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CHLOE
I’m in the middle of painstakingly comparing the Bing translation of the Russian article to the Google version in the hopes of making sense of three particularly confusing sentences when a soft chime sounds and a videocall request pops up, with Nikolai’s picture in it.
My heart rate shoots up, my breathing quickening uncontrollably. It’s like he’s the proverbial devil, summoned by my thoughts—or my research. Is that possible? Does he somehow know I’m reading about him at this very moment?
Is that why he’s calling so late? To fire me for snooping?
No, that’s crazy. He probably just landed, saw on the videoconference app that I’m online, and decided to check in.
Pulling in a shaky breath, I smooth my hair with my palms and click “Accept.”
His gorgeous face fills the screen, m
