Page 68 of Surrogate for the Bratva
It also brought me to April. And my son.
And I couldn’t be angry about that.
The only thing I could do was move forward with my life and never let another Dmitry happen. Period.
“Are you okay?” Maxim posed the question in his usual, quiet way when I stepped out of the shed and headed back to the mansion.
I nodded but I considered his question carefully. “I fucking hate that April had to go through what she did. You remember your first kill?” That was the thing that bothered me, almost more than the trauma of being kidnapped and having a gun aimed at her.
He nodded. “Never forget it, but I was eager to get it over with.”
“Exactly. We grew up knowing this life was in our future and we were excited about it, ready to prove ourselves to our fathers. April didn’t sign up for this.”
“She knows her way around a gun.” I didn’t have to look up to see the smile in his voice.
I smiled at his words and told him about my first meeting with April. “I was sure Dmitry or one of his men had followed me when the fucking shots rang out. Instead she was shooting bottles and cans to cure her anger.” We shared a laugh. “Voronov is dead and that’s a good thing. I don’t feel bad about it, especially after what he did to April and tried to do with my baby. He’s exactly where he belongs, burning in hell.”
“Speaking of,” Maxim began.
I nodded. “Get rid of everything but that ugly fucking tiepin and his pinky finger. That should be enough to ease the mind of his Bratva.” With Dmitry out of the way I was hopeful that we could have a more civil relationship.
“You think it’s possible to coexist?”
I nodded as we stopped just outside the house and stripped out of our clothes. “If not, we’ll have our work cut out for us, won’t we?” I gripped Maxim’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “For now, I have more important negotiations to handle.”
He smiled. “Good luck.”
We parted ways and I rushed upstairs where I rushed through a hot shower because I was eager to get things settled with April. Now that I was sure about everything and nothing else stood in our way, it was time to lay it all out for her.
I just hoped she was receptive.
I knocked lightly on her door and prepared myself for what I had to do next, except there was no time to prepare because the door flew open and April stood there with wet hair and wide eyes. “April.”
“Igor.” She stepped forward and pulled me close, wrapping her arms around me. “You’re okay.”
I smiled at the relief in her voice. “Did you doubt me?”
“Of course not,” she sighed and squeezed me once more before she stepped back. “It’s just, well I thought it would be quicker.”
“I needed to take my time with Dmitry.”
Her eyes widened in shock and then she nodded. “Is he gone?”
I nodded once. “He is not someone we have to worry about anymore.”
Her hands went to my face and her eyes searched mine. “Are you okay?”
My smile came easily. “Me? I’m perfect. Almost.”
April took a step back and her smile dimmed as her hands slowly slipped from my face. “Right. We need to talk.”
I hated the distance between us, but it was up to me to bridge that divide. “We do.” I took her hand and led her into the sitting room. “There’s a lot of things we never talked about.”
“Okay.” She drew the word out into four syllables, her nerves evident in the way she fidgeted with the fabric of her nightgown.
“My original plan was to ask you to stay on after the contract period to look after the child. Maria and I had an agreement that she would be the caretaker but when she was killed, I needed a new arrangement.”
Her eyes widened at first before the filled with tears she refused to let fall. “I can’t do that.”
