Chapter 21

I’m too nervous about leaving the gallery without express permission from my bosses to go to a sit down restaurant, so we decide on a gourmet burger joint nearby that Mak swears has “the best double cheeseburgers in the whole city.”

“You’re fine,” he reassures me when I’m caught checking my phone for the hundredth time. He pops a steak fry into his mouth and flashes me a wicked grin. “You’ve got time.”

“I just don’t want them to get back and find me gone and freak out and…” I sigh. “Fire me.”

“They won’t. They’ve got a few hours to kill at the vet’s.”

Both Sofiya and I whip our wide-eyed stares at him.

“What? Oh! No!” Mak holds his hands up to calm us down. “I swear, nothing like that! They’re just waiting for the emergency surgery on a dog that may or may not be theirs to complete. Plot twist: it’s not theirs, and a poor hit-and-run found on the street is about to go to a nice, new forever home.”

Sofi snorts. I’m… confused. “But what about their dog?”

“Safe and sound. Probably getting one of those pup cups at the cafe right about now. They really need to pay their dog walker more. Makes it less easy to be bribed, y’know?”

The audacity.

The evil genius of it all.

The sheer fact that such manipulation doesn’t even faze this man, or this family, one bit.

I’m not sure if I’m offended, concerned, or impressed.

“So, Daph, tell us more about your family!” Sofi playfully nudges my arm. “You said your dad called earlier?”

“Yeah, the usual family drama.” I try to laugh it off, unconvincing as it feels. “He’s fine, though. Everyone is fine.”

“Are they excited for the baby?”

That answer, I’m not able to come up with as quickly. I’m pretty sure I’m making a weird face when I say, “Yeah, kind of? More my sister. She’s super excited to be an aunt.”

“So am I!” Sofi squeals and claps her fingertips together. “Oh my gosh, we have to go shopping!”

“I’m sure she’d love that.” And just like that, I’m mildly terrified by what could happen with Sofi and Mel running through a mall with limitless credit cards. Time to redirect. “So what about you? Is it just you three? No sisters?”

“One’s enough,” Mak drawls. “But yeah, as far as siblings go, Pash is the eldest and we’ve been toddling behind him since birth.”

“Happily, I might add.” Sofi smiles. “There’s nothing our big brother won’t do for us. And there’s nothing we won’t do for him.”

“So does that mean you’re all…” I circle the air with a fry as I try to think of how to ask it. “You work together?”

They share a look. “How much has our brother told you? About his work?”

I busy myself with my drink. “Just that he’s the boss. With a capital ‘B,’ if you know what I mean. But no zoot suits or fedoras, from what I understand.”

Mak snorts. “I figured he’d have mentioned something by now. With you two shacking up together⁠—”

“It’s not as literal as it sounds,” I interject. I don’t know why it matters, considering I’m literally pregnant with his child, but… I don’t know. I guess I don’t want his family thinking I’m just some loose skank warming his bed and mooching off his generosity. “Sorry. I mean, we’re more just, like, roommates.”

“Right.” Sofi casts a glance to my swollen womb, but her smile never wavers. “Does he know that?”

I stammer for a good answer. How can I answer on his behalf? Especially after the shower?

“Anyway, I’m his second-in-command. Mak does a lot of the same work as me, but—” She winks at him. “—he’s more expendable.”

He rolls his eyes. “She means I’m marriage material. I can step down to focus on having my own family if I need to.”

“Do you want to?”

The siblings exchange looks once again, and I feel like there’s more to this than they’re sharing. But Mak shrugs and tosses back a few more fries doused in sauce. “Fair question. Now that I have the option, I might actually want to. We’ll see.”

“Things changed when you came along,” Sofi tries to offer as explanation. “Some things Pash tried to pass off to us, and mainly Mak, are now his responsibility.”

“Oh.” I look down at my half-eaten cheeseburger. “Sorry.”

“It’s a good thing! Really. And we’re so happy to have you in our family now.” Her gaze lingers longingly at my baby bump. “You and this precious little one. Fair warning, though: she is going to be severely overprotected.”

That makes me laugh. “No shit. I don’t know how I’m gonna explain her guards to the preschool.”

“Ah. So you’re aware you’re being followed.”

I sag. “Boris and Dem are over at the window. They’ll change shifts with Anton and Ilya in a few hours, and then return for the midnight shift outside the penthouse. Although I’m pretty sure all four of them have access to an apartment somewhere inside my building. Safe to say I’m very aware.”

Mak returns his sister’s wink with one of his own. “I like her. What do you think?”

Sofi grins. “I like her, too.”

“Think Mom’ll like her?”

My jaw drops. Mother Chekhov. I hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Your mom?” I say in slow-dawning horror. “Is she… tough?”

When I look back up, they’re both snickering. “Oh, just wait. You’ll be meeting her soon enough.”