Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 63638 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 318(@200wpm)___ 255(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63638 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 318(@200wpm)___ 255(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
My phone buzzes in my lap, its glow slicing through the dim room. I glance down, expecting another late-night spam text.
Instead, I see a text from my bank. $20,000 Was Deposited into Your Account
My brow furrows. I tap the alert, and the number staring back at me makes my mouth go dry.
I blink at it, wondering if it’s a glitch, but another notification comes through. This time, a text message.
Consider this an advance before you move in. I’ll see you soon.
My fingers tremble slightly as I turn the screen toward Mia.
Her eyes widen instantly. “Holy shit,” she breathes.
“Yeah,” I agree, swallowing hard.
“So it begins,” she says, her voice low.
“I know.” I nod, my voice barely above a whisper.
Mia sits up straighter, her face more serious than I’ve ever seen it.
“Look, I’ve been supportive, and that hasn’t changed, but now that this is real I need to say this: If something feels off, at any point, you call me. Okay? Day or night. If you get even the slightest weird vibe, you leave. You pack your bags, and I will be there in a cab with a bat in one hand and my own taser in the other.”
“Deal.” I laugh, but it’s shaky.
She studies me for a beat, then yanks me into a hug, arms banded tight around my shoulders. “I love you, Nic. You’re one of the smartest, kindest people I know. You deserve good things. Don’t forget that.”
I press my face against her shoulder and whisper, “I won’t.”
When she pulls back, there’s moisture in both our eyes, but neither of us acknowledges it. We turn on a rom-com and try to enjoy our last few hours together.
10
SERGEI
The moment I wheel my mother through the front doors of the hospital, relief crashes over me. She’s finally out of this hellhole. The worst of this nightmare has passed. Weeks, or maybe months, of recovery still lie ahead, but she’s alive, alert, and already dishing out the gentle admonishments only a mother can. Sasha trails behind us, one hand gripping the suitcase handle, the other clutching the car keys, his gaze locked on Mom the entire time.
“You boys are fussing too much,” she mutters, patting my arm as I adjust her coat. “I had a small stroke, that’s all.”
“You say that like you didn’t scare the hell out of us.” I bend to meet her gaze. “We thought we were going to lose you.”
Her expression softens, yet pride still creases her brow.
“I am sorry you thought that, Sergei. But you did not. It will take more than that to take me out.”
I chuckle, brushing a knuckle over her cheek. “And I plan to keep it that way, which is why I’ve hired a live-in nurse to take care of you.”
Her brows rise. “You did not need to do that. The last thing we need is some nervous little thing flitting around the house and telling me what I can and can’t eat.”
“Yes, I did,” I say firmly. “And I didn’t hire some ‘nervous little thing.’ For you, Mom, I only hired the best. You remember Nicole?”
She takes a moment to think about it, then smiles softly. “That pretty blonde nurse? The one who talked to me when she thought I was sleeping?”
I glance at Sasha, who smirks behind the wheel as we slide into the backseat beside her. “That’s the one. I convinced her to leave the hospital and take care of you full-time. She starts today.”
“She’ll be taking care of me at the house?” she asks, as weary of the hospital as we are.
“She moved in this morning,” I tell her. “Everything is already arranged.”
She falls quiet for a long beat, eyes flicking between the two of us as we ease out of the hospital parking lot and onto the main road.
“You fuss over me too much,” she grumbles again. “You boys spoil me. Back in Russia they’d have left me out in the cold and let the elements finish the job.”
Sasha chuckles. “You haven’t lived in the old country since you were a child, Mom. How would you know?”
The ride is slow, made slower by the afternoon traffic snaking through the city, but I don’t mind. I watch the way my mother gazes out the window, her hand curled in mine, her eyes a little heavier than usual. Though she’s only been in the hospital a few days, it has felt like a lifetime. I wasn’t sure this day would come, and now that it has, I plan to make damn sure she doesn’t have a single thing to worry about.
By the time we pull into the mansion’s gate, I’m already scanning for Nicole. The security team confirmed she checked in by three, the time we agreed she would arrive. Anxiety builds in my chest, and I tell myself it’s only because I want this to go smoothly.