Page 31 of Born into Madness
I smile at their bickering and stretch my legs out again. I’m about to get up and get my own slice of the cake my uncle insisted on bringing when Val comes walking in—giant smile on his face and watery eyes that he makes no attempt to hide.
“She’s here,” he says as everyone rushes him for news. “They’re both doing great,” he quickly adds, and then my Aunt Alina starts crying while my Uncle Matvey wraps her in a big hug. Evgeny hugs Val, just as excited as his parents, and when Val grabs his phone and starts pulling up photos of his newborn, all the women start squealing and the men start doing the congratulatory pat-on-the-back thing.
“Are you ever going to tell us her name?” Uncle Vitaly asks.
Val grins. “I’ll let Yel tell you. She’s having a little rest while our daughter gets cleaned up and weighed. You should be able to see her in the nursery in a few minutes.”
He laughs when everyone makes a beeline for the door, eager and excited to get their first glimpse of the newest littleMelnikov. I hang back, not because I don’t care, but because I’m not about to fight my mom and aunts for front-row seats.
When he’s free, I stop and give my cousin a hug. “Congratulations, Val.”
He’s all smiles when he hugs me back and then shows me his phone, letting me see the tiny baby and Yel’s beaming face. She’s crying, but her smile is one of pure joy.
“They both look beautiful,” I tell him.
“Yeah,” Val agrees, just as smitten by his wife as he’s always been and now clearly head over heels for their daughter as well. “Yel was amazing. I don’t know how women do it.”
I think about pushing another human being from my body and cringe. “Me either, man.”
He’s quickly pulled away by his mom and twin sister, both of them too excited to wait a second longer. I look around the waiting room, noticing Dario and Mia in the corner. Dario has her wrapped in a hug, hiding her from view, but I see a few pink highlights sticking out and the small arm that’s curling around his waist. When they pull apart, Dario cups her face and whispers something I can’t hear. Mia nods and smiles up at him.
I should probably go and leave them alone, but I don’t. Instead, I wait until they notice me and then walk over to join them. I nod at the man who used to be my trainer and is now my brother-in-law and then look down at my little sister.
“You okay?” I ask her.
She looks okay, but Mia’s the kind of person who really hates to show weakness, so I’ve learned to never assume with her.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asks, and because this is turning into one of those social situations that will forever elude me, I just say what’s on my mind because that’s the kind of relationship we have.
“Because you got stabbed in the stomach and can’t have kids.”
“Jesus Christ, Sasha,” Dario mutters from beside me.
Mia grins up at her husband. “This is him being concerned, you know that.”
Dario looks over at me, and I grin while he says, “And that’s exactly why he doesn’t have a knife sticking out of his body right now.”
My smile grows at his threat, because we’ve been through this before. He and I have an understanding. We both know I’d be the last one standing, but Dario would definitely give me a run for my money. Lucky for the both of us that we’d prefer the other to stay alive. He still likes to occasionally give me hell, especially if Mia is involved. His sense of self-preservation goes out the door anytime she’s involved.
“I’m fine,” Mia says, breaking into the staring match between me and her husband. “Being here isn’t making me sad. I’m thrilled for Val and Yel, and I can’t wait to hold their little girl, so both of you stop worrying about me.”
“Never going to happen,amore mio,” Dario says before leaning down to kiss her.
Dario is the only man on the planet who could get away with showing her so much affection, but instead of punching him in the nuts like she’d do to anyone else who tried to baby her, she threads her fingers through his and starts to lead him towards the nursery.
“Come on, you two. It’s time to meet our newest niece.”
I tag along behind the two of them and stand at the large nursery window with the rest of our family. Val looks ridiculously proud when he points his daughter out to us. She’s cute, a tiny little newborn with a head full of black hair and eyes as dark as her mom’s.
“She’s a cute little thing,” my dad says, coming to stand beside me as the others start to visit Yel in small groups.
“She is,” I say in agreement.
I can feel my dad staring at me, and when I turn my head, he makes no attempt to hide it. “What?” I ask, wondering why the hell he’s looking at me so intently. My first thought is of Cyn, but there’s no way he knows about her.
The others are far enough away to not hear him when he says, “Don’t think you can’t have this one day, Sasha.”
I cross my arms over my chest and look at him like he’s lost his goddamn mind. “Why are you saying this right now?”
