Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 79211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 396(@200wpm)___ 317(@250wpm)___ 264(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 396(@200wpm)___ 317(@250wpm)___ 264(@300wpm)
“I…I can’t. Not now, anyway.”
She and Aria exchange a look. They’re clever women and at the very least, will have likely surmised that if I’m waiting to share my personal information, I may be trying to keep this wedding going.
Polina fiddles with a delicate gold necklace around her neck. “My family is in jeopardy, Harper. It has been, for some time. My brothers need to solidify the family with alliances and connections. It’s the way we survive.”
I nod. I know I’m only a puppet on strings, at least in the eyes of the Bratva. “I know how these things work,” I say wearily. “I get it.”
We sit in silence for a moment. All of us are tangled in this web in one way or another.
“Alright then,” Polina says. “Let’s get going. You have to get ready for breakfast downstairs.” She smiles sheepishly. “That was sort of the argument between us just now. Aleks thinks you should be eating downstairs with everyone.”
Everyone? I swallow. “Who’s everyone?”
Aria and Polina share another look. Polina sighs. “Welllll. There’s a lot of us. Mikhail’s the oldest, then there are my other brothers, six in total although one of them is out of the country right now, and then my mother…”
“You have six brothers?” Yikes. Even though Aleks is the one I’m supposedly marrying, the thought of being outnumbered by more of him is a little scary.
“Tell me about it. So let’s get you dressed and downstairs.”
I’m starving and I want breakfast. I have to face them all eventually. “Alright.”
“I picked out a few outfits. You’ll find them in the closet.”
“Thank you.”
She probably picked out clothes the same way she picked out my makeup, but at this point, I don’t care. The most important thing I can do right now is make friends with these two so I can survive this. So I can do what I have to.
Allies. I need allies.
I look through the clothes quickly. “Casual?”
“Just something you’d wear to breakfast.”
I don’t eat breakfast and would probably drink coffee dressed in my jammies, but I get her point. The small stack of neatly folded clothes and the dresses on hangers in the closet are stark reminders that I wasn’t allowed to bring anything with me.
Nothing.
I can’t think of that now.
I choose a soft pair of leggings and a long sweater suitable for this cool weather, then quickly step into the bathroom to get ready. I swipe on some makeup.
Aria sighs. “I could spend an hour getting ready and still look like a little kid playing in her big sister’s makeup.”
I give her a wry smile. “I could maybe help with that.”
Her eyes light up. “I would love that.”
I like her.
I get a good view of the house when we walk downstairs for breakfast. I’m not surprised that when I glance through large windows, I find we’re nestled in a secure location behind dense rows of trees. I’d bet my last penny the security systems that surround this home are top-notch. He knows every bird that lands on his property, every car that drives by.
The home is modern and almost minimalist, built with sleek, clean lines, not a speck of dust or anything out of place. Thick carpet beneath my feet, framed prints of contemporary art. I note a few things that are a bit out of the ordinary — a control panel for the light fixtures that looks like someone lifted it straight out of a spaceship, a thermostat on the wall with an impressive display screen.
“I’m a tech girl,” Aria says when she sees me taking everything in. We walk down a small set of stairs toward the smell of bacon and coffee. “And let me tell you, I drool when I come here.”
A huge, framed print is mounted over the fireplace in the living room. Takes me a minute to realize it’s the TV, though it’s framed like a picture and currently displaying artwork. We walk past that doorway and into the dining room.
My stomach clenches as the sound of talking dies down. There is indeed an entire group of men sitting at the dining room table, but no Aleksandr.
A man who looks to be in his thirties stands and walks over to me. Deep-set dark brown eyes beneath heavy brows, golden, tanned skin, and dark brown hair tinged with flecks of gold make him look almost godlike. I find myself mentally comparing him to Aleksandr’s darker, rugged good looks, and immediately give myself a mental shake. Stop. This man’s arrestingly masculine and undeniably attractive but a bit more civilized than Aleks.
He stretches his hand out to me. “Mikhail Romanov, Aleksandr’s older brother and head of the Romanov family. Welcome.” I nod mutely, unsure what the proper thing to do is in this circumstance.
“I’m Harper.” My cheeks flush. Obviously, they know who I am. Everyone’s staring at me. Fortunately, I don’t have to think on it for long, because Mikhail goes straight to Aria and puts his hand on her lower back.