I know that’s not the truth, but I play along. “Why not come back with me now? I’m heading home now.”
“I’ll drive you. Your driver can follow us,” Luigi says, and Aleks steps forward. I hold a hand up. “Aleks will have to come in the car with us.”
Luigi sizes him up and then nods. “If that is what makes you happy, then we can do that.”
Aleks nods and looks at the time, and I pre-emptively say, “I know it’s a quick visit, but I’m actually quite tired.”
Kira struggles to stand as I do and then hugs me, her belly making it a bit awkward. “Take care, Tori, and call me if you need anything.”
“You call me and let me know what you need help with for the baby and the wedding.” I smile at her. I’ve never been close to her, but maybe we could be. After all, if the worst happens, Kira and Luigi are all I have.
Aleks explains to the driver to go home and gets in the backseat of Luigi’s car. He seems alert and prepared for anything my brother might do, except my brother's actual driving. This secretly amuses me as my brother zips through traffic.
My phone rings, and I answer it, “Tori, hello?”
“It’s Ivan. Tell the driver to bring you to my mother's restaurant for lunch. Anastasia is eating with us.”
I bite my lip, “Um, Luigi, my brother is driving Aleks and me back to the apartment.”
“He can join us for lunch. It’s fine,” Ivan says and then hangs up.
“Detour,” I say to Luigi, then turn to Aleks. “Can you direct us to Ivan’s mother’s restaurant?”
Aleks nods. “It’s not far.”
While Aleks directs Luigi, I sit back and try not to let my nerves get the best of me. On the bright side, Luigi can chat everyone’s ears off while I sit quietly.
Luigi finds parking, and we walk into the restaurant. I feel out of place here, like I don’t belong, yet I know I will be expected to be here often. We join Ivan and Anastasia at the table. I introduce Luigi to Anastasia and then sit back. Ivan and Luigi discuss racehorses for a moment, something I didn’t know either of them was into. Luigi soon turns his attention to Anastasia and starts quizzing her about her studies.
While they talk, Ivan looks at me, reaching for my hand and squeezing it. “Are you okay?”
“I am… Oh, look, the food is here.”
“A stew my mother’s restaurant is famous for,” Ivan explains as the dishes are set in front of us.
“I quite like stews,” I comment, taking some bread and dipping it into the gravy. I bite it and eat thoughtfully.
“It’s one of my favorites too. Nothing like a hearty beef stew to make you feel strong.” He smiles and starts to eat.
“How is your sister?” he asks, and I’m surprised by the question. I explain how she’s getting married after the baby is born and how I’d like to help her as much as possible.
“That is what family is for,” Ivan says after he swallows. “Of course, you should help her.”
I smile at him and squeeze his hand. He grins and says, “So you studied law. What made you do that?”
I don’t want to go into too much detail with Luigi here, but I explained how I wanted to help with the family business in the best way I could. We then talked about his studies, which made me realize how much older he is than me. Then we discuss our favorite restaurants, food, music, and the fact that we both like the theater.
Lunch ends too soon, and I don’t know how but I know Ivan feels the same way. We bid Luigi farewell, and he seems reluctant to leave Anastasia. I’ll have to put an end to that very quickly.
Anastasia brought her own car, so she says goodbye to Ivan, waves me off, and leaves. Ivan leads me to his car, and we get in with our guards. I’m content as we drive back to the apartment, as though this is the most natural thing in the world.
Once we’re back in the apartment, Ivan takes off his jacket, hangs it up, and stretches. I see his shirt pull up slightly, and I see a trail that sneaks down his belly. My heart beats a little too fast.
Ivan smiles at me. “I’m going to spend the remainder of my day reading in the library.”
“Can I j-join you?” I ask, blushing slightly.
“Of course, I would love the company,” he says, leading me down the hallway toward the library.