onto my bed. “Sadly, doing laundry is at the top of my ‘have never done this before’ list.”
“What else is on that list?” she asked curiously.
I picked up one of my tops that seemed to have shrunk a size. “Washing. Cooking. Cleaning.”
“You’ll learn.”
Yes, I would. My room was small. I had no one to cook for me anymore, and there was a line for the washing machines, but this little place gave me the freedom I’d been craving. Most importantly, I was away from Kristoff. Even though the distance between us ripped me apart, it was for the best.
30
KRISTOFF
I ended the call with Svetlana and paced my study. According to her,Aslanov was not only expanding his business in Russia but also making a play for the States.She couldn’t care less about his plans for the US,but she wanted protection in case he came for her.Years earlier, before he’d gone to prison, Aslanov had gone to war with Mikhail, her now deceased husband.
