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I ran upstairs and threw on a heavier long-sleeve shirt. The weather was in that weird time of year where you had to add and subtract layers of clothing periodically throughout the day. There was more of a breeze at the house, so it felt cooler. I didn’t want to make Andrei have to give me his shirt while we were avoiding the house.
Misha decided to come too. Adrik slid his arm around my waist, leaning down to my ear, “I’d rather have you all to myself later. I’ll be in my office when you get back.” He spun me around to face him, planting a kiss on my lips. It was just enough to get my mind thinking about what his definition of “having me all to himself later” meant.
The three of us set out for an adventure, far, far away from the house and the evil stepmother—evil chef? Seems accurate—the evil chef that lived there. I always enjoyed their company, but I was just happy to be able to go for a walk. Ivan was a genius. My hip felt better than it had since the night of the ball. My limp was barely noticeable now and the dull ache that had started was now gone too. When Adrik took the bandage off last night, he was surprised at how good it looked. It was no longer red around the edges and was already showing signs of healing.
They both noticed I was walking better, as we walked toward the gardens, and I skipped to get a closer sniff of one of the roses.
“Your hip must be feeling better, spider monkey.” Andrei had a broad smile on his face. I knew they were all still struggling with what happened, so seeing me feel better also made them feel better.
“Ivan is a genius. Maybe an evil genius, I don’t know. But a genius, nonetheless. It does feel better than it’s felt since, you know, I tried to kill myself by jumping out of a moving vehicle. 0/10, by the way. Do not recommend.”
Misha laughed, shaking his head. “You’re so much like us it’s scary.”
I squinted my eyes at him, putting my hands on my hips. “I’m going to need some clarification on that one, my adorable Russian guardian.”
His cheeks blushed slightly, his handsome smile stretching across his face. “You have a dark sense of humor about cheating death like we do.”
“Well, what’s the fun of cheating death if you can’t laugh about it?” I asked.
They laughed, but both were thoughtful. Andrei looked to me as we walked closer to the forest trail. “Ivan was right, you know. You’re really making it difficult for any other girl to have a chance with us.”
“We’re going to compare everyone to you from now on,” Misha added.
“I mean, no pressure there,” I said, scoffing.
“We don’t mean it as a bad thing, gazelle. You’ve just showed us how good it can be,” Misha said, slinging his arm over my shoulders as we walked. I wrapped an arm around his waist, nearing the forest trail.
I sighed. “It’s not going to be easy for you. The more you accept yourselves and truly own who you are, you’re going to attract all kinds of people who want a taste of what you have to offer. But most people just want to take from you, without ever giving in return. You have to wait for that one special person, or in my case, six of you, that give back just as much as they take. They’re out there, but you’re going to have to eliminate…okay, bad choice of word right there. I did not mean eliminate literally,” I said, laughing. “You’re going to have to weed out the bad ones to find your special one.” I thought for a minute, then added, “It might not be as difficult for you guys. Your murderous auras when you’re working will keep a lot of them away.”
They both laughed. “We don’t really look that mean, do we?” Andrei asked.
“Well, you two look nicer. Viktor and Ivan are slightly more intimidating. They smile less than you two. Viktor is easier to win over while Ivan is the toughest nut to crack I’ve ever met. Stephen is the wild card. He’s so quiet that you’re not sure if he’s just a really nice guy or if he is plotting your murder at any given moment.”
We came into the clearing by the lake. The wildflowers were all fading with the beginning of fall, but they were still eerily beautiful. The lake was calm and clear, giving us a clear mirror image of the fluffy white clouds in the sky. I took in the scene, not realizing just how much I had missed this place. It was one of Adrik’s favorite places on the property, but it was also one of mine. They both knew my favorite spot to sit by the lake and headed straight for it. We all sat down, silently enjoying the scenery, the quiet, the moment.
We sat for a long time in silence, both guys looking like they were lost in thought. Andrei picked up a rock and chucked it in the water. “Did you know right away that Boss was the one for you? Like was it love at first sight?”
I smiled, thinking back to that first night. “I don’t know if I would phrase it exactly like that. You and Viktor walked in and I’m sure my eyes went wide. You’re both giant, very attractive men, but I felt nervous looking at you both. Then Adrik stepped inside the door so I could see him and there was like a weird calm that came over me. There’s always this pull toward him when I see him. I felt that right away, for sure, but I wouldn’t say that I recognized it as love right away.”
“He feels that pull when he’s around you. He can’t stay away from you. It’s so different from how he’s always been with his past girlfriends,” Misha said. “They were always clinging to him and he would just look like he was miserable and wanted to get away from them,” he said, laughing at the memory. I found the mental image of him being desperate to get away from his past girlfriends amusing.
“We all feel it, though, just to a lesser extent. We all want to be around you,” Andrei said. “You’re like a desert oasis for us.”
“Don’t you dare compare me in any way to a camel.”
We sat by the lake for a while longer. I was starting to get sore from sitting on the ground, so I suggested we head back to the house. “I know you don’t want to, Bubba. I promise, for real this time, I won’t leave you alone if you don’t want me to.”
He stood up and offered me his hand, pulling me up. Probably shouldn’t have sat like that for so long. I put my hand on my hip, pressing just above the wound. It wasn’t excruciating this time, but I could feel it.
Misha said, “We sat for too long. Your hip doesn’t like it when we sit for too long.”
“Ugh, I think you’re right. I’ll be okay. I just need to walk,” I said, limping toward the direction of the house.
“I can give you a ride back to the house, spider monkey,” Andrei said, his eyebrow raised.
I laughed. “Are you trying to make Tori want to kill me while I’m sleeping?”
“I can do it. She can’t say anything about me giving you a ride,” Misha offered.
