Page 89 of Scarred (Russian Sinners 2)

“I can imagine.” My eyes darted all around the room. I noticed he said our bedroom, and although I didn’t mind it, I worried about sharing rooms on a long-term basis.

“I could turn part of this room into your own private studio so you can paint whenever you want, and you’d have the best lightning.”

His thoughtfulness didn’t surprise me. He always ensured I had all I needed and more.

“Thank you,” I murmured in a low voice. “Should we have separate bedrooms though?”

“Why?”

I turned to face him, the dominance of his presence making the room feel smaller, cozier.

“I know I kept you up last night,” I muttered. And I knew I gave him a scare on the plane. “On a long-term basis, that could get tiring to you.”

“I can handle it,” he wrapped his hand around my waist and pulled me closer. “And I intend to chase all your bad dreams away.”

Now, I couldn’t help but smile. That sounded so cheesy but at the same time sweet. I had no doubt if anyone could chase them away, it was him. “Okay then. If anyone can do it, it is certainly scary and sweet Nikolai.”

“That’s my girl,” he whispered softly against my lips, “We’ll start chasing them away tonight.”

His mouth pressed against mine and heat spread through my body at his promise. Returning the kiss, I pressed my body against his hard muscles. This man was everything I never knew I needed. The moment I saw him, his dangerous allure was what made me wary but who knew it was the same allure that would save me.

“Oliiiiiivia,” Tasha was calling out the top of her lungs. “Uncle,” she added in a loud voice. “Where are you?”

I gently pushed off his chest and chuckled. “You want to bet she is hungry?” I teased him.

“I’m hungry,” Tasha screamed through the house and we both laughed.

“You know her so well already,” Nikolai teased.

“C’mon,” I took his hand and pulled him along. “I’ll fix you both some dinner.”

I ended up fixing a light dinner, Middle Eastern chicken flatbreads with veggies, for Tasha and her uncle, Ilya, Andrey, and a few other guards.

“Where did you learn how to cook if you grew up with a cook in the house?” Andrey asked. “Anastasia didn’t know how to cook, and Dimitry helped her make pancakes.”

My head snapped to Andrey in surprise. “How do you know Anastasia can’t cook?”

“Andrey met Dimitry and I at Sergei’s place after we rescued Anastasia,” Nikolai explained. “When we were attacked there, we left for the cabin. First morning there, Dimitry took it upon himself to teach Anastasia how to make her first pancake.”

“You guys ate it?” I asked in wonderment. Anastasia was smart as a whip, brilliant even, but for whatever reason, she couldn’t keep her focus when cooking. Scarlett and I came to a point where we’d refuse to eat any food unless it was in a prepackaged store container.

“We sure did,” Andrey announced with a smile. “Nikolai ate the first pancake.”

“And you survived?”

Now they all laughed.

“It was actually good,” Nikolai answered with the smile.

I shook my head in disbelief. “And no food poisoning?”

“No,” Nikolai answered chuckling at my shocking expression. “She even took a picture of the event to ensure she had evidence of it. She said you wouldn’t believe it.”

I sat next to Nikolai with my own plate of food.

“You are right; I don’t believe it,” I told him, still shaking my head. “Anastasia is brilliantly smart, which I think causes focus issues when she is handling simple tasks. Her mind wanders off dealing with problem solving in her head. I often told her she should deal with cooking as a chemistry project.”

“I guess it is good she had a cook; otherwise she’d starve,” Andrey added jokingly, then asked again, “Where did you learn to cook?”

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