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My phone buzzes again. I know who it’s going to be before I even check.
MISHA:Why are you still at the office? You should be at home. Resting.
PAIGE:I’m pregnant, not broken. I can work. And I’ve got security here. Are you telling me you’re at home right now?
MISHA:I’m chasing a lead.
PAIGE:And I’m chasing facts on paper. How about we support each other?
MISHA:I’d be happy to. After I feed Petyr to the sharks and those babies are delivered safely, I’ll support you from the back, from the bottom, from your knees… As much support as you need.
PAIGE:You’re sexy when you’re scolding me.
MISHA:Distracting me is not going to work.
PAIGE:How about bargaining? Will that work?
MISHA:You have half an hour before I send Konstantin to get you.
PAIGE:Did I mention I bought new lingerie yesterday?
MISHA:Are you trying to bribe me, Mrs. Orlov?
PAIGE:It’s not a bribe, it’s a compromise.
MISHA:One hour. No arguments.
PAIGE:Sold. See you at home, handsome. Love you.
We’ve said “I love you” before, but I still get butterflies in my stomach watching those three little dots appear. Then his text comes in.
MISHA:Love you too.
Swoon. I just bargained for another hour at the office, but now, it’s going to be impossible to concentrate on anything except my husband.
After fifteen minutes of fantasizing, I’m finally getting back into the groove of things when I hear a knock on my door. I let my assistant head home early, so it’s probably someone from my security team.
“Gorvic?” I call. “You can come in.”
The door opens, but the man who walks into my office is definitely not Gorvic. He’s familiar, though, sickeningly familiar—because even though I’ve only ever seen him twice face-to-face, he’s haunted my shadows for the last eight months.
Petyr Ivanov.
I gasp, unable to stop myself. Petyr chuckles at my reaction and takes the seat opposite me. “The last time we met, you were Misha’s secretary. Now, look at you. Bigger office, bigger belly… Smarter women than you have tried and failed to tie down Misha Orlov. Well done. Hats off to you indeed.”
I swallow back my shock and try to think. My phone is on the desk a foot away from my hand, but there’s no way I can reach for it without him seeing.
“How did you get in here?” I ask through a dry mouth.
“The front door, as a matter of fact. Security is quite lax around here. You should really talk to your husband about that.”
He’s talking a big game, but I’ve heard enough about how he operates to guess that he didn’t come alone, and that he probably left a trail of blood in his wake on the way in. My palms start to sweat. This man has tried to kill me multiple times in the past. Now, here he is, nothing between us but a desk.
The desk…
I remember all at once that this desk has been fitted out with a panic button. When Misha told me about it, I barely paid attention. I thought he was overreacting, as per usual.
If I survive this, I’ll have to tell him later that he was right.
