Page 10 of Paved in Hate

Lev drags a hand through the hair that’s always in need of a cut. “I know, but it’s different tonight. Our wives are going to be there.”

“Ourpregnantwives,” Roman adds.

“And the place is a fucking fortress,” Danil says, putting his laptop on the counter so we can all see. “It’s on five acres right outside the city, and the property is secluded thanks to several acres of woods that surround the house. Osip must’ve bought the house, but it’s listed under a fake name.”

“So we could be walking into a trap,” Lev says, tightening his arm around Jolene.

“That’s always a possibility,” Matvey says, “but we don’t have a choice. Our men know where we’ll be tonight. Timofey is leading a team of men, and they’ll be stationed just past the property line. Konstantin isn’t stupid. He knows attacking us will start a war, and that’s the last fucking thing he wants. Plus, there’s Dominic. He has no idea the Alessi family is working with us.”

“True,” I agree, knowing that Dominic will step in if something happens to us, not so much because he cares, but because he wants to find the man who bought and killed his sister, and with us dead that’ll make it a lot harder for him to get that information.

“Dominic knows where we’ll be, right?” Emily asks.

“Yeah,solnishka. He and his father got back from Italy last week, and I texted to let him know what was happening tonight.” Roman looks over at us. “If he doesn’t hear from one of us before midnight, he’s sending men in.”

“Should one of us set a reminder on our phones for that?” I ask and then laugh. “Because that’s something I can see one of us forgetting and then all hell breaks loose.” I smack Lev’s shoulder. “He forgave you for shooting him, but I don’t think he’d forgive us for anoopsie, sorry we forgot to tell you we made it back safe and to not start a mafia war.”

“You don’t think he’d forgive that?” Jolene asks, keeping a straight face.

I pretend to think and then smile. “I might be able to sweet talk our asses out of that mess.”

She laughs and I eye the black dress she’s wearing. It’s the first time since their wedding that I’ve seen her in anything other than jeans and yoga pants and hoodies. I give an appreciative whistle, ignoring Lev’s murderous look as I give her a playful wink. “You clean up nice, little sis.”

Before Lev can punch me, I step out of range and smile at Emily and Simona. “You two are looking beautiful as well.” I reach out and pat Emily’s pregnant belly. “You get rounder by the day.”

“Jesus Christ,” Danil groans.

“What?” I look up at my brothers and then back at Emily, who’s trying to decide if she’s angry or not. “You’re pregnant and your son is growing by the minute. Isn’t getting rounder the goal of pregnancy?”

Roman wraps his arms around her from behind, resting his hands on her baby bump and looking anything but disappointed at how big it’s getting.

I wave a hand at his smiling face. “See? He fucking loves it.”

“I do,” Roman says, and judging by the way Emily’s face heats up, I’m guessing she’s feeling exactly how much he loves it up against her ass right now.

I point my finger at them. “No disappearing tonight so you can go have horny pregnancy sex.” I turn and wave my hand at the other two couples. “That goes for you guys, too.”

“Okay, dad,” Lev says.

I let out a heavy sigh, realizing what I’ve just done. I’ve become the old guy, the single friend who grumbles about everyone else getting laid. I shake my head to rid the horrifying thought from my mind. “God, if I’m not careful, I’m going to be making stupid no-blowjob rules like you did.”

Lev laughs. “At least you vetoed it.”

“All right,” Matvey cuts in. “Let’s get the fuck out of here. We stay together. No one leaves for any reason.”

“What if I have to go to the bathroom?” Emily asks, because the longer she’s pregnant, the smaller her bladder gets.

“Then let me know, and I’ll go with you,” Roman says while he helps her into her coat and kisses her forehead.

“What if I have to pee?” I ask.

Roman rolls his eyes at me while Matvey says, “Then let me know, and I’ll go with you.”

I laugh while he cracks a very small smile. “Thanks, brother.”

We manage to squeeze into the elevator together and then smoosh into the SUV. We could drive separately, but where’s the fun in that? I sit in the middle in between Matvey and Jolene. Lev’s driving while Danil sits in the passenger seat, looking at his computer and texting Timofey last-minute information. Emily and Roman and Simona sit in the seat behind us.

“Just wait until we have car seats and diaper bags,” I tell them. “It’ll take us hours to get anywhere.” I look at Danil. “Can you even fit a car seat in your Aston Martin? You might want to look into getting a nice, safe minivan. That’s the responsible choice.”

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