His (Ties That Bind 2)

“I like your hair better like this. I like red.”

“Me too, sweetheart. Me too.” I kiss him on the top of his head and hold him for a long time. I think he’s going to fall asleep, and just when I think I might, too, he stirs.

“Time for cake?” he asks.

26

Lev

“I know you’re a proud man.” Gleb studies me from across the table. “I know you’d do what it takes to make sure your family is comfortable.”

“Always.” A dark cloud lingers above me as I consider everything that’s happened over the past year.

“I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that I’m a proud man too.” Gleb smiles, and we both chuckle. “I haven’t had anyone in my life for a long time. But for the first time, I have a family in Kat, Josh, and you. And I like to take care of my family too. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about how we can make this work.”

“I’m open to suggestions,” I say, “as long as we’re both on the same page.”

Gleb nods. “I’ve already spoken to Maxim. He wants to stay in New York. He’s going to do some work for me at the club. Nothing too strenuous, but I thought it would be something to keep him busy.”

“If he’s happy with that, then I am too.”

“Good.” Gleb reaches into his pocket and retrieves something, but I can’t see what it is. “As for Kat, well she hasn’t said one way or the other what she wants to do.”

“We haven’t really gotten to that part yet,” I admit. “We’ve just been trying to make sure she makes a full recovery before we commit to anything.”

“I have an option.” Gleb slides whatever’s in his palm across the table, and when he lets go, it becomes apparent it’s a set of keys. “I don’t want a thank you. I don’t want anything. I just want you to accept this without being too proud to tell me you can take care of your family on your own, or whatever you’re about to say. I’m an old man, and I have everything I need already. So, if I can do this for my daughter, it would give me peace of mind.”

“What is it?” I pluck the key ring from the table to examine it.

“It’s a house in upstate New York,” he explains. “And when I say house, I mean it’s a fucking fortress. There’s a lot of acreage, and it’s very secure. A good place for Josh to grow up. Your name won’t ever be on any of the papers. Neither will Kat’s. As far as anyone is concerned, it belongs to a shell corporation that isn’t associated with any of us. It’s the safest place you’re ever going to get, and I just want you to tell me you’ll take it.”

I look into the old man’s eyes, and despite the brash quality of his voice, I can see how much this means to him. And I know he’s right. There probably isn’t anywhere else in the world that would ever be as safe as something he chose. He’s a man who worked his way to the top of the Russian syndicate and managed to stay alive all these years because he’s smart and careful.

“There’s one other thing,” he adds. “Something else to consider. This won’t hurt my feelings either way if you say yes or no. But there’s a guy up that way who has some contacts with local businesses. If you’re looking to go legit, he can likely get you on one of the crews. But I have my doubts that a man such as yourself is going to want to take orders from some pimply-faced manager who has a god complex.”

“Yeah.” A smile curves my lips. “I don’t think that’s going to happen, but I have a plan and some seed money. I’m going to see what I can do with it.”

Gleb folds his hands and dips his head. “Alright. So, what do you think about the house then?”

I fiddle with the keys in my hand and shrug. “I’m open to it. But I have to talk to Kat first. Maybe take them up there to see it.”

“I suspected as much,” he says. “We can all go up tomorrow. Tonight, I’m going to have a few drinks and relax. That kid of yours is hard to keep up with.”

* * *

“Holy crap,” Kat whispers to herself as we get out of the car and stare up at the house that Gleb described as cozy on our drive up to Cooperstown.

Gleb is watching his daughter carefully, and he’s trying not to let her see his nerves. But he wants her to like it. He wants both of us to like it.

“Lev mentioned you like log cabins,” Gleb says.

Kat blinks at me. “Yeah, but this place could eat my log cabin for breakfast.”