Fractured Ties by Bethany-Kris Page 0,29
his teeth in a rueful smile. “That’s right, Maya.”
Kolya gave his brother a passing glance.
A warning, if you would.
Konstantin acted like he didn’t even see it. “You’re looking … well, yes? I assume my brother has been staying in line, then.”
Maya’s gaze darted to Kolya, and then back to Konstantin before she cocked an eyebrow and smiled widely. “You could say that.”
Sumerki decided that was the time he was done with nibbling on the end of his tail, and his yellow eyes landed on Kolya. Full steam ahead, the pup bounded across the floor—all legs and paws because his body wasn’t quite filled out just yet. Kolya bent down just in time to catch Sumerki in his hands after the dog went head over paws with a yelp.
Setting the pup back to his feet with a chuckle, Kolya placed Sumerki at his boots, and kept one hand on the dog’s head.
Training started now.
Sumerki stayed—quietly. The chewing on Kolya’s boots couldn’t really be helped, though. He didn’t do that to Maya’s things.
Kolya looked back at Maya. “Spasibo.”
She nodded. “Sure.”
“Get something nice on. We’re going to dinner.”
“Are we?”
Konstantin was all but forgotten, then.
“It’s a nice place—pick a dress,” he told her.
Maya nodded once more, and then gave Konstantin one last look. “Nice to see you, Konstantin.”
His brother smiled in kind. “And you, Maya.”
Kolya’s attention went back to the game playing on the television as Maya disappeared and her footsteps faded into the upstairs. Konstantin said nothing for a while, too, although Kolya could practically feel the questions burning on the tip of his brother’s tongue.
“How hard are you going to chew on whatever you want to say?” Kolya asked.
Konstantin hummed under his breath. “I remember myself saying I wanted to stay clear of this, so as to not cause myself any trouble by the mess you might find yourself in.”
“You did say that. Wise, no?”
“No one has ever called me wise.”
That they did not.
Kolya looked to his brother. “What?”
“She looks happy.”
“Good. I intend for her to—she deserves that.”
Konstantin’s brow lifted subtly. “Are you fucking her?”
“Nyet.”
“Yeah, yeah. Mind my own. I know, but—”
“No,” Kolya interjected, “the answer to your question is no. But yes, mind your own. That will get you a hell of a lot farther in this life when you pay less attention to the private business of the men around you.”
“On the contrary, brat, that’s what very well might save me someday.”
Well …
Damn.
He focused his chaotic thoughts by glancing down at his still-chewing pup and scratching behind the dog’s ears. The good thing about Sumerki was he liked to learn, and he was quick at it. Only one mess in the house after that first night, but the chewing couldn’t be contained.
Win some, lose some.
“Kolya,” Konstantin murmured.
Kolya didn’t even look up. “Kakiye—just say it, yes?”
“I think she’s going to be a problem for you, although it’s the how or the what I don’t have an answer to right now.”
“Do tell what makes you think that,” Kolya replied dryly. “How do you figure?”
“You didn’t stop smiling from the time she opened the front door. You only stopped after she left your space. You took her like that was your right—yet, you’re not doing anything with her.”
“Should I?”
Konstantin stiffened. “What?”
“Should I do something with her—to her?” Kolya asked. “Force her into something she doesn’t want, or whatever the case may be. Drag her to my bed or brand her skin to make a claim. I don’t see the point in any of those things when what I did was more than enough to state my right and purpose.”
His brother let out a harsh sigh before he dragged his hand down his unshaven jaw. “I mean … at least, Kolya, the girl belongs to her family, or what might be left of it. At most, she belongs to the organization—to the Boykovs. That’s how this has always worked.”
Kolya nodded. “And I am a Boykov, no?”
And that was why he’d taken her. He saw her, and he’d wanted to have her. He had never wanted anything before—not like that, not so fast, and not with such intensity. He had every ability to make the call, and so he had. Besides, had he not taken Maya, someone else would have . Which was exactly what Konstantin was saying in a roundabout way.
Kolya continued with, “The son Vadim wants to take his place, and be his next king on the chess board. I think that—and the cross he demanded be put on my chest three years