Chapter 16 - Anya

Thursday morning is tense with all of his brothers at our place. It’s noisy. Loud voices shout back and forth from the living room to the kitchen and through the foyer and hallways. They all sound so similar to each other.

You can tell just by their tone, though—who is tense and who is excited.

Having this many men in the house reminds me of growing up with all my brothers. They are so similar when it comes to these things. It’s strange that they don’t all get along better than they do—because a house full of brothers here feels the same as a house full of brothers back home.

All of the Kuznetsov brothers are pacing around here carrying equipment and shouting orders to each other.

They are getting ready to head out on the joint operation with my brothers and I can see they are hyper-focused on making sure everything is perfect.

I’ve been staying out of the way because it’s one thing to calm them down after a silly argument in a meeting, but the tension in the air now is thick and palpable.

I’d rather stay clear of it.

Rodion has been calm, though, and when it comes time to leave, he finds me in the library. He leans over where I’m curled up on the armchair and wraps his hand around the back of my neck, as he kisses me. My heart races at full speed when he does things like this. His hand feels hot against my neck and his lips taste like home on my tongue.

Whatever is going on between us is getting better with each passing day.

He’s been teasing me, making jokes and laughing with me. It’s quite pleasant and I find myself missing him whenever he leaves the house.

“Be careful,” I say when he leans away from me.

“Please stay at home today—until I’m back. I don’t want to have to worry about you.” Deep concern etches into his eyes. I stare at him for a long moment, caught in how blue they are today. I think the more serious or playful he is, the brighter they go. It’s as though intense emotions bring out different shades of blue.

“Anya?” his voice pulls me out of my daydream.

“I’ll stay home. We can have dinner when you get back.”

He smiles and it tugs at my heart. I can’t look at him lately without experiencing an intense urge to press my body into his. I want to be as close as possible to him. This feeling towards him has been growing steadily and I’m not sure what to do about it. I don’t know yet if it’s dangerous for me to fall for a man like him.

A man who only wants one thing from me—an heir.

Rodion gently kisses my cheek one last time before leaving the library and heading out to the cars with his brothers. My stomach is knotted. I hate these days. I’ve always hated them. My brothers used to try and hide it when they went on missions like this, but I always knew. I could just sense it. The energy in the air is different, more intense. Stressed. They would pretend they were headed out to a game or something like that—but it was always obvious what was really going on.

I understand why they would want to protect me from the stress, though. I was pretty young then, and I didn’t understand the risks.

I know now.

So many things can go wrong. Until everyone is home tonight, I won’t be able to relax. But I’ll do my best to just stay busy at home.

Rodion doesn’t need the distraction of me being out and about on top of the stuff he has to focus on today. The less distraction all of them have, the better and safer it is for everyone.

I watch through the library window as the cars leave the property one by one and turn out into the road. I take a deep breath and close my eyes for a moment. It’ll be fine.

They will all come home safely.

***

The guys have been gone for a couple of hours when Ruslana arrives at the mansion. The guards let her in, and she finds me in the kitchen, where I’m making a grilled cheese sandwich.Ruslana waltzes in with a tense energy which I pick up on the moment she arrives. She slides her ass onto the kitchen counter and huffs loudly, rolling her eyes and dramatically declaring, “I hate every single one of my brothers.”

I giggle. “Hello. Are you hungry? Can I make you something?”

She glances at her watch. “No—do you want to come for a drink with me? We can go for sundowners.” The quick change in topic makes me take a double look at her.

“Ruslana, you know your brothers are out on an operation today, right?”

“Yes, and I don’t care. I told you I hate all of them,” she snaps, annoyed at the world.

I shake my head, sliding the spatula under the sandwich and flipping it in the pan. It’s perfectly golden brown and crisp.

“What happened?” I ask, knowing she came here because she needs to vent. And I have brothers—so I know what that’s like.

“I was going to have dinner with this really hot guy last night and they told me I wasn’t allowed to. I tried to sneak out anyway and they went and spoke directly to the guy—basically telling him if he comes near me again they’ll bury him in a shallow grave. I am dying of embarrassment—and I really liked him. I don’t get why they never let me have any fun.”

I laugh. “Ruslana, I know exactly how you feel. My brother’s did that to me all the time. But you know, sometimes they can see things, or they know things that we aren’t aware of. There are so many creeps out there—they are just trying to keep you safe.”

She huffs and folds her arms across her chest. “They are ruining everything. All they want to do is control my life and I can’t handle it anymore.”

“Did you really like him?”

She nods.

“Does he like you?”

“Yes, we’ve been talking almost all day, every day since we met.”

“If he really likes you, then just give him some time. He’ll call you and find a way to get your brothers to like him. Then you’ll know he is worth it too if he puts that effort in.”

She tilts her head at me, and for a moment, I think she understands what I’m trying to tell her—but then she rolls her eyes and declares loudly, “Nope. I’m going out. I’m going to get my brothers back for being controlling assholes.”

I tense up, “What do you mean? Just stay here with me. We can make cocktails and have grilled cheese.”

“No. They scared him away, so I’ll go find some other random guy to have fun with and that will teach them not to interfere. They can’t control everything.” She slides off the counter.

“You can’t have liked the guy that much if you are already keen to find a new one.”

“That’s not the point. Now, are you coming with me or not?”

She raises her brows at me, her hands on her hips.

“Where are you going?” my mind is racing, trying to figure out a way to stop her from leaving.

“Black Cat Club in town. I love it there.”

“Let’s wait, have a few drinks here, and go when it’s darker. It’ll be empty there now.”

“Nope,” she says, getting annoyed with me. “It’s almost six. I’m shooting home to change, then going straight there. My brothers are all going to be home late, so I want to make the most of the night without them bothering me.”

“Ruslana—“ I sigh, seeing my own defiance in her. I have been just as determined to get my brothers back for being annoying, but I never threw myself at some random stranger for revenge.

“Anya—“ She rolls her eyes. “Don’t be like my brothers,” she warns me and I can sense that she won’t put up with me trying to boss her around. I have to find another way to handle this and keep her safe from her own petty ideas.

“OK, send me your location, I’ll meet you there later. I need to change. If you don’t go to Black Cat just let me know so I know where to go.”

“Yay!” she shouts, wrapping her arms around me and spinning me as she hugs me.

When Ruslana is gone, I am filled with panic. I don’t know what to do. I should go after her, but I promised Rodion I wouldn’t leave the house. We are just starting to get on well. I don’t want to ruin things between us.

But it’s his sister.

He would be furious if he found out I knew her plan and didn’t stop her.

I pace around, working myself up into a tense ball of anxiety. Finally, after an hour, I decide to tell Rodion. I know he’s busy. He shouldn’t have to deal with this shit right now. But not telling him, I think, will be ten times worse.

I send him a message because I don’t want to interrupt anything.

Me: Rodya, your sister was just here and she’s really angry with you guys for chasing her date away last night. She’s hell-bent on getting revenge by going out dancing tonight while you are all busy.

Rodion: Fuck’s sake. That girl has no clue. She didn’t understand how slimy that asshole was. I will send my guards after her. They’ll drag her home and lock her in the room if they have to.

Me: No, that’s a terrible idea. You will only make it worse between you guys. Let me handle this. I’ll go with her and keep an eye on her.

Rodion:Not a chance. I’ll send my men. My sister is not your responsibility.

Me:Actually, she is my family now. And trust me when I say this is the best way to deal with it. If you send your men, she will only get more rebellious. I saw how agitated she was today. I will make sure she is safe, and I will call you if anything happens. I promise.

There is a long pause before I get a reply.

Rodion: Put live location sharing on your phone. And I want you to message me if anything happens at all. Anything. Please be careful, princess.

Me: I promise, I will be. Don’t worry about it, focus on your work.

I’m glad I told him. Now I can help her, and I don’t have to lie to Rodion. It also lets me know that he trusts me, which makes me smile.

I haven’t been out clubbing in a long time. All those drunk idiots who hang out in those places started to annoy me long before I married Rodion. I guess at some point, you just outgrow it.

I choose a tightly fitted, short red dress and my black with red bottom heels. Slipping my phone into a clutch and pulling my hair up into a high bun, I look in the mirror to make sure I’m ready.

Ruslana messages me just as I’m leaving the house.

Ruslana:I’m here. It’s already busy. You better be coming.

She attaches her location.

Me: Awesome. I’m on the way. Don’t start the party without me.

I have no intention of going there to party. But I do need her to think that is my plan.

Taking my own car because I won’t be drinking, I head straight towards Black Cat Club.

I haven’t been there in ages, but when I park outside, the bouncers recognize me straight away and let me in with a warm welcome.

Ruslana is easy to spot. She is laughing loudly and hanging over a guy at the bar. I watch for a moment. She takes a shot and leans into the guy. He doesn’t look anywhere near as tipsy as her. I head over to them to make my presence known to the guy just so he realizes she isn’t alone here.

Then I sit at the bar and order a soda water, so I don’t look completely out of place.

Ruslana and the stranger head to the dance floor where she is all over him, but she looks like she’s having fun. As long as it stays as innocent as this and nothing escalates then everything will be fine.

I shake my head, because it's only about an hour later when she is bored with that guy and dancing with the next one. She seems to have forgotten I’m here, which is fine with me. I am only here to keep an eye on her and make sure she is safe.

Rodion checks in with me every hour and I message him back to reassure him that everything is under control.

I have my live location on, and I will let him know if anything happens.

For now, though, Ruslana is just blowing off some steam by dancing.

Sitting at the bar alone does have its annoyances, though, and a lot of guys try to make their move on me. I brush them off quickly, playing it cold and being bitchy. I don’t have time to be polite because that might distract me from taking care of Ruslana. I don’t need some idiot talking to me and blocking my view of her.

My only priority is doing what I told Rodion I would do—keeping her safe.