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He leaned closer, eyes as pale as the winter sky, holding my gaze unflinchingly. “I have never been more sure of anything in my life.” Concise and unequivocal. Damyon wanted me to stay in Russia with him.
A cocktail of elation and relief filtered into my bloodstream.
Logic dictated this important decision was worthy of careful consideration, but logic and reason were rooted in reality, which had been rather harsh to me of late. This entire trip was about self-discovery and healing my soul. Who was to say this wasn’t the exact path I was meant to take? If my heart pleaded with me to say yes, wouldn’t it be counterproductive to refuse?
The only problem was Honey.
My friends had all left home for college, and without my parents to help me, I’d had to withdraw from the school I’d planned to attend. If I was honest, I didn’t have a job waiting for me or pets or anything. The only true downside was how badly my heart would hurt to be so far from Honey. Knowing her, however, she’d insist I follow my heart. I had no doubt on that matter. Honey was a sucker for a good love story, and she only ever wanted me to be happy.
“I heard back from the minister of family affairs.” Damyon’s statement brought my thoughts to a sputtering halt.
My racing heart slammed against my ribs. “You did?”
He nodded. “We do not have your file yet, but they have located the records from that facility. He expects to have the file for us next week. Stay, Alina. You do not have to decide to stay forever but stay for now. We can have a little more time together, and you can learn about your past.”
He made a good point. Extending my trip didn’t mean I could never go home. I had dual citizenship, so I could come and go as I pleased.
Maybe I’d been overthinking everything. All of it.
I peered across the candlelit table and offered a soft smile. “I suppose a couple more weeks couldn’t hurt.”
If I wasn’t sure of my decision already, Damyon’s answering grin sealed my fate. “This is truly worthy of a celebration.”
I had to fight back the toothy grin of a kid at Christmas. “Under one condition, though.” I forced as much authority into my words as possible.
His body stiffened with resolute intent before he motioned for me to continue.
“I have to find someplace else to stay. I’m not comfortable letting you pay for that hotel for another two weeks.” I held up my hand surreptitiously and lowered my gaze. “No arguing. My conscience won’t allow it.”
When my words weren’t met with opposition, I peered up at him hesitantly. Damyon wore a triumphant smirk, his eyes almost silver in the dim lighting.
“Agreed, no more hotel.”
My eyes narrowed. “That was too easy. What’s the catch?” I adored the man, but he was used to getting his way. He had relented too easily, and I needed to know why.
Damyon leaned forward, his hand reaching for mine across the small table. “I was thinking that if you agreed to stay longer, you might consider staying at my place. You could be my guest.” He let the offer soak in like the warm glow of the flickering candle between us.
“You want me to stay with you?” I hadn’t even been to his house.
“Come home with me after dinner. Let me show you around, and then you can decide.” He lifted my hand and brought it to his lips for a delicate kiss.
“Okay,” I breathed.
He swept us both to our feet and planted a kiss on my lips and a promise in my heart. “You were made for me, Sladkaya angel, and tonight, I will prove it.”
Damyon was a man of his word. He spent the entire night worshipping my body until I couldn’t fathom parting from him. His devotion made me feel whole again, and I never wanted to lose that feeling.
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Present
“CAN’T BELIEVE WE NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT THIS TYPE OF PLACE BEFORE. It’s f*****g perfect.” Keir surveyed the work we’d done to prepare for this week’s fight. The abandoned building had needed adjustments, but nothing drastic.
“No shit.” I tugged at one of the ropes, testing its tension. “And considering how many old roller rinks went under since the eighties, we’d have our pick of locations to add to the rotation.”
“I’d planned to come watch you tonight, but I won’t make it. I’m not ready to leave Rowan alone after the week she’s had.”
I waved away his concern. “Nah, man. She’s definitely more important. How’s her mom doing?” I never thought Keir would be one to get married, but over the span of a month, the guy had fallen hard. I’d never seen him so close to losing it as when his wife was attacked only a few days ago. Her mom had been shot in the ordeal.
“She’s good. Still in the hospital, but they should release her soon.”
“Glad to hear it. That guy was a real piece of s**t. How long did he last?” I’d helped Keir take custody of his wife’s attacker, but he hadn’t let me participate in the punishment. He’d insisted on handling that part himself.
“He’s still breathing, technically.”
“No s**t?”
Keir’s gaze cut to mine, an eerie mix of placid malice. The man was a fuckin’ legend. As a kid, I’d wanted nothing more than to be like my older cousins. The fact that they trusted me to be a part of the family business was an honor I would take to the grave.
“You know,” Keir mused, “Oran is looking into that family and their businesses.”
“Is he?” I granted, not totally surprised. “Maybe he can dig up something on the Russian while he’s at it. I don’t like the way things ended with him.”
“I saw him one time outside of a fight night.”
My back and shoulders clenched tight as though bracing for a hit. “You f*****g serious?”
“I think it was a coincidence. Who knows? But it's good to stay on guard just in case.”
“Planned to anyway.” I wanted to ask why the f**k he hadn’t told us that already but thought better of it. “Any word from Conner about him?”
“Let’s find out.” Keir took out his phone and placed the call on speaker.
“You got some kind of psychic ability or something?” Conner answered. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’m here with the Genoveses. I figured you’d want to know what they had to say. They’ve got a friend named Michael Garin, one of Boris’s crew.”
“I’m not on speaker, am I?” Keir asked.
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