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“Forget sunscreen. Bye, Papa.”
The smile my daughter brought to my face faded as soon as she ended the call. What if she was trying to fix me up with her agent because she considered the woman to be like a mother figure? Did she need that in her life, even at her age?
I had almost pulled out half my hair over the last few days, and now I sunk my head into my hands. Yet another reason why I couldn’t have Evelina. As if I needed more.
It was dinner time, and I was hungry, ignoring the last few meals. I should have gone to the kitchen and made a plate to take back out here or up to my room. Anywhere but the dining room where Evelina and her brother would be. If I could go a little bit longer without seeing her, I might be able to resist going to her office later, where I’d sneak pathetic glances at her while I did the busywork she gave me just to keep me in the room. It was gut-wrenchingly pathetic.
“Damn it,” I snarled, getting up and storming to the dining room.
As if I would have been able to resist.
The twins were already sitting across from one another at the dining table, as different as they were alike. Leo looked fresh from the pool, his hair damp and combed back off his head. I had heard his sister admonishing him several times already for taking his rib bandages off to go in the water and crabbing at him that it probably wasn’t suitable for his stitches, either. And as usual, he did exactly what he wanted anyway. They definitely had stubbornness in common.
Surprisingly, Evelina had ditched the oversized tees and was wearing a halter top tied in a bow behind her neck. It was one of my favorite looks on her, showing off her shapely shoulders and giving me the bonus of imagining untying the bow and watching the fabric slip down…
That had to stop.
“Oh, good, you’re joining us,” Leo said.
I gave him the benefit of the doubt and assumed he wasn’t being sarcastic. Sometimes we really seemed to hit it off. For instance, we were both big hockey fans. We spent a good few hours the other evening in a friendly argument over who were the best players in the Russian leagues. At least, I thought it was friendly.
I had the choice to sit on Leo’s side, Evelina’s side, or at the head of the table. It shouldn’t have been so difficult, but I paused in the doorway, wondering if I should just bid them a good evening and finish off my bottle of whiskey so I could pass out early.
“Come and sit down,” Evelina said invitingly, patting the chair beside her while she gave Leo a scathing look.
Because she asked me to, I did. A moment later, the cook came in with a delicious-smelling dish and flung the cover off the tray with a flourish.
“Fantastic,” Leo exclaimed. “You really outdid yourself, Olga. Thank you.”
She beamed at him and started ladling the solyanka into his bowl. “I hope you like it, and it reminds you of home, Leo,” she said.
So, he was not only on a first-name basis with my Swedish cook, but he’d also charmed her into learning a traditional Russian dish.
“I’m sure it’s going to be perfect,” he answered, making her smile grow even wider.
Evelina and I exchanged a look, both of us rolling our eyes simultaneously, then smothering a laugh. Just as quickly, she stopped and stared at her water glass as if it held all of life’s secrets.
I got a call as we finished the savory soup, thick with fresh vegetables and meats. “Sorry,” I said. “It’s the head of security out at the wall.”
Evelina and I exchanged another quick glance, this time one of anxiety. I answered the call, listening to what he had to say. “Someone’s at the gate?” I repeated, for Evelina and Leo’s benefit, in case they had to spring into action. “I didn’t invite anyone, and I’m not expecting anyone,” I told him. I was about to tell my guard to escort him back over the bridges and give him a good scare never to return, but Leo set his spoon down with a clatter.
“It’s Papa,” he said.
“Shit,” Evelina and I both uttered at the same time. I told the guard to hang on, setting the phone aside and staring at her brother for an answer.
“What in the hell, Leo?” Evelina asked so I didn’t have to.
“I was video chatting with him, and he just happened to notice I look like I went through a meat grinder, so I had to admit what happened.”
“You didn’t have to video chat with him,” Evelina hissed.
“Yes, I did, because he thought it was weird that I refused, then he got worried, and I didn’t want that, so I hopped on video so he’d know I was okay.”
“But you’re not okay, idiot,” she said.
“What’s with you two and treating your father like he’s on his deathbed? He’s not that old, for Christ’s sake.”
Leo gave us each a pointed look. “What’s the big deal that he’s here?” he asked, turning to his sister. “Huh, Evelina?”
