Page 107 of Viparious

Blinking at me like a freak, he doesn’t move.

The office door opens, and he curls his arm around me fully as he stares at his brother. All of them stare behind me at whoever has walked out but the dress shoes show it’s Vlad. I half expect there to be an alien with him. I look over my shoulder, but it’s just Vlad holding my grumpy baby girl as she scowls at everyone with her eyes half open. A very handsome in his suit Vlad, holding a little baby in a ruffled romper and matching hat. She’s so adorable and my ovaries melt at the sight of her cuddled against his big strong biceps.I’m so fucked, and I already know he’s winning yet another game.

Being a jackass, Tali extends his voice, “Looks like the parents aren’t fighting anymore.”

My head snaps to him with a glare for ruining my good mood with his stupid need to keep calling us his parents. He forces an innocent look on his face and tries to hide his smirk.

“What? I’m an orphan now, this is how I’m dealing with my grief.”

My smile comes back at the reminder the cunts are dead, it couldn’t have happened to more deserving people, and I let him know as heat covers my back.

“I mean this from the bottom of my heart, congratulations.”

There’s no sarcasm in my tone, I’m being genuine, but they laugh, and Val holds up an imaginary drink in salute.

Taking Verena from Vlad’s arms before Tali can steal her, I kiss her cheeks, inhaling her baby smell. It’s mixed with cardamom and sandalwood creating the best scent in existence. She loses her scowl as I noisily kiss her cheek and her lips lift at one side. Warmth moves across my back to wrap around my hip and Vlad gently pulls me into his side. It causes our audience to comment as they go in age order.

“I thought she was going to be screaming.” Val hands off to Tali who shrugs. “Maybe she has some kind of stockhold syndrome.” Dani corrects him, “Stockholmsyndrome.” And Viktor takes up the last comment, being cute.

“Does this mean you’re not going to move again?”

Vlad doesn’t answer as all eyes come to me. I wink at him before dropping my voice to a stage whisper, “It’s for the horses, rypka.”

His lips pinch in at the side as he hides his laugh and steals whatever food Tali is too frozen to guard anymore. Vlad gently turns me and guides us out of the house without removing his hand from my lower back. Dima only has to look at Verena and she copies his upside-down lips. He falls in step with us, and I keep my voice low as I blame him.

“You’re being a bad stepdad and corrupting her.”

Vlad hides his laugh at my side as Dima pauses. He shakes his head and takes Verena from me so I can slide in first. He hands me my baby, so I can get her buckled in with Vlad blocking anyone from seeing into the car with his big body.

“Don’t you start with the jokes, or I’ll tell him your secret,” Dima says and nods towards Vlad.

I don’t have a secret. The bastard did it purposefully and Vlad gets larger, asking his junior, “What secret?”

He’s an asshole and Ana pokes her around their bodies and rage. I smile at her and ask nicely, “Can you kick Dima’s ass, please?”

She doesn’t even need to know why and punches him in the ribs. I know it’s about to turn into a full-out brawl when he swipes her ankle out and she narrowly misses smacking her head off the corner of the door. Vlad decides to be a grown-up, so he grabs her by the back of her t-shirt and separates them. She’s only a few years younger than me but she has childish mannerisms and scowls up at him while attempting to continue hitting Dima.

“Calm down, pipsqueak, and get in the other car. You can kill each other when you’re not needed to guard my wife.”

Dima looks ready to kill her and I sit taller, knowing Vlad has to agree with me or I’ll make his life hell.

“Stop picking on her, she’s a quarter of your size.”

His eyes widen and he splutters as she stalks away and slams the car door behind us.

“She’s a hellion who needs sedating for the rest of the population to be safe.”

That’s a dramatic description for someone who is barely over five foot and as thin as Ana. Vlad closes the door in my face, cutting the conversation short and his muffled voice comes through the closed window.

“What secret doyouknow about my wife? Andwhy?”

I’m definitely getting Ana to kick his ass now.

They move further away, and I fix Verena’s hat as I talk to her.

“I hope you weren’t attached to your Uncle Dima. He seems to forget that your papa is a bit crazy.”

The driver’s door opens, and Vlad loses all of his anger as he looks at us in the back seat. There’s something in his hand and I tilt my head, looking between the seats to see him attach a mirror to the dash. There’s also one on the back window and I keep tilting my head to see what he can. The cute devil has set mirrors up so he can see her face as he drives.

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