Page 123 of The Devil’s Lair

“Are Alice and George’s worst nightmare. Anatoly Volkov, the heir to the Volkov Dynasty, is not a man you want to cross.”

I rub my lips together, then reach for my brandy, needing something to do with my hands. All this should scare me. Instead, it empowers me. I’m a part of this, and nothing and no one can hurt me as long as I’m living in this bubble. After everything I’ve gone through, it’s comforting to know that I’m truly safe.

“I thought Alice was my friend. I trusted her.” I sigh, tracing the rim of the glass with my fingertip. “Yet one more I trusted who turned out to be a bad person.”

Tobias covers my hand, stilling me. “Bad actors take advantage of good people. You trusted me, and I promise, I will never let you down.”

“I know.”

He releases me and sits back. His fingers drum once on the arm of the sofa before he stills them. “Listen… I’ve been thinking. Is it too soon, do you think, for us to talk about moving in together? I don’t want to sleep apart from you anymore, but I understand if it might be too soon for Isla, and for you.”

Heat radiates throughout my chest. After Marcus, I thought I was done with men for good, yet here I am, married and about to move in with my husband.

I set the brandy glass on the coffee table and rest my head on his shoulder. “I think it’s a wonderful idea. I don’t want to sleep without you, either. I want you to be the last thing I see at night and the first thing I wake up to in the morning.”

His shoulders visibly relax. “Probably better if I move in with you. Isla’s had such a lot of upheaval, and she’s just got used to her own room. I don’t want to uproot her.”

A smile tugs at my lips. “See, this is what I love about you. You’re always so thoughtful, especially when it comes to Isla.”

His eyes sparkle. “So, we’re doing this?”

“Yeah, we’re doing this.”

I take in the boxes littering the living room, the clothes piled up on the bed, and groan.

“Hmm, if I’d know you had this much stuff, I’d have thought twice about saying yes to you moving in.”

Tobias slides his arms around my waist and rests his chin on my shoulder. “I told you, the staff will unpack it all. We can take Isla out for a walk, or drive into town and grab a bite to eat, and when we return, it’ll be like it never happened.”

“No.”

I’m not sure why I’ve chosen this hill to die on. I do know I’m still struggling with having staff who will literally do anything they’re asked to. One day, I may get used to it. Today is not that day.

“You hang up your clothes, and I’ll start sorting through these boxes.”

He turns me in his arms. “Are you trying to make an honest man out of me?”

I laugh. “No. I’m showing you what the real world is like.”

He pouts. “Not sure I like this real world you speak of.”

“You’ve had it too easy. Now, scat.” I slide out of his arms and slap his bum. He really does have a great backside.

“Ma’am, yes, ma’am.” He salutes me and saunters off, wiggling his arse.

That’s funny enough, but when Isla toddles after him, imitating his moves, I fall about laughing.

Tobias glances over his shoulder. “I’m being ganged up on.” Swooping Isla into his arms, he kisses the end of her nose. “You’ll help me, won’t you, sweetheart?”

“No.”

I laugh harder. “She’s her mother’s daughter.”

“Hmm.” He puts her down. She follows him, anyway. A few seconds later, I hear them both giggling. My heart doubles in size, and I actually press both my hands against my chest. This is what I dreamed of when I was a kid and thought about having a family. Then I landed myself with Marcus, and surviving each day while protecting Isla as best I could became my sole focus. I never thought I could be this happy.

Kneeling on the floor, I get to work on the first box. My phone buzzes from where I left it on the coffee table. I pick it up, and the happiness slips away like warmth leaving a body in the cold.

Felicity.