Page 102 of Born into Darkness

They walk into the kitchen while I give Talia a kiss and then go to meet them. “Another cake?” I ask, unable to hide my laugh.

My Uncle Vitaly grins and sets it on the counter. “It’s polite to bring a gift. You’re welcome, you ungrateful assholes.”

My Uncle Lev opens the box and laughs. “Did you fucking steal this from some kid?”

We all lean over to take a look. It’s a pink cake with decorative balloons lining the edges, and in pink frosting is writtenHappy 10th Birthday, Stephanie!

“Jesus Christ,” my dad groans. “That’s a new low even for you.”

My Uncle Vitaly shrugs off their comments and says, “They’re going to make her a new one. I didn’t just swipe it and leave Stephanie hanging. She’ll have an amazing tenth birthday, and I even had them throw in a few pints of extra ice cream and waffle cones. I’m not a complete ass.”

“Just a partial one,” my dad says with a laugh, and when I join in, my uncle points the knife that he’s about to cut the cake with at me and raises a brow.

“Be happy I didn’t do what I wanted to do,” he warns.

“Do I even want to know?” I ask.

“No, you don’t,” my dad says, and then warns his brother, “Talia’s in the dining room with her family.”

My uncle surprises the hell out of me by actually lowering his voice, but what comes out of his mouth doesn’t surprise me at all. “I wanted to have Adele, she’s my cake decorator,” he says like this is vital information we should all be aware of, “writeCongratulations on becoming a man, Max!I was going to have her add little cherries all around the border for decoration. It was going to be beautiful, but your dad wouldn’t let me,” he says, making no attempt to hide the pouty tone.

I turn to my dad and say with absolute sincerity, “Thank you for stopping that.”

“Well, if Adele can’t get the new cake done in time and Stephanie has a shit birthday, it’s all your fault,” my Uncle Vitaly mutters.

“I’m willing to take that risk,” I say, confident Stephanie will get over it. Turning to my Uncle Lev, I ask, “How’s Nat and Enzo doing?”

My uncle beams at the mention of his daughter and grandson, and then immediately pulls his phone out and shows me all the photos she sent him. Nat has a huge smile on her face in every one of them, and Enzo is just as cute as the last time I saw him. Dominic looks so damn proud of his family, and I can’t wait until it’s my turn.

“He’s really beautiful,” I tell my uncle who quickly nods in agreement.

“He is. Look at this one.” He shows me a photo of Isabella holding her baby brother with the help of Dominic. Her smile is as big as her parents’, and she’s wearing a pink T-shirt that says,I’m a Big Sister!

“I’m glad she’s not feeling jealous,” I say, smiling at the image.

“No, she’s being properly spoiled and loving every second of it,” he says with a laugh while pocketing his phone.

My cousins pile into the kitchen, and I swear they’re all grinning at me. Well, all of them except Sasha. He’s too busy taking the plate of cake our uncle offers him.

“Have a good night?” Luka asks.

“I did,” I say, trying to sound like I don’t know what in the hell they’re talking about, grateful they missed the whole cherry popping celebratory cake conversation.

Before they can tease me any more, Talia peeks her head around the corner. She looks hesitant to walk in, but as soon as she sees me, she smiles and walks over to join me. When she’s by my side, I pull her closer and kiss her.

“Want some cake?” my Uncle Vitaly asks her.

“Maybe later. I’m stuffed from my sandwich,” she says with a laugh.

My uncle looks at me and shakes his head. “Sandwiches? You ate without me?”

“We did,” I admit, ignoring his wounded look, “but we ordered extra and there are plenty of leftovers. They’re in the fridge. I was going to tell you, but you immediately started cutting cake and I got distracted.”

“Perfect,” my uncle says. “I’m just gonna have a little cake appetizer, and then I’ll have some lunch.”

“Little?” my Uncle Matvey says, eyeing the slab on his brother’s plate.

“It’s rude to judge,” my Uncle Vitaly says, popping a huge bite in his mouth.

---