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“You’re snooping,” a voice says, breaking my thoughts.
I turn to the glass door and find Dimitri standing there with his arms crossed over his chest. “I—” I stutter. “Yeah, I was.”
He smiles and takes a seat on the couch in front of me. “I’m not stopping you, sunshine.”
Is this some kind of joke?It can’t be though—not from Dimitri. He’s the one who encouraged me to look around in the first place, but I’m curious as to why he’s even helping me.
“Why not?” I ask.
“Mikhail doesn’t give you much to work with. That, and you’ve mentioned you’re getting bored.” He plucks at the cuff on his shirt.
“Kind of.” I half-smile and let the air out of my lungs with a sigh.
“What do you normally do? Like, before you came here.”
I drop the book quietly in my lap. I never really did much at all. I was a house cat feeding off what others were able to provide for me. Even down to basic conversation. I craved human interaction. Ingret was always home with me, but she kept busy while my family were out.
Lonely isn’t a good place to be. It creates anxious tendencies: nail biting, feet tapping, irrational fears, and obsessive thoughts. When something is kept in confinement, it’s not able to grow. I was never given the opportunity to form connections with anyone else, and it eats away at me.
“I never really get out much,” I say, trying to sound at bay. “Playing the piano and reading is how I pass the time, but I’ve read all these.” I point to the shelves of books.
“You two have similar taste then.”
“Who?” I ask, eager to find out if there’s another woman who might have been trapped here before me.
“Anya, Mikhail’s sister.” He leans into me and takes the notebook from my hands. As he flips through it, he laughs. “Yeah, this is hers.”
Anya ...
“Why are her things here?” I ask.
He taps his fingers against his lips. The one time I’d love some answers is when he begins to question if he should even be talking to me.Perfect.
“Anya and I stayed here for quite some time together before Mikhail wanted to take over,” he finally says.
Take over.He just needed a remote place to keep me sheltered from anyone who might want to find me.
“Where is she?”
“Watching my babies and waiting for me to come home.”
My hand flies to my mouth. “You married his sister? Isn’t that like ... I don’t know—”
“Wrong? Yes, on many levels.” His laughter warms my heart. “But Mikhail would never say no to Anya no matter how much he hates me.”
He smiles brightly. I knew the ring on his finger wasn’t for a marriage he didn’t care for. A woman who’s able to make a man smile like Dimitri is right now is a woman who will be with that man forever.
“Why does he hate you?” I ask, still smiling.
“Oh, that’s a long story. It all started with my absence from the meetings. I couldn’t go anywhere once she started talking to me. She’s very easy to talk to, just as you are.”
I raise my eyebrows. “You should tell that to your boss.”
“There’s no telling him anything. That’s why you interest me.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s like you just say whatever you please. I admire it, but I hope it doesn’t bite you in the ass one day.”
