Silence stretches between us until I’m left thinking he’s not going to give me anything, then only does he finally answer me, “I was born in Russia. I spent my entire life training to become a custodian. I swore to protect Alexei with my last breath, and it’s a vow I’ll never break.”

He’s loyal.

“So all you do is work?”

“You could say that,” he answers, then taking a deep breath, he turns his gaze back to me.

With this being the first normal conversation we’re having, I slowly begin to relax a little. “Don’t you want more from life?”

Demitri shakes his head. “Like?”

“You know…” I shrug, “normal stuff. A family of your own?”

“I have a family,” he mutters.

“I mean… a wife and kids,” I explain myself better.

Demitri lets out a soft chuckle. “Unless it’s arranged to solidify an alliance, I won’t get married.”

“Because of the promise you made to Alexei?”

Demitri just nods.

For the first time, I feel a flicker of compassion for my captor. “Doesn’t it get lonely?”

He shakes his head. “There’s no time in my world for loneliness.”

I lower my eyes to the open space of couch between us. “Can you tell me about the Bratva?” When Demitri says nothing, I lift my gaze back to his. “I want to know what the world is like that I’ve been dragged into.”

“It’s no place for someone like you,” he says, his jaw clenching slightly.

“I don’t have much of a choice,” I mutter.

“You do,” he says, then his voice drops low as he adds, “I’ll make sure of it.”

Still not able to trust Demitri, the words don’t offer me much hope or comfort.

The only sure thing in my life right now is that I’m in danger, and it’s starting to grind my spirit to dust.

Chapter 12

DEMITRI

Ariana finally fell asleep on the couch, and during the early morning hours, she woke me when she snuggled against my side.

I haven’t moved a muscle since, just processing the fact that in her sleep, she gravitated toward me.

And it feels good.

It feels right.

Glancing down at Ariana’s sleeping face, her cheek pressed against my chest, I allow the emotions she makes me feel to spread through me.

I never thought this would happen to me. But then this little stick of dynamite was thrown into my life, and the explosion she’s causing is changing everything I thought I knew about myself.

I’ve always been strict and unmovable. I always had complete control over myself and my surroundings.

Until Ariana.

My thoughts turn to the questions she asked about the Bratva.

Slowly I lift my right hand, and I touch her silky hair.

As feisty as she is, she won’t survive a day on her own.

Ariana rubs her cheek against my chest, and it sends a burst of warmth through me. She lets out a soft groan as she starts to wake up, and I drop my hand to my thigh.