Page 83 of Paved in Fire

Matvey pulls on a pair of jeans and tosses me a pair of panties. “Tell him we’ll be right behind him.”

Danil walks off while I run to the bathroom to brush my teeth and pee. My reflection makes me wish I had time for a shower, but I can’t bring myself to take the time to do it. I want to be there for my brother, so I run a brush through my hair and pull it into a quick ponytail right as Matvey walks in, looking way too damn gorgeous for just having woken up after a night of sex and a couple of hours of sleep.

“So not fair,” I grumble, pulling on a pair of jeans.

He gives me a wink and grabs his toothbrush, running his dark eyes over me as I put on a bra and go in search of a shirt. I pull on a long-sleeve tee and grab a hoodie because it’s really fucking cold outside. I’ve just put it on when Matvey comes out of the bathroom. He pulls me in for a hug, giving me a huge smile.

“Ready to meet your nephew,malishka?”

I beam up at him as it fully hits me that we’re going to be meeting our nephew today. My brother’s going to be a daddy, and soon I’m going to be holding his son. I laugh when Matvey picks me up, cupping my ass in his large hands when I wrap my arms and legs around him. With our heads only inches apart, he searches my face.

“You feel okay?”

I know he’s asking about more than just whether or not I’ve woken up with an ache between my legs. I have. He’s huge and I’m sore, but it’s the good kind of sore, the kind of ache that feels nice. It reminds me of what we shared, and I can’t help but smile when I think about it.

“I feel great,” I tell him, clasping my hands behind his neck and kissing him again. “I’m a little sore, but you’re huge, Matvey, so I was expecting that.”

His adorable smile has me laughing again. I rest my forehead against his and play with the hair at the nape of his neck.

“I’m fine,” I whisper, knowing he’s not going to be satisfieduntil he hears it. “I promise. Last night was perfect, and I’ve never been happier.”

“It was perfect.” He kisses me slowly, savoring the moment. “And I’ve never been happier either.” He gives my ass a soft smack. “Let’s go meet our nephew, baby.”

I give him one more kiss before he sets me down. Finn’s waiting with his head cocked, wondering what the hell all the excitement is about. I give him a good pet and then grab his working vest so he’ll be able to stay with me.

“I’ll take him out on the rooftop before we go.” Matvey grabs his leash before the three of us head up the stairs.

“Can you believe it?” Vitaly’s beaming face is the first thing we see when we walk into the kitchen. “You should’ve seen Roman’s face when he scurried her through the apartment.” Vitaly laughs. “I’ve never seen him look so pale.”

“Keep laughing,” Danil tells him while Matvey walks past to let Finn out. “I’ll be sure and get a photo of your face when Katya goes into labor. Let’s see how calm you look when she’s bent over with contractions and looking like she’s about to pass out.”

Vitaly’s smug grin falls. “Yeah, I’m gonna stop making fun of him.”

Danil laughs. “Look at you making wise decisions.” He turns to me and smiles. “Did you ever think you’d see the day?”

I laugh and shake my head. “Never.”

Vitaly tries to look offended and fails. When Matvey comes back in with Finn, I see the smug grin appear again. He looks at Matvey and elbows Danil, giving a soft laugh. “Does Matvey appear older to you today?”

“Don’t start,” Matvey warns him while I look between them, trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

“He does,” Danil muses, smiling just as big. “It’s like our little brother just grew up over night and became a man.”

Matvey groans while they laugh and my face turns red. “Oh my god,” I groan, shaking my head at them. “Just stop.”

“I don’t think I can,” Vitaly says, “but you are in luck becauseEmily went into labor, and that’s going to be a big distraction.” He looks at me and feigns annoyance. “The girl never could stay in the background, always has to be the center of attention and all that. Of all the days to go into labor, she has to do it the morning after Matvey loses his?—”

“Oh no, did you lose something?”

We all turn to see Katya standing in the hall with Simona. They’re carrying a few bags and Katya’s holding a pillow and blanket, waiting for an answer.

“Um, yeah,” Vitaly says, trying to backtrack before Matvey kills him but also unable to lie to his wife, “but it’s okay.” He can’t help but give another laugh. “He was more than ready to get rid of it.”

“You are such a jackass,” Matvey mutters, but I can tell he’s not really mad. He wraps an arm around me and kisses the top of my head while Danil runs over to get the bags they’re carrying, clearly not pleased that either one of them attempted to carry anything at all, even if it wasn’t heavy.

“Lev and Jolene went with them?” I walk over to pour some coffee into a couple of to-go mugs. Matvey takes the one I offer him, giving me a grateful smile before taking a big drink. We’re both exhausted, but the wink he gives me over the rim of his mug makes it clear he’s not complaining.

“Yeah, Lev drove them. Jolene just texted and said they’re at the hospital and Roman’s already managed to scare several people. Apparently, they didn’t get Emily into a room as quickly as he’d like.” Danil laughs and puts his phone away. “Everyone ready?”

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