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When I was young, I never really understood what she meant. After the past few days, I was starting to understand a little more. I should be terrified of all these people. They basically kidnapped me after one of their associates almost killed me. But I was more than fine with it. In fact, you could say I was happy about it. They weren’t terrifying in the slightest. Well, maybe Ivan was a little. But even with him, all I saw was good when I looked at him. When I looked at all of them. Adrik, especially.
Life was about balance. We all had good parts and bad parts. Each day was about choosing which parts you paid the most attention to.
I heard Misha snoring softly. I slowly pulled my legs away from him and got up as quietly as I could. I stood and stretched, the soreness still present in my muscles. It felt good, though. I left Misha napping on the couch and wandered around the house. I walked into the room with the piano. No one was around, so I sat down and played a few notes. I was probably going to wake Misha up with this, but I didn’t care. It felt good to have a piano to play right now.
My mother always said I had more talent for the piano than she did. She was the classically trained pianist though. I never had as much interest in it as she did. I just enjoyed playing the songs I liked and making up my own songs. I hadn’t played much since she died. Every now and then I would visit the Steinway gallery and would play one of their floor models for an hour or so. The salesmen had known my mother, so they would let me play as long as I liked. It was a free demo for them, so they loved it when I would come in. They always said they sold more pianos when I was there.
I started to pick at the keys, trying to decide what to play. I played quietly at first, not really wanting to wake Misha up, but as I repeated the melody, I got lost in the music and just started playing, not at all concerned with the volume.
Music was an escape. A way for my emotions to come out. I could play angry, sad, happy, and everything in between. There was never a time that I didn’t feel better after playing for a while. Before my mom died, I would play for hours, getting completely lost in the music.
I was so wrapped up in what I was playing that I hadn’t noticed Misha come into the room. He didn’t say a word, he just sat in one of the chairs on the other side of the room and listened intently while I stayed lost in the melody, completely lost in my own head.
Chapter Eighteen
Adrik
We pulled up to the house, the spring storm that had rolled in late afternoon now in full swing directly above the house. We ran from the vehicles up the front steps to avoid the rain, not bothering with umbrellas. As we got to the front door, we could hear music coming from the house. The house was always quiet. It was late enough that the house staff had already left for the day. Tori sometimes listened to music as she cooked, but never loud enough that you could hear it from outside.
As I opened the front door, we were met with a haunting melody. We all stopped in the entryway, listening. It was like we were frozen in place. It must be Sephie playing the piano. The only time it ever got touched was when one of the maids cleaned it. Otherwise, no one ever played it. It had belonged to the previous owner of the house. They didn’t want to move it, so they left it. Now, I was glad they did.
The music felt like raw emotion expressed in a melody. It was haunting. It was beautiful. We walked quietly to the next room. She didn’t notice us walk in, she just continued to play. The piano was positioned in such a way that she couldn’t see much of the room. Misha was sitting in a chair, his gaze fixated on her playing. His expression one of complete awe as he watched her. Without a word, we all took seats and listened to her impromptu concert.
I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye and saw Tori step into the doorway, as mesmerized as the rest of us. She glanced and saw all of us in the room, then quickly left to the kitchen. She would be starting dinner, I was sure. Andrei got up as quietly as he could and walked to the kitchen, trying not to disturb Sephie.
She continued to play for a few more minutes, but the song slowly ended. As she played the last note, she sat and stared at the keys for a moment, sighing. I heard applause and smiled as I looked to see the guys all giving her a standing ovation. I stood and clapped with them. It startled her. She looked up, completely surprised that we were all there.
“Holy shit! When did you guys get here?” She jumped up from the bench, walking to us quickly, looking like she was slightly embarrassed. Her cheeks were flushed. She chewed on her bottom lip.
She walked to me, tucking herself into my arms where she fit so perfectly. I kissed the top of her head. “That was beautiful, solnishko. You must play for us more often,” I whispered to her.
She hid her face in my shoulder. “I haven’t played in a while,” she said shyly.
Viktor answered her, “No one would’ve ever known. You have a gift, Sephie.”
She didn’t answer, she just hid her face from everyone in my shoulder. This was a new side of her that we hadn’t seen yet. She was normally so open and confident; it was adorable to see her be shy about something she was so clearly good at.
I wrapped my arms around her, holding her closer. I felt my heart swell. The guys all walked away quietly, leaving the two of us alone. I kissed the top of her head again. “I missed you, solnishko.”
She looked up at me, smiling. My heart skipped a beat as I looked into her beautiful eyes. “I missed you too. How was your day?”
I smiled back at her, “Good. I have a surprise for you. You’re going to love it.”
“I love surprises! What is it?” she exclaimed, as she wrapped her arms around my waist.
I clicked my tongue. “Not yet. In a few days. It’s still in the works.”
She pouted her lips, feigning disappointment. I kissed her lips, realizing that I’d been longing for them all afternoon. Her hands moved behind my neck as she stood on her toes and deepened the kiss. God, I could get used to coming home to this every day.
From the doorway, Andrei cleared his throat. “Boss, dinner will be ready in about 10 minutes.”
She turned her head and glared at Andrei. “Rude, Bubba. Rude.”
His face dropped as he thought she was serious. She giggled and he immediately look relieved.
“Thank you, Andrei,” I said. With my arms still tight around her, I walked us back toward the stairs. I wanted to change before dinner, and she was coming with me whether she wanted to or not. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, I stopped. I bent down and threw her over my shoulder, walking up the stairs as she laughed at me.
We got to my bedroom, and I threw her down on the bed. She was still laughing at me. I walked to the closet, asking, “What did you and Misha get into today? Were you nice to him, I hope?”
