20. Alex #2
She glares at me, then rolls her eyes as we stop at the door of the spare room. “This lockdown had better be short, Sasha. I have a life I need to get back to.”
“I wouldn’t dream of holding up your social life,” I say to her as she walks in. “Heaven forbid you don’t get laid while Slavik tries to kill us.” She closes the door on me without a response.
With Rikki and Yeva secure and some of my men keeping watch downstairs, I can relax a little. I start thinking about everything I’m going to need to plan in order to make certain that when it’s all said and done, Slavik ends up six feet under…
And then I catch a whiff of Nona’s perfume. Shit. In all this, I’d forgotten about her.
A heavy feeling sinks into my chest as I remember our last conversation. Or rather, argument. I should have known that of all the things that she might try to do, selling me out just wasn’t one of them.
As I approach the bedroom door, her scent invites me in. This entire thing has been the most unfair to her. And now that it’s all fallen apart, I need to consider the changes that have to be made.
I open the door just as she’s coming out of the bathroom. She’s just showered. Her long red hair is up in a messy bun and she’s wearing nothing but a towel. Her smooth, alabaster shoulders are lightly dotted with water drops as she pulls the towel a little tighter around herself.
“You’re done?” she asks.
“Yeah. Everything’s in motion. We’re on lockdown, so I’m going to need you to stay in the house for the time being. I’ll have some of my people around the house, so if you need anything, I can have them get it for you. Otherwise, it’s safer if you’re here.”
“Understood.”
I nod shortly and she shifts her feet. We never finished our conversation. “Can we talk?”
And here it is. I could brush her off, tell her that we’ll talk in the morning, but things are uncertain at the moment. Who knows what tomorrow will look like?
“I think that’s a good idea,” I say.
Her lips tighten into a thin line, then she says, “I did meet with my father this week,” she says, “but it wasn’t what you think. I didn’t rat. He wanted me to, but I didn’t.”
I let her talk, let her get what she needs to out. She doesn’t need to hear that I already know she’s innocent. There’s only one thing she needs to hear from me and I’m ready to say it.
“He ambushed me,” she says. “I was going to the coffee shop and… apparently, he’d been watching me.
So, he was waiting for me when I got there.
” She pauses, those beautiful green eyes shining in the glow of the room.
“I wish I could tell you that I told him to fuck off, but that’s not what happened.
He threatened me. Tried to force me to be his spy.
But I didn’t. I can’t. I can’t do it to you. ”
“Nona,” I say, “It’s all right. I believe you.”
She tilts her head curiously. “You… do?”
“Yeah, I do.” I walk up to her and put my hands on her shoulders. Her skin is so soft and fragrant. “I’m sorry, Nona. I should have given you the benefit of the doubt and I didn’t. That’s on me.”
She seems to relax under my hands and she says, “You mean that?”
“Yes,” I say to her. I take her in for a moment, trying to absorb her beauty before I let her go. I brush a strand out of her face before releasing her and walking over to the bed and sitting down on the edge.
“With everything that’s going on,” I say to her, “I think it’s time that we’re realistic about this arrangement. We married for the cause of peace between our Bratvas and… well, that’s not going to happen anymore.”
Her eyebrows knit together slowly. “What do you mean? What are you talking about?”
“You don’t have to be with me anymore,” I say to her. “I’m lifting you of your obligation to me.”
“You… You’re freeing me?”
That makes me smile. I take off my shoes and start unbuttoning my shirt. “You make it sound like I’m opening your cage. I’m just saying that… that you don’t have to be married to me any longer, if that’s not what you want.”
She gives me a slow nod. “Well. Um. Okay. Don’t you think it’s a little dangerous for us to split up right now?”
“Obviously, we can do it after this war is over. I’ll set you up in a nice place in Manhattan. You won’t have to worry about money or anything like that. I see that your needs are well provided. You’ll have your own life.”
She just stares at me, and I can’t read her expression other than shock. I guess she didn’t expect me to offer such a thing. What Pakhan would, after all? This is a little like going back on your word.
“Wait… You didn’t tell me to go back to my father when all this is over. This war isn’t going to end well, is it?”
“What war does?” I sigh and look away from her. I don’t want to see her face when she realizes that there is only one way out of this mess. “He’s got to pay for what he’s done, Nona.”
She doesn’t say anything. I glance over at her and she’s looking down at her hands.
“We can talk more about it in the morning.” I take off my shirt and toss it across the room. “I’m going to take a shower before bed.”
I don’t give her a chance to respond. I get up and walk into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. And once I’m alone, the feeling of the wind being taken out of me almost takes me down. I lean over the sink as the feeling passes.
Letting Nona go is the right thing to do. There’s no reason for her to stay with me anymore. I’m sure once she’s had the night to think about it, she’ll understand why this is the way it should be. We’ll both have time to get used to the idea while I plan my attack on Slavik.
In the meantime… This is the right thing to do. I just have to convince myself.