Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Nikolai’s POV:
1 wasn’t prepared for the way she came at me.
One moment I was walking to my car, trying to get some air after the complete disaster that had unfolded in that hospital room, and the next thing 1 knew, Elena was grabbing the front of my suit jacket, spinning me around with surprising strength
Her fingers fisted in my collar. Her eyes burned.
“WHAT THE HELL WAS. THAT?” she hissed.
1 blinked, stunned for a heartbeat, before my hands came up slowly to wrap around her wrists, not yanking her off, but trying to ground her,
“Excuse me1” I asked, though part of me already knew what this was about
Even in her anger, her eyes looked impossibly vivid stormy, unrelenting, and yet still so goddamn pretty
“Don’t “excuse me me!” she snapped. “Why the hell did you say all that to Mom!! I was going to tell her myself. I had a plan, Nikolai. I was going to ease her into it. But no–you just had to barge in and ruin everything!”
Iraised an eyebrow, trying not to let her frustration crawl under my skin. “And how long exactly were you going to wait! You hadn’t even told her Dmitri wasn’t going to be visiting
“That is none of your concern?” she retorted, fire licking her words. “You gave me a week. One week! You had no right to interfere before that
1 paused. That part! She was right.
Of course she was.
1 let out a long sigh, deflating slightly as I looked down at the ground and then back up at her face, still taut with anger.
“You’re right,” I said quietly.
Her eyes widened. “What?”
“I said I’m sorry,” I repeated. “I shouldn’t have interfered. I gave you a timeline and I broke it. I was impatient.”
Elena stared at me like I had grown a second head. “That’s
1 frowned. “What do you mean?
Her features twisted once again, looking at me like I was stupid.
“You’re not even going to argue with me? Not going to deflect or make some grand excuse about responsibility or business tactics or. I don’t know, alpha–male instinct?”
I wanted to laugh at that but I shook my head. “No. I overstepped. And it was unfair to you.
Her lips parted like she was about to say something else, but then she just stared at me for a few more seconds.
“Why did you do it?” she asked finally. Her voice had softened, the fury now dampened into something else. Curiosity? Or confusion?
I hesitated
“I went to check on your mom,” I said honestly. “To be polite. I thought it might be better to get the awkward part over with. I’m used to doing things efficiently. Ripping the bandage off and stuff. I didn’t think you’d still be hiding things. I assumed it would be easier on you, if she heard it from me directly. Instead of waiting to hear it the slow way”
She let out a huff of laughter, though it wasn’t quite amusing. “You really are something, Nikolai. Do me a favor?”
Thooked my brow, “Yeah?”
“Don’t assume things next time, alright?” She said gritting her teeth, and honestly? I was surprised. She was over all that, this quickly!
She glanced down, noticing her fists still clutched in my jacket, and with a murmur of embarrassment, she quickly let go and stepped back.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“It’s alright,” I said, brushing my coat lightly as I tried to play it off. “But maybe we should talk somewhere else? People are staring
1/2
Chapter 17
She blinked, tuming to look around–and sure enough, several hospital staff, patients, and even a security guard or two were casting us curious glances. One teenager was Elming us.
Lovely.
Her hands trembled slightly as she noticed the attention. Her eyes were rimmed red and I had noticed this earlier but she looked close to crying. The guilt in my gut thickened.
“Well it’s not like Mom would allow me back in anytime soon,” she muttered.
I finched. “She told you to leave?”
She gave me a flat look. “What do you think?”
Yeah. That guilt? It now had its own weight and was currently crushing my chest.
Without another word, I opened the passenger side door and waited for her to get in. She didn’t speak. Just slid in, silent and stiff.
I rounded the hood, climbed in, and shut the door.
“Would you like to go home?” I asked gently. “Or somewhere else?”
liers rigid.
She was staring at the hospital entrance, her shoulders
I hesitated, then spoke again. “Elena. I really am sorry for interfering. If you want, I can go back and talk to her. Try to explain-
“No,” she cut in quickly. “No. Never mind”
There was a pause.
“You know what?” she said, voice low. “Maybe this is better. At least now she knows. And yeah, she’ll be mad… but she get over it. Eventually. I just…. I need to hold out a little longer. That’s all,”
I nodded slowly.
“Alright. Then, would you like to come to my office!”
She blinked. “Your office?”
“You don’t have anywhere else to go. Might as well be somewhere quiet. Or I can drop you at
the mall if you prefer retail therapy”
“Your office is fine,” she said quickly, then after a beat, added with a small, crooked smile, “I’ve heard of take–your–kid–to–work day, but I think this is the first take–your–wife–to–work scenario.”
The tension between us eased a little.
I chuckled. “Well, good thing I’m the boss. I make the rules.
She snorted, folding her arms over her chest and finally relaxing against the seat as I pulled our of the driveway.
The day hadn’t gone the way either of us had planned. But maybe–just maybe–this detour would give us both a chance to breathe.
And hopefully she won’t question my reason for being in a hurry to marry her…not that I’d tell her the complete truth even if she asked.
