Exiting the restaurant, Elise stays me with a hand on my arm. “Hey, Mr. Mysterioso, do you think Dmitri is genuinely happy?”
I flick my gaze to Dmitri. He is as confused as I am. I nod.
“You two were a lot alike once. I had to break down into a sobbing mess to get him to cut back on his work hours and have a real life with me. By the time our children came along he already understood the life we could have together was more important than money. Sometimes letting go gets you more than holding on.”
Before I can respond, she is gone.
Dmitri nods. “She is not wrong. My only regret is that I waited months to tell her I loved her instead of the weeks when I knew it. If you need to talk, call me.”
Without waiting for me to answer, he disappears into the car beside his wife.
9
Christina
Sitting beside Ivan in the same conference room where only two weeks ago I was on the other side of the table is a heady experience. He is constantly marking the proposals as he reads through them. I hadn’t noticed him doing it when I gave mine. Then again the memory feels like a blur. Weird, when it’s only been two weeks. Maybe because it feels like it’s been twice that time.
Connor isn’t coming back in the near future. Ivan refused to put a number on the time Connor needed for his daughter to go through treatment for her leukemia. Tim is being nicer than I thought he would, he is constantly shooting me emails of suggestions, things not to say to Ivan, reminders of tasks I’m still struggling to fit into every single day. Aside from the annoying constant urge to lick Ivan’s face every time I see him, this isn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be.
It helps to know I’m getting to Ivan. Every day, I’ve dressed with him in mind. I haven’t worn pants once, always shorter skirts and if they happen to be long then there’s a slit on the side that made them outside of the rules he set. My dresses hug every curve and often have more cleavage than even I am completely comfortable with.
I’m not sure, but I think he figured it out. I might have leaned over his desk too far one day last week to make sure he saw the lacy black bra Gertrude swore would have him ripping it off me. He had been speaking then went completely still as he stared. I couldn’t keep the smile off my face. Since then he’s limited contact with me and leaned more on Tim. It was totally worth it though. I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be this close to him, so I’m making every day count.
Ivan had only found two people to interview so far and he didn’t like either of them. He’s getting crankier by the day, which I consider a win. Even if it means I’ve now become well versed in using my vibrator. There are still days where he does his best to look through me, and anywhere but at me.
At the same time, every single time he forgets and his eyes meet mine the fire surges bright and hot between us. I feel his eyes on me when I’m not looking at him. Once he touched my back as he helped me up the steps of the jet, and even now, three days later, my skin tingles from it.
My cell goes off with a text. It’s Hannah. Which means she’s called Ivan’s phone. He always turns it off before the Monday morning meeting. In all caps she wants Ivan to call ASAP. I show him the text. He rolls his eyes. When he calls her back is up to him. I did what I was supposed to.
***
Ivan
I bring the meeting to an end, not impressed with my team in the slightest today. Yet another reason to find someone to free Christina from my office and into her own. The witch is going out of her way to fuck with my head, dressing so provocatively she has kept my cock at half-mast daily. I never would have thought she had it in her, with her previous frumpy clothes, hiding her body from everyone. That she wants me enough to dress as she does makes it even sexier.
My cell phone buzzes within my pocket. I check the display. Hannah is not waiting for me to call her back. “No calls until I say otherwise,” I order as I return to my office. “What?”
“Love you too, brother.”
“Hannah, I am working.”
“What a surprise! You’re always working. Whether I call you at ten in the morning or ten at night. This shit can’t wait. We have a problem, or rather you have a problem.”
As per her usual love for the dramatic, Hannah waits for me to prompt her to continue. “Spit it out, Hannah.”
“It’s Mishi.”
“When is it not Mishka.” I prefer to call the girl by her full name, never allowing the slightest softening or closeness she wanted. Aari’s little sister has been a pain the ass since the moment I met her. “Out with it.”
“God you’re such a dick. Mishi wheedled her way into staying at the house for the two weeks you’re going to be here. Gemma and I didn’t think anything of it with the whole wedding planning and her being in both weddings. At this point there isn’t much Gemma wouldn’t do to keep her happy.
“Anyway, last night she got a little tipsy, she confided in me how she’s determined to land you. She has several things planned; if none of them work the last one will be getting caught naked in your room by her parents.”
I exhale a bitter curse.
“I know, Ivan. I have spent all day trying to talk her out of it. She is adamant you’ll end up happy. I thought about telling Gemma but she’s already stressed out. This will send her over the edge. Last week she tried again to get Aari’s mum to warm to her, but the woman is as hard as rock. She’ll support her son out of love for him, no further. I thought about some excuse to get Mishi out of the house, but nothing sounds good enough not to be completely rude and cause more problems.”
A thousand ideas riot in my mind before being discounted.