Page 30 of Hers to Control

“What did you do?”

He looks at me evenly. “Got rid of the eggs.”

Well, there isn’t much I can say to that, so I focus on the half slice of toast in my hand, trying to ignore the fact that it still smells a little like the eggs it touched.

Before I can work up the motivation to bring it to my mouth, Eric snatches it away from me, shoving it in his own mouth.

“What the hell?”

“I’ll make you a fresh one,” he says, without explanation, and walks back to the kitchen.

Two minutes later, I’m munching on a dry piece of toast. This time he asked me before putting butter on it and I decided plain was safer. It helps the nausea a little, so I finish both slices before leaning my head back and staring at the ceiling.

“Tell me about Gianna’s father. I didn’t get the chance to ask her. Obviously, she dealt with it?”

With my eyes averted, I can’t see Eric’s reaction, but he takes a few seconds to reply.

“Yeah. She took care of it.”

I nod. That’s Gianna’s world. One where less detail is better. A world I tried to escape from as best as I could, but somehow always ended up standing in with one foot. When she’d called me to this very cabin the last time, she hadn’t been sure of Eric’s loyalty. Now she trusted him enough to protect me.

There was no true certainty in any loyalties. A good lesson to remember. It’s also a good reminder that this is a world I need to get far away from by the time Peanut gets here, even if that means abandoning the only friend I ever truly had.

The thought hurts, so I quickly change the topic. “How long do you think we can stay here safely?”

“The Russians didn’t find Mikhail here before and until now there was never a reason to leak the info to his family. Now though? Well, I don’t think we should stay for too long. A couple of nights, no more.”

That was probably the longest speech from Eric I’d ever heard, and the insinuation he was making didn’t escape me.

“You don’t trust Mikhail?”

“Not with your safety.”

“What does that mean?”

“That Mikhail might be obsessed with Gianna and he’d take a bullet for her, but I’m not sure that translates to you.”

I nod. “That’s fair.” I’m not one to argue about not trusting a Bratva enforcer. Or former enforcer. Whatever the case may be.

Eric frowns, and it feels like I’m slowly but surely getting a read on him. “What is it? There is more.”

“Yeah. They found the U.S. safe house much too quickly. I don’t like it.”

The cabin that had felt relatively safe until now suddenly feels anything but.

“Maybe we should go somewhere else.” I hesitate, but make the suggestion anyway. “Without telling Gianna.”

Anger flashes across Eric’s face so fast, that I’m not sure whether I imagined it. “I’m loyal to Gianna.”

Well, fuck me sideways. He’s acting as if I called him a traitor. Which confirms my most important assumption. If he has to choose between keeping me and our unborn child safe or staying loyal tola familia, it’s clear how he would choose: loyalty to the family above all else, and that family definitely isn’t Peanut and me.

I try logic, not that it’s a safe bet with someone like Eric. “You can tell Gianna we’re going somewhere else. Just keep the place secret.”

“I trust Gianna, and so should you. She’s sticking her neck out for you.”

I sigh. “I know that.”

Unfortunately, my neck already has a noose around it, so I’m more preoccupied with getting myself free than worrying about Gianna. My friend is a competent woman, who I trust to make sane decisions for herself. Which is what I need to do as well. Which is why I try convincing Eric again. “If you have concerns about Mikhail and about how they found me so fast in the safe house, what do you suggest we do now?”

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