Page 66 of Kings & Queen

I’m not sure bonding is at the top of your mother’s priority list. Oh shit, your father doesn’t know anyone at the ballet school, right? What if he makes a call and they tell him they’ve never even heard of me? SOS, what do Ido then?

REAPER:

Calm down. My father is going to love you. Trust me on that. All you need to do is work that magic, sweetness, and my mother will become your greatest ally. Just breathe and be you.

KINSLEY:

Easy for you to say. I’ve got a mama bear waiting to eat me alive over lunch. No amount of magic is going to save me. Send reinforcements.

“Everything okay?” Sophia asked.

“Oh, yes. Sorry.”

“Don’t be. Is he always like that with you?”

“What, obsessive? Yeah, it’s his thing. You get used to it. Or, I mean,I’mused to it.”Way to go, Kinsley. Now you made her son sound like a stalker.

She eyed me strangely as we headed to one of the smaller dining rooms downstairs, where several servants began putting out lunch for us. I was overwhelmed. Did people really live like this? I thought it extravagant what the men had, but this was double that size for only two people.

“Do you host many people in your home?” I asked, wondering why they might have a home this size.

“This was actually my husband’s family home, been in the family for generations.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” I took a bite. It was delicious, a soup of sorts, with a creamy white sauce and chicken.

“So Alek tells me you’re Russian. Where are you from, if I may ask?”

“I grew up in the tiny town of Myshkin,” I said, and then memories of the village Pasha and I used to visit with our parents came rushing back to me.

“Nice, I’ve been there once. It’s a great, tiny tourist town. I was born in Moscow,” she shared.

We chatted a bit more about our Russian heritage and the things I liked to do. Then she asked, “So was your mother Russian, then? With your last name being Taylor and all.”

“Yes, actually she and my father were. My last name wasn’t always Taylor. When my parents died, a good friend of my father’s took me in. It seemed easier that I take his name since he was my legal guardian.” It was partially true, I reasoned.

“Oh, yes, probably a lot easier and fewer questions for a small child to explain in school.”

“I suppose it would have been, but I completed my education through online schooling.”

“I see, and did you have no other family that could have taken you in?”

“I honestly never questioned that. Well, until recently, I assumed I didn’t, but that may have changed.”

“Yes, my husband mentioned you have a grandfather and an uncle. Will you reconnect with them soon?”

It seemed Alek had shared with his parents about my family. Funny, we hadn’t even had a conversation about it yet. It wouldn’t matter at this point, anyway. The time to connect with them had long passed.

“I’m not sure. Growing up, it was my father, mother, and me. Well, there was Pasha, my dance partner, and his family. They were close—like relatives—but weren’t related by blood.” I tried to keep my face passive while I read this beautiful woman across from me. “It’s a bit overwhelming, honestly. I wouldn’t know where to start.”

I reached for my water, pretending I wasn’t acutely aware of how loud my heartbeat had become. It thundered behind my ribs.

“I can imagine it would be, but family is all we have in this world.” Her message was obvious, and I nodded, taking another bite. “May I ask you a question? I’d love to get it out of the way.”

“Yes, of course.” I straightened my back.Here goes.

“What happened between you and Ivan?” Her eyes were soft and full of worry.

Dread engulfed me. I wasn’t expecting her to ask me this. I thought for sure she’d let me know she didn’t approve of what her sons were doing with me. Maybe see what my true intentions were and ensure I was really planning on leaving. Squaring my shoulders, I spoke.