Page 21

I wasn’t one to consider the state of things too deeply, but I couldn’t ignore how suspiciously well things had been going ever since Sky told me about the pregnancy.

About two weeks had gone by since then, and in that time, we were able to get her completely moved into my place, and for the first time, the house didn’t feel quite so lonely. On top of that, I took Sky to her first appointment, and after everything was confirmed and looked good, we got a bit ahead of ourselves and picked up a few things for the nursery.

Surprisingly, being an expecting father suited me quite well.

Before, I never cared about love or wanted anything to do with it. Given how we were raised and the kind of horrors my brothers and I saw from such a young age, I didn’t experience much of it.

After Mom and Dad were caught neglecting us and the family was split up for a time before Alex was able to gain guardianship of everyone, I only had Daniil to lean on. Then, when we were brought together again, it was only us brothers.

We did what we could to comfort one another and look after each other, but it wasn’t the same as feeling warmth from a parent. I lacked that security for so long that I only ever turned to my brothers, or random strangers that only ever offered a shallow, surface-level satisfaction.

Not being able to trust my parents to look after me or provide us with the love and affection we all needed left a scar I didn’t know how to heal, which made it nearly impossible for me to be completely open with anyone.

Most days, it felt easier to just close myself off and do everything I could to protect myself and my emotions. But something about Sky made my guard drop.

I didn’t think I’d ever have the capacity to care for someone as I cared for her, and I always wondered if I’d have it in me to become a father…to know how to love a child as a dad should.

Alex was both a brother and father figure to me and while he did his best, he was the only example I had.

But with some reassurance from Sky, and after allowing myself the opportunity to soak in the anticipation of having a child of my own, I was beginning to feel better about it all.

Having Sky in our shared space helped me feel more at ease about everything. I could keep an eye on her and make sure she was alright, while also being able to keep her safe.

I told her everything about what I was really doing in the office, and how I was searching for the Pesci rat. Not only did it open up a new opportunity for us to figure out her assignment, but it also helped her to trust me more…to better understand my motives and why I had been there in the first place.

Finally, it was all out in the open, and I didn’t have to hide anything from her. Surprisingly, it felt good. Right.

By letting her know about the spy, Sky could be more aware and vigilant, and I figured it didn’t hurt to have someone more in tune with her coworkers on my side to report anything she might see.

“You said you’re getting closer to a solution, right?” Sky asked while I pulled up to the office and found a spot in the parking garage.

Keeping my attention on navigating through the cramped space and getting the car in place, I hummed and nodded. “That’s right. I just need more evidence to make some connections, and soon enough, I should have it all under wraps.”

Sky considered my words and took a deep breath as she nodded. “Good…the sooner this is over, the sooner everything can go back to normal.”

“That’s the goal, anyway,” I added, giving her a faint grin as I turned the engine off and reached over to gently brush the back of my finger against her cheek, causing her to smile back at me. “I’m going to catch this rat and make sure both you and the baby are safe. Then, you can go back to work with complete peace of mind.”

Letting her warm expression linger, Sky leaned into my touch almost like a cat might, steadying herself. “I’m glad…the two of us, along with everyone else, will thank you forever.”

“Now, that’s the kind of devotion I wouldn’t mind receiving,” I teased gently.

Sky hummed her amusement and nodded before unbuckling herself and reaching to pop her door open. “We’ll just have to see about that.”

With a satisfied grin, I chuckled and got out myself, locking the car on the way as we began for the elevator. “See we shall…”

It was a breath of fresh air to experience that smooth sailing between us.

A part of me was afraid I might never experience that kind of easy-going, natural connection with Sky, given how easily I had pushed her away in the beginning by being too overbearing, but I was more relieved than anything to know I hadn’t completely ruined things.

We cared about each other, and even if it was taking time to build that bond between us, I didn’t mind. Creating mutual trust wasn’t easy, but we were working on it together, and that was what mattered to me the most.

Making amends with Sky and learning that she was pregnant with our child became the biggest motivator for me to lock in on the spy and bring it all to a close. Knowing she was in the same building with someone actively meddling in Novikov and Levov business, catching secrets, and spreading them all for the Pescis' advantage infuriated me, and I had to find that evidence to finally end it.

With Sky and the baby on my mind, I was more prepared than ever to make it happen. To shield them both from anything that might try to harm them.

Together, we made our way through the building, and I made sure Sky was where she needed to be before giving her a kiss on the cheek and wishing her luck for the day before I decided to head down to the main floor and begin a sweep of the building, keeping my eyes peeled for anything that seemed amiss.

Before, Sky had been nothing but a distraction for me. She clouded my thoughts and slowed my progress without realizing it, but since we established a more stable, mutual understanding between us, that almost ravenous part of me calmed to some degree.

I still wanted her more than anything, and I found myself thinking about her often, but it wasn’t so all-consuming. There was less of a fog in my head, and I could actually concentrate.

For the first time since I started watching over the office and investigating the workers, I felt centered and completely serious. I thought I had been before, but in a sense, I was lying to myself—overcompensating for how insane Sky was making me feel.

But I didn’t have to worry about that. Instead, I could focus on keeping everyone safe, and I could have her at the same time without worrying if I was being too much for her.

After doing my initial check over of the building, I made my way back to my home base and did some monitoring from there over the live feeds while I tried to dig into the Pesci family and anything associated with them.

Once I let Sky know about the connection I made between them and their more recent attack on the Levovs, she told me everything she managed to find on them, but it was mostly a dead end. Of course, searching for public information on a mafia family never resulted in much…at least, not to the untrained eye.

But with my experience, I had a better chance of being able to read between the lines and draw some connections that likely were missed by either the general public or the police. It was only a matter of time.

Between trying to uncover more about them, along with my prime suspects, I was preoccupied, but I knew it would eventually be worth it.

After some time, I got up and stretched my legs, wandering out to the tenth floor with the hope of seeing Sky before she was eventually roped into a meeting. But before I could find her, my brows furrowed as I spotted Daniil striding over to me with a tray of coffees in his hands.

“What are you doing here?”

With a scoff of amusement, he offered me one from the tray. “What, I can’t visit you while you’re hard at work?”

“You don’t seem to be too worried about working hard yourself,” I returned with a grin, taking a sip from the warm coffee.

“Bringing you and the others coffee isn’t hard work to you?”

“I guess I can’t complain then.”

He grinned faintly. “Gemma and Ben have been tied up figuring some story out and he asked me to bring their favorites over. So, here I am. How’s Sky?”

It was a bit surprising to hear Daniil asking about her so openly, given how he tended to keep to himself on personal matters, but I wasn’t going to complain either. The mere mention of her was enough to make my chest warm.

“She’s doing well…adjusting to the move and everything.”

“I’m surprised she agreed so easily to move in with you. I could’ve sworn she wasn’t your biggest fan,” he added with a quiet snicker.

He and the others knew about Sky moving in and the two of us working on becoming more serious, but I took the liberty of leaving out the pregnancy part. Not that I wanted to hide it, but we were waiting until she was further along to inform everyone.

However, thinking about it kicked me into that excited gear again, and reminded me that it was very real, and not just something I had fantasized about.

She really was pregnant, and I was going to be a dad. It was one of the hardest things to keep to myself.

“There’s a bit more to it than that.”

Daniil immediately cocked a brow at me. “Is there now?”

I couldn’t hold back the grin on my face as I nodded. “That’s right.”

“Well, are you just going to leave me in suspense?”

Considering it for a moment, I glanced up, then took a step closer and kept my voice down while the others in the office moved around us. “She’s expecting.”

I watched as the words sank in, and my brother’s eyes widened. “She’s pregnant?”

Maintaining that pleased expression, I nodded with my arms crossed over my chest. “She is. I was waiting to tell everyone, but I figure there’s no harm in letting you know.”

Despite his shock at hearing it, Daniil managed a smile for me anyway and clapped my shoulder. “Congratulations…I can’t believe you’re going to be a dad.”

Letting go of a breath, I smiled and nodded. “Me neither. But I can’t wait for it.”

All the while Daniil offered me his support, I glanced over at the photocopy room at the sight of movement, noting what looked like the back of Raf’s head while he reached for whatever was waiting for him in the printer. I could’ve sworn he paused for a moment before tapping the small pile of papers together against the table nearby.

Even if he hadn’t done much of anything to warrant my suspicions, I couldn’t help the nagging feeling in my gut whenever I looked at him.

It went beyond the jealousy I had felt previously. I was in a good place with Sky, and I knew she had no interest in him in that way, so that wasn’t it.

Regardless of the lack of incriminating evidence, I had against him, I couldn’t shake the idea that he was up to something…or at the very least, he knew something.

I felt paranoid, but I also knew that kind of hunch could work in my favor when it came to flushing out the rat.

While I continued to chat with Daniil, I let my eyes flicker to Raf while he left the small room and returned to his cubicle, keeping him in my sight again.

By then, I couldn’t be too sure of anyone’s innocence anymore.