Page 74 of Born into Blood

“Yeah.”

“Well, his dad is my Uncle Danil, and he’s been stealing money for the family since he and my dad were teenagers.” Luka looks up at Dominic’s large house and lets out a soft laugh. “I’m pretty sure Dominic has just always been wealthy. I know it can be intimidating, but they’re not a bunch of stuck-up, country-club assholes. They know why they have money and how they got it. No one is putting on airs here.”

His thumb runs along my cheek.

“And, sweetheart, don’t forget you’re rich now, too.” He gives me a sexy wink that sends a flutter through my chest. “What’s mine is yours, baby.”

I know he’s being serious, but I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that his money is now my money. Maybe I’ll feel differently once we’re married, but for now, I’m still just me—the waitress who very recently had a bank account balance that always seemed to hover around five hundred dollars.

Even though I’m still terrified, I follow Luka when he opens my door and takes my hand in his, leading me around to the back of the house where we can hear a loud yell and then water splashing.

“I can’t believe you pushed me in!” A woman’s voice yells, but there’s no anger in it. She’s too busy laughing to be pissed, and as soon as we come around the corner, I see a young woman stepping out of the pool, her shorts and T-shirt soaked.

“What?” A guy who looks to be about our age laughs and holds up his hands. “I didn’t push. It was an accidental bump.”

The woman laughs and points at another man who’s standing further away. He’s in all black from the boots he’s wearing to the T-shirt that’s stretched tight across a very muscular chest. It blends with the dark tattoos on his arms and neck. He’s not laughing and joining in on the fun, but he is staring at the drenched woman with an intensity that has me curious about their relationship.

“Where the fuck were you on that one, bodyguard?” she asks, unknowingly appeasing my curiosity about their relationship.

He doesn’t answer, just crosses his arms over his chest and scratches at the dark stubble on his jaw. She mutters something in Russian and then finally notices Luka and me standing off to the side. A huge smile spreads across her face, and I’m stunned that anyone can look so damn beautiful right after being pushed into a pool.

“You must be Lara,” she says, reaching out to shake my hand. “I’d give you a hug, but my asshole brother just shoved me in the pool like an animal.”

“Hey,” her brother says, giving me a smile. “She needed to cool off.” He turns his eyes to Luka. “You know how she gets.”

Luka laughs and shakes his head. “I’m not getting involved in this one.” Keeping his arm wrapped around me, he says, “Lara these are two of my cousins, Val and Sveta. Their dad is my Uncle Vitaly.”

“Oh,” I say, immediately seeing the family resemblance and realizing they must be twins. “I briefly met your dad at the club.”

Before they can say anything, it’s like the floodgates open and a large group of people come pouring out of the French doors behind us. I step in closer to Luka, who immediately tightens his grip on me. I scan the crowd, and as my eyes dart from one muscled, tattooed guy to the next, I seriously consider just making a run for it.

I swear Luka can read my mind because he kisses the top of my head and whispers, “Easy, baby, don’t run away just yet.”

A man stops in front of me, and when I see a familiar set of green eyes staring down at me, I know it must be Luka’s dad. I don’t know what gene jackpot all these people hit, but I’ve never felt so out of place in my life, especially when I look over and see a group of women walking closer—each of them stunning in their own way. One of the women walks over with a huge smile on her face, and when Luka’s dad immediately pulls her against him in the same possessive grip his son currently has me in, she laughs and breaks free just long enough to give me a hug.

“We’re so happy to meet you, Lara. I’m Emily, and this is Roman. We’re Luka’s parents.” She scans the area and points out a teenaged boy who’s walking out of the house with a bag of chips. “And that’s our younger son Damien.”

“Hey, Lara,” he hollers out to me before popping a chip in his mouth.

I smile and give a wave before turning back to his parents. “It’s nice to meet you. Thanks for inviting me today.”

“Of course,” Roman says, and even though I know he helps run one of the most dangerous Bratva’s in the country, he doesn’t make me feel scared. “I can tell by the way my son is looking at you that you’ll have our last name soon enough.”

“Roman,” Emily says, laughing and then shooting me a quick look to see if I’m freaking out about what he’s said. She relaxes when she sees I’m not running for the hills.

Luka just laughs and cups my face before kissing my forehead. I swear his mom gets teary-eyed at the sight of it.

“Don’t scare her away, Roman.”

I turn and smile at the sound of Vitaly’s voice. He’s grinning at us and has a drink in one hand and his other arm is wrapped around a beautiful woman with honey-blonde hair. They look so much like their kids that it’s impossible to not peg them as Val and Svetlana’s parents.

Vitaly points his glass at us and smiles even bigger. “I knew I picked up on a vibe that night.” He looks down at his wife. “What did I tell you, ptichka? I’m never wrong about sexual vibes.”

“Jesus,” Roman groans, looking over at his brother. “Can we at least pretend to be normal for her first family supper?”

“Yeah, let’s save the crazy for until after they’re married and she’s stuck with us.”

I look over at the man who’s just spoken, taking in the pierced brow and lip, and when he gives me a big smile, I gladly return it. He may look fierce, but I can see the love in his light blue eyes when he looks at Luka.

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