Chapter Thirty-Nine

Sephie

I left Viktor still seething, along with the rest of them. I just needed a break after everything today. I didn’t even do that much today. Stephen did the majority of it. I still found myself feeling exhausted though. I’d been fighting coming to terms with Viktor avoiding me for so long, and I just didn’t have the strength to do so any longer.

Apparently, Stephen was more talented than he thought. I wasn’t able to hold this back any longer after he helped me get rid of everything from earlier in the day.

Once I closed the bedroom door behind me, I fell apart. I felt guilty for doing so, knowing they were all going to feel it. There wasn’t anything I could do about it either. If I tried to keep it from them, it made it worse. They were condemned to feel everything I was feeling from now on, and I didn’t know how to fix that.

I was sitting on the bed, hugging my knees to my chest, my forehead resting on my arms, when I heard Adrik quietly come in the bedroom. He didn’t say anything, he just climbed on the bed behind me, wrapping his arms and legs around me. His hands lightly ran over my arms and legs, trying to offer comfort where he could.

Instead of staying curled up in a ball, I turned toward him, climbing into his lap. My arms and legs now wrapped around him; I could feel the pull in my chest from him. His hands ran lightly through my hair and over my back as he held onto me while I worked to get control of myself.

After letting me cry for several minutes, he finally asked, “I know you’re upset about Viktor, but there’s something else now isn’t there?” I nodded my head against his shoulder, without picking my head up. I felt his hand on the back of my neck, pulling me far enough away that he could look at me. He didn’t need me to answer. He was good enough now that he could find the answer on his own. He looked pained when he found what he was looking for, but then a small smile appeared on his face. “You seem to have forgotten how upset I was at not being able to feel you this afternoon.”

I did forget. He was angry with me for figuring out a way to shut him out completely. As far as he was concerned, my reason for doing so didn’t matter. I couldn’t help the small smile that gradually stretched across my face as I remembered his reaction to not being able to feel me.

“I’m not the only one who feels that way, Sephie. Given the chance to be connected to you or not connected to you, they’re all going to pick you. Every single time,” he said.

“Maybe not all of them,” I said, once again thinking about Viktor.

He took a deep breath. I could feel his frustration at the situation as well. “I would’ve said he would come around, but after what just happened, I’m honestly not sure anymore.”

I let my fingers trace the outline of his face, running through his ever-present stubble. He closed his eyes, leaning into my touch. “Maybe he needs time to realize how much better he feels after Stephen helped him? I don’t know either. I never expected this to happen. It’s not just you and Ivan though. It’s all of them. They’re all irritated with Viktor. I’m not sure if it’s making everything worse or not. Maybe he does feel like he’s being singled out,” I said.

“I don’t know either. What I do know, however,” he said as he cupped my face with both of his hands, pressing his lips to mine, “is that I’m starting to tell the difference between you and your demon. It was also very angry with me earlier today when I told you to never shut me out again.” He had a boyish grin on his face as he watched the surprise on my face.

“Really?”

“Really. I started noticing it when we were at the hotel. We all did, I think. But then when you got mad at me, it was like you were doubly mad. It was your anger, plus some,” he said.

I was quiet for a moment, mulling over what he’d just told me. “What if by acknowledging them we’re strengthening the connection even more? It seems like each time we do, something new like that happens. Mine tried to save me, all of ours tried to warn us. Maybe they want to talk to us,” I said.

“So now I have to deal with Ivan in my head, as well as my demon?” he said, faking inconvenience.

I giggled. “You’re going to have a panel of voices in your head.”

His handsome smile stretched across his face. “I’m happy to see your smile. You’re lighter again. When you’re not thinking about Viktor. Stephen really did help you. So did Viktor. The difference was obvious.”

“Maybe he just needs Kostya to fix him again and he’ll feel better too,” I said. “What happened after I left? I haven’t heard any commotion. I guess they aren’t fighting out there.”

“Ivan told me to come back here. He said he wouldn’t be able to stand you feeling the way you were when you left for very long,” he said. I looked down, trying to keep the guilty feeling from growing too strong. I felt his fingers lift my chin so I would meet his gaze once more. “He just wants you to feel better. He would’ve said the same thing even if he couldn’t feel you. It was very obvious that you were upset.” He leaned forward, his lips against mine. He pulled back so he could look me in the eyes again, searching for the thoughts that were running through my head. He pulled me to him, holding me tightly. “We’ll figure this out. Promise.”

We sat in silence for a while, before his curiosity got the best of him. “You and Andrei can talk to each other almost as easily as you talk to me and Ivan now, can’t you?”

I nodded my head against his shoulder again. “It’s easier the more we do it. I still don’t know how he communicates with Misha. I haven’t tried it with him yet. I’m experimenting with Stephen. I think he’s the most difficult right now. I need to be touching him to get information to him.”

“But he’s incredibly observant. I think half the time he already knows whatever it is we need to tell him,” Adrik said. “I never knew that guy had this much going on in his head all these years.”

I sighed. “Like I told him, I’m just glad he finally decided to show everyone how incredibly smart he is. I wish Viktor would pay attention and see how much better Stephen has been since he got rid of everything from his past he’s been carrying around.” I groaned in frustration, falling backward so I was laying on the bed, my legs still wrapped around Adrik.

“I like where this is going,” he said, his sexy smirk on his face when I squinted my eyes at him. I covered my eyes with my arm, trying to get my brain to just stop for a minute. He took the opportunity to lift my shirt as high as he could get it without making me move so his hands could roam over my breasts and stomach. I had to admit, it was helping me relax. “Can you ask your dad or Kostya what to do, solnishko?”

“I would, if they came to me. I’ve never been the one who’s in control of when they show up or not. It’s always a surprise to me,” I said. Adrik’s hands were still roaming over my stomach, up to my breasts, then back to my hips. I was beginning to think it was the equivalent of when my hands needed to fidget. I could feel him trying to come up with answers as I lay there. “I’m not sure how much they’ll be able to tell me, either. They’re not supposed to interfere.”

“Maybe Misha can find answers then,” he said.

“Do you even know the questions? Because I don’t,” I said, my arms still covering my eyes.

“I think the biggest question is what to do about Viktor. I would’ve thought that he would come around by now, but he’s still clearly hesitating. I feel like there’s something we need to be doing to fix this that we’re not doing,” he said. I could hear the frustration in his voice as he tried to come up with answers.

“Maybe this one isn’t on us to fix,” I said, peeking at him from under my arms. It was starting to make more sense in my head. “Maybe this is what he needs to go through to realize his full potential. The rest of us have had to deal with big things to be able to handle our gifts. Viktor skipped that part, because Kostya showed him before he was ready. What if this is him completing those levels he skipped?”

His hands had stopped, one on either side of my rib cage, as he thought about what I’d just said. I still had my arms over my eyes, but I could somewhat see him from underneath my arms. He leaned forward, pulling my arms away from my face. He pulled me back to a sitting position, his handsome smile on his face. I could feel the pull in my chest that was from him as he looked at me for a few moments. He placed one hand on my cheek, kissing me softly, while his thumb rubbed gently on my cheek. “The way your mind works sometimes makes me think that nothing is impossible with you,” he said.

“This one wasn’t just me. I would’ve never thought that if you hadn’t said what you said first.”

His smile got bigger. “Teamwork makes the motherfuckin’ dream work.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pressing my body against his. This man. I loved him so completely.

“We should tell Ivan before someone gets hurt though,” he said, his arms holding me just as tightly.

“Fair point,” I said.

“Has anyone died yet?” I asked Ivan.

“Negative, princess. We sent him to his apartment. And by we, I mean Andrei. That kid is really becoming the voice of reason lately.”

“He has a bit of an unfair advantage that he readily exploits and I’m here for it. He likely knew it wouldn’t have been productive to try to talk to Viktor anymore tonight. Are you guys still in the penthouse?”

“Yeah, we could all feel your mood get lighter. We were hoping you’d come back out at some point.”

Adrik had heard our exchange. He smirked at me, saying, “See, told you. They prefer to be connected to you, solnishko. You’re not holding them back from anything.”

I sighed as I stood up to leave the bedroom, still thinking about everything that was happening. Adrik surprised me by picking me up, causing me to squeal. I laughed, holding onto his shoulders, as he carried me back out to the kitchen, where the guys were waiting.

When we walked into the kitchen, Adrik announced, “Sephie figured it out.”

I could hear each of them exhale loudly. “Oh, thank God,” they all said.

“Is it something that’s going to be resolved quickly? Because I’m willing to ask Vitaliy if we can trade Viktor for Ilya at this point,” Misha said.

“That I do not know, my adorable Russian guardian,” I said as Adrik deposited me on the counter, across from everyone. He stood in front of me, in between my legs. He was facing away from me, so he could look at the guys while we talked. I wrapped my arms around his waist, resting my head on his shoulder, much like he enjoyed doing with me. “But I do think it’s going to be resolved at some point now, which is more than I could say an hour ago.”

“What do you think it is?” Andrei asked.

“You ask like you haven’t already snooped through her head to find the answer,” Misha said laughing.

Andrei laughed too, but disagreed. “No, she can feel me when I do. I’d get caught with her. You? Not so much.”

“That hurts me, Andrei. I’m very sensitive,” Misha said, his hand over his heart.

“Are you two nerds done?” I asked, smiling at both of them. It made me happy to see them trying to lighten the mood, picking at each other like two brothers.

Misha cleared his throat. “Yes, teacher. Done. Continue, please.”

“We all had to go through something big to realize the full potential of our gifts. It was different for each of us, but it was always something very difficult to deal with. Once we dealt with whatever it was, we started unlocking levels,” Adrik said, his hand running lightly back and forth across my arms that were wrapped around him as he talked.

“Viktor kind of skipped that because Kostya revealed his gift early. I think it needed to happen when it did, especially for Ilya’s sake, so I’m not blaming Kostya for anything here. But Viktor skipped a very important part. I think he’s having to go through it now. It’s just harder for all of us to take, because to us, having his gift means everything should be grand already. He essentially did it backward from the rest of us,” I said.

“So once he deals with what happened tonight, he should be good?” Misha asked.

“I can’t say for sure, but that’s what I’m thinking,” I said.

“I still don’t quite understand why he had such issue with Stephen helping him,” Misha said, his normal happy personality suddenly turning darker.

“When you’ve been carrying around that much trauma and keeping it locked away, you almost start to identify with it. You become the trauma. You identify as the trauma. I think if Viktor could’ve realized that he isn’t his past when Kostya first got rid of all the grief he was carrying around, he wouldn’t have had to go through this. Instead, he’s having to peel back the layers of his trauma and go through them one by one,” Stephen said.

“Let’s hope that Kostya helps him again, then. He was better for a few days, but anything to do with your demons makes him pissy, which makes me pissy and I don’t even know why. I hate being pissy,” Misha said. It was obvious that he was completely frustrated.

Adrik laughed. “It’s not you who’s pissy, Misha. The same thing happens with us.” I watched as Misha tried to understand what Adrik had just said. Instead of saying anything more, he switched his eyes to black, which switched mine and Ivan’s as well.

“Shut up,” Misha said, completely surprised.

“Your demons are the ones that are pissy?” Andrei asked.

“They’re pissy, they’re hurt because they feel like Viktor rejected them, and they’re also trying to help more. And Sephie’s was just as mad at me today as she was when I told her to never shut me out again. Yours are likely picking up on everything from ours, which is why you’re pissy but don’t know why,” Adrik said.

Misha thought for a moment, then looked up at us. “I just have one question. Does my demon also like pancakes?”

Adrik decided to go to Viktor’s apartment and talk to him while we all waited upstairs. Next to Ivan, Viktor was the closest to Adrik. We all knew Viktor did better with difficult situations away from everyone, so Adrik thought it might go better if it was just him. None of us could argue with that line of thinking, so we waited.

“If nothing else, maybe he’ll give him a few more days off. I think forcing him to slow down will help him deal. Apparently, I’m not the only thing he’s been avoiding,” I said as Adrik left the apartment.

“None of us understand why he’s been avoiding you, spider monkey,” Andrei said. “We’ve all noticed it for months now, but none of us understand it. Even knowing that you’re the one who’s helped us all figure everything out. It still doesn’t make sense.”

I caught myself thinking back to my earlier worry about keeping them from living their own lives. “You’re worried about something else besides Viktor, aren’t you, princess?” Ivan asked me. He could tell by my expression that the answer was yes. “ Wanna talk about it now or later?”

“Later.”

He simply nodded his head and let the subject drop, helping to steer the conversation to other subjects. He looked at Andrei, asking, “Have you tried communicating with Boss the same way you do Sephie?”

Andrei looked shocked at the implication, which made everyone laugh. “I think Ivan means that since he and I can communicate so easily, it should also be fairly easy for you to do so as well,” I said.

“Oh. No, I haven’t tried. I haven’t even thought about it, if I’m being honest. But now that you say that out loud, I would think there should be a way, right? I’m still trying to figure out how to make it work with Stephen. It seems like there still has to be contact with him to get anything through,” Andrei said.

“How do you make it work with Misha?” I asked him.

“It’s kind of changed now. When we first started doing it, I could like project images into his head. He can ask me whatever or tell me whatever and I’ll get it easily, but I had to respond to him in images at first. Now it’s getting easier the more we do it. I can respond to him with words now and he gets it,” Andrei said.

As Andrei was explaining how he communicated with Misha, I tried to push a memory of us running at the house, just to see if he could see it. Misha’s grin stretched across his face as he saw it. Once I knew he’d seen it, I could hear him tell me “ I miss it too” as a response. He quickly followed it with, “Try words too. I think Andrei unlocked it for me, so you should have an easier time.”

“I’ve been thinking that you should order Adrik to the house again. I think we all need it again already,” I said to Misha.

“I fully support this plan,” he said, grinning at me. The other three had figured out that he and I had just discovered we could communicate.

I looked at Andrei, then to Ivan. “It should work on you two, too. I mean, I would think so, since Ivan can talk to both me and Adrik. If Andrei’s like me, then it should work, right?” I asked.

I could see Andrei trying to push his thoughts to Ivan. Ivan’s sly grin spread slowly across his face as he heard Andrei in his head. Once they had a conversation, we all looked at Stephen. “Now we just have to figure out how to start with you and then you’ll be able to do it too.”

We were still experimenting with Stephen when Adrik came back to the penthouse. So far, we still needed to be able to touch Stephen for him to get the message, but he was able to do it with everyone and do so quickly. One touch and whatever information he needed was downloaded to him instantly. We were laughing because I’d come up with a really long explanation for some incredibly ridiculous thing, just to have as much material as possible. He touched my hand and got it all instantly like I’d said it to him out loud.

“Do I even want to know what you guys are doing?” Adrik asked as he walked back into the kitchen. He looked highly amused to see us all laughing.

“We’re trying to figure out how to communicate with Stephen. So far, we have to be touching him to get the information to him, but I just went on this really long rant over nothing and he got it instantly when he touched my hand,” I said, still laughing. “And we also figured out how to talk to Misha and Andrei. Ivan can do it now too, which means so can you.”

Adrik looked surprised but impressed. We quickly explained how to do it with both Andrei and then Misha. It worked right away for both of them. Even they were surprised it worked so quickly with Adrik. He tried our system with Stephen as well, getting immediate results.

“I think the more we practice at this, the easier it will become all around,” Ivan said. His mood turned somewhat serious as he asked what the rest of us didn’t want to ask. “How did it go?”

Adrik sighed. “I think Sephie is right. I think he’s done everything backward from us, which is why we’re having a harder time with it. He knows he’s been an asshole. He just doesn’t know how to stop it yet. The time in Syria did a number on him. We all know that, but we all thought he was handling it. In reality, he just shoved it to the back of his mind and never thought about it again. When we first met Sephie, she was a welcome distraction from it. But then she started helping everyone else deal with their own trauma, plus revealing everything she’s been through. It was so fresh for him that he didn’t want to go through it all again. So he started avoiding. Everything.”

“What about Stephen helping him tonight though? Did that do anything for him?” I asked.

“I think so. He’s finally feeling everything that he’s been locking away. I suspect he’s feeling like you did when Stephen helped you. It was like waves crashing into all of us as everything opened back up for you. But once we felt the emotion, it was gone right away. I don’t think it’s leaving as quickly with Viktor as it did with you, but at least it’s moving now,” he said.

“Does that mean Stephen needs to do it again?” Misha asked.

We all turned to Stephen, not sure of the answer. He looked somewhat surprised. “Bold of you all to assume I’d have that answer,” he said. “But I can give my best guess. It was much easier with Seph, Andrei, and Misha today because the blocks were fresh. Meaning they were weak. The longer you try and bottle up something, the stronger the block gets. Viktor’s been holding all of that in for quite a while, so the block is strong. I might’ve only cracked it, so to speak. Things are moving, but he might also be able to repair the dam. We should be able to tell in the next few days if it stuck or not. I’m not above sneaking it in on him again if that’s what it takes.”

“You don’t need him mad at you like that again though. That’s not fair to you,” I said.

“Eh, he never stays mad for very long. I don’t think he was even mad at me. He was just mad at knowing now he’s gotta feel it,” Stephen said.

“That’s exactly why he’s mad. He told me so,” Adrik said.

“So what did you tell him?” Ivan asked.

“I gave him a couple more days to get a handle on everything. I don’t like being without him, but we can manage. He wants to deal with everything on his own, so he’s got the chance to do so. I told him not to waste the opportunity,” Adrik said.

I found myself feeling slightly relieved that I’d get another break from him, but I was also upset that I would feel that way about Viktor.

“Don’t worry, spider monkey. We’ll get this figured out and things will go back to normal,” Andrei said, in an effort to comfort me.

I looked at him, loving him for being so thoughtful. “Normal is relative anyway, Bubba.”

Since we’d decided to attend the fundraiser for the hospital so Adrik could have a chance to see the mayor, as well as the DA, as well as the police commissioner in one place, in one evening, that meant I had to buy yet another dress. Which meant I was forced to go shopping.

My only consolation was that I had to take at least three guys with me. Shopping for a formal dress with three giant men in tow was enough comic relief that I found myself enjoying the process. Ivan looked angry at all the dresses, Andrei looked slightly uncomfortable like he was going to get yelled at for accidentally touching one of them, and Misha was busy picking out the ugliest dresses he could find to see if he could talk me into trying them on. He would hold up the most hideous dress he laid his eyes on and would say loudly, “I really feel like this is the one. We can stop looking.” He was my fuckery twin and I loved him for it.

The poor girl working in the dress shop was completely overwhelmed with those three. She didn’t know whether to be terrified or amused. Finally, she mustered the courage to approach me and ask me what I was looking for.

“You see, that’s the problem. I don’t even know,” I said to her. I noticed her nervously watching the three guys. I tried not to laugh at her. “Don’t mind them. They look scary, but they’re quite nice.”

She tried to believe me, but it was definitely a struggle. We discussed what event I needed the dress for, what I liked, and what colors I preferred. I explained what it was for and that I needed to have my back covered. I left the rest up to her. She set off among the racks of dresses, picking several for me to try.

She might’ve been trying to get us out of the store faster because she was terrified, but she managed to help me find the perfect dress in under ten minutes. Because it was still cold outside, she pulled a dress with long sleeves. My back was completely covered, but it had a plunging neckline that I was sure Adrik would both love and hate. I had to admit, my boobs looked amazing in the dress, so I decided the gamble on his level of hatred for me showing this much skin was one I should take. Between my cleavage and the slit in the skirt, it had plenty of sex appeal while not showing off everything. Instead of black this time, I went with a deep blue. Might as well make as many details as possible different from the last time I had to wear a formal dress.

I was busy looking at myself in the changing room, when I heard all three guys basically demanding that I show them. “We know you like this one, so you have to show us,” Misha said, in Russian.

“I had no idea you three would be so interested in such girly things,” I said, walking out to show them.

“Princess, this one might be better than the last one and the last one was pretty perfect,” Ivan said.

I pointed to my cleavage. “Too much? Think it’ll piss him off?”

Andrei chuckled. “You would only piss him off by showing your whole boob. Which you’re not. You’ll be fine.”

“You saw Vanessa. You’re still leaps and bounds more tastefully dressed, even with that amount of cleavage,” Ivan said.

Misha walked closer. He had a curious look on his face. “I know you’re going to wear your contacts that night, but make your eyes turn blue right now. I want to see something,” he said quietly.

I thought about how much I loved Adrik and saw Misha’s grin. He turned to Ivan and Andrei and motioned them over. “It’s virtually the same color,” he said, pointing to my eyes and the dress. Andrei and Ivan walked over to see for themselves, both agreeing with Misha.

“Sold!” I said, knowing that Adrik would love it just for that reason alone. “Also, it doesn’t hurt that this one fits me perfectly already and needs no alterations. This was meant to be. Wrap it up. Let’s get the hell out of here,” I said, walking back to the changing room. I could hear them all laughing at me as I changed back into my clothes.

A quick trip to get shoes, which was admittedly less painful, and we were on our way back to the penthouse. On the elevator up, they were giving me a hard time about hating shopping. I knew they just enjoyed teasing me about it. I knew they loved the fact that I hated shopping because it meant they didn’t have to go with me. “Guys have it much easier, especially when it comes to formal events. Your biggest dilemma is whether to wear a vest or a cummerbund, tie or bow tie. You saw what women put themselves through. For no apparent reason other than they hate being comfortable,” I said.

“Don’t be grumpy, gazelle,” Misha said, trying not to laugh. “We secretly love your hatred for shopping.”

As the elevator doors dinged to announce our arrival, Ivan quickly asked, “Are we sworn to secrecy again this time about your dress?”

“Nope. You can even show him what it looks like. Pretty much everything that happened last time should not happen this time. Just to be safe,” I said.

Ivan smiled at me, but I could feel them all flinch as they thought about the last time I had to wear a formal dress. “Don’t worry, princess. It will be much different this time. I doubt Boss will let go of you the entire night. If he has to, then one of us will be there with you the whole time.” He didn’t say anything else when I looked at him skeptically. He just held his pinky up in front of him. I grinned at him as I grabbed his pinky with mine. Andrei and Misha waited in the elevator with us, each of them making a promise, solidified by their own pinky swear, that they wouldn’t leave me alone the entire night.

“I love you guys,” I said, completing the pinky swears with all of them. Andrei stepped in front of me, and Misha was there to pick me up so I could wrap my arms and legs around Andrei. He happily carried me to Adrik’s office so I could ignore everyone looking at me.

“You do know that everyone will be looking at you at that fundraiser, right?” Andrei asked quietly as we walked from the elevator to the office.

“Don’t remind me. I haven’t figured out how I’m going to handle that yet,” I said.

“We’ll protect you,” Andrei said, squeezing my legs as we walked into Adrik’s office.

He looked up as we walked in, his handsome smile stretching across his face as he saw Andrei carrying me. Andrei stopped and set me down so I could go to Adrik, who stood up to come to me. “You’re not cursing, so I take that as a good sign that you found something quickly,” he said, his lips finding mine.

“I did find something and it was relatively painless, so no cursing. Yet,” I said, grinning at him.

“Am I to be kept in the dark this time as well?” he asked. He was visibly curious as to what I found.

“Nope. Ivan can show you, even. They all saw it. I’m actually kind of nervous that you’ll be mad so maybe you should see it because I might have to get a different one if you veto this one,” I said.

He looked at Ivan, raising his eyebrow. I could tell those two were having a silent conversation, as I could feel Adrik bristle at the thought of being mad over the dress I chose. Adrik looked at what Ivan showed him, turning back to me. I could feel his desire for me come on very strongly. He did laugh softly at me. “I do love that you’re worried about my opinion, but you’re so incredibly tasteful and classy that I don’t think it’s possible for you to make me angry with your wardrobe choices. It’s perfect, solnishko.”

“Don’t say that. I’m going to take it as a challenge and try to prove you wrong,” I said, grinning at him. He pressed his lips to mine.

“Somehow, I think I will win that bet,” he said, smiling against my lips.

The fundraiser was at Battista’s hotel. He was once again back in the city, so he was also going to be in attendance. Vitaliy had somehow managed to allow himself to be talked into coming as well. It made me feel slightly more comfortable knowing his guys would be there as well. I was trying to stay calm, but it was proving difficult.

I once again enlisted the help of Ms. Jackson for my hair and makeup. She enjoyed it so much that she asked me to please go to more formal functions so she could do it more often.

“I didn’t realize how much I missed this part of being a spy, child,” she said as she was working on my hair.

“You enjoy all this work?” I asked.

“It’s not work if you enjoy it, now is it?” she said, smiling at me. “Part of being a spy is pretending you’re someone else. Looking the part is most of that. It became a bit of a game, I guess. A dangerous game, but a game nonetheless.”

She told more stories about her time as a spy as she put the finishing touches on me. Just as she had helped me get into the dress and put my shoes on, there was a knock on her door. “That’ll be the guys. Probably all of them again because they couldn’t decide who should come get me,” I said to her. I knew it was all of them, but I needed it to sound like I guessed.

“Oh my. It’s been too long since I’ve laid my eyes on this many handsome men in tuxedos,” she said as she opened her door.

I laughed. “This is really why you want me to go to more formal functions. So you can see them all dressed up.”

She turned to look at me. “Do not ruin my dreams,” she said very seriously.

“We’re still waiting on an invite to Bingo, Ms. Jackson,” Ivan said, winking at her.

Ms. Jackson blushed as I walked toward the door. “Thank you, Ms. Jackson, for once again making me look marvelous,” I said, leaning down to give her a hug.

“Child, if you haven’t figured out by now that I’m just highlighting your best traits, then I don’t know how to help you understand,” she said, smiling at me. “Now, get out of here so I can watch these fine gentlemen walk down the hallway.”

We all laughed as I slid my arm through Ivan’s as we walked to the elevator. Once the doors closed behind us, Misha said, “I’m beginning to think she only thinks of me as a piece of meat.” He paused, then added, “I’m strangely fine with that.”

Vitaliy had come to the penthouse with all of his men and was waiting with Adrik for us to come upstairs. They were all standing near the door when we walked in. They all stopped and turned to us as we walked in. My eyes landed on Adrik immediately and I tried to focus on him, leaving everyone else out of the picture.

He’d already seen the dress, but seeing it in person made it better for him. I’d left my contacts out specifically so I could show him that the dress matched my eyes when they turned blue for him. As I got closer and he could see my eyes were blue, it was obvious that he’d made the connection.

He wrapped his arms around my waist, his desire very evident. “I thought the last dress was perfect, but this one might be even better. I loved the black, but this one might be my favorite. It’s a perfect match,” he said quietly, his lips next to my ear.

“That might’ve been the selling point,” I said. He brushed his facial hair lightly against my cheek, sending goosebumps over my body. “I need to put my contacts in and then we can leave,” I said as I kissed his cheek. I had already forgotten that I had lipstick on so I had to wipe the smudge off his cheek before going to put my contacts in.

When I came back, Vitaliy caught me before I made it back to Adrik. “Malishka, I’ve been telling my son that you’re absolutely perfect for him for a while now, but you keep finding new ways to confirm that. You’re absolutely stunning, Sephie.” He surprised me by pulling out a silver necklace from his pocket. “This was Lena’s. It was her favorite. She asked me to give it to you,” he said quietly. He didn’t give me time to object; he simply moved behind me so that he could put it on. It was a simple diamond pendant that rested perfectly in that spot where my collarbones met. “She had a timeless classic style, much like you, malishka. She was not one for ostentatious jewelry, but she loved this necklace. She wants you to have it now.”

“You did not get the memo that you’re not supposed to make me cry when I’m wearing makeup, Vitaliy,” I said as I hugged him. “But thank you. I love it. I love you. And I love her. Not in any specific order.” He laughed, hugging me tightly.

Adrik walked over to see. When I showed him what Vitaliy had given me, he looked surprised. “I remember that necklace,” he said. “I used to stare at it. The way the light caught the diamond used to fascinate me when I was little.”

“Your mother rarely took it off. She told me that she wanted Sephie to have it now,” Vitaliy said quietly.

Adrik smiled. “It’s perfect.”

The guys kept themselves tightly packed around me and Adrik as we walked to the front door of the hotel. They could all feel my nervousness at having people looking at me. As long as Adrik’s arm was around me, I managed to stay calm. He had promised several times on the way there that he would not leave my side the entire evening.

“We don’t have to stay long. Once I have a chance to talk to the mayor and everyone can see him and the DA, we can leave. I would much rather spend the evening getting you out of that dress anyway,” he told me on the way to the hotel.

“I fully support this, ” I said, pushing my warmth to him before we got out of the vehicles.

Once we walked inside, I tried to keep my nervousness to a minimum. I failed miserably. But luckily, the guys were all there to offer support, as well as hide me as much as possible.

“People always stare at beautiful women, gazelle,” Misha reminded me as we walked into the ballroom. Thankfully, it was a different ballroom from the last time so it didn’t immediately bring back horrible memories of that night.

“Misha’s right. You’re also probably the youngest woman here. All the other women are going to look at you because they’re old. And jealous,” Andrei said.

I laughed at that. “Bubba, you’re not allowed to hang around Misha as much. He’s a bad influence on you.”

“Am I a bad influence or has he finally learned to speak the truth?” Misha asked, cutting his eyes over at me.

Adrik laughed quietly. “I think you’re both right. Sephie is gorgeous. Other women are not.”

“The mayor is here,” Ivan said, pointing to the side of the ballroom where a small group of people were standing and talking. “I haven’t seen the DA yet. Or Henry.”

As the guys were searching the ballroom to try to find the DA and Henry, Dr. Williams caught sight of us. He smiled as he walked over to us, focusing on me. “Sephie, it’s good to see you again. You look much better than the last time I saw you,” he said, quickly letting his eyes scan up and down my body.

“I mean, less colorful. That’s for sure. But it’s undecided as to whether that’s better or not. It’s so … boring,” I said, retuning his smile.

He laughed. “I take it you’ve healed well? Everything is still good?” he asked.

“It is, Doc. You do good work,” I said.

He looked at Adrik. “It’s good to see you here as well. You’re almost singlehandedly responsible for most of the hospital’s budget. We should be giving you an award or something,” he said to Adrik. I felt him squeeze me just a little tighter.

“Not necessary. I prefer to remain as anonymous as possible anyway,” Adrik said. “It’s plenty worth it after you saved Ivan and then Sephie.”

“Well, just know it’s much appreciated,” Dr. Williams said. He excused himself to go talk to someone else, leaving us alone once more.

I looked at Adrik, smiling. “You’re so popular,” I said, placing my hand against his cheek.

“You’re so beautiful,” he said, pressing his lips to mine. He pressed his forehead to mine for a moment, his arm still securely around my waist. I knew he was struggling with being here just as much as I was. I pushed my warmth to him, hoping to offer him a moment of comfort.

“Boss, the DA is here now too. Still no sign of Henry,” Ivan said.

“Let me go talk to the mayor. Maybe we can get it done before Henry even gets here,” Adrik said.