Page 83 of Damaged Princess

"No," Keeley says, staring at her lap.

"Come here," Soren says, raising a finger and curling it for her to come to him. He continues murmuring something else, but Russian is not one of the languages I speak.

The bubbly omega looks downright terrified as she shuffles over to him.

"We've been over this," Soren says, lifting her into his lap. His heavily tattooed arms flex as he positions her. He runs an equally tattooed finger over her cheek. "You're never to fear me."

"Okay," she agrees.

I look down at Ana. Her eyes are wide, but she seems intrigued to see "The Slow Death" as they call him, can be soft when the occasion calls for it.

Vik and Cas come in, chatting amongst themselves, and freeze when they spot all of us congregating together.

"Would you mind helping Keeley pack up her things?" Soren asks Anastasia.

She blinks at him for several long seconds before she pushes herself up off the couch. "Come on. I'll help you pack."

I slap Anastasia's ass on the way by and she chuckles. They head up the stairs and out of sight. Once the door closes Soren says something to Vik in Russian. Vik replies and my jaw gets tight.

There are six very capable men in this room, but it's suddenly turned into a one-on-one between the cousins. They continue talking back and forth.

Steele catches my eyes. He doesn't look pleased either.

"Once again for the rest of the class?" I ask, stretching back and crossing my leg over the other to hide my frustration.

"They'll be heading out as soon as they're packed up," Vik says, scratching his jaw. "Soren has an oath to fulfill."

"Yeah, what are you going to do aboutyourboss, boss?" Steele asks, smirking like he's enjoying the frustration on Soren's face.

"That's none of your concern. Nor is that who my promise involves," Soren snaps. "Pack your things or stay behind. It's no matter to me." With that he promptly stomps out of the room.

"I suppose it's too much to ask that Dimitri Abramov died along the way?" Cas says in a hopeful tone. "If he's not with the others, then maybe they double crossed him?"

"You speak Russian?" Merrick says, frowning as he closes his computer.

"Not very well and only the basics, but their names were easy enough to pick out," Castro admits, looking to Vik for guidance or possibly an answer to his original question.

"If he's dead, Soren will tell us as soon as he finds them. He'll be sure to extract all pertinent information if it's feasible," Vik tells us. His eyes bounce between me and Cas. "I'd almost preferhe just shows so we can end this once and for all and be sure about it."

"Damn right," Steele says, clapping Vik on the back as he heads for the stairs. "Divide and conquer. Either way, those fuckers time is up."

"Agreed," I murmur.

The house is quieter than normal once Soren, Keeley, and the mercs head out. It's late the next night and the four of us are lounging in the living room.

Cas is on his laptop. Vik is asleep on the couch. Anastasia is lying with her feet on my lap and her head on Vik's chest.

The feelings of contentment that pulse through the bond are wild. It's an unreal feeling being able to differentiate not only Ana's emotions, but also Cas's and Vik's. The television echoes around the space, but it's nice having the extra room. We're going to need a house, especially since I'd like for us to have a couple of kids at some point. Two or three seems like a good number.

My stomach growls even though we had dinner two hours ago. I haven't worked out since we've been here, and if I'm not careful my eating habits will eventually catch up. I snicker to myself. I'm not about to let that happen.

"I'm going to grab some leftovers," I tell Anastasia, lifting her feet out of my lap.

"You're a bottomless pit," Cas says, chuckling.

"He is," Ana agrees, snuggling deeper into Vik's chest.

"I'm not going to deny it." I laugh. "Do either of you want anything?"

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