Page 12 of Savage Boss

“I am sorry, moya zhena.”

She opened her eyes and looked up at him, humour lighting her beautiful amber eyes. “You don’t have to be sorry. Just lock the door next time so they can’t get in.”

He smiled briefly, then his face fell into grim lines. “It’s not our friends I am sorry for. That one’s on you. I knew none of those people before you came crashing into my life.” He smoothed the hair off her forehead. “No, my love, I am sorry that I allowed this to happen.”

He had to stop speaking. His throat was swelling with emotion as he imagined losing Jane and the baby. This incident and the day Jane was shot in the back alley of his warehouse were the two most frightening moments of his life.

She moved her hand until she was clutching his. “Don’t be sorry, Vlad,” her voice hitched over his name as she battled her own emotions. “I was to blame. Instead of talking to you, maybe finding a compromise that we could both be happy with, I… I forced the situation. I didn’t once think about the baby when I jammed that door.” She looked stricken and then started crying. “If I can’t keep the baby in mind now, how am I ever going to remember when it’s outside my body? What if I leave it in a corner somewhere? I’m going to be a terrible mother!”

Vlad had to hold in his laughter as he gathered Jane against his chest, running his hand over her hair while she cried. He was pretty sure hormones were partially to blame for her breakdown, but he still didn’t like it. Seeing Jane cry made him want to rip out his own heart and hand it over to her just to stop the tears.

When she calmed down a little, he tilted her back in his arms so he could see her face. “You will be the best of mothers, moya Jane.”

“How do you know?” she whispered.

“Because of the way you love me,” he told her, gently brushing away the hair stuck to her wet cheek. “Our child is part of you and part of me; how can you not love such a creature? You are fiercely protective and loyal. You are creative and unorthodox. You will love this baby more than you love your taser, and we know how much you love tasering suspects.”

“And Boris,” she said with a watery grin.

Vlad chuckled. “Yes, you definitely enjoyed tasering Boris.”

“Twice,” she clarified.

They both laughed. When Vlad had been wooing Jane from a distance, he’d sent his second-in-command to keep an eye on her and protect her. Instead, she’d tasered Boris twice, and then sold him back to Vlad for a steep sum of money. Vlad had been so impressed with her resourcefulness he hadn’t even been angry.

“This is something we can’t fail at,” Vlad whispered, pressing his forehead against hers. “Trust me.”

He kissed her, his lips lingering over hers as their breaths mingled together and they centered themselves once more. It had been a turbulent few weeks, but Vlad was confident they would come out stronger than ever.

“Did I hear my name?”

Jane’s eyes widened as Vlad pulled away from her and twisted on the bed, prepared to cut down the person interrupting their moment. Jane’s loud gasp and exclamation said it all. Vlad sat in stunned silence as his best friend strode into the room.

“Boris!” Jane scooted up the bed and held her arms out. “What are you doing here?”

He ducked his head beneath the hospital door frame and strode to the bed, enveloping Jane in such a massive hug that Vlad had to clear his throat and say, “Careful, brother, she is delicate.”

“This one, delicate? What did she do, get a personality transplant?” Boris snorted, but he released Jane and eased her back onto the bed.

She slapped his arm but laughed at his joke. Jane was about as delicate as the halftime show at the Superbowl.

Boris turned to Vlad and wrapped his arms around his shoulders, lifting him right off the bed. Vlad grunted in discomfort, but allowed the move, grinning into Boris’ shoulder. He would never admit it out loud, but seeing Boris at such a moment, in such time of uncertainty made him feel stronger, reminded him of who he was.

“Did you fly in from Russia?” Jane asked incredulously as Boris set Vlad back on his feet and straightened his shirt, which had gotten twisted during his bear hug.

“Da,” Boris said, collapsing into the nearest guest chair. It creaked ominously but continued to valiantly stand upright despite enduring Boris’ solid weight. “I purchased a private jet. It makes international movement easier. Now, I am here to help. You tell me what needs doing and I will do it.”

Vlad felt a weight lift from his shoulders as his best friend reaffirmed his loyalty. He’d missed his giant enforcer more than he knew after Boris moved back to Russia to take over his inheritance and step into his place within the Bratva as head of the Grekov family.

“Spasibo, brother.” It was all Vlad could manage at the moment, but he could tell Boris knew what was in his heart. This was why they were brothers. They didn’t need words between them.

“Where’s Laney?” Jane looked past Boris as though Laney might be hovering somewhere behind him. It wasn’t a far stretch since Boris was over a foot taller than his wife and had about 200 pounds on her.

“Went to King’s penthouse,” he grunted, reaching for the green Jell-O container Jane received with her supper. “Thought she better say hello to Claudia and settle Jin at the penthouse.”

“You brought Jin?” Jane asked enthusiastically.

She’d bonded with Laney’s daughter when they attended Boris and Laney’s wedding. Vlad wasn’t surprised; the child was intelligent, precocious and had an appetite for mischief that nearly matched Jane’s.

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