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Their jokes went in another direction, and as I watched them talk and laugh over breakfast, I felt a sense of belonging. The Vadims were the closest I’d ever come to having an actual family, and although I wasn’t really one of them, I realized I would take this experience to the grave with me.
We finished breakfast, and while the men discussed their mafia business in the living room, Lilianna and I relaxed by the poolside.
“Do you mind if I ask what life was like before you married Nikolai?” Lilianna asked. We were both lying on lounge chairs beside the pool, with umbrellas towering above us.
I fidgeted in my chair. What was life like before Nikolai? “I graduated from college a few months ago, and I had a job at a media company.”
“Any family? Boyfriend?”
“Just a best friend. My boyfriend got engaged to another woman and that was how I met Nikolai.”
She smiled. “Reminds me of myself.”
My curiosity piqued. “How did you meet Sergey?” I didn’t think she’d just walked up to him and they fell in love like that or something.
“We had a one-night stand, he became obsessed with me, and that was that.” She bit her lips, her hazel eyes appearing to be lost in memories.
“You mean he kidnapped you like Nikolai did to me?”
She shrugged. “Basically.” She sipped from her strawberry and banana smoothie. We’d made it together before going out to the poolside. “Our love story is nothing like it is in fairytales, Giselle. These men aren’t princes or superheroes. They’re men born into a dark world, and they love differently.”
“Do you love him, or you’re just pretending to?”
“I love him and would die for him and I know he would do the same for me.” She chuckled. “I sound crazy, right?”
“You sound like you have Stockholm.” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. “I’m sorry, it’s just that I’m very confused.”
“No need to apologize. You’re right, it could be Stockholm, but I can’t imagine living in a world that Sergey isn’t part of.” We were both quiet for a moment before she continued. “How do you feel about Nikolai?”
I lifted my smoothie from the side table and sipped from it. “I don’t know. Some days, I hate him, and others, I hate myself because I don’t hate him enough.”
“It’s natural. I felt that way at first.”
“But things changed?”
She nodded. “Yes, it did. The same might be the case for you, or not. Follow your heart and you might be surprised where it leads you.”
Follow your heart.
What if I did, and it led me astray? What if it made me forget Nikolai was the enemy and I needed to escape from him?
I needed to leave if that happened, and the only way to do that was to win Nikolai’s heart. “I understand why you’d fall in love with Sergey, but how did you get him to love you?”
She sighed and sat up from the lounge chair. “Do you want Nikolai to love you?”
“No, I’m just asking.”Because I’m going to get him to love me, and then I’m going to escape from here.
“It’s simple,” she answered. “First, you have to win his trust. He’ll come to love you if he trusts you.”
So, all I had to do was win his trust just so I could betray him? My shoulders sagged, and I palmed my face. Why did this feel so wrong?
Lilianna regarded me suspiciously. “Giselle?”
I raised my head to look at her.
“I know what you’re thinking.”
Air drained from my lungs. Surely she must’ve thought of escaping Sergey a few times before their love blossomed, but I decided to play dumb. “What am I thinking?”
