Page 5 of Nanny for the Bratva Daddies

Fyodor’s dark brows twitch ever so slightly.

“And I can take one of your cars, which will be safe in the snow. So… really, I’m here telling you that I’m going out. I’m not asking for permission.”

An amused glint sparks in his eyes and I swear the corner of his mouth twitches.

“Fine. Daniil will escort you.”

Fuck.

Argument rises on reflex but I catch myself. Permission is what I needed, and I have it.

“Thank you, sir.”

I rush out of the office immediately, pushing all lingering thoughts of yearning desire from my mind. I have to get to my mother and I can’t have Daniil by my side, no matter how important Fyodor’s requests are.

“Daniil, I need you to watch Dariya until I’m back, okay?” Waving at Dariya who is now free of both pigtails, I hurry away before Daniil can respond. Not that I need him to. Dariya is his charge and he will stay with her regardless.

With the keys to one of Fyodor’s jeeps in hand, I throw a coat around my shoulders and hurry out into the snow without much thought. Never before has my mother threatened to come here. She’s always been so adamant about making sure we meet up outside of the property that her change in heart must mean something is wrong.

Or she’s just growing impatient. Something I find quite ironic, considering she’s been waiting over twenty-five years for her plan to come to fruition.

The snowstorm is a second thought as I race out of the estate, waving as casually as I can to the guards at the gate and taking the left road through the forest. It’s the quickest route back into the city and I’m already cutting it close. Windshield wipers squeak and scrape as they fly rapidly over the windshield, and snow falls in thick clumps around me. I can barely see five feet in front of me, but at this time of night, it hardly matters.

There’s never anyone on the Dunayevsky Estate other than Fyodor and his people. He’ll likely be pissed that I left without Daniil but I can deal with that later. My mother takes priority.

My phone blares into life and the shrillness cuts through the dull silence in the car, drawing me out of my thoughts. Slowing down a little, I glance away from the road and reach for my phone in my pocket. I really should put it in the hands-free slot on the dashboard.

Suddenly, the entire jeep shudders backward and I lurch forward, caught by momentum.

Before my face smashes into the steering wheels, the airbag deploys and explodes in my face. It cushions the blow, but pain still blasts hot through my nose. Slamming my foot down on the brake, the entire jeep lurches to the left, and my head snaps to the side, making contact with the door window. Sharp heat prickles across my scalp, and I grip the steering wheel with all my strength as, finally, the jeep skids to a stop.

Heart hammering and head swimming, my stomach lurches.

What the fuck? Did I hit something?

Please don’t tell me I just ran over a deer.

Shock takes over, dulling the pain, and even the chill of the air around me fades from sensation. Scrabbling for the door handle, my nails scrape across the wood until I locate the lever. As soon as it pulls free, I fight around the airbag to escape the jeep and misjudge just how high I am from the ground.

A soft squeal escapes me as I fall from the jeep, pain lancing hard on my hands and knees. My head spins harder, and my vision swims as a dull, soft silence envelops me. Snow falls around me, utterly undisturbed by my accident, and confusion washes over me as some of the snow between my hands begins to turn red.

I’ve never seen red snow before.

I lift my head and freeze.

A few feet away, surrounded by snow and illuminated by the headlights of the jeep lies a body.

2

NAOMI

Oh. My. God.

I hit someone.

All the way out here, in the middle of the forest road where no one is supposed to be.

I hit someone.

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