Page 266 of Bratva Jewels Box Set

“Zoe and Grace were always close because of their ages, but even more so because of what has happened. Then there’s Sophie. She’s always been a loner, even growing up. She was happy being by herself most of the time, whereas I hated it. But Sophie and I are like chalk and cheese. That’s why I buried myself in my books and became known as the nerdy one of the sisters,” she explains.

Not sure what that has to do with me.

Mackenzie lets out a sigh. “It’s so stupid feeling like this at almost thirty, but I’m going to tell you because, honestly, what does it matter if you’re going to leave anyway.” She shrugs.

Now I’m intrigued.

“When you came back last night, I thought you and Sophie would hit it off. Be firm friends because you are so similar. But you didn’t, and honestly, I thought that was awesome because maybe I might have a chance at finally being close with a sister.” She rushes out the last bit of her confession to me, embarrassed at saying her thoughts aloud.

Oh.

Wasn’t expecting that.

“We had the best time last night. I thought we clicked,” she adds.

“We did,” I say, reassuring her.

She gives me a small smile. “Guess what I’m saying is, and this is embarrassing and sounds needy, and maybe it’s weird, but I’m putting it all out there because I don’t want you to go, and I feel like you need to know that I was looking forward to not being lonely anymore. That I might finally have a sister who I could do things with.”

Oh.

There’s a thud in my chest, a constriction around my heart. The first flutters of life inside my chest begin to bloom. And before I know it, I rush toward her with outstretched arms and pull Mackenzie into a hug. She is stiff for a couple of seconds, trying to assess if I’m going to kill her or not, but eventually, she relaxes and hugs me back.

“Ever since losing Anna, I’ve been lonely, too. Didn’t realize how much until right now,” I confess to her as I hold her tightly.

“You don’t think I’m weird?” she asks.

“No. Never,” I tell her. “I think you’re actually pretty awesome and my favorite out of the sisters,” I say as I step out of the embrace.

“You do?” she asks, her brows pulling together in confusion.

“You’re funny as fuck. You say the craziest things at the wrong times, and I live for that,” I tell her.

“My foot does like to land in my mouth, a lot.” She chuckles.

“I like it. You’re an authentic person. That’s rare where I come from.”

“Russia?” she asks.

This makes me chuckle as I shake my head. “No, from the underworld. No one is authentic, everyone has a motive. Living like that is exhausting, never knowing who to trust,” I explain to her.

“You can trust me and my family. I know Sophie can be a bitch, but she is protective over us all. She will come around, eventually, but she’s trustworthy,” Mackenzie explains.

“That’s the thing, I see it. And I’ve never in my life been around people like you all before. Growing up was spent in the darkness of my father’s work and my mother’s hatred of him.”

Mackenzie frowns. “Living with perfection can have its drawbacks, too.”

Guess everyone has a different view of each other’s life, and it’s not always accurate.

“I don’t want you to go. But I understand if you have to,” she says.

I’m tired of running. It would be nice to soak in a different life for a little bit. Should I stay? Everyone keeps telling me to relax and have a vacation. Assassins don’t get vacation leave.

“If you need to talk to someone about what happened earlier, you can tell me. I’m a vault,” she adds.

Maybe I should tell her about Dimitri and my conflicting feelings. Bottling things up doesn’t seem to be helping.

“Come on then,” I say, turning on my heel as I head toward my studio in the garden. A little clap behind me tells me Mackenzie is happy with this development.