Page 26 of Bratva's Vow
I didn’t say anything. I was still turning something over in my head. Eventually, I took her hand and laced my fingers through hers.
“Jess… do you think the way Maxim treats me is weird?”
She turned to me, brows furrowed. “What do you mean?”
I bit my lip. “He’s just… always so overprotective. Like, watching me constantly. The bodyguards. The way he flips if I don’t answer my phone right away or if I leave the house without telling him. I don’t know. Sometimes I feel like he doesn’t trust me.”
Jess stared at me for a beat, then flicked her fingers against my forehead. Not hard, but enough to make me blink.
“Ow.”
“Wren, that man loves you. And he clearly doesn’t want to lose you. So yeah, maybe he’s a little intense. Maybe he’s a little jealous and possessive. So what?”
I stared at her. “So what? That’s not healthy.”
“Says who? Look, healthy is what works for you two. You seem happy. He treats you like you hung the moon. You’re not scared of him. He listens to you, even when you stand up to him.”
I exhaled slowly. “It feels… like too much sometimes. Like I’m under a microscope.”
Jess smirked. “And yet when he touches you, you practically melt.”
I rolled my eyes. “I do not.”
“You absolutely do. You go boneless like a Victorian maiden in a corset commercial.”
Despite myself, I laughed. “He is hot, though, isn’t he?”
“Devastatingly.” Jess got to her feet. “So come on. Let’s pack all your shit and bring you home to your man.”
In fifteen minutes, we were back in the car and heading home. To Maxim’s place. I sent him a message that I was on my way and a picture of myself in the SUV for proof. He messaged me back that I was being cheeky and he would have a field day with my ass later. Smiling, I leaned my head back against the seat and closed my eyes.
I cracked one eye open and watched Nik. His face was blank as usual, always scanning, always aware. Jess sat beside him in the front, legs on the dashboard like she owned the whole damn car.
“Babe, as much as I love those long legs, that’s not actually safe.” Nik patted her thighs. “Get them down, please.”
“You’re no fun.” Although she pouted, she lowered her legs.
“Good girl.”
My mouth went dry, and the statement wasn’t even directed at me. I swallowed, and my stomach grumbled, reminding me it’d been a hot minute since I had breakfast.
“I’m starving,” I muttered. “Can we do a drive-thru?”
Nik glanced at me through the mirror. “We really shouldn’t stop. Maxim is expecting us home at a certain time.”
“Just tell him there was a lot of traffic on the road.”
“Trust me, he’d know.”
I sighed, peering through the rear glass. “Oh, right. I forgot he has people stalking me. So which one of those cars is it this time?”
“Don’t be silly.” Jess reached back to pinch my knee. “I’llorder food from my phone. If I time it right, it’ll get to the house around the same time we do.”
“Seems like a lot of hassle.” I frowned. “Why not use a drive-thru? We’re already on the road.”
“Nik’s been on duty for more than sixteen hours. We really should be getting to his apartment so he can rest.”
“All right, then.”
