ALEXEI.
When I didn’t respond, Pavel exhaled a cloud of cigar smoke and chuckled. I lowered myself down and sat on the other chair beside him.
Long seconds passed before he said, “never took you for the protective type.” His voice was low, his focus on the crowd.
“She’s an extension of me,” I said flatly.
“Hmm,” he responded and I made a gruff noise in my throat of irritation.
“Insulting her is no different than a motherfucker doing it right to my face, and you know how I deal with a ballsy bastard who does that.” Pavel glanced at me, his expression void of emotion aside from a lone eyebrow c*****g up.
“Okay,” he said but I could hear the amusement in his voice.
I gritted my teeth and narrowed my eyes.
“You think I didn’t notice the way you were staring at her when we were
