Monday. Home. Washington, DC.HALEY ATE THE PIECE of pizza, but she barely tasted it or had any idea what was going on in the movie. Thankfully, she wasn't terribly invested in the cartoon.Zasha, on the other hand, was just about asleep. She'd wiggled around and now lay with her head on Konstantin's lap and her legs across Haley's. She was a little surprised Zasha had managed to go to sleep after all the soda the cops had given her over the course of the afternoon and evening."I think she's out," Konstantin said softly."Hm?" Haley glanced down at Zasha. "Wow. I didn't think she'd ever get to sleep.""Could be that stuff Dad gave her." He grimaced.They still didn't know what was in the candy and wouldn't until a toxin report came back. The doctor who'd checked Zasha out hadn't found anything concerning and suggested watching her closely, hydrating and healthy eating. Basically, everything Haley normally did."Yeah, someone is going to bed," Konstantin muttered.He
"Figure this out?" Now Haley felt stupid. What were they talking about? Them? Something else?"I care about you a lot. Selfishly I'm hoping you'll overlook my stupidity and let me try again."Oh, God.Haley swallowed.Her mind took the words, I care about you, and turned them into something more potent, more powerful, something that shook her to her core with possibility.In reality, she still didn't know what he wanted from her.She swallowed to get some moisture back into her mouth, then licked her lips. "What does that mean, exactly? I care about you? I don't think you understand what this job takes out of a person. To you, I'm doing a job. But my job becomes my life. And I care about the work I do. I care about you and Zasha and Ivana-"She blinked a few times.Konstantin winced.Haley covered her mouth with her hand.Ivana was dead.For a few moments Haley had forgotten that.He reached over and took her hand, giving it a squeeze."I knocked on her door e
KONSTANTIN WAS SURPRISED HE'D managed to get this far without sweat pouring off him. He'd faced down board meetings and other high-powered executives alongside congress men and women who had nothing on Haley.Part of him wanted to take those words back, but only a small part that feared Haley leaving. He knew full well that she could feel differently. In fact, he fully expected her to pat him on the head and say it wasn't that serious for her.Instead she stared at him with eyes gone round.Had he sprouted a second head? Or had she come so hard her brains were scrambled?He liked to think he was good at pleasing women, but he didn't think he was that good."I, um... You?" She opened and closed her mouth.He wasn't sure he'd ever seen her at a loss for words."Yeah?" He tucked her hair behind her ear and leaned in a tiny bit.She didn't shy away from him.He kissed her lips, the corner of her mouth. She shoved a hand into his hair. He was beginning to crave that.Hal
A month later...HALEY FIDGETED WITH THE zipper on her jacket.She hadn't brought a man home to meet her family in ages. Maybe since high school. And here she was with not only a man, but a pre-teen girl.Konstantin squeezed her hand, as if he could sense her thoughts.He was annoyingly good at that sort of thing.The problem was her.Everything was just so damn perfect. She couldn't get away from the feeling that it couldn't last. That somehow or someway Konstantin and Zasha would be ripped away from her. But every morning she woke up and there they were."Here you are," the driver of the SUV announced."Wow, hello suburban America. You sure your last name isn't Cleaver?" Konstantin grinned at her."Hush." She pushed his shoulder.Secretly, she cherished moments like this. Konstantin was learning to relax and enjoy life more, and she loved getting to watch him finally live.The next few hours were going to be a gauntlet of questions, starting with the new hous
Volume 2: Just FriendsWednesday. Luxe Ibiza Hostel, Cala Gració, Ibiza.JENNIFER MIRACLE WAS HAVING the worst day. Or stretch of days. She wasn't sure if the sun had set on them in the last thirty or so hours of travel.Her phone vibrated against her thigh like an angry bee. She fully expected it to start stinging her soon. It took every fiber of her being to not groan and slump in the seat. Instead, she grit her teeth and pulled the device out. All it took was glimpsing Mr. Esposito on the display to have her nerves stretched thin.What the hell was she going to do with this situation?Jennifer turned to her ward. Honestly, she should be calling Milan Esposito her client, but the twenty-one-year-old acted suddenly started acting like a child. Hell, Jennifer's job was more about making sure Milan didn't kill herself with her antics than actually guarding her from danger. On the plus side, she did get to see a lot of the world most people didn't. It was a perfect exampl
Wednesday. Luxe Ibiza Hostel, Cala Gració, Ibiza.ORION DOUKAS WALKED BAREFOOT through the lush, manicured grass. Things were still quiet despite the late afternoon hour. According to security, the after party the guests had indulged in had lasted until six or seven this morning. About the time he was getting up.That wasn't uncommon.Ibiza was, after all, Europe's playground. A destination for people who wanted to party, live it up, and forget their mundane lives. He'd spent much of his life here, despite his American citizenship. His parents had been fond of the island and the proximity it gave them to his father's family.He glanced east, toward the old family home. Though he'd been born in New York City and spent much of his early life there, the memories that stayed with him were here. On the island.Following his younger brother's death, he'd sold his parent's home. There just weren't enough good memories to justify keeping the place, what with all the upkeep it need
Wednesday. Zechariah Mizrahi's Party. Sant Antoni de Portmany, Ibiza.THE LIGHTS PULSED IN time to the music. Most of the bodies crammed onto the back patio turned dance floor at least tried to move in time to the beat. Most were too drunk to know what a beat was. Hell, Jennifer had already pulled one drunk girl out of the pool and it was still technically early.That had gotten her a glare from Milan, who likely more concerned about Jennifer's dress than the state of the drunk girls.Every time Milan went out, Jennifer wore a matching or similar outfit. The reason being, Jennifer could be a pretty damn convincing body double in a pinch. Given how many parties Milan went to, Jennifer had run interference on hundreds of creepy guys. She hadn't known this was part of the job when she'd taken the contract. Though she should have wondered at the higher than average salary. She hadn't known at the time that not only was it her skills that had gotten her the job, so had her face, ha
Wednesday. Zechariah Mizrahi's Party. Sant Antoni de Portmany, Ibiza.BAIN COLLIAS CIRCLED THE party, but Milan Esposito had vanished. He should be annoyed. Then again, it wasn't every day his boss sent him to schmooze at some rich guy's house party. Bain could really get used to this. Everything here was free. The booze. The women. The drugs.There wasn't much of the latter that he'd seen. It was early still. The true party crowd likely hadn't arrived yet.Where the hell had Milan gone?He'd thought coming at her straight and telling her he knew about the egg would have gotten a reaction out of her. She didn't strike him as particularly smart. Otherwise, she'd never have stolen what she had. But she hadn't acted as if she knew anything.What the hell?Was it possible the little rich girl was a better thief than they'd realized?Or what if she was just plain stupid?The last one seemed a better option. Maybe she really had thought he was talking about plain old eggs?