Chapter 13
MILA
I wake up early to start cooking.
Fuck, I hate this with every fiber of my being.
Who gets excited about pancakes?
They’re great and all, but to have that be the highlight of the day?
I don’t get it.
The pan is heating up, and the batter is mixed when Nikolai comes out of his room.
He leans against the counter in his tight white tank top and gray sweatpants.
There’s something big poking out of them as he scrolls on his phone.
“We’re leaving after breakfast.” He doesn’t look up at me when he talks.
That’s fine. It just means I can stare at his crotch more.
What does he have hidden in there? It’s the size of a racoon.
Wait. Leaving?
“Where are we going?” I try to ask innocently, but my heart is racing.
Is he taking me away? Or, did I earn the next step closer?
I hate limbo.
“Your background check cleared, and I need to go home. So, you’re coming with. I have an extra room.” His blue eyes flick up, then back to his screen.
Did he catch me checking out his waist?
No, probably the expression of shock.
I did it. I made it to the next level.
Internally, I’m screaming. Does this mean I have to keep cooking?
Damn.
It’d be more fun to torture.
Well, not Nikolai. Although, tying him up could be the fun part.
Shit.
I didn’t know pancakes could burn so quickly.
“Crap. I’m sorry. The next one will be better.” Scraping the black dough out of the pan, I pour the next one in, smaller.
His broad palm waves. “Don’t worry about it. We can order food. Get your stuff packed.”
It’s a struggle not to jump for joy.
“But, this mess…” I gesture over the countertop.
“Leave it. The cleaners need something to do.” He disappears back into his room.
I almost skip to mine and start throwing all of the clothes that Lara brought over into the bags.
After sending a quick text to Tyler about the change, I pull the battery out of the phone in case Nikolai has a signal tracker.
It isn’t long before we’re both loaded into his Hellcat, our bags poking at us from the tiny back seat.
An automatic gate opens and the long driveway reveals a big square house of steel and glass.
Why did I expect that? It fits him.
We pull up to the front step, but after he turns off the car, he sits in silence behind the wheel.
“I’m taking a very big risk with you.” He doesn’t look at me, but stares towards the building. “The most important person in the world to me lives here. If you hurt her, I hurt you.”
He gets out with a whoosh, leaving me blinking after him.
Who in the heck can it be?
He said no girlfriend.
I’ve read his dossier.
A dog?
Reluctantly, I follow him up the concrete stairs and into the front door.
An older, heavyset woman, maybe in her late fifties, glowers at me with her arms crossed over her ample chest.
His mother?
“You can go,” he says to the woman, in Russian.
Interesting.
She gives him a curt nod, and leaves without even acknowledging me.
Rude. I’m playing a poor, kidnapped, homeless woman who cooks badly.
I deserve at least a smile.
“Elena!” His deep voice echoes through the house.
That name. I heard him mention it to Lara that first night.
“Yes, Daddy!”
Oh, shit. A little girl?
A daughter?
What the fuck is he doing with a kid? That wasn’t in his folder.
Ivan just wanted me to off a single dad for diamonds?
Elena’s small footsteps ring hollow on the wood as she comes down.
Dark curly hair, rich chocolate eyes, and a pink dress.
What is she? Six? Seven?
She’s the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.
When Elena spots me, she pauses before looking at Nikolai.
She has his nose, and definitely clenches her petite jaw like him when she stares.
“Elena. This is Melissa. She’s going to be staying in our spare room for a few days. Be nice to her.” Nikolai gives her a lopsided grin before scooping her up into his arms.
He’s a completely different man holding her.
Bouncing her up onto his shoulder, he gestures to me to walk with him.
“Hi, Melissa. Your hair is pretty.” Elena turns over his back and smiles shyly at me.
My heart shatters.
“Yours is, too. I love how curly it is! Can you teach me how to make mine like that?”
How in the hell am I going to do this?
Elena pulls down one of her tightly coiled locks and lets it spring back. “I don’t know how it does that. Do you know how to braid?” She has the lightest of lisps as she talks past the gap in her teeth.
Nikolai pushes open a door that reveals a cozy room with a handmade quilt and colorful framed photos on the wall.
The other place was so sterile in comparison.
My stomach tightens.
This is a home.
I’m going to be sick.
“Do you have a favorite color?” Elena twists in Nikolai’s arms as he lowers her to the floor.
“I like lots of them.” Although, mostly all I wear is black.
She runs to me and tugs at my hand. “Pick one on the blanket.” Her finger pushes into the mattress over a neon orange square. “This is mine.”
I hover near the darkest color, a navy blue.
Fuck it.
“This one.” Bright purple presses beneath my palm.
“Oh. I like that one.” Elena looks up to Nikolai who’s towering over her. “Daddy, which one is yours?”
Nikolai squats and presses a kiss to the top of her head. “Whichever one you’re wearing.”
My god.
This is a bad idea.
Elena’s lower lip juts out. “You have to pick so she knows.”
Nikolai looks up at me before dropping his broad hand to the square next to mine.
The dark navy.
Figures.
Elena sighs. “You always pick that one. Is it because you’re a boy?”
“No, my little brother loves green.” Shit, I shouldn’t have shared that.
Nikolai raises an eyebrow at me, but doesn’t say anything.
Maybe he’ll forget about it.
“Daddy, can I show Melissa my room?”
His eyes narrow and his mouth thins into a line. “Maybe after she’s settled. This is a new place.”
I can see the slight shake of his head.
Gotcha.
“There’s so much here, it’s going to take me a long time to get used to things.” I sit on the edge of the bed to create a gap between us. “I mean, I have all of these to look at first.” I wave my hand at the wall of pictures.
Her nose crinkles. “I forgot grown ups like boring stuff. Okay. Nice to meet you.” She takes off in a full run out into the hall and disappears.
Nikolai stands and steps to watch her.
When I can’t hear her anymore, he glances back. “Thank you. I’m sure you can understand my…” His teeth grit as he clenches his jaw.
I try to give him my most solemn look. “Yea. I get it. I’ll keep my distance. I won’t do anything to violate your trust.”
Except steal your diamonds.