Chapter 23 - Nikolai
I was observant before, but I notice everything about Dani now.
The tension that used to sit permanently between her shoulders has eased, little by little, and has been replaced with a quieter trust. It’s cautious, given how our situation is still far too complicated for complete acceptance, but it’s also the kind built slowly through conversations at two in the morning, shared grief, and the understanding that neither of us can untangle ourselves from this mess until Malenkov and Volodin are dealt with.
It’s more than I expected to earn from her after everything, and likely more than I probably deserve, but I’ll take it anyway.
Tonight, though, I’m realizing there’s an entirely new form of stress I somehow failed to anticipate, given how this isn’t something I do often.
Somehow, even worse than facing down thugs who want to see my family’s empire collapse is the thought of bringing Danielle around my immediate family.
“This is a terrible idea,” I mutter as I steer the SUV through the gates of Roman’s estate, gripping a little harder than I need to. “Why did I think this was a good idea?”
In the passenger seat, Danielle glances over with obvious amusement. “You’re the one who invited me. I should be the one freaking out.”
“I was temporarily insane.”
“You’re still insane.”
A reluctant smile tugs briefly at my mouth before I pull into the sprawling circular driveway.
Roman’s house sits high above the city, all impressive architecture and dark glass overlooking the glittering landscape below.
At night, the Strip looks almost unreal from up here, glowing gold against the desert darkness.
Normally, family dinners here are loud enough to qualify as organized chaos between my siblings and their kids, but tonight will probably be worse. I can already feel it.
Danielle shifts slightly in her seat as I kill the engine.
“Nervous?”
She gives me a flat look and fixes her hair for the tenth time since we left. “I’m meeting an entire Bratva family, Nikolai. What do you think?”
I huff a laugh under my breath.
Strangely, hearing her say things like that no longer sends immediate panic through me.
A few weeks ago, I was trying desperately to keep my worlds separated, but now, Danielle knows exactly who I am, and somehow, instead of running, she’s still here.
That fact settles warmly in my chest every time I think about it too long, even if the implications of that are another problem entirely.
“You’ll be fine,” I tell her quietly as I pocket my key fob. “Honestly, you’re handling it better than I expected.”
“On the outside, maybe,” she mumbles before pulling in a deep, steadying breath. “And that’s easy for you to say.”
“No,” I say, opening my door. “It definitely isn’t.”
The truth is, this feels far too vulnerable in ways I never expected.
Bringing Danielle here means more than introducing her to relatives…it means exposing parts of myself I usually keep compartmentalized, letting her see where I came from and how intertwined loyalty and violence are within my family. It’s also about letting my family see her, too.
Maybe it shouldn’t matter this much, and I’m blowing everything out of proportion, but it does matter.
The second we step inside, noise hits immediately, between voices overlapping, laughter coming from somewhere deeper in the house, and music playing low through speakers.
Roman’s home always feels more alive when everyone gathers here. The massive open-concept living area is already crowded with family members, drinks in hand, food spread across the kitchen island as Vegas exists beyond the windows behind them.
Sergey spots me first, and I can tell from his eyes that he’s already buzzed. “Well, look who finally decided to stop being mysterious.”
Immediately, every head turns toward us, and Dani goes visibly tense beside me.
Christ.
Brushing my hand briefly against her lower back before guiding her forward, I murmur just for her, “Relax.”
It sounds like easy advice considering I’m internally reconsidering every decision that led to this moment, and wondering how I can slip away from this situation entirely.
But of course, I can’t, so I just have to face it.
My siblings are used to seeing me detached and avoiding deeper emotions whenever possible, but I want them to know I’m capable of more. That I will always stand my ground on the things that matter, even if a small piece of me is terrified of this.
Roman rises first from where he’s seated near the fireplace with Victoria next to him. As always, he commands attention without even trying, both tall and broad-shouldered in a dark button-down with that same authority that makes grown men nervous.
But tonight, his expression softens slightly when he looks at Danielle. It’s completely the opposite of how their first meeting went.
“It’s good to see you again,” he says evenly, seeing her now as someone in the fold rather than an outside he needs to dissect.
Danielle nods carefully, as if she’s quietly afraid of saying the wrong thing. Even so, she speaks clearly and without hesitation. “You too.”
Then the introductions begin properly.
Mikhail is polite as always, Sergey is far too quick to grin at me like he’s about to become a problem despite how Kat tries to reel him back in, and Ivan looks more tired than usual thanks to Alexei’s sleep schedule, who is apparently asleep upstairs, according to Mila.
Of course, Elena wastes no time with her usual sweet words and open curiosity as she introduces herself, all the while Wyatt watches her with quiet, fond amusement. If Elena could adopt every woman as her best friend, she would.
It’s overwhelming enough that I can practically feel Danielle trying to keep up mentally beside me, but to my surprise, everyone slips into welcoming her almost effortlessly.
Really, it shouldn’t be surprising. Regardless of how intense everyone can be, they aren’t monsters. Each of them knows what it’s like to put their pride aside and bring the most important person to them around.
And given how rare a thing this is for me, they know this matters to me.
It matters so much that seeing Dani relax by even a fraction around them feels incredibly important and settles some of the tension in me.
“Is Nikolai keeping you alive in there?” Sergey asks her casually while handing her a drink in the kitchen. “We all know this can be a bit much.”
“Barely,” Danielle says dryly.
Sergey immediately bursts out laughing, not as composed as he tries to pretend he is. He grins and glances at me. “I like her already.”
“Don’t encourage him,” I mutter, but there’s something vaguely funny about seeing him this way.
Though I regret the thought immediately. It’s already too late.
Mikhail smirks from across the room. “You brought home a woman capable of surviving your personality. We’re all impressed.”
Danielle snorts softly into her glass like a traitor, and as expected, the teasing only escalates from there.
Apparently, my siblings have collectively decided this is the funniest development of the year, or they’ve been keeping everything bottled up while they waited for this day to arrive. Likely both.
Roman at least stays mostly restrained, though I catch the occasional deeply unimpressed glance whenever Sergey gets too caught up in trying to be entertaining and charming, to which Kat eventually cuts him off and hands him water as a hint.
“You must be very patient to handle all of this,” Elena remarks lightly while we gather near the dining area as the younger ones chase each other in and out of the room, cheeks red while they laugh hard.
“You’ll get desensitized eventually,” Ivan adds simply, which seems to be true. The girls haven’t run off yet, so it must be tolerable enough.
Danielle smiles faintly. “I’ll let you know when my ears stop ringing.”
Another round of laughter follows, and instead of irritation thanks to my siblings, warmth settles low in my chest thanks to the fact that Dani’s smiling.
She isn’t forcing it or pretending just to be polite. It’s real enough that I catch myself staring again before dragging my attention elsewhere.
I already know this is becoming something far bigger than I ever thought it would be. The more she fits here, the more natural this begins to feel, and the harder it becomes to imagine eventually letting her walk away from it all.
Which I’m still supposed to do. That is part of the agreement, after all.
That thought leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, but I force myself to push it down.
At some point during dinner, Alexei wakes up in one of the spare bedrooms and immediately becomes the center of attention after Ivan carries him down. He’s half-asleep and clinging to his father’s shoulder until Mila passes him over to Elena, who immediately starts cooing at him.
Danielle watches the entire thing with quiet fascination, and I can tell she’s doing her best to take it all in.
“You’re surprised we’re functional human beings who happen to have families,” I murmur near her ear, watching the way she relaxes a bit more when I do.
“A little,” she admits under her breath, lips pulling into a faintly sheepish smile. “Maybe there are more children than I expected.”
I laugh quietly, and when her gaze holds mine, softer than before, something in me crumbles all over again.
Christ…I’m in serious trouble.
The hours pass more easily than I expect them to.
There’s endless food, arguments about business, Mikhail getting swatted with a dish towel by Lily for teaching Dima inappropriate Russian phrases, and enough overlapping conversations to drown out the constant pressure usually sitting in the back of my mind.
It’s almost enough until Roman catches my eye from across the kitchen and tilts his head once toward the hallway.
It’s a silent command, and an indicator that he means business.
I excuse myself quietly before following him away from the others, watching briefly as the girls waste no time pulling Dani into another conversation before focusing on the task at hand.
The second we’re alone near his office, Roman’s expression shifts into a more serious one. “How’s Artem doing?”
“He’s still looking into Malenkov, but he has made more connections in his network,” I tell him, trying to offer as much as I can. “He made a hostage talk recently, who gave up one of his higher-ups and a location. It’s one step closer.”
“Good,” Roman says coolly with a single nod, but he lets the silence stretch before he murmurs, “Even so, you’re running out of time, Nikolai.”
It couldn’t be a family gathering without the reminder I knew was coming.
Leaning against the nearest wall, I fold my arms across my chest and keep myself steady. “I know.”
“He hit one of our warehouses already, and I have the feeling he’ll be gearing up for another. We can’t let that happen again.”
“It won’t.”
Roman studies me carefully for a long moment, and in his usual way, it feels more like he’s picking apart my very soul. “You sure you’re thinking clearly about this?”
I know what he means, of course.
Danielle. It’s always her lately, even when she’s a more grounding force in my life.
“I’m handling it,” I say evenly.
“That’s not what I asked.”
With a slow exhale through my nose, I return carefully, “I have been thinking clearly. Things between us have been better lately. You don’t need to worry about her.”
Roman’s gaze sharpens slightly, but I still catch the understanding there. “You care about her…fine. I get it, but don’t let that cloud your judgment. Don’t let this distract you.”
The words irritate me mostly because they’re both right and wrong, but still, I hold his stare to let him know I’m serious.
“I’m on it.”
“You better be,” Roman mumbles, watching me for another second before finally nodding once. Then he gestures vaguely towards the gathering. “Come on…I don’t want the others getting too curious. This isn’t what tonight is about.”
Then, just like that, the moment passes, and we return to the others.
The sounds of laughter and conversation grow louder again as we approach the living room, and Dani looks up immediately when I reenter.
The second our eyes meet, the tension in me eases all over again as the new trust and connection between us feels tangible now.
I don’t know how to define what’s happening between us now, but I do know that I’ll do everything in my power to make sure nobody takes that light from her eyes ever again.