Page 27 of Blood Oath Christmas
“Did you know him?” I ask finally.
“Yes,” Konstantin says after a brief pause.
I stare at him for a second, waiting for him to explain. But he doesn’t.
“How?” I ask. “From the restaurant or…?” I wave my hand in the air to encompass him and his estate, asking without words if he knew Dad through Mafia ties.
“Does it matter?” Konstantin asks, then abruptly stands. “Follow me.”
He takes me through a different corridor, past a small chapel, a room with a grand piano and a stack of sheet music with notes scratched in the margins. At a turn, Viktor steps out of the shadows, gives me the barest nod, and falls in behind us without being asked.
We end up in a room I haven’t seen yet—smaller than the library, older than the dining room, with books that look like they’ve been read, not displayed. A large window takes up most of one wall and I notice it’s stopped snowing and the morning sun glitters off the ice.
“Have a seat.” His hand sweeps out indicating several leather chairs arranged in the room. I choose one that lets me see him while also putting me close to the door in case I need a quick escape. Although where I can escape to is another challenge.
IfI could even escape. Viktor stands in front of the bookshelf, studying the books in an obvious attempt to pretend he’s not here with us. He must feel my eyes on him because he turns and flicks his gaze at me. The quick smile he offers me is somehow comforting.
I turn my attention to Konstantin. “Did you bring me here to show me more of your… castle to try and bribe me into staying of my own free will?”
He raises an eyebrow. “Would that work?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“Then no, I didn’t.” He scrubs at his jaw with a tattooed hand. “I brought you here for privacy.”
Leaning back in my chair, I cross my arms over my chest. Not because I feel like I need to protect myself, even though I do, but there’s a chill in the air that’s seeping into my bones. Viktor notices and starts a fire in the fireplace without a word.
“I know this is sudden and difficult,” Konstantin says. He leans against the edge of his desk, his legs crossed at the ankles. “But it’s necessary. If I thought there were another way to protect you, I’d do it. But this is it. You need the protection of the Mikhailov name, and becoming my wife is the only way to get it.”
I sag in the chair. I know he’s right. I’ve known it practically from the beginning, but I’m stubborn. I don’t want my life dismantled like this.
“What about the Witness Protection program?” I ask, still stalling the inevitable. “I’m supposed to start a new life, with a new identity, after I testify.”
“This is your new life, your new identity.”
My stomach drops to my toes. If Vadim’s men want to find me, they probably have spies inside the program who will give him my new location. I really don’t have another choice. Not if I want to live.
And I do.
“Fine,” I say, my tone a bit harsher than I intended. “I will marry you.”
14
KONSTANTIN
Istudy Ivy across the breakfast table, still a little surprised she agreed to marry me. I expected her to continue arguing, but I saw the instant she became resolved and said yes and I’d relaxed… just a little.
Her teacup trembles once when she lifts it, but she hides the tremor with a sip and a leveled gaze. The dark circles under her eyes tell me more than her mouth does. She’s exhausted and frightened.
I push back my chair. The scrape against the tile is sharper than I intend, and her eyes shoot up in alarm.
“We’re leaving,” I say.
Her chin tips, wary. “Where?”
“Shopping.” I let the word sit, then add, “For a wedding dress.”
Her mouth parts. Surprise and wariness flicker behind her eyes. “That’s not necessary?—”
