Page 20 of Brutal Bratva King

He sets her down on the ground and turns to face me.

“Anya. Did you get a good night’s rest?”

“Yes, and you?”

Our conversation is curt and tense.

“I did, thanks.”

He turns his back on me and I let out a breath of air I didn’t know I was holding in.

“How’s life going, little sis?” he asks, pulling a cup from the cupboard to make his own coffee.

“It’s amazing. I had my first scan yesterday. The proper one where they take a photo of the baby.”

“You’re kidding? Let me see. Why didn’t you send me a picture?”

Rodion leans over her shoulder as she pulls out a printed image.

“So,you guys are having an alien?” he laughs, poking her in the ribs.

“Rude. I bet you looked ten times worse when you were this size. I mean, look at the size of your head now.”

“Hey, hey, watch it. Your kid is going to be born with sticking-out ears if you start being mean to people. Karma will get you.”

She laughs, leaning her head against her brother's shoulder. He wraps his arm around her and hugs her. “I’m really excited for you. It’s so cool. His first ever photograph.”

“Hey, you can’t assume it’s a boy,” she says, horrified.

“Didn’t the doc tell you yet?”

“We don’t want to know.”

“Either way—your kid is going to be amazing. And you’ll be an amazing mom.”

Rodion turns his attention back to making his coffee and I smile, feeling strange. I’ve never seen him like this before. He’s usually so rigid. So tense. So mean.

He and Raisa have a very close relationship. I can see he really loves her and around her, without his other brothers here, he is very caring and tender towards his sister.

It’s so strange how this shocks me.

It also changes my perspective on him because—who is this soft, kind and gentle man in front of me right now?

And why is he even sexier now?

I sigh, rolling my eyes at myself.

Raisa leans across the kitchen counter, sliding the photograph towards me. “Here, look,” she says excitedly.

I pick up the black and white image. It does look like a tiny, marshmallow of an alien.

I giggle. “He’s got your eyes. But he definitely has Oleg’s weird nose.”

“Hey.” She grabs the photo back. “Between you and Rodion, I’m going to start getting a complex about my little baby.

Rodion starts laughing, he turns and winks at me and it sends a bolt of lightning shivering down my spine.

Raisa is laughing as she pins the photograph beneath the magnet on the fridge.

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