Page 93 of Always Yours

“For sure. You actually remind me of her,” he says, laughing. “I didn’t realize it until right now. My grandma doesn’t take anyone’s shit, and she’s super witty like you.”

“Is it your mom’s or your dad’s mom?”

“Dad’s. My mom’s parents actually live in town, but I don’t see them often. They were mad my dad took my mom to Russia.”

“Really? Why?”

“I honestly don’t know. I was young when we went, and Mom always just said they didn’t want to accept it.”

“Wow,” I say, thinking how unfortunate that is. “Maybe now that she’s home, she can try to have a relationship?”

He shrugs. “Maybe. I haven’t really spoken to her about it. My grandma and grandpa in Russia still call me weekly and want to be in my life, so that’s who I put my energy into.”

I smile. “I appreciate that.”

He sends me a wink before taking my hand in his and kissing the spot between my thumb and forefinger. I slide my thumb along the back of his hand once he places it on his thigh. I watch him for a moment, fully expecting him to disappear, because surely I can’t be this happy.

“Dimitri?”

“Yes, Janie,” he answers, turning onto 5th Street.

“Are we together?”

I watch as this beautiful, stunning smile takes over his face. His dimples are deep, and his eyes brighten as he throws me a quick look. “I want to be.”

I knew the answer, but my stomach still goes crazy with butterflies. “So, I’m your girlfriend.”

He scoffs. “Janie, you’re more than that.”

“I am?”

“Yeah, but I don’t have a word for it. You’re just special.”

I feel the same. Boyfriend/girlfriend seems so trivial after what we’ve experienced together. “What are we going to do about my peepaw and Shelli, Elli, and your parents?”

That has his jaw tensing up. “I don’t know. I feel like that’s a Monday problem.”

That makes me smile. “We can’t go into the arena like this, though,” I say, holding up our hands. “Or attacking each other at every turn.”

“I think that’s an unfair assumption. Who will stop us?”

I smirk at that. “Dimitri.”

“Yeah, I know,” he says softly. “It’s hard because I know we should keep it professional when we’re at the rink, like we have—”

“But you haven’t,” I tell him, and he laughs. “You’re highly inappropriate with me, and I don’t know, now that I’ve had a taste of you, if I can resist.”

His dimples deepen as he gives me a heated look. “Is that right?”

“Dimitri, focus,” I demand, and he keeps grinning as he turns down another road.

“Yes, Superior Janie.”

I roll my eyes at him, fully fed up with him but also loving every second.

“So, you want me to actually treat you as my superior?”

“That’s not what I’m suggesting, but I don’t think we should sit together. I don’t want to give people a reason to talk.”

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