Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34410 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 172(@200wpm)___ 138(@250wpm)___ 115(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34410 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 172(@200wpm)___ 138(@250wpm)___ 115(@300wpm)
He didn’t trust everyone at the house—not a single guard, chef, or cleaner. He didn’t believe they would protect his family. She also knew he didn’t trust her, even though she had just sworn to him that she would be loyal. There was no way her loyalty would be easily bought. She didn’t care about money or wealth.
Staring at Sofia as the little girl wriggled on the grass, Alix smiled. Dmitry thought he had a free pass because of this girl. The truth was, she couldn’t hold a grudge, not for long. Not after knowing Dmitry had spent his life constantly looking over his shoulder, never trusting anyone. She couldn’t even begin to imagine the life he’d been living.
Nibbling her lip, she couldn’t help but look toward the house, wondering if Dmitry was in his office. He hadn’t been there that morning when she woke up. Sofia had been. The little girl had nightmares again, and had come in search of them. Alix didn’t know what to do, but Sofia hadn’t asked questions as to why Alix had been in her daddy’s bed.
“Alix, catch me,” Sofia said.
She had just enough time to hold her arms out as Sofia threw herself into her arms. She chuckled as she swung Sofia up in the air, and then slowly brought her down toward the ground.
“Again!”
Lifting her back up into the air, she swooped her up in the sky, then brought her back down.
“Again.”
Alix chuckled as she did this multiple times, ignoring the ache in her elbows.
“Can I help?” Dmitry asked.
“Daddy! Yes, higher.”
She let Sofia go and the little girl ran to her father’s arms. Alix tried not to look at the thickness of his arms as he gripped Sofia and lifted her up to the sky. He had wrapped those arms around her last night, pulling her close.
She didn’t want to be thinking about all the things he could do to her. His hands in particular. She already had bruises on her hips from where he held her in place as he took her. She loved being with him.
Watching him now with his daughter, she had to wonder why his wife did it. Yes, Dmitry was cold. His smiles were few and far between. He rarely talked. He certainly never divulged how he was feeling. Even as he told her the truth about his life, or some truth about his life last night over dinner, he’d not shown any emotion. He had simply been stating facts. Cold, hard facts. Like he was reading from a newspaper or something as mundane. She had no idea if it was even possible to reach out to him. To show him there were people who cared. Was it possible to allow herself to fall for him? To feel love?
Sofia’s giggles pushed those thoughts away. Alix had never felt love and she didn’t anticipate ever feeling it. There had only been lust in her life before, and it was something she could completely understand.
She glanced down at her wrist, but the watch she normally wore had been broken. Alix didn’t want to interrupt the father/daughter time, so she started to walk back to the house.
“Where are you going, Alix?” Dmitry asked.
She turned toward him. “I wanted to see if it was lunchtime.”
“Daddy, Daddy, Alix and I are going to have a picnic. We were supposed to have one yesterday but the stupid rain stopped it.”
“Don’t say stupid,” Dmitry said.
For some reason, Alix couldn’t help but smile at his reprimand of his daughter. This was a man who she had heard curse in pretty much every sentence he used, or at least some of his conversation.
“But, Daddy, the rain is silly.” Sofia stuck her bottom lip out and Alix felt so sorry for her. She’d been excited about her picnic.
“I’ll go and check if our picnic is ready,” Alix said, interrupting the father/daughter conversation.
“Please, Daddy, please. Alix and I would love you to stay.”
Dmitry turned his gaze toward her. “I don’t know if there will be room for me.”
“There’s always room at a picnic,” Alix said.
“Then yes, count me in.”
While Sofia celebrated, Alix went toward the kitchen for the picnic she had ordered. On the way toward the kitchen which was around the corner of the building where the double doors were open, she spotted a man she had never seen before. He had a cigarette and was staring up at the house. He wasn’t wearing a suit, but looked casual, as if he owned the place, and the moment she saw him, she didn’t like it. He hadn’t seen her.
She stepped back toward the direction she had come, and immediately headed toward Dmitry with Sofia. He had his little girl in his arms, but as he saw her, he put her down on the floor, holding her hand. Alix went straight to his side.