8. Coral
Coral
“O kay, what is going on with you?” Raven asked, and Olive sat unusually quiet next to her as we ate lunch at the brewery.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I shrugged. I hated avoiding sharing with them. I wanted them to know about Oleg.
Hell, I wanted them to meet him. But something inside me knew the moment I shared, even though they were younger than me, they would go all overprotective mode, and I wasn’t necessarily ready for that.
“Really?” Scarlett asked, making me turn towards my deliriously happy sister. “I don’t know if I believe you. You look… too happy.”
“Too happy? Is that a thing?” I snorted and picked up a fry, popping it in my mouth.
“See! Too happy,” she repeated, and I frowned.
“I don’t know what you?—“
“That!” Scarlett pointed at me as I picked up another fry. “You never eat fries,” she called me out, and I rolled my eyes.
“That’s not true,” I argued, knowing I was lying. I loved fries, but when I’d been with Jack, he had hammered it into my head how I shouldn’t eat them if I wanted to stay fit.
I had no idea why I had let him into my head the way I did. Oleg didn’t care what I ate. Hell, he insisted I eat three meals a day. On the days he knew my schedule was crazy, he even sent food to my office for me. It was crazy to think that the last three weeks, as much of a whirlwind as this thing with him and I had been, he had showed me just how important I was to him. How much he wanted to take care of me.
“You always insist on us getting salads at lunch, and you’re having a grilled chicken sandwich with fries,” Raven pointed out.
“Babe.” Oli shot me a look, and I pressed my lips together before I sighed when my eyes caught hers. She surprised me by not saying a word. I knew she was good at keeping secrets, but she hated it. She said secrets ate at her, and I could tell this had been hard on her. Not being able to ask me anything or tell them she had picked me up from my one-night stand. A one-night stand that had lasted three weeks so far.
“Fine.’ I dropped the fry and clasped my fingers together as I looked out at my sisters. “I’m going to tell you guys something, but I don’t want you to freak out or get all weird and crazy.”
“Weird?”
“Crazy?”
“Why would we freak out?” They all asked almost simultaneously, three pairs of eyes set on me.
“I’m seeing someone, and each of you is allowed to ask me one thing and one thing only,” I tossed out there, almost positive it wasn’t going to work, but I had to try.
“You’re seeing someone?” Scarlett gasped, and I nodded with a smirk.
“Yes. One down, two more to go.” I grinned, and she scowled at me.
“Hey! That didn’t count!” she argued, but I shrugged, playing it off like there was no way they would be able to shake out any more out of me.
“It most certainly did.” My eyes caught Olive’s deep green gaze, and with a smirk, I knew what she was going to ask before the words catapulted out of her mouth.
“Is this the guy you had a one-night stand with and made me pick up out by his fancy cabin on the other end of the lake?”
“You had a one-night stand?!” Raven laughed but was obviously shocked.
“Yes,” I admitted. “I’ve been seeing him for the last three weeks.”
“Three weeks!” my sisters semi-shouted. People stared at us, but they quickly looked away, their attention back on their tables.
“I told you!” Raven pointed at the other two. “I told you she has been weirdly quiet.”
“I just thought she picked up on my grandma hobbies.” Scarlett shrugged, and Olive snorted.
“I’ve seen Cora try to crochet. There was no way. She’s not that good with her hands.”
“Oleg would say differently,” I accidently countered, and their eyes turned into saucers before everyone started to bust up in a fit of giggles. After a moment, we calmed down, and I could feel their questions growing.
“His name is Oleg?” Scar asked, and I nodded.
“And he’s nice to you?” Raven asked gently, covering my hand with hers.
“Very nice,” I whispered.
“Good.” I could see the relief and perhaps hesitation in believing me just yet.
After telling them about Jack and I breaking up, I had been honest about what our relationship had been like for the most part. I’d kept the shoving and threatening he’d done to myself because it was over and done with. We both moved on.
“What does he do?” Scarlett asked, and I shared. I told them about the security company he ran and how many employees he had. By the looks on their faces, they were impressed. Happy for me even. That was until Oli spoke up.
“And he lives here? Permanently?” she asked quietly, almost like she was trying to hold back her concern. As the oldest, I understood where she was coming from. If they had come to me with this same situation, I would have been worried, too. I’d been in a not-so-great relationship for over a decade, and my experience with men wasn’t a lot. I’d had my heart broken and spent the first couple of months this year licking my wounds. She didn’t want me to set myself up for more heartache. I didn’t want that, either.
“I mean… he’s here now.” I shrugged, picking up a fry. It was something I had tried to ignore and not think about. Something to store and keep in the back of my head. It wasn’t like Oleg was a permanent resident of our little mountain town, but he also hadn’t brought up returning to LA or San Diego. When will he be leaving?
“Where does he live? Usually, I mean. When he’s not on a job?” Scar asked, and they each looked at one another. I knew what that look meant. I’d given them that same quiet look when one of the others got themselves into a predicament we didn’t think would turn out right.
“His offices are in LA, but he has a place in San Diego.”
“Is that where his family is?” Raven asked, but I shook my head.
“No, they’re in New York. Well, his aunt and cousins. His parents passed.”
“Oh, wow.” The three of them sighed, sympathy in their eyes as they looked at one another, but it was Raven who caught my attention again. “But he has a place in San Diego?” She looked slightly confused.
“By the beach. La Jolla, actually.”
“Oh,” Raven said, and they glanced at each other. “That’s nice.” The sudden silence was deafening.
“Okay. Spit it out,” I said because I knew there was a reason I hadn’t introduced them to Oleg. All the worries and concerns about this new man in my life were things I wasn’t ready to face. Sure, he forced me to tell him I was his every single time before he pushed into my body and made me see stars, but maybe that was his thing? A possessive kink he had with the women he spent time with. My smile fell at just the thought of Oleg with other women. My gut churned, and I set the fry down, losing my appetite.
“Spit what out?” Oli asked, and I rolled my eyes.
“Whatever you guys are thinking or aren’t saying.” Scar, Raven, and Olive looked at one another, silently communicating something.
“Babe…” Oli took my hand, and our eyes locked. “I know you’re the oldest and wisest, yada, yada, yada, but… you’re also new to dating matters in this decade.”
“Oli,” I warned, because I hated her talking to me like I was some kind of child.
“I think what Oli is trying to say is what if he goes back to wherever he lives? San Diego, LA, it’s far. And long-distance things are tough,” Raven pointed out as if she had any idea what any kind of relationship was like. My sweet sister didn’t date. She kept her nose stuck in a book when she wasn’t in the salon making people’s hair incredible.
“We just don’t want you to get too invested when maybe… this isn’t as serious for him as it is to you?” Scar glanced at Oli, and Oli glanced at me.
“She doesn’t mean that in a bad way,” Oli defended her. I tried to listen and keep what they were saying in mind.
They were wrong.
I understood their worries, but at the same time, they didn’t know Oleg like I did. Or was I justifying him and this thing that maybe should have been a rebound and not me looking at it like some kind of possible relationship? Right then and there, I wished I’d called Oleg and asked him to join me, us, for lunch so they could meet him.
That’s when I noticed Oli’s attention move behind me. Her eyes widened at whatever she saw, and I swallowed hard, hoping it wasn’t Jack and his new girl. I hadn’t had a single run-in with him since the night Oleg had pretended to be my man. Before I could turn around, I felt a big warm hand cup my shoulder, a tall body bend and leaning close to me. Body heat and his scent wrapped around me.
His touch was as familiar as my own; I didn’t have to turn to know it was him.
Oleg’s lips touched my cheek before I glanced at him over my shoulder. “Hey.” I smiled and couldn’t deny the calm I felt just knowing he was there.
Almost like I had somehow conjured him up, like he had known I needed him there. My sexy guy winked at me, and everything felt better. All with a simple wink and smile.
“I hope you don’t mind me popping by,” he rumbled.
“Not at all.” I smiled, covering his hand with mine.
Someone cleared their throat, the sound reminding me we had an audience. Who else had I ever been so distracted by their mere presence that I forgot people were around, or that my family was there? No one. Only with Oleg. I turned towards my sisters, taking my eyes off him, and my hand tightened over his.
“Oleg, meet Olive, Scarlett, and Raven. My little sisters. Rave, Oli, Scar, I would like you to meet Oleg Sokolov.”
“Her boyfriend,” he added. I felt heat hit my face as each one of my sisters reacted with wide eyes. “And the pleasure is all mine,” he said kindly, extending his free hand to reach and shake theirs. Once everyone was introduced, a waitress brought over a chair, and he sat next to me.
Oleg graciously insisted on ordering desserts for the table, and as everyone ate, my sisters peppered him with a million questions. Each of which he was more than happy to answer. When it turned out that Scarlett’s man was friends with Oleg, I smiled, thinking this was just one more sign from the universe that our paths were meant to cross. By the time the last bite was taken, my brother Onyx had joined us.
And shockingly enough, Oleg seemed to have won him over as well. Which honestly surprised me. Onyx was overprotective of all his sisters.
“I like him, Coral,” my little brother said when he hugged me goodbye. “You look happy,” he noted, and I couldn’t wipe away the smile on my face. I knew this whole thing was new, but I was going to trust my gut and follow my heart when it came to Oleg.
My sisters all said their goodbyes, too, and they all, like Onyx, told me how much they liked my new man.
“He looks at you like you hung the moon.” Scarlett winked, and Raven nodded with sheer enthusiasm before turning her gaze towards the bar. My eyes followed, and I wasn’t surprised to see Bash staring in our direction, but his gaze locked on my little sister. I didn’t know if it was because I was in love or what, but I hoped somehow, someway, Bash would make a move. Because I knew Raven. My sister was amazing and had a mile long of incredible qualities, but there was no way she would ever make the first move. My sister was too shy for that.
That’s when it hit me. I am in love.
But this time, even though I didn’t know Oleg that long, it felt different. Holy shit! I was head over heels in love with Oleg after only a couple of weeks! It’d taken me six months to say I love you when I was with Jack.
And it was an easy feeling this time around. Not something I felt the need to overthink or analyze.
When Oleg took my hand in his and I looked up at him, his deep dark eyes locked with mine, shining with something sweet and something that looked a lot like I felt. I just hoped I wasn’t the only one who felt this way.