Page 76 of Born into Madness

While he finishes, Sasha says, “Yeah, our family owns The Red Room and a few other clubs around town.”

This is news to me, and I file it away so I can ask more about it later. I’m curious what all his family does. What does a Bratva do exactly? I know he kills and Niki hacks, but surely there’s more to it than that.

When Niki starts taking another bite, I smile over at him. “Told you.”

He stops mid-bite and says, “Yeah, these are pretty fucking good.”

We’re all quiet for a few minutes while we fix our plates and eat, but it’s not long before Sav looks over at Sasha and addresses the giant elephant in the room. “So, do I need to worry about you hurting my best friend? Judging by how you met, I’d say you’re more than capable of it.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Sasha says. His hand is on my thigh, and he gives it a firm squeeze when he tells her, “How we met proves that I’m incapable of hurting her.”

“He’s right about that,” Niki says. “Trust me, if he didn’t want her here, she wouldn’t be.”

His words are supposed to make her feel better, but Sav pales at them. Proving she’s the best friend a girl could ask for, she points her fork at the man she knows damn good and well iscapable of murder and says, “I swear I will find a way to kill you if you hurt my friend.”

I look up at Sasha. He’s studying Sav, and he’s not giving her his scary look, but it’s not a friendly one either. Niki puts his hand over the fork she’s still holding onto and gently lowers her hand back to the table.

“I really wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he tells her.

“I’m not scared of him,” she insists.

“You should be,” he tells her.

“It’s okay,” Sasha says while caressing my thigh with his thumb. “I’ll forgive the death threat because, let’s be honest, it’s not much of a threat, is it?”

Sav looks like she wants to argue, but Sasha keeps going.

“And because you said it to protect Cyn. I could never be mad at you for wanting to keep her safe, and I can promise you she’s safe with me. I will never allow any harm to come to her, including from myself, so you can let go of the death grip you have on that fork before you accidentally stab yourself with it.”

I see Sav’s fingers tighten before she finally sighs and lets it drop and clatter on the table. “I really want to be pissed at you right now,” she tells him, “but I know you’re right. There’s no way in hell I could ever hurt a guy like you.”

“Don’t feel bad,” Niki tells her. “No one could.”

Sav looks over at him. “Not even you?”

Niki laughs, not even bothering to put on some tough, macho-guy bullshit. I have no doubt Sasha’s cousin could do some serious damage and hold his own in a fight, and I can see the respect in Sav’s eyes when she sees that he’s not trying to inflate his ego, something the Alpha guys on campus are all too quick to do.

“Hell no,” Niki tells her. “Sasha’s in a league of his own. I wouldn’t stand a chance against him.”

Sasha’s quiet as they talk about him, his thumb still stroking my thigh, and when he slides his hand higher, I bite back a smile and rest my hand on top of his.

Sav thinks about what he’s said while she takes a drink. Putting the bottle of Mexican Coke down, she looks from me to Sasha and just smiles at the two of us. “Well, it’s pretty obvious that you two are already inseparable, so I’m willing to trust you until you give me a reason not to.”

“Which I’ll never do,” Sasha tells her, and then he adds, “By the way, she’s moved in with me.”

“Wait, what?” Sav’s blue eyes widen as they land on mine. “You moved in with him? Already?”

I shrug and reach for a chip. “It felt right, and he’s promised to not wake me up at the crack of dawn in a cheerleading outfit.”

Niki laughs and asks, “What the hell are you talking about?”

“My roommate at the dorms is a very energetic cheerleader, especially at sunrise. I’ll be happy to get away from her, and I’m excited to live with a dog. Chort’s so sweet, Sav. I can’t wait for you to meet him.”

“Chort?” Niki asks, his tone making it clear he thinks I’ve lost my mind. “Chort is sweet?”

Sasha grins at his cousin. “He fucking loves her, man. Licks her on the cheek and everything.”

Niki shakes his head. “I don’t believe it.”