My two worlds collided. What was he doing here? Why was he here?
I looked to Artyom as I recalled his words. Can I head off now then?
He was already looking at me, eyes dark and inquisitive. So much like his daughters and yet so different. "Elena meet Vladimir Drozdov. You know him as Dr Melrose."
I opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out.
Artyom filled the silence. "You didn't really think that I’d left you alone? Even for a second?" His features softened ever so slightly. "I've been taking care of you for years, Elena, waiting for when you chose to return home."
An unnamed emotion rose sharply within me. All I could ask was, "Why?"
"Why?" He blinked. "Why, Elena? Because we're family. It doesn't matter if you're with Kostya or not. You are my family, our family. Of course, I made sure you were safe."
There was nothing else to say. I wrapped my arms around Artyom, hugging him tightly. Cautiously, he hugged me back, giving me a brotherly kiss on the forehead. The children quickly joined in, their little arms squeezing us.
"This is your family,” he said, his voice filled with more emotion than I had ever heard it with. “Never forget that, sister."
~~~
Konstantin found us in the kitchen. His eyes roamed over the dried cheeks of the toddlers and Artyom’s and my companionship. We had said goodbye to Dr Melrose, or Vladimir Drozdov, and indulged the children’s wishes for a sugar-filled snack. Artyom was cutting up pieces of strawberry cake for them.
“What’s going on here?” Konstantin inquired.
“Hi Uncle Kostya!” Evva held up her knee. “Look!”
Niko copied Evva once again. “Hi Uncle Kostya!”
Coldness settled over the room as soon as the word’s left Niko’s mouth. Konstantin didn’t reveal anything on his face, but I saw the shudder of anger roll through him.
Artyom stepped closer to the kids.
I rubbed Niko’s back. “Not your uncle, baby.”
His face twisted in confusion.
“What did you do to yourself, Miss Evva?” Konstantin did a good job as leveling his voice.
“I tripped,” she said mournfully. Her child-like speak blurred her sentence together, but Konstantin understood what she had said.
“You poor sweetheart.”
“I’m braver than Auntie Lena,” she added.
Kon’s brows rose. “Then you must be very brave, indeed.” His eyes met mine. “We need to talk.”
I had forgotten how embarrassing it felt to spy on Konstantin…and how hot it had been. My entire body warmed as it remembered the sight of his muscles coiled, his expression contorted in pleasure, the sound of his groan…
“Fine.” I swallowed against my dry throat. “Can you watch Niko for a second, Artyom?”
His eyes were on Konstantin. “Of course.”
I patted Nikolai’s head as I passed him. “Be good. Mama will be five minutes.”
My son was too invested in the cake Artyom was cutting to give me a proper response.
Konstantin and I stepped into the foyer. The entire manor seemed to fall silent as we faced each other, both bracing ourselves for the discussion that was about to happen. I could’ve sworn I caught sight of Danika at the top of the stairs, but she moved too quickly for me to be certain.
I twisted my fingers in my hair, trying to give my hands anything to do other than reach out and touch Konstantin.
He wasn’t too close. In fact, the man was giving me an appropriate amount of space. But his entire presence seemed to fill the room, pressing up against the plaster and ceilings. I could breathe him in, fill my lungs with the essence of him like smoke; that’s how prominent he was.
Days ago, in the kitchen, when he had pressed me up against the counter, my thoughts had gone straight into the gutter. Memories of how he had felt touching me, warming me, had slapped me in the face. I could almost picture him pushing me up onto the counter and making up for lost time with his lips up against my–
Tatiana’s voice cut through my fantasy. Them or you, Elena?
She knew I was here; knew I had broken our bargain. What would she do to them?
You’ve put them all in danger, I hissed to myself. And for what? So, you could have a family again? So Nikolai could be safe?
No one is safe in this world, Elena.
“Elena?” Konstantin’s voice entered my mind. “We need to talk.”
I grabbed my wrist, half-disturbed to see it clean. I had redrawn over the same word for the past few days. Priorities. Prioritize Nikolai, keep him safe, keep him at the top of your list.
Whatever happens to your family will be devastating, but if something happened to Nikolai? There would be no point for me to continue living.
“Elena?”
I looked up at him. He had stepped closer, arms outstretched like he meant to shock me awake.
I took a large step back. “What did you say? I wasn’t listening.”
“I figured.” Konstantin eyed the distance between us before looking up at me. “I said we need to talk. Preferably in private.”
“Just the two of us?” That felt like an inherently bad idea.
“Yes. Roksana and Artyom can watch Nikolai for an hour.”
I held up a hand. “I decide who watches Nikolai.” His eyebrows rose. “But the Fattakhovs are fine. They’re probably the only ones who could keep him alive.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
“Are we scheduling our fights now?” I asked. “If so, I can’t do after 7. It’s the only time I get to myself.”
“We’re not going to fight.”
“Yeah, we are.”
Konstantin opened his mouth to refute me but caught on immediately to what I was doing. He smiled and shook his head, like he was amused with my little game.
He looked so human, so much like his old self in that second, that I almost reached out to touch his cheek. I wanted to feel how the muscles curved with his smile, how genuine and warm his joy was.
Instead, I clutched my hands, chiding myself silently.
You’re not a horny teenager, Elena, I told myself. You’re an adult with responsibilities. Act like it.
Despite my little pep talk, I still wanted to touch Konstantin. Still wanted to grab his cheeks and press his smile against my lips, like I could taste the humor–
“We’ll have dinner.” He said. “Nikolai will be okay without you for an hour or two.”
“One hour and we’re not having dinner.”
Konstantin bowed his head. “He can always join us and yes, we are.”
The ground was moving too quickly beneath me. He had won this argument before it had even begun, and he knew that. “Fine,” I gritted out. “You can have one hour of my time.”
His lips twitched into a smirk. “I don’t recall this animosity when I caught you last night.”
Heat crawled up my neck and cheeks, but I refused to acknowledge it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Imagining things, are we?”
Konstantin’s thumb reached out, lightly scraping over my lip. My breath left me in a hurried gasp. “I don’t need too,” he said softly. He pulled away abruptly. “I’ll pick you up at 5 for dinner. Earlier than the normal time to eat but you’ve given me no choice.”