“Okay,” Mina said, and then there was a slight scuffle. “Lev. No! Give it back.”
And then my brother was talking through the speaker. “Nastasia, where do you plan on taking my wife this evening?”
Anika’s face softened at the sound of his voice, and my gut squeezed. I knew it couldn’t be easy for her. Ani had always loved Lev. I mean, she lost her virginity to him in the hopes that he would fall for her. She fought for him, but in the end, Mina had won his heart.
To her credit, she took it well.
Sometimes, I think she took it a little too well.
My face bunched with indignance. “None of your flipping beeswax, brother.”
“Nastasia,” Lev uttered in warning, and he really should’ve known by now that the tone he was using was not one that worked on me.
I looked to Ani and rolled my eyes, making her laugh. “We’re not doing anything dangerous, Lev. We’re just having a girls’ night out.”
“A girls’ night out,” he said as if he were processing this. “On your own.” He muttered, “Without protection.”
“Yep.”
“No,” he said instantly. “I don’t like that.”
I loved Lev. Loved him so damn much. He was sweet and kind and would do anything for those closest to him. But, yes, he had his quirks. He was also stubborn and set in his ways and overprotective to the point of overstepping.
When he got that way, dealing with him required a level of patience that I oftentimes did not have.
“Lev,” I began calmly. “Are you saying that I would put Mina, my sister-in-law, my family, in a position where something could happen to her?”
“No,” he said immediately, and it doused the wrath threatening to boil over.
“Precisely,” I said, then added, “You know I would only ever take her somewhere I deemed safe, right?”
“Yes.” He sighed, and I smiled, knowing he was giving in. I knew he’d given in completely when he said, “I want her to text me every hour, Nastasia.”
“Okay,” I settled, knowing it was the best I’d get with him.
“Every hour,” Lev repeated.
I spoke through gritted teeth, doing my best to not snap at him. “I heard you, moy brat.”
“I’ll drive you,” he added, and I actually laughed out loud.
God, he was infuriating. But when Ani made a goopy face and placed a hand to her heart, I quickly acknowledged I could have it a lot worse.
My tone light, I told him, “You’ll do no such thing. We’re catching a cab there and back. And Mina will text you every hour to let you know she’s okay. That’s what’s happening, Lev.”
His momentary silence told me he was struggling, but, surprisingly, he let it go. “All right.”
“Perfect.” I grinned widely, then hurried out, “I have to call Cora. Love you. Bye,” before he changed his mind.
The second I dialed Cora, she answered, sounding cheery, “What’s up, bitch?”
“Girls’ night out” was all I said.
She let out a little whoop. “Fuck yeah. I need to get my head out of these books. I’ll be over soon.” Then she hung up.
Well, that was easy.
I breathed deeply, feeling light and happy. Turning to face Anika, I put my hand on hers and squeezed. “We’re gonna have fun tonight.”
“I know,” she responded with a delicate smile.
Dinner was nice. Nicer than I expected.
I wondered how things between Mina and Anika would be, but I shouldn’t have worried. When Mina arrived at my place, she took one look at Anika’s sorry state, came forward, and hugged her, taking all the care in the world.
“Are you okay?” Mina asked, gently rubbing her back, and I was quietly reminded that Mina was a beautiful person.
Anika looked a little awkward, but it was clear she appreciated the gesture, because when she pulled back, she pasted on a grateful smile. “I’ll be better when we’re all drinking.”
Not a minute later, my front door shot open. I threw my hands up and groused, “Does everyone have a key to my house?” while a tiny Cora stood there, her blonde hair tied up into a high ponytail, holding a bottle of tequila.
“Did someone order a night of getting fucked up?”
“So, no one’s listening to me?” I added, annoyed. “Nice.”
“Perfect timing.” Mina took the bottle out of her hands and shook it at Anika. “Pre-dinner drinks, coming right up.” Then disappeared into the kitchen.
Cora approached Anika, standing in front of her a long moment, her smile lessened, and she asked quietly, “You all right, kukla?”
Anika thought about it. “I am, actually. Just being away from home….” She shivered, hugging herself. Her expression solemn, the response was whisper-quiet. “I needed a night away.”
The way she said it made my heart pause, a big red flag waving frantically behind my eyes.
My brow lowered. “You know, you can stay here with me,” I proposed. “I kind of got used to having company, and with Cora gone, I hate to admit it, but I get lonely sometimes.”