Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83221 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83221 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
She bites her lip for a moment, looking contemplative. "Mikhail," she says. "How long though? How long will your family hide here? You are not people that hide from danger, so I know you can't be planning on doing so for very long."
"You're right. We’re putting together a plan of offense in place of defense. We just need some time. "
I get a call, and my brother tells me that the coast is clear. I blow out a breath, reluctant to remove her from the safe room now that she's here.
"We can't stay here forever,” I tell her with a nod. "I know you're right. Let's go eat with my family."
She looks down at herself in rumpled sweats, her hair still damp from the shower.
"Can I at least freshen up first?"
"Fine."
We go back to our room and I'm preoccupied. She quickly puts on a pair of jeans and a sweater and does some kind of messy knot thing in her hair that looks adorable.
While she freshens up with a little bit of makeup, I lean toward her, catching her gaze in the mirror, and wrap my hand around the messy knot of a bun at the nape of her neck.
"Do you remember when we first met, and you walked in my office with your hair up? Do you remember what I told you?"
She snorts. "Remember? Of course I do. It was the first time in my life I had ever encountered someone that made me think they were a total asshole while also making me want to be pressed against the wall and kissed by them at the same time. I was so mad at you for making me all kinds of attracted to you."
I grin against her hair and give her a kiss on the back of her head. I love her.
"Are you hungry?"
"Starving, as usual, but you know how it goes. My appetite is a little weird right now."
"We’ll find you something you like."
Polina claps her hands together in glee when we make it to the dining room. My mother sits in the background, tapping on an iPad.
"Mikhail. Aria! It's so good to see you. I wondered if you’d ever let her come down.”
They seem remarkably calm.
They haven't been told of the attack. Why would they be? My brothers had it covered. Aria gives me a questioning look, and when I shake my head, she shrugs and sits next to my mother.
"How are you feeling?" my mother asks, reaching for Aria’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.
"Much better. Still kind of yucky, like I have weird aversions, and cravings, and nausea comes and goes all the time. I can't stop crying over everything.”
“Understandable. I got you something."
"Did you? "Aria says, her shining eyes looking at me in surprise. I knew she'd love my mother. I knew my mother would love her. But right now, I have more important things to worry about.
I call all my brothers down to the dining room so we can go over what just happened and fill my sister and mother in as well.
“Oh my goodness, I love these.” Aria unwraps a set of Matryoshka dolls, traditionally known as Russian nesting dolls here in America.
"You know each doll contains a smaller one, and I thought it would symbolize the stages of pregnancy, as you get further along.”
"Thank you!"
She pulls out a package of herbal teas designed for pregnant mothers, a little tin of pastilles you melt under the tongue for nausea, and a soft, thick woolen shawl.
"In Russian tradition, it's exceptionally important for pregnant women to stay warm. While your body uses up all your resources to grow that child, you have to take care of yourself. Here, I made this myself." She arranges the shawl over Aria's shoulders. I'm alarmed to see Aria wiping at her eyes.
"Thank you," she whispers, leaning in to give my mother a kiss on her cheek.
Aleks storms into the dining room, his eyes on Aria. ""Good. You're here. We need to put our heads together. Goddamn drones."
“Oh my God, tell me about it." Aria rolls her eyes at me. "Drones are one of the hardest devices to track. It has to do with short range communication, the way they are so rapidly mobile, and how everything is encrypted."
"Right. The ones Volkov’s using have anti-jamming techniques. It means they’re built to resist any attempt to stop them from communicating."
"He's been at this for some time, Aleks.”
I can't blame Aleks for this. I've never made my private home part of his responsibility. And while he recently came in to help with surveillance and security, it's still new to him.
Viktor storms into the room next, formidable and intimidating. He's been working out in the home gym with Nikko, because when Nikko comes in, I notice they're both wearing thin workout tanks and shorts, sweat still glistening on their skin.