34. Andrey

34

ANDREY

As Natalia steps out onto the pavement, sheathed in shadow from the Sunshield logo above, her eyes fall on my vehicle. The scowl that settles over her face is actually quite amusing.

I'd worry she'd run, but considering those pretty heels she's wearing, she has no choice but to skulk to the car and buckle herself into the passenger seat, all the while avoiding my eyes.

"Did you have a good day?"

She mumbles something unintelligible under her breath. I decide not to press her for a clarification, because I'm fairly certain it involved sticking several unpleasantly sharp objects in certain orifices of mine.

"Is there a reason you're picking me up today?" she demands.

"I have something to show you."

"It's not another gift, is it?" she asks. "Because I already told you, I'm not going to accept any more?—"

"How about you keep your panties unbunched until after you see what it is?" I suggest.

Her mouth snaps shut and she crosses her arms over her chest. I don't mind in the slightest—I much prefer this snappy, feisty version of Natalia to the quiet, sad iteration I've seen too often recently.

"Whatever it is, I don't want it."

"Now, now, don't say that. You'll hurt his feelings."

" His feelings?"

I just smile, enjoying the way her teeth grind together.

The silence grows as I navigate out of after-work traffic and head for home. "You didn't bring me a man , did you?" she blurts out of nowhere.

I almost swerve us off the damn road. It takes everything in me to stay between the lines. "Excuse me?"

She shrugs. "You know. Like, a gigolo."

My disgusted expression only deepens.

"A male prostit?—"

"I know what a gigolo is," I snap.

She throws up her hands in defeat. "Just asking. Jeez. You did send me a box of sex toys not so long ago."

"Self-pleasure is a far cry from paid sex. And just so we're clear—" I take my eyes off the road just so she understands how serious I am. "—I'm not about to spend my money so you can get off with another man."

Is it my imagination or is she actually fighting a smile?

"Alright, alright," she mumbles. "No need to get your panties in a bunch."

I accelerate hard, causing her to clutch the corners of her seat. Did I really think snappy, feisty Natalia was better?

I stand corrected.

By the time I pull up outside the manor, Natalia is all nerves again. Her eyes keep skirting around the property like she's waiting for something to jump out at her.

"He should be waiting with Leonty by the pool house."

"Who should be waiting with Leonty?"

I ignore her and walk briskly through the house.

"Slow down, will you?" She pauses at the threshold to kick off her heels and then follows me, barefoot, into the garden. "Pregnant woman walking here. I never walked this fast even when I wasn't knocked up."

I take the steps down to the pool two at a time. Natalia follows, complaining under her breath until Leonty tears around the pool house with a leash in hand.

"… just cleaned your damn poop and this is the thanks I get. Ungrateful little fucker." He glances down at the beast by his side. "Ungrateful big fucker, actually."

Natalia stops, breathless, at my side.

Staring at her parted, perfectly plump lips, I realize I'm actually nervous about how this reveal is going to go down.

"What is…?" She trails off as a German Shepherd leaps into the air, grabs his leash with his teeth, and shakes Leonty off. Free, he bounds in big circles through the grass.

Natalia laughs, clapping a hand over her mouth when the dog turns to her, ears pricked.

He drops the leash and sniffs at the air as though he can smell Natalia in the wind. He should be able to. It's why I brought one of Natalia's shirts for him to sleep with on the flight back from Russia.

Shura wanted to kill me when he found out I left him in charge so I could go pick up a dog. Mostly because it meant he had to deal with Misha's latest outburst solo. When Shura went to check on the boy, Misha tried to attack him. My response was to give the boy a little more freedom.

"A woman rejects you, you buy her gifts," he muttered. "A boy attacks me, we set him loose in the house. It makes no sense."

Shura would change his mind if he could see Natalia's face right now.

She drops to her knees, wearing the most magnificent smile. "Who are you, you beautiful boy?"

The dog approaches her slowly—cautious, but not in the least bit aggressive.

"Careful now," I instruct her. "Make sure he has the chance to check you out."

Natalia sits cross-legged on the grass and waits for him to come to her. He observes her coolly for several seconds and then, decision reached, he bounds happily right into her extended arms.

"Hey, handsome," she coos. "You're such a sweet boy, yes, you are, such a sweet boy."

Leonty stares at the scene, open-mouthed. Clearly, he had about as much luck with Remi as I did.

Natalia seems to have forgotten that anyone apart from her and the dog exists. She plucks the leash from Leonty's grasp and unhooks the other end from his collar. "You don't need this, do you? No, you don't. You're too good of a boy to need that."

The dog is whining happily, licking Natalia's face and rubbing himself up against her.

Lucky little runt.

"Does he have a name?"

"Remington."

"Remington," she croons, kissing him between the eyes. "What a lovely name."

I walk around them, marveling at how easy that was. As I venture closer, Remi jumps to alertness, watching me with his hackles raised.

As if the dog needs to be worried about me.

"Whoa, buddy," Natalia whispers sweetly. "You're okay."

He eases back down, and I resist the urge to roll my eyes. "He's yours."

Her hand freezes on his collar. "You are shitting me."

"I most definitely am not."

She looks at Remi in disbelief. He looks right back at her. I watch it happen right before my eyes—true fucking love.

Which brings me to a new all-time low.

First, I was jealous of that deadbeat numbskull, Byron. Now, I'm jealous of a goddamn dog.

A dog who's staring daggers at me, oblivious to the fact that it was my damn money that bought him the golden ticket to his cushy new life.

"What's wrong, pretty boy?" Natalia murmurs fondly. "Why are you so worked up?"

"He's a guard dog," I say. "He's doing what he's trained to do: protect you."

Natalia looks over at Leonty, who's slinking away in the direction of the big house. "I already have a four-man security detail for that."

"Yeah, well, this security guard—" I gesture towards Remi. "—is the only one I will tolerate in your bed."

She smiles and continues to pat the dog's side.

"I figured you could use some companionship," I add, throwing caution to the wind. "I was hoping he'd make you feel less… lonely." Her eyes meet mine and something unreadable flashes across them. "He's also been trained as a support animal. Specializing in PTSD."

Her cheeks go scarlet. This is the first time I've ever brought up her catatonic episode. She shuffles from one foot to the other, focusing on Remi every time she wants to avoid looking at me.

"Okay," is all she seems capable of saying.

I take a step towards her, ignoring Remi when he bares his teeth at me. "I know you've been struggling, lastochka . I'm not ignorant to your pain. I want to do what I can to help."

Reluctantly, she drags her gaze to mine.

"My priority is that you are safe—but you should know that I want you to be happy, too. I don't want you to feel so alone."

Her face softens. The resentment in her eyes dims behind a tentative smile. "He's a beautiful dog," she says softly. "Thank you."

I clear my throat. "At the moment, he only follows commands in Russian. But it shouldn't be too much trouble to ask Leif or Leonty to teach you some basic phrases. Why don't you take him for a walk around the grounds, show him his new home?"

Her face falls—or at least, I think it does—but before I can double check, she's bending to fasten the leash back around Remi's collar.

"Um… would you like to join us?"

I want nothing more. Which is why I wave her off. "You go ahead."

She nods sadly, as though she expected nothing else. "Come on, Remi. Let's take a little walk, shall we?"

"Maybe another time," I hear myself call after her.

She stops on the spot and glances at me over her shoulder. Her face is unreadable for a moment.

Then, to my surprise… she smiles.