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“Yeah, I’d say don’t give up your writing,” Max joined him. “With the wedding approaching, I’m not sure how you two are going to survive married life. Never mind being shot, Mallory will take out the boss with food poisoning.”
“She doesn’t have to cook after they marry,” Olga interjected. “She has me.”
I turned to the older lady, the one who so often called me on my shit and pissed me off.
She avoided my gaze. “I mean, if you want me around once you start your family,” she huffed, looking embarrassed.
“Are you trying to tell me you’re not family, Olga? Because I think it’s a little late for that.” I smiled at her.
“Oh, hush you,” she shushed me, but her lined cheeks had turned pink.
“I want to propose a toast to family,” Max said, standing and raising his glass. Everyone except Kirill had a wine glass full of some old, rare vintage from the well-stocked collection in the cellar below, though I was only pretending to drink mine. “And to never eating Mallory’s food again!”
My jaw dropped, outraged but laughing as there was a resounding cheer to his statement.“You’re all ungrateful. I’ll make you PB&J next time, and see if you complain,” I muttered as I reached for the bread.
Olga levered herself up from the table.“I have borsch in the crock pot.”
Ivan raised his glass again.“Maladets, Olga, kitchen queen.”
“Spoiled ingrates,” I muttered, pushing my plate away. I might be offended, but not enough to eat what I’d made to prove a point. I felt Kirill’s eyes on me and turned my face to smile at him.
He reached out slowly with his injured side and wrapped his huge hand around mine.“I’m getting tired, Princess. Can you help me upstairs?” His words were innocent enough, but the look in his eyes was anything but.
A thrill ran through me at the wicked grin he gave me.“Ask Ivan,” I teased.
“You can’t run from me forever, Molly.” His tone was light, but the dark, hungry look in his eyes was anything but.
“Let’s speak to Doctor Petrov about it.”
Kirill blew out a breath, sitting back. His look turned calculating. I didn’t know exactly why I was holding off at this point. He was probably fine, but the memory of his blood dripping to the floor and the sight of his powerless body had lodged somewhere deep inside me and wouldn’t seem to shake loose. I was terrified of him getting hurt again, I realized, because I was terrified of losing him all together.
“Oh, Princess, you always have to choose the hard way, don’t you?” Kirill said, sending heat and a little alarm skating through me.
“Meaning?”
“You’ll see.”
20
KIRILL
In my room after dinner, I waited until the house was quiet. There was an unexpected sense of peace and contentment in Woodhaven. I knew what was coming in our future, and I couldn’t quite bring myself to break the little bubble we’d created here.
But that didn’t mean I could wait one more moment for Mallory.
She’d done everything she could to dance out my reach, worry etched in her blue eyes. That worry nearly undid me. Molly was mine again, heart and soul. Tonight, I would make sure her body got the message. She’d forgiven me, surrendered to me, and I wasn’t going to waste any time making sure she couldn’t go anywhere.
I waited until I knew she’d be in the bath. She always took one after dinner, and I always watched her. I wasn’t sure if she knew. Molly was certain there were cameras all over the house. It didn’t seem to occur to her that my men could be watching her bathe, change, or sleep. My princess had gotten used to being watched and guarded. She knew they wouldn’t touch her because I wouldn’t allow it. She was growing into her future crown as my queen.
No one but me watched the video feeds to Molly’s room. I might be security conscious, but I was also possessive as hell. Turning off the only handheld monitor that held her camera feed, I tucked it into a safe place and headed toward her room.
I’d never taken so long to recover from a bullet wound before, not since my first. The one that had broken my knee into a mess of cartilage and bone fragments had caused me a lot of trouble. This time, the lung complication had slowed my recovery. There had been no question at any point in my miserable life that I would die to protect Mallory. I’d always known it, but it seemed she hadn’t fully realized it until now.
As always, Mallory underestimated the depths of my obsession with her.
I entered her room and left the door slightly ajar. I fully expected Mallory to give me a run for my money, and I looked forward to the chase.
I could hear gentle splashing coming from her bathroom. I set the ropes I’d brought with me on the bed and settled in to wait for my princess to finish her bath.
