Page 145 of Porcelain Lies

“Displeased seems like an understatement,” I mutter, remembering Sofia’s venom.

“You have to understand — in our world, such a public rejection is…” Diana waves her hand, searching for words. “It’s beyond humiliating. Sofia’s entire family lost face. Her father…” She shivers slightly. “Well, let’s just say there will be consequences.”

The weight of what Aleksei did — what he apparently did because of me and this baby — settles heavy in my chest.

“I have to admit, I was pretty pissed too.” Diana looks at me. “I worked hard to broker that alliance.”

“Broker that alliance?” I raise an eyebrow. “You make it sound like a business partnership.”

Diana huffs a breath and flicks ash onto the grass alongside the pool paving. “It was.” She gives a wry smile. “I should have known that my brother would never go through with it. And… I was probably wrong for trying to force him into it.”

“Force him into it?” I give a light laugh. “It’s hard to imagine Aleksei being forced to do anything he doesn’t want to do.”

She grins at me. “You’re not wrong. Pretty stupid, huh?” She takes another hit, then tilts her head back and releases a stream of blue smoke into the night air. “It’s not too bad though. I think I prefer you.”

I make a choking sound. “What?”

“Yeah. Crazy, huh?” She gives an elegant shrug. “Sofia is a stuck-up bitch with too much botox. And those tits… Fuck! You could bounce a ball off them.”

I snort out a laugh. “Okay, yeah, they were out there.”

“Out there!” She starts to laugh. “They were out there alright.Wayout there!” Her laughter turns into a fit of giggles as she waves her hands in the air. “Her tits were out there! That’s so funny!”

I find myself laughing too, though I can’t figure out why.

“Like they’re in outer space,” she goes on. “Intergalactic tits.” She slaps her thigh. “One could be Mercury and the other could be Venus!”

“Um… Okay.” I chuckle. The woman’s clearly as high as a kite, but who am I to judge?

“Jesus, I could do with a plate ofvarenikiright now.” She exhales another plume of smoke. “You know what this is?”

“Vareniki? Like pelmeni but with potatoes?” My mind reels back to another time.

“Yes. Or mushrooms. Or cabbage…” Her brows pull together. “How do you know this?”

“Uh… I watch a lot of the Food Network,” I improvise.

She nods, as if satisfied. “I tried to teach that idiot Imelda to make them but she never could.” Her mouth turns down at the corners. “Glupaya suka.”

“What happened to her? Why did she leave so suddenly?” It’s something that’s been bugging me. The woman seemed to be a fixture, and then she was gone.

“Probably got a nice pair of cement shoes,”says Boyana.

“It’s not important.” Diana takes a quick puff, then coughs a little. “You just be sure to remember what I told you.”

“About not eating food unless you give it to me?” I cock my head.

She nods. “It is better this way.”

“But why?”

“Just trust me.” Smoke wafts from her lips. “You never know when someone else lets themselves be used like a weapon.”

“A weapon? What do you mean.”

“Nothing.” She shakes her head. “Nothing to concern yourself about. You just concentrate on growing that baby for my brother.”

I feel my cheeks flush a little and I’m grateful for the cover of darkness to hide them. “Sure,” I say.

---