Page 84 of Daniil
“Growing up with three brothers, I always wanted a sister,” Elen says as we settle at one of the tables.“Now I’m hopefully going to have two!”
“We’re nowhere near that point yet,” I say quickly, “but I always wanted a sister too.I grew up surrounded by my brother and all his friends.He played football so the house was always overrun with his teammates.It’s no wonder I became a tomboy.”
“You look pretty girlie to me,” Lennox teases.
“It’s taken some work over the years, but it’s better now that I’m out of the military.”
“Tomboy or not, Daniil seems to like you.”Elen grins.
“I like him too,” I admit.
“Are you going to stay?”she asks after someone delivers three different pots of teas and explains what they are to us.
“I don’t know,” I say carefully.“My life is in the U.S.His is here.We’re trying to find a compromise.We’re just not sure what it’s going to be.”
Elen cocks her head.“Is there no universe where you would be happy here?”
“It’s not about being happy,” I hedge.How do I explain my fears about Micah’s safety to Elen, when she has a child too?
“I think maybe we’re pushing her into a corner,” Lennox interjects gently.“And we don’t want her to feel like we’re ganging up on her.”
“No, I’m okay,” I say.“It’s just…she’s right.I think Daniil is trying so hard to prove himself to me that we’ve avoided all the serious conversations we should be having—like whether or not I could ever be happy here.”
“Duh.You’re too busy having sex up in Party Central.”Elen snickers.
“Party Central?”I ask in confusion.
“That’s what those of us that rarely attend the parties call the rooftop pool area,” Lennox says.
“Because we’re married, pregnant, and/or not interested in letting anyone watch,” Elen adds.“No offense.”
“No offense taken.And you’re right.We’ve been busy having fun…instead of thinking about more serious things.”
“It might be time,” Elen says firmly, though her voice is light.
“Ugh.You guys are depressing me,” I respond.
“Okay, how about we just enjoy tea and we can table these conversations for another time?”Lennox suggests.
“Thank you,” I say softly.I lift my teacup and take a sip, letting the rich, creamy flavor distract me from my thoughts.
Daniil keeps promising he’ll do whatever it takes to make me trust him—and I’m starting to believe him.But the truth is that it’s a lot more complicated than that.How do I let myself continue falling in love with a man whose very existence puts our child in danger?At the same time, after the last six weeks, how can I just walk away?
“Has my brother at least taken you to see some of the sights here in our beautiful country?”Elen asks.“I heard about a very romantic helicopter ride.”
I grin.“That was the best.And yes, he’s shown me around a little.Our trip to the sea was wonderful too.”
“There’s a lot of beauty here.”
“And wonderful people,” Lennox adds.“You know, like me.”
“You’re definitely a bonus,” I say.“Jesper, not so much.”
Elen’s eyes widen.“Jesper?What did he do?”
I give them a brief description of what happened, as well as an overview of the conversation Daniil told me they had.
“I’ve never seen Jesper jealous before,” Elen says thoughtfully.“Not even when they were newly broken up.”
