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Excitement curled in my belly as I recognized a familiar figure. Federica edged into the kitchen with the kind of caution I would expect from some stranger Max had kidnapped off the street. For all I knew, he’d done precisely that, so I made the first move.
I was up and moving toward her before I could stop myself,pulling her into a hug.
Fede returned my embrace a moment later.“I thought you would hate me by now,” shewhispered into my hair.
It was all so messed up; I couldn’t help but laugh. “Is that why you came?” I teased. I didn’t want Fede to be upset. She’d done everything she could, and we both knew it.
“I figured maybe you wanted to throw salt at me or punch me. I deserve it, so here I am.”
She made me laugh again with her expression. “I don’t think Olga would let me waste the salt, and I’ve missed you too much to punch you. I’m so happy to see you.”
“Can we talk alone? Is that—allowed?” she asked, throwing a mutinous look at Max.
“Yes, it’s allowed. I’m making it allowed.” I linked my arm through hers and tugged her toward the library. “Step into my office. No one will disturb us here, will they,Max?” I tossed over my shoulder at my bodyguard before ushering Fede into my favorite room. I shut the door behind her and leaned against it. “There’re no cameras in here. Talk freely.” I grinned at her.
She blinked. “There are cameras in the other rooms?”
I shrugged. “Some of them.”
“Doesn’t that drive you crazy knowing that someone is watching?”
“Not someone. I know exactly who’s watching and . . . I’m used to it.” I tried not to flush when I thought about certain scenes Kirill had caught on camera.
Fede nodded, and her eyes took on a faraway look.
I knew exactly where her mind had gone, so I touched her arm, trying to snap her out of it.“Fede, don’t. If he didn’t get to you, it would have been someone else. He was always going to find me. I was fighting the inevitable.”
“Mallory—is that your real name?”
I nodded, awkward as hell that my lies about my past had been exposed.
She took a deep breath to calm herself. “I could still call the cops for you if you wanted.”
“Kirill made it sound like he had something important on you. Don’t test him. It’s not worth it. In the end, it was always going to come down to him and me. The final showdown,” I teased, trying to inject some levity into her solemn mood. “Two men enter, and one man leaves.”Though in our case, it’ll be three.
“How can you joke at a time like this?”
“What else is there to do? Cry? Believe me, I’ve done enough of that to last me a lifetime. It didn’t help, and I don’t recommend it.” I sat on the couch before the fire. It was unlit since it was only the afternoon, but being by the neat logs and cleaned-out grate with the scent of pine was calming.
“How can you be so okay with this? If it was me, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do to get away,” Fede muttered.
Her judgment stung. “He’s not some stranger who picked me up and brought me here against my will. Well, it was against my will this time, but he’s not a stranger. Until eight weeks ago, I wanted to spend my life with him despite what he is, who he is, and what he’s done.
“That’s crazy. It’s scary.”
“What is?”
“That kind of all-consuming love. A great and terrible love . . . as frightening as it is awe-inspiring.”
I thought about her words.A great and terrible love. Yes, I thought those words could apply to my and Kirill’s relationship.
Fede sat next to me, relaxing a little. “So, what was it like? The place you lived?”
“Willow Creek? It was peaceful and idyllic. Everyone knew each other’s names and business—except mine. The whole town pitched in when someone needed help. It was a picture-perfect Sunday special experience.”
“And?” Fede was watching me carefully and raised a dark eyebrow. “You were bored, weren’t you?”
“Bored? Yes. Being happy, safe, and content is boring,” I joked. Her knowing smile sparked something inside me. She wasn’t wrong, was she? “How about you? What did Kirill do to make you help him?” I was nervous about that question, but that she was here, willing to see me, made me hope it wasn’t anything she’d blame me for.
