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"Your letter from Juilliard?" Vlad says. "Are you crazy?"
"No, just terrified." She smiles weakly. "What if I can't play well enough anymore?"
"They know what happened." I take her hand. "Let's just see what it says, okay?"
Sasha is out dealing with business, so Vlad, Arman, Avel, and I sit around the kitchen table. Lili's eyes scan the first few lines of the letter, and we watch her with bated breath.
She chokes back a sob, but then her eyes spill over with tears. She buries her head in her hands.
"Oh, Lili," Avel says. He puts an arm around her shoulder, and she clutches at him.
"I got in!" she cries. "Unconditional acceptance. I can take as long as I need to get back up to standard. Look!" She waves the letter at Vlad. "I did it, Vladi! I'm gonna be a professional pianist!"
I burst into relieved laughter. Arman leaps to his feet and picks Lilyana up by her waist, spinning her around before wrapping her in his arms.
"I'm so happy for you, mytsvetok." He kisses Lili's forehead, and her eyes widen in shock.
"Thank you," Lili says. She sinks back into her seat, never taking her eyes off Arman. We all stare at him momentarily, and he sniffs, adjusting his collar.
"What? Good news is good news. I'm just glad it all worked out."
"Yeah." Vlad narrows his eyes at him, then moves on. "That's awesome, Lili. With Avel studying computer science, that's both kids off my hands for a while."
I smile. Vlad acts like the twins are a burden, but it's a family joke. He's more like a parent than a sibling, and he adores them. Stefania would be so proud of him. He'll make a great dad for real when the time comes.
Lilyana hugs me. "I'd never have been brave enough to audition if it weren't for you," she says. "I always felt so helpless. Then you came along and refused to let the past define me."
"That's because of your brother." I smile at Vlad over Lili's shoulder. "He did the same for me. Himself, too."
"I have regrets," Vlad says. "You had more courage than me, Lili. I was more afraid than I realized and had to face it to be worthy of Morgana." He grins. "Am I there yet?"
Lilyana cocks her head. "I think you should keep working at it forever. You know. Just to be sure."
* * *
Vlad sits on our balcony, his broad back silhouetted against the sunset. I was gonna get in the shower, but I found myself staring at him instead. How he expects me to get anything done when he's shirtless, I don't know.
"You're a billionaire, and you still wear gray sweatpants?" I ask as he comes inside. "I have to assume you'retryingto make me drool."
"Ah, yes." He jumps on the spot, pointing at his bouncing cock, and I laugh. "Look at him go. There's no hidingthat, my love, sweatpants or no sweatpants."
"It wasn't your modesty I fell for," I say, "but maybe don't wander around the house dressed like that?"
He tilts his head, pondering. "I definitely should. It'd establish dominance."
I shake my head. "Sasha would attempt to one-up you by rocking a mankini or something."
He grins, then hisses through his teeth. "Jumping was dumb. I wish this fucking leg would stop bothering me. How am I supposed to pin you to the wall and fuck you if I can't hold you up?"
"We have other ways, Vladi." He lies beside me, and I straddle him, pinning his hands beneath my knees. "I kinda like knowing I could beat you in a fight."
He gawps incredulously as I unbutton my shirt. "Lisichka. I willnotstand for that shit, not for a—"
I bend down, bringing my breast to his lips. He falls silent immediately, to suck my nipple, and I sigh with bliss. I sit upright again, feeling his burgeoning erection stiffening against my sex.
"Do you want to fight me?" I ask. I pinch my nipples between my forefingers and thumbs, and he groans, biting his lip.
"What do you think?" he says. "If I wanted to free my hands, I would. But you're in a mood to torture me, and what can I say? I'm yours to ruin. What my wife wants, my wife gets."
