AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What he wants will have to wait,” I snap, shoving the client file towards Vadim. “I’ve got somewhere I need to be.”
Vadim’s eyebrows fly up nearly to his hairline. “He’s requested a meeting with you.”
“I’m a busy man and I’m not in the habit of meeting every client we sign. He’ll have to make do with you.”
Vadim’s lips purse up, his eyes gliding over to the Rolex on his wrist. “We still have twenty-three minutes left in our meeting.”
“You might. I do not. Something came up last-minute.”
Vadim’s pinched scowl turns into a suggestive smile. “A woman?”
“With all due respect, uncle: fuck off.”
He twirls a pen between his fingers as he leans back in his seat. “I can’t imagine you would cut out on business for any other reason.”
“Then clearly you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”
I get to my feet and Vadim follows suit. “I’m hoping you took my advice the other day to heart. Making the Oryolov Bratva heirs should be your top priority.”
My jaw clenches but I swallow the irritation. At this point, Vadim is just a thorn in my side. Easy enough to pull out, but easier still to ignore.
“I’m sure you can cinch this deal without my help. Or do you need me to hold your hand through the process?”
“Try not to use a condom.”
I shut the door on him and give Emma only a cursory nod when I walk past her desk. There are too many people milling around to justify a conversation, as bad as I want to stop and ask her about everything and nothing at all.How was your day? How are the kids? What are your deepest fears, your darkest secrets, the ones you’ve never told another soul?
Just before I get into the car, my phone pings.
EMMA:If you or Josh need anything, please text or call. Have fun today!
Three little typing dots appear and flash for a while before disappearing again. I can sense her anxiety through them.
I don’t blame her for being nervous. Adoptive or not, she doesn’t seem like the kind of guardian who’d just hand her kid over to a stranger. Although at this point, “stranger”seems a little off the mark.
I mean, fuck, I’ve had dinner in her home.
I’ve bounced her girls on my knees.
I’ve beeninsideher.
Still, the fact that she okayed this in the first place tells me that she’s just that worried about Josh. And she has no idea how to deal with it on her own.
The boy is standing outside by the school breezeway entrance when Boris pulls up in front. The brick facade is weathered and the concrete spiderwebbed with cracks. It’s seen better days. I open the door and Josh’s face lights up. But the smile only lasts a second before he runs towards the SUV.
“Am I late?” I ask when he slides into the back seat next to me, all business with his clenched jaw.
“No.”
“The girls?”
“Amelia picked them up already.”
“Good. How was school?”
He fidgets with the seatbelt. “Fine.”
He’s usually a little chattier than this, which gives me pause. Emma led me to believe that Josh liked the idea of spending some time with me, but he’s showing no sign of enthusiasm now. I’m starting to second-guess myself—which is the first time in my entire fucking life thatthathas happened.
