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“I hope it went well, baby. Thanks for talking to her.”
“I like her. Thanks for setting it up. I don’t think I would’ve done it if you hadn’t pushed me to.”
He rubs my back and carries me to our room when he hears me yawn. I don’t know if it’s the weight I’ve lost or just stress in general, but I’ve felt exhausted lately. Matvey’s hyperaware of how I’m feeling, so I’m not at all surprised when he lays me down in bed and grabs thebook he’s been reading me. I curl up next to him, listening to his voice as I slowly fall asleep.
Over the next week, we fall into a steady routine. Dr. Bianchi called to let me know my results were fine, and as relieved as I am to have one less thing to worry about, the memories continue to haunt me around the clock. Eating is still an issue for me, so Matvey keeps feeding me, but we’ve been spending more time with everyone else, watching movies together and having gaming competitions. I still wake up from nightmares every night, and it’s always to the feel of Matvey’s strong arms around me and his raspy voice in my ear telling me that I’m safe. Sometimes during the day, he’ll kiss me goodbye and disappear for a few hours, but he got me a phone, and I know if I text him, he’ll immediately come back. I’ve resisted the urge so far. I know what he’s doing, and I know how badly he needs it.
They’re all hard at work making sure that everything looks as it should from the outside. With the auction in two weeks, we can’t afford for any rumors to come out. Just one hint of something gone wrong, and no one will show. Important reputations and careers are on the line, and none of these men are willing to risk everything for one auction, even if it is such a highly anticipated one.
I’ve just finished my second appointment with Dr. Taylor and after she’s left, Danil comes walking into the living room with his laptop.
“I finally found him.”
Matvey and I don’t need to ask. We know he’s been spending all his time trying to locate the man who bought Dominic’s sister. The process ended up being more complicated than anyone anticipated. Casimir had helped set up the system, but a lot of it was done before he started working for Konstantin, and they’ve had to untangle what had become an extremely complicated web, but if anyone could sort through it all, I knew it’d be Danil.
“The fucker’s name is Lars Andersson. He’s a forty-year-old investment banker with a wife and two kids. He owns a yacht that he keeps berthed along the southwestern coast of Sweden, and I’m guessing that’s where he hides the women he buys. If Isabella Alessi isn’t a one-off thing with him, then when he gets tired of them, he probably sails out and dumps their bodies in the sea.”
“Jesus,” Matvey mutters, tightening his arm around me. “Have you told Dominic?”
Danil pulls his phone out of his pocket. “I’m about to, but I wanted to tell you something else first. Lars’s name is on the list of men we have coming to the auction. He reserved his spot months ago. Looks like the bastard is trying to replace another pet.”
“Invite him over,” Matvey suggests. “Maybe between the five of us we can convince him to be patient for a little bit longer.”
Danil lifts a brow at Matvey. “Yeah, that worked so well with you.”
Vitaly walks in, obviously having heard the last bit of conversation, because he laughs and says, “You mean the time when he pretended to be asleep for forty-five fucking minutes and then snuck out when I took a piss so he could torture and kill five men?”
“Technically it was only four.” He looks down at me and winks. “Your brother killed the fifth.”
“What’s going on?” Lev walks in and grabs a drink from the fridge.
Danil sets his laptop down on the counter. “I found who took Dominic’s sister, and the bastard already paid for his spot at the auction.”
“Danil’s going to invite him over, and we need to convince him to wait to act,” Matvey adds.
Lev laughs and raises a pierced brow. “Kind of like you then.”
“They’re never going to let me forget that,” he mutters close to my ear. Kissing my head, he leads me to the fridge. He grabs some leftover pasta and heats it up while Danil walks off to call Dominic. When the microwave beeps, he grabs the bowl and tells the others, “We’re going to eat lunch before Dominic gets here.”
“Yeah, we’re going to need your help to talk some sense into him,” Lev says, giving me a smile when I walk past.
The others have obviously noticed that Matvey and I are eating our meals separately, but no one ever says anything or makes me feel weirdabout it. I think they’re all just thrilled that I’m eating and very slowly gaining weight.
“All right,malishka, time to eat.”
I smile at Matvey when he pulls me into his lap and balances the bowl of pasta on his other thigh. Spearing a noodle, he holds it up to my lips. We take turns, eating in a comfortable silence. Anytime I start to feel stupid or like I’m being too much trouble, I remind myself that a few weeks ago, I was chained up and forced to eat off the floor like an animal. So all in all, I’m not doing too bad.
Watching Matvey’s face, I smile when he gives me a wink. His dark eyes run over me, always checking to make sure I’m okay, and I’d give anything if I could just lean closer and kiss him like I used to be able to do. Something stops me, though. Something always does. Usually it’s the sound of Konstantin’s voice in my ear or an image of something he made me do or something he did to me. When that happens, it freezes me in place, making it impossible for me to close the distance between us.
I’m not surprised when Matvey notices the way I’ve become tense. Setting the fork down, he cups my face and leans in so we’re only a couple of inches apart. I love his eyes. They’re one of my favorite things about him, and right now they’re searching mine for clues.
“So many worries, baby,” he murmurs, “and I wish you’d let them all go. There’s no rush, and I’m not going anywhere.”
“I miss kissing you, Matvey.”
His eyes soften at my words.
“I miss it, too, and when you’re ready for that stage, it’ll be amazing, but until then, I get to hug you.” He caresses my cheek with the pad of his thumb. “I get to touch your beautiful face.” He leans closer and kisses my forehead, slowly breathing me in. “And I get to kiss your face and fill my lungs with you, and that’s more than enough,malishka.”
