Page 84 of Claim Me

“You did great. Very formidable.”

My laugh was strangled. “I don’t know about that. I have no clue what I’m doing.”

“Fighting lions, tigers, and bears, but my cousin is able to handle himself and will keep you protected.” While her words resonated, so did the reality of what I was facing in the future.

“For how long? How long is he required to be by my side? How many men will be assigned to follow me around just to keep me from being swept off the street and held prisoner?”

“As many as it takes. Kazimir doesn’t like being pushed. He always pushes back. An admirable trait.”

“How can you tolerate living this way? Keeping a gun with you at all times, worrying about who might suddenly appear, either trying to kidnap or kill you. What kind of life is that? My guess is you keep a weapon by the bed.”

She took a deep breath. “Yes, I do, but not because I’m forced to. I’m different than other women in our family. I chose to be a part of the life you’re talking about, but you need to know every dayisn’t filled with violence or contentious meetings with would-be oligarchs. We run an extremely profitable corporation. Do we have enemies? Absolutely, but so does any other Fortune 100 company.”

“You make it sound so easy. What about having a family? Children? A pet?”

“I’m not interested in having a family. I don’t think there’s a man out there who can handle me. But I do have a pet. A beautiful Manx cat who hates me.”

I burst into laughter. “Cats hate me too. I just don’t think I can handle this. It’s risky. My parents and my brother lost their lives because of it.”

“But not because of their involvement. Right?”

“I don’t know. That’s what disturbs me the most. Was it possible my father had used me as collateral?”

“I think deep down inside you know your father would never do that,” Nadia insisted. “From what I’ve heard, they were trying to do the right thing. They didn’t ask to be in the middle of such a dangerous situation.”

“Exactly and they were murdered anyway because my father ignored his own instinct. He knew Vladimir would make him pay dearly for the loan.”

“Maybe so. Life is risky, Marissa. You can be sitting in your home watching television and a fire starts or jogging in your favorite park and some crazy serial killer just happens to be there.”

“Ugh. Now I really want to curl up in a ball or a hole and never come out. There’s too much danger around every corner.” I dropped my eyes to the weapon she had in her unfastenedholster, shuddering as I thought about how there could have been a massacre.

She cocked her head. “That’s your choice. You can either live your life the way you want or give into your fears and go ahead and curl up like you’re talking about. But if you do, you won’t be able to go on a date with a handsome man and one who seems to adore you.”

“You think he’s handsome?” I grinned because she had a way of putting me at ease.

“Well, he is my cousin and trust me, a true pain in the ass, but all the Dmitriyev men are attractive. But I have my eye on one hot Italian stallion.”

I followed her line of sight to one of the group of Italians who’d walked into the room late. All four were related. All four looked likeGQmodels straight from the Milan runway. How was it that in every gangster news report I’d seen or television show likeThe Sopranos, men from mafia families were fat, ugly, and oily?

Maybe I should stop stereotyping.

“Does he know?”

She brushed her fingers down the side of her neck. “We’ve been flirting on and off, but one marriage between the two families almost killed my brothers and cousins. Two and they’d be six feet under by morning.”

“Ah, but you need to live your life the way you want. Right?”

Her nose wrinkled. “I guess I deserved that.”

“Yes, you did.” We laughed and I started to relax, even though I continuously glanced toward the door, fearful the rough andugly dude would make a reappearance. He’d practically salivated when looking at me. It made me sick to my stomach. “So you think Kazimir isn’t angry with me?”

“Are you kidding me? Look at him now, nestled in the group of men. Their serious expressions would make you think they’re plotting some world war, yet his eyes barely leave you. If you dared try and walk out of the room, he’d spring into action.”

It was good to laugh, something I’d thought would take me a very long time to do again. “I think you’re right.”

“I know I am. It’s good to see him living again.”

“Meaning what?”