Page 67 of Velvet Corruption

I shoved off the door and stepped into the kitchen—where I immediately realized I wasn’t alone.

Alek was sitting at the kitchen table, arms crossed, jaw tight, eyes fixed on the doorway like he’d been sitting there for hours—like he’d been waiting.

Natalia was perched on the counter beside him, holding a steaming mug of coffee like she was the smug villain in a spy movie. She was already dressed—immaculately, of course. Crisp blouse, neat braid, one of my robes draped over her lap like it belonged to her. Meanwhile, I looked like I’d been dragged backward through a war zone. I was still in yesterday’s clothes, and—Jesus. There was dried blood on my jeans.

Natalia spotted it immediately. Her lips curled, and I could almost hear the gotcha behind her expression. But she stood up and hugged me anyway—tight, warm, familiar. And even though she didn’t feel like my friend at that exact moment, it was really, really good to have her home.

“Oh, finally,” Natalia said, her British sarcasm poised to cut. “Lovely of you to join us. Just in time for the intervention we were planning.”

I ignored her. “How was your flight?”

“Let’s talk about you,” she said. I glanced at Alek, who was sitting at the dining room table, a sheet of paper in front of him with a list of…

Hospitals.

Shit

He was making a list of emergency rooms to call.

My heart dropped to my stomach.

“Well?” Nat said.

I groaned, dropping my bag onto the floor. “Nat, it’s barely morning.”

“Yes, and yet I’ve been awake for ages, darling. Can’t imagine why.”

I could feel Alek’s eyes drilling into me, the weight of his silence more intense than anything Natalia could throw my way.

“Where the fuck were you?” he asked, voice calm. Too calm. It was hisI’m pissed, but I’m containing it for your benefit voice.

I rubbed at my face, trying to will away the throb behind my temples. “Couldn’t text. My hand was fucked.”

Natalia’s eyebrows shot up. “Your hand?” she echoed, eyes flicking immediately to the offending appendage like it held all the answers. Her expression shifted from mild interest to razor-sharp curiosity. “Well, now I’m intrigued.”

I sighed, already too tired for this interrogation.

“It’s nothing,” I said, sidestepping her concern and trying to sound convincing. “Alek, chill. I crashed on a friend’s couch.”

Natalia grinned like a cat that just found a bird with a broken wing. “A friend, you say?” she mused, taking a sip of coffee.“And what exactly happened to your hand while you were at this friend’s house, hm?”

I barely stopped myself from groaning out loud.

I was cornered.

Alek’s jaw was still tight, his worry not melting one bit under the humor. His gaze flicked down to my hand, then back to my face, unamused.

“You worried us,” he said, his voice a low simmer. “You could’ve been straight with me when you called. You needed help and you acted like it was no big deal…like always.”

“I could handle it,” I insisted, holding up my bruised, useless hand for emphasis. “Wait, no. I couldn’t. I thought I did. I tried…”

“Ruby, if I had known, my sister could’ve found her way to my place in a cab. She wouldn’t have cared. I wouldn’t have cared. You didn’t tell me. How can I be there for you if you don’t tell me everything?” Alek asked, this time sounding more concerned than annoyed.

“He’s right. I’m an adult. I can take a car,” Natalia helpfully interjected. “Or, I don’t know…wait? If it’s an emergency, of course I’m going to wait.”

I took a deep breath. “Look, I get it. I deserve the lecture. But I’m very tired, it’s been a very long twenty-four hours, and I want to have a shower and go get my daughter. So can we at least postpone the talk until we’re going to Julian’s?”

“Nat, give us a minute,” he told his sister.