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“Sounds good,” I said, unlocking the front door and motioning for him to go ahead.
I followed him in, keeping a smile plastered on my face and forcing all thoughts of what I’d rather be doing out of my head.
Chapter 8 - Karine
Not just disappointment, but irritation welled up in me when I saw my father waiting for us. Did he still think I was a child and not a married woman? Yes, apparently. As soon as we rolled up, he started letting me have it. It was useless to argue, so I was shocked when Roman stepped forward to do just that. Of course, he didn’t know that my father was always right, and I admired his courage for defending me.
It was a very husbandly thing to do, and I had to put my head down to hide a smile. For some reason I assumed he would have agreed with my father wholeheartedly and continued his pattern of stroking his ego and sucking up to him like he did before the wedding. Now, it seemed I might be his first priority.
And I didn’t mind it. Paired with him not backing down at the club and, I was ready to believe he might have what it took to be one of us after all. And the feeling of satisfaction was surprising. Wasn’t I still just being a good little soldier here? I wanted everything to go smoothly between Roman and I so we could have a nice life together, but was I really catching feelings for him?
I was still shivering from the way he made me feel during our heated makeout session. My first one ever, and in a car, no less. I was a mix of giddiness and unbridled lust that could barely be contained once his hands reached my panties, and I couldn’t wait for us to get home.
All of it popped like a balloon, because now that Papa was done yelling at me for making poor choices and congratulating Roman on his heroic fight with Ivan Morozov, arguably the biggest, baddest member of the warring mafia factions around, Papa decided it was a good time for a drink.
It was too much to hope that Roman would tell him off now, and I didn’t blame him for letting Papa in. I sat down on the decorative cement bench that was surrounded by hibiscus flowers just at the bottom of the porch steps and crossed my arms over my chest.
I suppressed a sigh when Demian sat down beside me, much too close for comfort. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings and scoot over, so I only turned to him with a look that might make him go away. I had already decided to talk to Papa so he wouldn’t assign Demian to me anymore. It was just too awkward now, especially after he suggested blowing up my wedding.
“We were told to stay until your father leaves,” he said with a shrug.
He’d been my friend for as long as I could remember so could easily read my expressions. He didn’t seem offended that I wished he and the other guard would leave. Instead, he decided it was a good idea to try to school me like Papa had done.
“That was foolish to go there, Karine,” he said, shaking his head in disappointment.
He knew nothing about disappointment, not when I only wanted them all to leave so I could get back into Roman’s embrace. I bit back a tart reply, reminding myself that he’d gotten me out of there before I’d been hurt.
“Roman handled things perfectly,” I said.
“That’s not the point,” he whined.
“Then enlighten me,” I told him.
“We’re trying to be subtle in our takeover,” he said. “We don’t have the manpower yet to engage in an outright war. You need to teach yourhusbandto stay on his leash.”
I hated that he clearly didn’t accept Roman as part of my family. Someone who deserved respect. I turned to glare at Demian, and caught the flash of pain in his eyes. With a sigh, I bit back the sharp retort I was about to give him.
It wasn’t his fault that Papa hadn’t deemed him a suitable match or that I didn’t love him the way he wanted. But I still wouldn’t denounce Roman, so decided to change the subject altogether. I brought up the time in middle school when Elise had thought the plastic explosives he had were modeling clay. He’d freaked out to see her about to dig her fingers into the block to start her art project, scaring her to the point she’d tossed it across the room, and we’d all braced to be smashed to smithereens.
He’d given us a twenty-minute lecture until I searched the internet and found out it could withstand a gunshot without exploding and he was just trying to scare us. He admitted it and bought us ice cream. It was a simpler time, before he got his unholy crush on me and had to ruin a perfectly good friendship. I didn’t want to lose those good memories. If I continued to be kind to him, maybe he’d see reason and come around.
The pain and anger in his eyes drained away as we reminisced, him reminding me of some pretty embarrassing times that I didn’t mind laughing about now. He ended up putting his arm around me but it didn’t feel proprietary or weird, just two old friends who’d been through a hell of a lot together. I leaned against his shoulder, still laughing, when the front door opened.
Turning to see Roman giving me a death glare, I straightened up, sliding to the far end of the bench as if Demian were a rattlesnake, instantly feeling stupid for the poor response. I shouldn’t have had anything to feel guilty about, but Roman kept glaring at me as my father headed to the other guard who’d been hanging out by their car. He stopped on his way to drop a kiss on my forehead, while telling Demian he was dismissed for the evening.
My heart sank when idiot Demian gave Roman the smugest smile I’d ever seen, as if he’d won something. Papa seemed to finally notice that something wasn’t quite right and gave me a dirty look as he clicked his keyfob to unlock his car.
“Don’t embarrass your husband, Karine,” he said in a low voice, but not low enough that Demian didn’t overhear the warning.
It only made him more cocky, as if there was anything going on to embarrass Roman. My cheeks blazed. I was over all of it and flounced inside, trying to pretend I hadn’t just been humiliated for no reason. It was one thing when I deserved a dressing down. It had been a poor choice to go to Morozov’s club. But if anyone thought there was honestly something untoward in the hug I gave Demian, then I was going to fight them.
Tears stung my eyes when Roman followed me inside, slamming the front door a little harder than necessary. I quickly blinked them back, hoping we could salvage the evening and get back to how we’d felt about each other in the car.
The look on his face told me that might be impossible, and when he grabbed my arm, my last hope was dashed to bits.
“What was that about?” he asked, face hard, eyes cold as the Arctic sea. “Is that kid going to be a problem?”
I bristled. Demian and I were the same age. Did Roman consider me a kid as well? Any urge I had to get back in his embrace was doused. “What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, sticking my chin out and gritting my teeth to keep from telling him he was a bigger idiot than Demian. I wanted him to spell out his distrust so I could really unleash my fury on him.
