Epilogue
As I wait for Mila to join me for tea, I can’t help but think about how crazy the past two weeks have been, even by our standards.
Coming back to Russia was the last thing I expected to happen this year, but here we are.
When Mila and I fled all those years ago, I didn’t think I would ever come back.
To be honest, I hate it, but if this is where Mila has to be for a while, this is where I’ll stay.
I know she has Thatcher now, but after the news about her father, she’s going to need me more than ever.
We’ve gotten a lot done in the week that’s passed since everything went down at the fake wedding, but it will take months to sort everything out.
The good news is that Alexei’s sons seem like genuinely good men.
Plus, Ivan and his son, Sasha, both agreed to extend their help a while longer as well to fast-track the takeover.
I feel Mila before I hear her walking toward me.
God, I’ve missed her. Even with all hands on deck, it’s been so chaotic that we’ve barely crossed paths.
This has been the least I’ve seen her in as long as I can remember.
I turn to her with a smile that I can’t fight, but the look I’m met with is anything but happy.
“What’s wrong?” I ask as she slowly lowers herself into the seat next to me.
She takes my hand, and I swear tears are welling in her eyes. “I’m sending Thatcher back to Thunder Bay.”
Oh, phew.
Relief floods me at the mention of Thatch. Their attachment is new, but it’s strong, and I know for a fact that she’s struggling with emotions she’s never allowed herself to feel before. It makes sense that she would send him back to the States and that she would be sad about it.
“I know it’s hard, moya tsaritsa, but you know that’s where he will be safest, and you’ll be so busy flying back and forth between New York and Russia that he would probably barely see you staying at either place. He’s got his season coming up anyway, and he’ll have Teddy and the Santoris there—”
“And you,” Mila whispers.
“Excuse me?”
Surely, she didn’t mean that. I’ll be either with her as she goes back and forth or holding things down for her while she travels.
“You’re going to go with him, moya sila.”
Where’s the hidden camera? Mila has never been one for pranks, but who knows, maybe Thatcher has rubbed off on her. To my dismay, nobody jumps out with confetti.
“What are you talking about? I can’t leave you here to deal with this by yourself—”
“I won’t be by myself. I have Ivan, Sasha, and our new cousins to help with things. They’re all incredible, and I know—”
“But I can’t leave you…”
Mila cups my face. “Of course you can. It’s going to be different, I know. Trust me, I’m not looking forward to this either. I hate it. You’re as much a part of me as myself. But I need you to watch after Thatcher. And, well, you can’t stay in Russia anyway.”
“What do you mean I can’t stay in Russi—”
“You took the virginity of all three of the prime minister’s daughters, Misha? Really?”
I grimace at the mention of the PM. “Hey, that was a long time ago! I’m a completely different man now.”
“Well, he won’t work with us as long as you’re here. So if you can’t stay with me in Russia, you might as well go protect my heart in Thunder Bay.”
“I don’t know how to leave you, moya tsaritsa.”
Mila’s tears are falling freely at this point, as are mine.
“I don’t know how to either, but I think it’s time we both learned.
Falling in love with Thatcher made me realize how much I’ve been missing all these years.
You and I have put our hearts on hold for the sake of the Bratva, and in doing so have sacrificed decades of happiness.
I thought love was a weakness, Misha, but I was wrong.
I was so wrong. It’s a strength. I should have known.
All these years, I considered you my greatest strength and you’re the only person I ever truly loved…
until Teddy and Thatch.” She pauses, resting her brow on mine.
“We will always have each other, moya sila, but it’s time for you to set out on your own adventure.
It’s time for you to find your heart, like I’ve found mine. ”
We stay still in our embrace for what feels like both an eternity and only a moment as we relish the last moments of our time together.
I know I’ll always have Mila, just as she’ll always have me, but something about this seems like a finality.
Like the life we’ve known as long as we can recall is about to change forever.
I could say no. I could turn her down and refuse.
I could beg and pray she lets me stay by her side, like I always have been.
But I’ll never have it in me to deny my queen anything she asks of me.
Sitting back in my chair, I give her my best attempt at a smile. “When do I leave, Boss?”