Page 19 of Born into Chaos

“My hands are full and sticky,” I tell him, knowing this is just adding to the toddler image I have of myself right now, but damn it, Lucia’s doughnuts are the best, and it’s not like I get them every day.

He grunts, his pissed-off one, and leans over, tugging on my seat belt and pulling it across my body before snapping it into place.

“You need to eat some real food,” he tells me again. “A muffin and two doughnuts is not going to cut it.”

I finish chewing the bite I just took while he nods to Dominic’s guards and pulls out onto the street.

“How do you know I ate two doughnuts?”

He briefly glances over at me. “It’s my job to watch you, Sveta.”

“You have no respect for personal boundaries. Were you also eavesdropping?” I ask, hoping like hell he didn’t hear us talking about him.

“No, I wasn’t. Despite what you might think, I give you as much space as I can while also ensuring your safety.”

When we get further into the city, he asks, “Do you still want to go to the mall?”

It takes me a second to remember that I’d threatened another trip when I was mad and jealous about him going out, but now it’s the last thing I want to do.

“No, I just want to go home.”

“Want to swing by your favorite restaurant and grab something?”

I shove the last of the doughnut into my mouth and mumble, “Mm-mm.”

He sighs but doesn’t fight me on it. We spend the rest of the drive in silence. Usually I’d put on my holiday playlist, but not even the idea of annoying him with Christmas cheer has any appeal right now.

Neither one of us breaks the silence until we’re back in the parking garage and stepping onto the private elevator.

He presses the button and asks, “Going anywhere else today?”

I think about making him wait around in the penthouse on the off chance that I might decide to go somewhere, but I’m not so sure my heart can take it today. I like having him near me. Even if I can’t have him in the way that I want, I still feel better when he’s close to me, but today is too hard. After knowing he went out last night and then when I’d accidentally let him see how badly I want him in the car and the harsh way he told me to never look at him like that again—yeah, I think I’m ready to call it a day.

“No,” I tell him. “I’m not going anywhere. You can leave, Vitya.”

He looks over at me, but I keep looking straight ahead at my reflection in the elevator doors.

“Is there any way you’re going to change your mind and want to go somewhere tonight?”

I turn my head and meet his gaze. “Wanting to go out again tonight?”

“Yes,” he says, and I quickly look away so he can’t see how badly he’s hurt me.

“Whatever,” I mumble. “Do whatever the fuck you want. I’m staying in.”

“Sveta,” he starts to say, but the doors start to open, and I cut him off.

“I promise I’m not leaving, Vitya, so you can relax. Go out and have your fun.”

I walk into the apartment, leaving him in the elevator and refusing to turn around to take one last look. I hear the doors shut behind me, and I’m equal parts hurt and pissed. I hate how attached I’ve become to him. I’m usually a pretty strong woman. I’ve got a good head on my shoulders, and I rarely get overly emotional, but that man has me in knots, and I hate it.

I’m all set to have a lousy rest of my day and night when I walk into the kitchen and see my brother. Valentin and I are twins, and I can’t imagine my life without him. We’ve always been close, and he takes one look at me and sighs before grabbing his phone. Wrapping an arm around me, I listen to him place a large order of Chinese food, making sure to get all my favorites, plus an extra order of spring rolls, before pocketing his phone again.

“Mom and Dad are at Uncle Danil’s. They won’t be back until later, so you and I are going to eat our weight in Chinese food and binge watch ‘80s movies.”

I smile up at him. We may be twins, but we’re different in so many ways. I got our mom’s lighter brown hair, and his is darker like our dad’s, and he ended up with blue eyes like our mom’s, while mine are the same whiskey-brown as our dad’s. It’s also a well-known fact thatI’m the louder of the two. But even with all our differences, Val just gets me. He took one look at me and knew I needed comfort food and a night of John Hughes.

“You’re my favorite person in the whole wide world, Val,” I tell him, making him laugh. I first said that to him when we were six, and he’d helped me sneak into the kitchen one night for chocolate milk. I said it to make him laugh, but I’m serious. Family is everything, and my brother will always be my best friend.

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