I sighed, grabbing her hands in mine. “I know why you did it, Katya.”
She turned back to make eye contact with Maksen and he shrugged, as if he tried to exclude himself from the situation. “You couldn’t keep your mouth shut, right?”
“He shouldn’t have kept his mouth shut and he didn’t. He told me the truth and I’m sorry that you had to go through this just so I could be happy.”
“We, Anna. Just so we could be happy.”
“You were happy before I destroyed everything.”
She put her hands on both sides of my face and locked me with her eyes.
“I have never felt happier than I do now.”
She seemed genuine considering the way she talked and I tried to believe her even though I had second thoughts. Maybe she was just trying to make me feel better in this situation, but I had enough people trying to act differently with me just so I won’t feel bad. I wasn’t a little girl anymore, and for Katya, I needed to be the bigger sister because that’s who I was.
“Annalise, Boyce will show Katya her room. She’ll have the room next to yours,” Maksen said as I raised my gaze at him.
I furrowed my brows hearing his words, but then I saw Boyce coming towards us and Katya left with Maksen’s man. The moment I turned around, I felt a soft touch on my cheek.
It was him.
“Lukyan suspected that Katya and I were faking it, but I think we won some time to find a way to escape from his claws.”
As I heard him talking, I noticed heat lashing at my insides because the only thing I could think of was the little girl I met. I felt the questions almost leave my mouth and it was hard for me to keep the silence. I just looked at him and faked a smile.
“We’ll find a way somehow,” I replied, taking a deep breath in.
We looked at each other and I felt his eyes lingering on me more than usual. He sensed something was wrong, but he didn’t say a thing as if he was waiting for me to make the first step and open up.
It wasn’t the right time. Not now.
“What’s going on in your mind?”
His tone of voice caressed my soul in a way that made me even angrier. I shouldn’t have felt anything considering that I was actively questioning the trust I’ve put in him. But there I was, feeling my heart beating fast in my chest and my legs trembling out of nervousness.
“I’m hungry.”
I didn’t give him enough time to reply because I turned on my heels and made my way to the kitchen. I didn’t want to look at him anymore until I knew I could ask him what I needed to know.
The image of the little girl continued to come to my mind with every step I took. Her porcelain face carried fear as she stood by me and I thought about the reason she might’ve felt that way.
As I continued to dig deeper into my thoughts, I heard the sound of Maksen’s footsteps following me to the kitchen and my blood’s temperature raised instantly. He was getting on my nerves.
“Why are you following me?” I bursted out, turning on my heels as I reached the kitchen’s counter.
He stopped in front of me, his brows raising up in a hazy furrow. “What do you mean? What’s wrong with you?”
“I said I’m hungry. That does not mean you have to come with me,” I replied, biting my cheek.
His eyes flashed with a darkness I didn’t ever see in him, and all I knew was how quick he moved closer to me. I could feel hischest hitting mine as he let heavy breaths come out between his lips, making me want to hide in the darkest place possible.
He scared me, but he also made me even angrier.
“Tell me what this is all about,” he whispered, brushing my cheek with his rough fingers.
Before I opened my mouth to hit him with every word that came to my mind, I heard Katya approaching us and clearing her throat when she stopped in front of the table. He stepped away, but didn’t take his eyes off of me for a second. He was intimidating me, but I didn’t let it affect me too much. I glanced back at him, then I moved towards Katya.
She came and saved me from a situation I didn’t want to face right now.