Page 17 of The Tsar's Obsession
The car slowed to a roll as I looked for the address and–
There she was, standing outside the restaurant with someone, her smile radiant, the glow of her phone lighting up her beautiful face as she laughed with her friend. I idled on the street, pulling into a no parking zone.
Mia: Driving? Shouldn’t you be in pajamas and in bed right now?
I fired off another message while I observed her from the darkness of my car.
Kirill: You want me to text you from my bed?
She read the text right away, her smile widening and my blood pumping through me faster. She bit her finger and swayed as she typed with one hand.
Mia:That was almost a flirty text, K.
Enough. I stepped out of the car, striding toward them, and Mia caught sight of me almost immediately, her jaw dropping. Adorable. She was fucking adorable.
“K– Kirill? What the hell are you doing here?” She almost whispered, her eyes wide with shock. Her friend noticed me too and smiled knowingly, as if realizing who I was.
“Hi! I’m Viv.” Her hand was already outstretched. “Nice to meet you. Do you usually pick up your realtors in the middle of the night?”
“Never. But I’m about to put an offer on a place, and I can’t have her disappear on me. She should get home safe.” Oh fuck, Mia was enthralled, just the way I wanted. Viv blended in with the background; it was just me and Mia, her eyes looking me over once she clued in that she never told me where she was.
“You’re so desperate to see me, you’re stalking me now?” Alcohol broke down all her walls. This was the perfect night, and I almost didn’t check that text.
“You could say the first part is true, but I’m not stalking you,” I lied. “We have three minutes before the gelato place down the street closes. Come on.”
8
Amaretto Gelato
Kirill
“I’llhaveamarettoandpassion fruit, please,” Mia instructed the disgruntled man behind the counter. We walked in thirty seconds before he was about to lock the door.
“That amaretto is going to make you drunk, Mia. I’ll have pistachio.” Mia giggled beside me, perusing the gelato flavors.
“A little too late for that,” she spoke quietly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She was relaxed, nothing like the professional woman she was this afternoon. Her cheeks flushed, her hair falling all over the place, her little smile lingered, and it warmed something inside me. Something cold and long dead. Maybe my soul.
“Why are you out so late at night?”
Mia raised her amused eyes at me. “I– I’m an adult, I can do whatever I want!” I chuckled at her immediate defensiveness. “Why areyouhere? And why did your driver suddenly show up to take Viv home?”
The man behind the counter passed us the gelatos, his frown about to ruin the moment. “How much gelato do I have to purchase to keep you open?” I asked him, and he looked up at me confused.
“I’m sorry?”
“I’ll pay you a hundred thousand to stay open. Just for us.” Both Mia and the man behind the counter stilled. No chance it was that much, but I wasn’t fucking joking.
Taking the matter into my own hands, I withdrew my black Amex and passed it to him. “Pay yourself whatever.” Bewildered, he followed my instructions as Mia watched on curiously.
“Do you always get what you want?” Mia asked right before she licked the amaretto gelato, sending all the blood out of my brain and down to my groin. Ugh. Maybe gelato was a mistake. I fought with all my dirty thoughts, actively concentrating on our conversation.
“Yes. I always get what I want.”
“What happens if you don’t? Do you just buy the whole block?” I pulled the chair out for her, and she grabbed a seat. I sat down right in front of her, trying not to stare at how her tongue licked that gelato.
“I don’t know. It’s never happened bef–"
“Let me ask you something, Kirill,” she interrupted suddenly, leaning in. “Why do you look so familiar?” Her unpredictable question cut through the air between us, freezing me to my chair. I stared at her, urgently calming down the shock inside me.
