Page 7 of Born into Sin

After the pizza gets here and we stuff ourselves while watching a movie, I head for bed, flopping down on my fuzzy, pink comforter before grabbing my phone so I can text Svetlana.

You’re going to the farmhouse tomorrow, right?

Her response is immediate. Duh. Have you met my dad?

I laugh because she’s right. Uncle Vitaly would never let her skip a family dinner. Before I can respond, she sends another text.

Want to go shopping tomorrow? I’ll pick up Yelena on the way and then we can just go from the mall to the farmhouse.

Sounds good, I tell her, already thinking about the new pair of shoes I want to get.

I’ve just finished helping Mia sort out some laundry, partly because I feel bad she has to do it but mainly because I don’t want her ruining my clothes, when I hear Svetlana knocking at our door.

“You sure you don’t want to come with us?” I ask Mia.

Her hazel eyes widen before she gives a soft laugh. “A day at the mall? I’ll pass.”

I laugh and leave her to the laundry before walking into the living room in time to see my dad wrap an arm around Svetlana’s shoulders and kiss the top of her head as he leads her into the kitchen.

“So you ladies are off to the mall?” he asks while grabbing us both a drink from the fridge. He always speaks to us in Russian. My mom speaks it pretty fluently now, and all the kids in the family grew up speaking and hearing it. It’s as familiar to me as English at this point.

He tosses Svetlana a bag of the gummy snacks she likes so much, smiling when she laughs and says, “Thanks, Uncle Lev.”

I see a lot of her twin brother, Valentin, in Svetlana’s face, but her honey-brown eyes are identical to her dad’s. I’m told she also has his ability to talk himself out of just about anything and his knack for being an all-around smartass. Apparently, my Uncle Vitaly was quite the handful when he was younger. Our parents are pretty tight-lipped about what all they got up to, but I’m guessing it was a lot.

“Yeah, we’re going to pick up Yelena and head to the mall. We’ll just drive to the farmhouse when we’re done,” I tell him. “Don’t worry, we’ll be there in plenty of time for supper.”

He’s already on his phone, texting a few of the guys to let them know where we’re headed. Bodyguards are just a daily part of life. We’ve all learned that there’s no escaping it, no matter how much we complain or, in Svetlana’s case, how many times we try to dodge them.

When he’s satisfied that we’ll be properly guarded, he smiles and gives me a hug. “Have fun, princess. Try not to max out the credit card.”

He laughs when he says it while I hug him back and say, “You know I’d never do that, even if Uncle Danil could just go in and erase it all.” I don’t add that our cousin Niki could do it just as easily, because I’m not sure if our parents are aware yet of how damn good he is. On more than one occasion he’s saved my ass by going in to change a few grades on my report card. I would’ve still graduated without his help, but he did save me from having to retake algebra my senior year.

My dad tells me he loves me and then pulls his niece in for a hug goodbye. “Drive safe, Sveta,” he tells her. “Sergei said you were speeding the other day again.”

Svetlana laughs. “You all keep way too close of an eye on us,” she tells him. “You know it’s not normal, right?”

My dad laughs. “Nothing about our family is normal. Surely you’ve picked up on that by now.”

Svetlana tilts her head and thinks for a second. “I might’ve picked up on that over the years.” She darts her brown eyes to mine. “Maybe it was when they invited everyone from the Bratva to our dance recital when we were eight and Yelena was seven. Hmm,” she muses. “Yeah, I’m guessing that was the first clue.”

My dad laughs and points a finger at her. “A smartass, just like your dad, and it wasn’t the entire Bratva.”

Svetlana laughs and gives him another hug goodbye.

“We only did it because we were so damn proud of you three. We didn’t realize all the Russians with neck tattoos would draw so much attention.”

“I thought our dance teacher was going to have a heart attack,” I say, smiling at the memory of all that muscle lined up against the back wall, watching us perform the ballet routine that couldn’t have been all that good. The three of us loved our ballet classes, but I wouldn’t say any of us had a real talent for it. We were just excited about wearing the tutu and getting to jump around in front of our families. All the top Bratva members had stood there and smiled before giving us a huge round of applause when we’d curtsied at the end. The other parents hadn’t known what the hell to do. I still laugh when I think about it.

Before we can walk out the door, Sasha comes running up to us. “Hey, Sveta, mind if I ride with you guys? I promised Evgeny I’d come hang out.” He looks back at our dad. “Uncle Matvey said it was okay if I just ride with them tonight.”

“Sounds good,” our dad says, ruffling Sasha’s hair and then smiling when Sasha immediately smooths it back into place.

“Mia’s still working on the laundry,” I tell him as we head to the door. “I asked if she wanted to come, but she didn’t want to.”

He lets out a soft laugh. “Big surprise there. Don’t worry. I’ll let her punch the bag with me later.”

I smile and grab my purse because if there’s one thing Mia loves, it’s sparring with our dad in the home gym he set up. Why anyone would choose that over a day of shopping, I’ll never understand, but my sister’s her own person, and I respect the hell out of her for it. I pity the man she falls for because he’s going to need to be one tough son of a bitch to keep up with her. The thought of some man trying to tame her makes me laugh again as I kiss my dad’s cheek and follow my cousin and brother into the elevator.

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