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Alice’s lungs turned to ice blocks as she waited for him to continue. She’d nearly forgotten that she’d given Roberts Nickolay’s name after their first date. Regret slammed into her.
“You’re probably right. Based on what I found, he’s likely to be a part of the Bratva, but I haven’t found anything to prove it. These bastards are too good at covering their tracks.”
Alice forced her face to remain impassive, not revealing the relief that she felt. When Roberts left, closing the door behind him, she sank onto the couch, putting her head in her hands. After sleeping with Nickolay, she felt more torn about her duty and her emotions than ever. Maybe she’d made a big mistake by allowing herself to develop feelings for him, but it didn’t feel wrong.
She just didn’t know what to do now.
* * *
No solution came to her over the course of the rest of the week. She couldn’t see a way to have what she wanted while also doing her job.
Nickolay came over two more times during the week and they had sex, but there were no more overnight stays. It wasn’t easy for him to do that since he had Max at home, and she didn’t complain.
Sleeping in his arms just made things harder.
On Thursday, he went to the bathroom after they slept together, and Alice saw that his phone and keys had fallen out of the pocket of his jens when he tossed them onto the floor. Her mind flashed to the day that he stopped by the house and let himself into Alek’s office. He had a key.
Listening to the sound of water running as Nickolay washed his hands in the bathroom, she quickly picked up his keyring. There were six keys on it. Two of them were car keys, so she focused on the others. One was too small for a door. A padlock, maybe? Or a storage locker?
It didn’t matter. That left three options. She wanted to take them all, but that would be too obvious. She had to choose one. Closing her eyes, she pictured the doorknob of Alek’s office. She was pretty sure that it was brass.
Of the three key options she had left, two were silver and one was brass.
The water shut off in the bathroom, meaning she only had seconds to make a decision and follow through. Taking the brass key off the keychain, she shoved it under her pillow and dropped the keychain back on the floor just as the bathroom door knob turned.
Nickolay’s sincere smile made her feel lower than dirt, but she hid it behind a grin of her own. Still, when he sat on the bed, she got up before he could kiss her. She didn’t think she could stand that after what she just did.
The next day, she was back at Alek’s house. The key she stole was in her pocket, and she could have sworn that she felt it pressed against her leg with every step that she took, even though that wasn’t possible.
She went about her cleaning on auto pilot, just waiting for a chance to slip away to the office. Alek wasn’t home, so she just needed Chloe to be distracted. Because they’d become friends, she was bound to notice if Alice slipped away for too long.
Alice knew that Chloe was in the kitchen, talking on the phone with her sister. The two of them were planning a visit for when the baby was born, and she hoped the woman would be wrapped up in that conversation for a while.
She stepped into the foyer, which she’d already cleaned, and headed for the hallway leading to Alek’s office. She was only halfway there when the doorbell rang. Cursing under her breath, Alice changed course, pulling it open to find a delivery man standing there with a medium-sized box in his hands.
“I need a signature,” he said, holding out a tablet with Chloe’s name on it.
“Oh, that must be another baby gift,” Chloe said from behind her. She signed for the package and turned to Alice. “Ever since we decided not to have a baby shower, I’ve been getting packages every day. Let’s check it out.”
Shooting a furtive glance in the direction of Alek’s office, she followed Chloe into the living room, watching as she opened the box and pulled out a stuffed bear. There was a warm smile on her face as she hugged it to her chest.
“I swear, I keep thinking that I have enough stuff for the baby, that the nursery can’t possibly hold another toy or blanket or piece of clothing, but every time I get a new gift, I change my mind.”
“Sounds like you’ve already got a spoiled little girl and she’s not even born yet.”
Chloe laughed. “You have no idea. She’s going to have Alek wrapped around her little finger.”
“I’ll throw out the box,” Alice said.
“And I think I’m going to take a nap.”
Perfect.
By the time that Alice got back from throwing the box out, Chloe was upstairs. This could be her best opportunity to check out the office. As she put the key in the lock, she had the most ridiculous hope that it wouldn’t work.
But it did.
The office was big enough to fit a desk and a couple of couches with plenty of space to spare. There were dark curtains on the windows and a bookshelf full of classic fiction. She took it all in within seconds before closing the door and flicking on the light.
