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Oh God, my resolve was pretty much gone. Why not? Why not have some fun if he’d only let go of his own stupid resolve and have some with me. But he wouldn’t, and I did have some pride. I gave him a look I hoped would sear his skin off and slammed into the room.
Chapter 8 - Mikhail
After Evelina slammed the door in my face, I didn’t expect to see her for the rest of her time here. Which should have been for the best, so I wasn’t sure why I was so disappointed in the sudden chilly attitude.
Not after she had practically devoured me with her eyes and rubbed that soft, curvy body of hers against me. I never should have gotten so close, and the feel of her was still very much alive in my thoughts. How did I lose control like that?
Because she was irresistible, that’s how I had to resist her. So, it was for the best that she was going to pout and hide herself away from me. I needed to get my mind off of her and shut myself up in my study, text Kristina, and tell her to call me back as soon as she could. Fortunately, Evelina had told me on the plane that my daughter was out of town, but I needed to keep her from returning home, all while not scaring her half to death.
She thought she was safe from our life because she distanced herself from me. Still, the truth was, she was never going to be completely safe as long as she insisted on living by herself, outside of my immediate protection. Sometimes it killed me to let her have the independence she craved, and I counted the hours until she grew bored of trying to become a movie star. It had already been going on far too long without the breakthrough she thought would happen as soon as she stepped foot on American soil.
I admired her fortitude and believed she had talent. I also understood reality and how very few people made it in the acting game, and yes, I wanted her to come back under my wing until she was married to someone I approved of and who would cherish her as I did.
I snickered at myself as I headed out onto the back deck to pour myself a much-needed drink and wait for her reply. Both Kristina and Evelina would tear into me if they could hear my old-fashioned thoughts. One day they’d understand when they had children of their own.
The thought of Evelina having children with some unknown man gave me a pang I didn’t want to explore, and thankfully, Kristina returned my message before I could really get upset by such an idea. Why would I have any right to get upset?
I’m in Connecticut doing a TV show; isn’t that great! They gave me more lines too, and I might get a storyline if fans like my character.
That’s wonderful.I texted back,pretending I hadn’t grilled Evelina about her already. I wished she would just call me so I could hear her voice and assure myself she was all right, but there was no reason to panic her. Yet. I frowned as I continued to type.Remember the acting workshop you told me about? It sounds like a solid investment, so I went ahead and signed you up.
Her reply was almost instantaneous.Oh my God, thank you! I can’t believe it!
I grumbled, not liking that she thought I was coming around to agreeing with her choices.But you have to go to LA as soon as you wrap. Don’t go back to NY.
Sure. But Evelina’s staying with me. Is she okay?
Ah, she knew something was wrong without me having to say it. She would always have ties to the Bratva whether she wanted to or not. But how did I answer this last question without saying something was wrong? I remembered I had confiscated Evelina’s phone and went to find it. I probably could have had one of my security guys crack the lock screen code for me, but that might take a while, and I didn’t want Kristina to worry. As I headed upstairs, my daughter's message flashed across the screen.
I knocked on the door, and when Evelina opened it, I held the phone out. Her eyes widened with gratitude, nearly breaking my heart. As if I’d give her phone back.
“Tell Kristina you got a job and had to leave New York,” I said brusquely.
We stared at each other for a few seconds until she finally snatched it from my hand, tapping furiously at the screen. She turned away, but I gripped her shoulder and turned her back around, holding my palm open for the phone.
“No one can know you’re here,” I said. “Not even Leo. For his own safety,” I added.
“Fine,” she muttered, then her shoulders slumped. “Look, I get it, okay? I won’t call or text anyone. But if I have my phone, I might be able to get back online with the Novikoff’s cameras.”
That made me laugh, which made her scowl. “Then you’re really not getting it back,” I told her.
She seemed to understand how serious I was. She begrudgingly handed it over, and I kept my finger on the screen before she could turn it off and keep it from locking again. Before I even turned away, she slammed the door on me, but I was already walking back downstairs and scrolling through her messages to make sure she hadn’t compromised our position.
It turned out she’d only done what I asked her and let Kristina know she’d be leaving her apartment for a while. Kristina’s answer was filled with excitement about the extremely expensive workshop I was going to have to sign her up for, along with finding her suitable accommodations in Los Angeles. As much as I didn’t want to encourage her pipe dream, she’d be safer out there.
I didn’t really have time to keep running through Evelina’s messages, but for some reason, curiosity made me keep scrolling. There wasn’t much between her and Kristina, just benign plans and lots of silly memes. The messages between her and her brother were full of computer jargon and more memes.
I shook my head as I looked through her contacts and then back to her messages. Was there a boyfriend? There were plenty of male names but few messages, and they were short and to the point, anything but romantic.
Disgusted with myself, I turned off her phone and locked it in my desk drawer. I was here to protect her, not spy on her. And why did it matter if she had a boyfriend or not? It was of no consequence at all.
After I coerced the acting clinic into accepting Kristina at such short notice by paying an exorbitant fee, I found her a place to stay with a family who used to work for me back in Moscow. They retired to sunny California a few years back and still helped me on the odd occasion. The most important thing was that I trusted them, and they understood the seriousness of the situation, promising to keep a watchful eye on anything out of the ordinary while she was there.
I barely got my drink out on the deck when the cook called that dinner was ready. Thinking that Evelina would stay upstairs, I instructed her to put together a tray and take it up to her.
“The young lady is already in the dining room,” she answered.
Surprised that she was going to grace me with her presence, I hustled to meet her, my mood getting lighter with every step down the long hallway. I hadn’t been to my Everglades fortress in a long time, and it would have been a shame to waste the grand place, so I was glad she had decided to lighten up. I was also glad to get a chance to talk to her some more since I’d enjoyed the small amount of time on the plane that she wasn’t trying to kill me.
