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“You think this is funny?” she challenges.
“I never said it was funny.” I lick my lips, trying to wipe the smile from my face.
“My family needs to know where I am, Mikhail. This has gone on for too long.”
“All right,” I tell her.
She crosses her arms and gives me a questioning glare. “All right then.”
I step close to her and pull her bottom lip with my thumb. “And here I was thinking it’s because you wanted to be by my side.”
“It’s embarrassing how much you care, truly,” she says with an attitude.
“Did I say I care?” I question.
“You care enough to answer.”
The corner of my lip rises more, becoming a wicked smirk. “You’re right,” I admit.
“Maybe sleeping with you wasn’t the worst thing ever.”
I stare up at the ceiling and swear under my breath.
“If you expect to be heard, you shouldn’t mumble,” she mocks.
“You should watch your tone with me,Koldunya, or your punishment will change, and I promise you won’t be able to endure it.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.” She straightens her posture and holds out her hand. “Phone,” she says.
My tongue rolls over my teeth and I reach into my pocket for my phone. “You know his number? If not, it should be saved under ‘the help.’”
Her eyes lift with anger as she snatches the phone from my hands. I don’t blame her for wanting to keep her family updated.
I don’t mind her talking to them, but she will stay with me for as long as I want.
She turns away from me as if that’ll give her some privacy. “Hi!” she practically screeches, making my eardrums pound. “Well, actually.”
I watch her lips lift with a gentle smile. I want to make her smile like that, but it’ll never happen. Whatever she and I are will only last for a little while longer. We were doomed from the start, and I need to start pulling myself away. If I keep allowing her to dig past my walls, it’ll be fucking difficult to build them back up.
Sighing, I walk over to the couch and take a seat.
“Yeah. He had someone named Knox come help,” she explains to her father. She looks at me and back to the floor, then right back at me. “He wants to talk to you,” she whispers, covering the phone.
I lean back in my chair and hold out my hand. “Give it.”
Sloane does as she’s told.
Lifting the phone to my ear, I hear Ludis arguing with one of Sloane’s brothers in the background. “Ludis, how’s life treating you?”
“What are you doing with my daughter? If you put a fucking hand on her, I swear to—”
I cut him off. “You’ll see her again, don’t worry. She’s safe with me.”
His voice is coated with anger and regret. He’s angry with himself for letting Sloane out of his sight. He’s treated her like a princess locked in a tower her entire life, and that’s not the life she deserves. She needs to see the world. I can tell she craves experience.
“She is kind, Mikhail. She doesn’t deserve to be under your cloud of fucking gloom.”
“Ouch,my feelings,” I say, standing up from the chair to walk away from Sloane so she won’t hear our conversation. “She deserves many things, including knowing the truth about her family.”
