Prime Target (22 page)

“Vladimir thinks I helped him,” Ben says, digging into his eggs. “He wired a ton of money into my account to secure my cooperation.”

Pressing my face against the high-powered binoculars, I wait for the
more
that Grandfather wants me to see.

Out of nowhere, my mother appears. I nearly drop the binoculars. Then Vladimir appears, looking very alive. Furtively, they look around the marina, and then walk to the last pier, as if waiting for someone. “What the bloody hell is happening?” I growl.

“You’re not the only one in love with someone you shouldn’t be,” my grandfather says. He elbows Ben. “Eh, boy?”

“I wish our parents well,” Ben says. “But I also wish them to hell.”

“What?” I bark.

Ben shrugs. “What else can I do? I have no love for either of them.”

“Explain.”

Grandfather and Ben share a look. “Tell him,” my grandfather says.

“We’re brothers.”

“I’m not so obtuse.”

Ben rolls his eyes. “Yet you are completely unaware of what’s staring you in the face.”

I rake my gaze over my cousin. The similarities are there with our dark hair and blue eyes. We are of the same height and build, so we
could
pass for brothers. I shrug. “All Romanovs look alike.” This is true. With the exception of Vladimir and his twin sons, who are blonds.

My grandfather grunts, smacking me in the back of the head. I wince. “He’s your brother. Accept it. Rejoice in the fact that you are not alone in this world.”

The news is supposed to make me happy, but all I can think of is the wasted years. Years I’d spent with my little brother chasing after me. Time I’d spent teaching him how to ride his bike, tie his shoelaces properly, and shave.

Suddenly, it dawns on me. I hadn’t been denied anything. Except an explanation.

“Why?”

“Because the two of you were safer with me.” Grandfather cants his head. “Katerina’s judgment couldn’t be trusted when it came to her husband
or
her side of the family.”

Husband?
“But my mother and father—” Ben clears his throat—loudly. This time I roll my eyes. “Sorry.
Our
mother and father never married.”

White teeth flash in the sun as my grandfather smiles. “They were married.
Against
my wishes.”

“And his English wife?”

“Not legal.”

Vladimir is a bigamist. If that were to ever get out, then his “legitimate” sons would lose everything. “Katerina didn’t care about his betrayal?”

My grandfather leans back in his chair and lights a cigarette. “I suspect she did, but who knows what he said or promised her.” He blows out a ring of smoke, and then motions to Ben. “Obviously, she forgave him at least once.”

He laughs at his own joke, while Ben and I sit there in total silence.

I have a brother. A brother I can spend time with and actually acknowledge in public. A brother who took care of me after I got shot, watched over the woman I loved when I couldn’t, and remained on my side, never betraying me.

My grandfather rises to his impressive height. He towers over us when we are standing, much less sitting. A bodyguard hands him a rifle. Slowly but surely, Grandfather steps to the edge of the roof and takes aim at the lovers climbing into a skiff that will surely take them to a much larger boat. “Though it pains this old man to do this, it has to be done. Thank you, Ben, for agreeing to help me.”

“Happy to be of service.”

A shot rings out. Vladimir goes down, falling headfirst into the water. Katerina screams. I look away.

“Make sure he is dead. He’ll receive a proper burial in London.” Grandfather tosses the weapon back to the bodyguard. “The two of you are good boys. Go have some fun. Live your lives how you see fit.”

“But what about…” I cannot finish my sentence. Between the shock of my father surviving an explosion and then being murdered in front of me, my grandfather’s offer seems surreal. This entire morning has been surreal.

“You must promise that no one will bother us, or who we choose to be with,” Ben says suddenly. “Nikolai and I would like to attempt to live in the sunlight.”

Grandfather nods. “I swear it.” He hugs each of us, then says, “I must go. Much work has to be done, now that Vladimir is dead, and the two of you are leaving the—how did Everly put it?—ah, yes, the family business. I quite like her,
Kolya
. Please bring her to visit me.”

He walks away, his bodyguards flanking him. Ben and I don’t say goodbye. We know it won’t be the last time we see him, or the last time he spies on us, like the crafty old spider he is.

Once he disappears, I glance at Ben. “How long have you known?”

“Not very long,” he says, his gaze shifting to the debris-covered marina. Most of the fire has been extinguished by local firefighters. A few boats are scorched on the sides, with melted paint and railings. “But at some level, I think I knew the entire time.”

“Katerina did not raise you?”

“
Nyet
. I lived with her sister’s family until Grandfather came to get me.”

Her sister’s family. Not
my aunt and her family
. That is very telling. “They did not treat you well?”

“They treated me like a dog,” he says, his eyes clouding over. “A dog that was only good for kicking and throwing scraps at…among other things.”

My fists tighten. Ben was younger than I was when he first came to Grandfather’s. There was no way he could have defended himself.

He laughs, but there is no mirth in it. “Calm yourself. They’ve been taken care of.”

“How?”

The look he gives me chills my soul. “Computers aren’t the only thing I know how to hack into.”

There’s no need to tell him to stay away from the path I’ve been traveling. He’s a man on his own road. The only way he’ll veer to the right or left is by his choice alone. “This is good to hear.”

“No lecture?” he asks lightly.

I cock a brow. “Only if you left evidence.”

His mouth thins. “I left nothing.”

I adjust my cuff links. “Everly is safe. And home. No one will bother her ever again.”

“So.” He shrugs.

“So?”

“You don’t care about her, not beyond this guilt-driven need to keep her safe, because if you did—”

Incensed, I jump to my feet, planting my hands on the table. “You know nothing.
Nothing
of what I feel for her. You’re nothing but a nineteen-year-old
zhopa
who knows exactly shit.”

That familiar grin of his kicks up the corners of his mouth. “Go to her,
bratan
.”
Brother.

My anger slowly drains away and is replaced with pride. “
Blyad
. I have no reason to go to Asheville.”

“Not even to personally deliver her last book order?” he asks innocently.

Everly

One month later

“I
miss Roman,”
I inform Miss Fancy. Despite everything, his betrayal in sending me home, I miss him. I love him.

Not that it does me any good. Apparently, I have a penchant for loving the wrong man. At least the first one wasn’t an assassin with family ties to the mob.

But had my ex-boyfriend, Jared, ever made me feel like Roman? Had Jared ever risked everything to keep me safe?

The cat looks at me for a moment, before hissing and swatting at me. I jump back, wagging my finger at her. “Behave, else I’ll take you right back to Mrs. Tatum, and you’ll have to live with all the other cats.”

Miss Fancy twitches her tail and marches out of the room.

“Stupid cat,” I mutter. “Should’ve left you there.” I never should have gone back to Raleigh, but I had to give my notice to my landlord and pack up my things. There was no way I could continue to live there, not when
he
was never coming back.

My mother walks into the living room. “Want to ride with me and take your daddy lunch?”

I jump at the chance at getting out of the house. “Sure.” Grabbing my purse, I follow her to the car. “What time does he get off?”

“About the time I have to go in.”

My parents have worked at the Grove Park Inn for over twenty years—my mother as an events manager and my father as head of valet services. They love the place—the history, the décor, the people, the way the hotel is decorated for Christmas…everything.

“I’ll make him supper, Momma. Don’t worry.”

She gives me a smile as we get in the car and back out of the driveway, then head for the Inn. “That’s sweet of you, honey. But your daddy can make his own supper. Maybe you can find something else to do.”

If that isn’t southern for
you need to get a life
, I don’t know what is.

“Have you found a place yet?”

Except for that. Silently laughing at my mother’s not-so-subtle hints, I nod. “Next week I’m signing a contract on the cutest house off Page Avenue.”

“Is that where the new brewery’s going?”

A new brewery springs up about every five seconds in this town. “The one from out west—yes.”

“Hmm.” Her lips thin. “I just don’t know about that area, Everly.”

I sigh. She wants me out of the house, yet she doesn’t approve of where I want to live. Typical mother. “It’s perfectly safe.”

“It’s lacking in social activities.”

Trust my mother to think of that. “There’s always downtown.”

Instead of answering me, she turns up the radio and we listen to bluegrass the rest of the way.

After parking in the employee section, we head inside and find my dad at his office, speaking with a guest over the phone. “White, Ford F-150. Yes, ma’am. Give us five minutes.” He hangs up the phone, radios one of the valets with the ticket number, and then grins.

“My two favorite girls in the world.”

“We brought you lunch.”

He stands, giving my mother a kiss on the cheek. “You do spoil me.”

My mother blushes and waves him off. “You do the same to me.”

“Guys, I’m still here.”

My dad snorts. “How do you think you got here, young lady?”

Now I know how Ben felt when Roman and I got all kissy-faced. “Stork?”

My mother touches my arm. “I have a surprise for you.”

“You do?”

“I arranged for you to have a massage in the spa. It’s in about twenty minutes, so why don’t you go on down there and relax in the sauna.”

For no reason at all, other than the fact that her gesture is sweet, I tear up. I hug her. “Thank you.”

She pats my back and then smooths my hair down. “Your father and I have been talking about how stressed you’ve been. So we wanted to help.”

Stepping out of her embrace, I give my dad a quick hug. “I’ll be done by the time you’re ready to go.”

“I’ll be here,” he says and winks at my mother.

I walk the underground path to the spa, passing rocks and flowing water. Every so often a soft sheen of light highlights the passage, until I pass a wishing fountain tucked in the corner. Pennies gleam under the lights in there.

I pause, digging through my pockets, until my hand closes around one. “Score!”

Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath. If I could have any wish come true it would be that Roman comes back to me. That I would open my eyes and he’d be standing in front of me, ready to apologize. He’d take me in his arms and kiss me until I was breathless. Then we’d sneak away and make love until I couldn’t walk straight. Or maybe he couldn’t.

Opening my eyes, I toss the penny into the water. It lands with a small splash, water rippling. Then I turn around and slam my hand over my mouth, stifling my scream.

“Holy crap!”

Roman is standing there, a package under his arm and a determined look on his face. He says nothing, just takes me in with those sexy eyes of his. He looks as he always does in my imagination. Tailored suit, button-down with cuff links, and creased trousers. Black tattoos on his hand. His hair dark and perfectly styled.

My stuffy, starchy bookseller.

“What are you doing here?” I don’t mean to sound so sharp, but I’m torn between excitement and fury. I want to kiss and slap him at the same time.

He holds out his package, and I take it from him. “You forgot your last shipment of books.”

I give him an are-you-kidding look. “You came all the way to Asheville to give me books?”

He nods. “You love books, especially by Zoe Ambrose.”

I place one hand on my hip. “Don’t you mean Romanov?”

A black eyebrow quirks. “Yes.”

“Thanks.” I don’t want to go. I don’t want to leave him, but he’s not making it easy for me to stay with his silence. “Good seeing you.” My heart starts to break again as I move past him.

He catches my arm and I look up at his gorgeous face. “I have more to say to you.”

I swallow down the lump in my throat. “I’m listening.”

“I’m sorry.” He gets down on his knees before me and takes my hand. “I’m sorry for not being the man you deserve. But I would like the chance to be that man. I love you, Everly Andrews.”

“You don’t know how long I’ve waited for you to admit that,” I say, tears in my eyes. It feels like I’ve waited an eternity for the dense man to admit it. “But I don’t know if I can trust you. What if…what if someone needs you to bring the bad guys to justice and you don’t tell me, go off on your own on a business trip, and get hurt? How can I live with that?”

He shakes his head, his eyes pleading. “You won’t have to.”

“You’d be honest and tell me before you go, or take me with you?”

“Neither.”

I yank my hand away. “I’m not doing this. I want all or nothing with you, and if you can’t be—”

His mouth covers mine, giving me a long, hot kiss that makes my toes curl. He pulls away slightly. “I am no longer in the family business.”

“But you said you couldn’t get out. No one can,” I remind him. “You said it wasn’t safe for me.”

“My grandfather says otherwise.”

“What about you?” I search his face. “Can you live without being Nikolai Romanov, Russian assassin?”

“Yes,” he says simply, but it can’t be that simple.

“Why?”

“Because I can’t live without you,” he says softly and I swear my knees turn to jelly. He brushes my hair back. “I can’t live without my sunshine.”