Page 11 of Born into Sin

“It’s been too damn long, Dominic,” he says, and then pulls back and laughs even harder. “Did you seriously wear an Armani suit to a cookout?”

“I did,” I say, handing him the bag I’ve carted across the fucking Atlantic for him. “Here’s your damn cannoli.”

He laughs and takes the bag, opening it and smelling the contents with a big smile on his face.

“How the hell are you still in shape?” I’ve known him for close to two decades now, and even though he has a bit of grey hair and a few lines around his eyes, the man is still as fit as the first time I saw him.

He laughs and pats his flat stomach. “It’s important to me that I look good naked for my wife.”

“Dad, gross,” Svetlana says, shaking her head at her father before taking the rest of the bags inside.

He laughs while we follow her into the large, white house. They call it the farmhouse, which immediately makes me think of something small and more on the simple side, but this is the exact opposite of that. The two-story house is huge with large windows that let in a ton of natural light and hardwood floors that are covered in decorative rugs. I can’t help but notice that Natalya stays by my side when we walk into a modern-looking kitchen where several women are busy preparing food.

“Dominic, so good to see you again!”

I smile at Alina and return the hug she gives me. We couldn’t get my sister back, but it’s always made me feel better knowing that at least she was saved.

“You look exactly the same,” I tell her, meaning every word of it. I pet the German Shepherd that’s standing by her side. “Who’s this guy?”

Alina smiles and pets his head. “This is Rasputin, but we all call him Raspy. Our daughter named him.” She laughs and looks at Yelena who’s taking a couple of the pretzels and disappearing down the hall.

“I was twelve!” Yelena hollers over her shoulder, making Alina laugh again.

I catch sight of Natalya’s pink dress as she walks further into the kitchen while I hug the other wives. The sound of several engines revving pulls my attention to the back window.

“Our husbands thought it would be a good idea to get the boys dirt bikes for Christmas one year,” Katya says, making it clear she didn’t think it was such a great idea.

“They didn’t get me one.”

I turn at the pissed-off tone and smile at the auburn-haired girl. She might look like Jolene, but this young girl is all Lev. She’s the exact opposite of her older sister. Instead of a pink dress and heels, she’s wearing Doc Martins, a black pair of jeans, and a black T-shirt. Her hair is pulled back in a ponytail, and I give a small smile when I see the skull earrings she’s wearing.

“You get more like your father every time I see you, Mia,” I tell her.

She smiles like it’s the best compliment I could’ve ever given her and takes a big bite of her pretzel after dipping it into the icing.

“I bet your brother or one of your cousins will give you a ride if you ask,” Jolene tells her. “And you know your dad promised you one when you get older.”

“I don’t know why I have to wait until I’m older to do anything fun,” she mutters before grabbing another bite and then heading out the open French doors and onto the back deck.

I raise a brow at Jolene. “And here I was thinking Svetlana was going to be the handful.”

Everyone laughs while Svetlana looks at me from across the kitchen. “I’m an absolute angel,” she tells me with a straight face. “Always have been.”

“And modest too,” Vitaly says, coming up to stand next to his wife. He’s already made his way through two cannoli and is working on a third.

Katya looks over at him. “Are you even going to be hungry for supper?”

He winks at her and takes another bite. “You’d think by now you would have learned to never doubt me, wife.” He smacks her ass, and before she can say anything, he looks over at me. “Come on, the others are down by the grill.”

Before I follow him out, I walk over to the counter, setting the bags I’m still carrying down. I briefly meet Natalya’s eyes before forcing myself to look away. Her light blue eyes might look just like her dad’s, but he’s the last thing I’m thinking about when I stare into them. That girl is dangerous, and I need to stay the fuck away.

Taking the glass of whiskey Emily hands me with a smile, I follow Vitaly out of the house and onto the large back deck. We walk past several lounge chairs and a couple of hammocks and then down a few stairs to another level of the deck that’s just as nice as the first one, but instead of potted flowers and lounge chairs, this one has the biggest damn grill I’ve ever seen and two hot tubs. The yard stretches out in front of us, revealing an in-ground pool and several acres of woods beyond that circle around the house. I see the trails the dirt bikes have made and hear the distant rumble of their engines. It’s beautiful out here and peaceful and I can see why they love it so much.

“Holy shit, man, it’s good to see you.”

I turn and smile at Lev. The first night I met Lev, it ended with him shooting me and our families forming an alliance to take down the Lebedev Bratva. The shot had been a nasty one, and my shoulder still aches from time to time. It doesn’t surprise me at all that when he smacks my shoulder, he makes sure to hit the exact spot where the bullet went through.

“You are such a dick,” I tell him, making him laugh. “I can’t believe I saved your life after you shot me.” I think about the night we rescued Alina. It had been chaos, and it was pure luck that I happened to look over at just the right moment to see the man aiming a gun at Lev. I’d yelled his name, and he’d ducked just in time.

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