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“I was hoping to have my friend Jessie over for lunch tomorrow. I know it’s probably a security risk, but?—”
“Tomorrow works,” he interrupts, already pulling out his phone. “I’ll make the arrangements.”
I blink in surprise. “Just like that? No background checks or security protocols or arguments about unnecessary risks?”
Maksim looks up from his phone with something that might be amusement. “You expected more pushback?”
“Honestly? Yes.”
“Nikandr wants you to be happy here, to feel safe and at home. Having your friend visit is part of that.” He returns his attention to his phone, typing what looks like a lengthy message. “Besides, we’ve already done a thorough background check on Jessica Witman. She’s not a threat.”
The casual way he mentions the background check should probably bother me, but it doesn’t. In Nikandr’s world, paranoiaisn’t a character flaw but a survival skill. “Will there be any special restrictions? Things she can’t see or places she can’t go?”
“She’ll be escorted at all times and limited to the main floor common areas. But other than that, no restrictions.”
“And Nikandr?”
He looks temporarily puzzled. “What about him?”
“Will he be joining us for lunch?”
Maksim’s expression becomes carefully neutral. “He has business to attend to tomorrow. Regarding Vadim.”
The name sends a chill down my spine, even though I don’t fully understand who Vadim is or why he’s a threat. “What kind of business?”
His tone is dismissive. “The kind you don’t need to worry about.”
It’s clearly a sensitive subject, but I press anyway. “Is he in danger?”
“Nikandr is always in some degree of danger. It’s the nature of his work.” Maksim’s tone gentles slightly. “He’s very good at what he does, and he has excellent people protecting him. He’ll be fine.”
I nod, trying to project a confidence I don’t feel. The thought of Nikandr facing some unknown threat while I sit safely in his house makes my stomach twist with anxiety, but pushing for more information won’t get me anywhere except frustrated. “Thank you for arranging the lunch.”
“You’re welcome. And Miss Clyde?” He pauses in the doorway. “Your friend is important to you, which makes her important to Nikandr. She’ll be perfectly safe here.”
The next day,watching Jessie’s reaction to the estate is almost worth the stress of being dragged into Nikandr’s mysterious world. By the time we’re settled in the sunroom with an elaborate lunch spread before us, she’s practically speechless. “Okay,” she says finally, picking at her salmon. “I get it now.”
“Get what?”
“Why you might be tempted to stick around. This place is insane. Like, movie-star-mansion insane.”
I laugh despite myself. “It’s not about the house, Jess.”
“I know, but it doesn’t hurt, right?” She takes a sip of the expensive wine Maksim selected for her since I’m sticking to sparkling water and sighs. “I still think you’re crazy, but I’m starting to understand the appeal.”
We talk for hours, catching up on everything that’s happened since I left my old life behind. She tells me about her temporary apartment, the strange men who shadow her movements but never interfere, and how surreal it feels to be living in a world where protection comes with a price tag most people can’t imagine.
“It’s like being in a movie.” She shakes her head. “Except the movie is my actual life, and I have no idea how it ends.”
I nod emphatically. “That makes two of us.”
She sets down her wine glass and studies me carefully. “Can I ask you something without you getting defensive?”
“Probably not but go ahead.” I grin.
“Do you think he loves you? Or do you think he just sees you as the mother of his child?”
The question is uncomfortable even though I’ve been asking myself the same thing for days. “I don’t know. Sometimes when he looks at me, it feels like there’s something real there. Something deeper than just obligation or responsibility.”