Page 39 of The Enemy’s Defector (Ivanov Syndicate #3)
KATERINA
N ik and I returned to the main Ivanov residence after the next day. To keep my mind off all that had happened, he took me on a short trip out of the city. The change of scenery served as a reset, and I wanted to call it our honeymoon.
“No.” He shook his head as the driver pulled into the parking area behind the building. “We’ll have a real honeymoon later.”
I smiled, sighing at his confidence.
It seemed so simple, going away for a day, but it worked.
I was calmer. Adjusting to all that happened was somehow easier when I wasn’t facing his family or the place I’d now call home.
Just the two of us. It allowed me to wrap my head around the fact that I’d never have to deal with Anton again.
That the organization everyone assumed I’d be loyal to was no longer in existence as a threat.
“We can also have a real wedding later, too,” he added, kissing me once before we got out of the car.
I huffed a laugh. “Why, because Anastasia wants us to have one?”
He smirked. “No. She has no room to complain. She made it her big campaign to have heirs in the family, and now we’ve got three on the way.”
“Maybe Saul can give her a wedding.”
He rolled his eyes, holding my hand as we walked into the building. “I highly doubt that. It’s a miracle that any of us are settling down, but I wouldn’t count on him falling into line like that anytime soon.”
“Because he’s too much of a player?”
“Bingo,” he said as we entered the foyer and met the others.
Lucy and Sloane rushed up toward me first, all smiles.
“Here’s the lady of the house, the heroine of the century,” Sloane praised.
“How are you feeling?” Lucy asked, much nicer now and more like her sweet self. Perhaps all it had taken for me to get back on her good side was to save her life and take out the assassin who could’ve killed her.
“I’m feeling…” I opened my eyes wide as I saw all the boxes stacked up. “Wow.”
“Isn’t it sweet?” Sloane glanced at the piles of deliveries.
“What is all that?” I asked, stepping forward.
“No, stop changing the subject,” Lucy insisted, trailing after us. “How are you feeling, Katerina?”
“About what?” I glanced at her, unafraid to be blunt. “About killing my uncle? I’m relieved.”
She might be too new to this Mafia world to be able to understand that I also felt really freaking proud of myself to have had the honor of taking out Anton Kozlov.
In my opinion, it was as close to an eye-for-an-eye as I could get.
He’d killed my father, and I’d killed him for that.
All was right in my world, and I hoped that my father would be proud of getting that closure.
Lucy nodded slowly, as if trying on that concept, that it was a good thing to wish someone dead.
“And you’re physically okay? The baby too?”
“Aw, are you worried about me, Lucy?” I teased, hoping we were closer to friends than not.
“Of course she is. I was too,” Sloane said. “You’re too badass not to worry about.”
“You’re really okay?” Lucy asked again.
I could get used to this. One chipper and wry sister and one serious and sweet one. They were opposites, but both were mine now.
Smiling freely, I nodded. “I’m more than okay.
” And I meant it. A huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders with Anton’s death.
“My biggest enemy is dead. The person who killed my father has been punished and can never hurt me again. I’m safe.
” I glanced back at Nik talking to Maxim.
“Nikolai is safe.” I placed my hand on my stomach.
“My baby is safe. There is nothing more I could ask for.”
“Your baby is also very spoiled,” Sloane added with a grin. She walked back toward the piles of boxes as she tucked her long blonde waves behind her ear.
“What’s all this?” I asked again.
“Deliveries. Gifts for you and the baby,” Anastasia said as she entered the room. She embraced me in a hug and sighed at all that had come in. “Some of the women in the organization thought it might be a nice gesture to send in baby gifts for you.”
“ Some ?” I laughed incredulously. I’d always known that the Ivanov Syndicate was large and extensive, reaching even outside the city, but this was too much. It was like they’d teamed up to buy out an entire store.
“The goal was to give you something to preoccupy you from thinking of your losses,” Lucy said, indicating that she and Sloane had a part in these gifts coming for me and my baby.
“What losses?” I challenged with an arch of one brow. “I haven’t lost anything but I’ve gained so much.”
Sloane gave me a side hug and rested her head against mine. “That’s really sweet.”
“It’s also really true.” No one could understand how alone I was before I dared to rescue Nik and run away.
“How the hell are we going to make room for all of this?” Nik asked as he and his brothers approached.
I shrugged.
“We’ll be busy figuring it out,” Sloane said, “since it seems you guys will be in your meetings and away.”
I glanced at Nik, wondering why he’d be too busy to help play house with me in preparation for our baby.
“Meetings about what?” Lucy asked. “I thought all the hectic planning and busyness was for the attack on…” She glanced at me nervously, still so considerate about mentioning the Kozlov name, as if it would hurt my feelings.
“With the Kozlovs no longer an enemy,” I said, proving I could say the name and not break down, “what will be keeping you away from me?” I took Nik’s hand, touched when he squeezed mine back.
It didn’t matter what we were doing or how we were near each other.
We would always reconnect and find our way back to each other.
“The Romanos,” Saul replied, looking at the tall stack of boxes I’d need to get through, apparently on my own.
Maxim nodded as he slung his arm around Sloane’s shoulders. “We have lingering concerns about the Romanos’ involvement in all that we’ve faced.”
“They’ve got to be just as complicit in poisoning your father and taking Nik,” I said.
“Yes, they are,” he agreed, giving me a serious look of consideration. “And we know more about that thanks to you, Sister .”
I smiled, glad that the interim boss was finally coming around to letting me be in the family and was no longer looking at me like I was the enemy.
“Thanks to having you here as a hacker, we can see more than we used to,” he added.
“Then when I need something to preoccupy me, around becoming a mother, I’m glad to help, Brother .” It felt really good to be able to say that.
“I also hope you’ll believe me when I say thank you for before, too.” He cleared his throat and glanced at Nik, then Damon. “For tipping off our father about where we were hidden, so we could be saved.”
“Ah.” I nodded. “Grigory talked to you?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell anyone that you were the one who tipped him off?” Damon asked. “It wouldn’t have been so hard to convince him”—he elbowed Maxim—“to trust you.”
“Because I doubted anyone would believe me. Your father knew about my role then, but no one seems to trust him or what he remembers right now. My father knew, but he was killed. And that was it. It was my word against… your prejudices.” I shrugged. “But that’s all in the past now.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” Maxim said. “We’ve got suspicions that Anton could’ve been behind that back then, aligning with the Romanos.”
“Then it looks like we’re halfway done with going after those responsible,” Nik said. “The Kozlovs are no longer there to worry about.”
“But the Romanos are,” Maxim growled, not pleased about it.
“Relax,” Saul said. “I’ll oversee that problem.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked on his heels. “Seeing as you’re all busy getting married and popping out kids…” He gave the huge pile of boxes a long look. “Or committing to opening all those and setting up nurseries.”
I smiled, knowing my new sisters would help me. They’d already gone through the planning for their babies’ arrivals and they’d be of the most assistance.
It suddenly hit me.
“Oh, my God.”
Everyone looked at me in question.
“There’s going to be babies all over the place. Three at once.”
Nik chuckled. “You’re only now doing that math?” He kissed the top of my head.
“No. I knew it, but seeing all these things puts it into perspective.” Looking around carefully, I raised my brows. “Just think of all the baby-proofing we’ll need to do. Times three!”
“I’m just excited that our children will grow up together,” Lucy said. Damon hugged her until she leaned her back against his chest. “I grew up as an only child.”
“Me too,” I said.
“Me three,” Sloane admitted.
“And this is just the beginning,” Anastasia said, beaming at us all. “Because you’ll constantly want more babies after this.”
I had to laugh at that. We’d been feeding a constant cycle of baby fever.
It was a future I’d prefer over what I once thought the rest of my life would be like—single, on the run, and hoping to survive. Now, I was surrounded by love and family, and I’d never take a single second of it for granted.