“Then that is what you shall have, but only if you promise to rave about them to your sons so they’ll know what they are missing.” I laughed.
“I have a feeling they already know that. But you got yourself a deal.” He walked with me down the stairs, and I headed to the kitchen.
Chef Bonfils shook his head and sighed but let me do my thing. I moved around the kitchen with purpose and preheated the oven. I was pouring the mixture into the pan before I knew it. Setting my phone down on the table, I restarted my playlist. Sitting with my head on my knees, I sang. Lost in the moment, I didn’t see my Kings come in. My voice rose during the chorus, and then I smelled them.
A mix of all three of them. My eyes flew open, and I squealed, running over.
NIKOLAI
She ran straight into Alek’s arms, burying her face against his chest as his arms locked around her. I stepped closer, pressing my palm to her back. She smelled like warmth and home. We had business out of town—that was why we were here. But telling her that now, when she was standing in front of us, holding on to Alek like she needed him just to stay upright, had me wanting to stall.
But we couldn’t.
“I wish you’d come home, malyshka,” I said, rubbing her back as Alek nuzzled her.
“What are you doing here?” She blushed while all three of us took turns holding her.
“Go on, get out. I’ll watch your dessert.” Chef Bonfils waved her away. She thanked him and followed us to the drawing room.
“Baby girl, come sit with me.” I patted my lap.
She sat down, straddling me and nestling in. Alek sat on one side, with Ivan on the other.
“Kitten, we need to go out of town for a few days,” Alek said, playing with her hair.
“Okay…all of you?” she whispered, sounding small.
“Yes, baby. We need you to be a good girl while we’re gone,” I said.
“I’ll be a really good girl. I won’t cause any trouble. How long will you be gone?”
“Four or five days. Hopefully, that’ll be enough time for you to reconsider your position and come home. After all, you were just singing about that, were you not?” Alek asked.
“I would love to come home with you, but we talked about this,” she said, closing her eyes and inhaling me. “Can I ask a question about your trip?” Nerves wafted off her as she fidgeted with the buttons on my shirt.
“What is it, little love?” Ivan traced her face with his fingers, making her sigh.
“It isn’t a ‘we wear black and ride at midnight’ type of trip, is it?”
He chuckled. “No, it’s not that kind of trip. It’s escort related.”
She let out her breath. I hated we had to leave, but her relief that it wasn’t a dangerous trip would make it easier. My mother and father must have heard our voices, as they chose that moment to come in. Fuck, we should have locked the door or taken her to her room.
Mother fidgeted with the bracelet on her wrist. The delicate charm clinked in the now quiet room. Her eyes darted to our father, silently pleading with him to say something, anything, to break the tension. I could see her unease, along with surprise, at seeing us in her drawing room, all sitting on the same couch with our girl.
Kinsley shifted, pushing herself back, and tried to get up. She should have known better. I only tightened my grasp on her, clutching her in my lap.
“No,” I barked.
“Nik, please,” she whispered in my ear as her face burned.
Finally, I relented and let her go. She moved so fast it was comical. She chose the chair as far away from the couch as possible, making a point of studying her nail polish.
Father, ever the diplomat, maintained his composure. He stood with his hands loosely clasped in front of him while he surveyed the scene. Unlike mother, he didn’t seem rattled.
“Well, this is a surprise,” he said, before adding, “We didn’t expect you boys to be here this evening.”
He and Alek exchanged a look. “We needed to let Kinsley know we were going to be out of town for the next few days. We wanted to make sure she didn’t need anything before we left,” he offered.
