Page 66 of Drop Pass

We ate and once Elena was finished, she reached under the table and took my hand in hers. I squeezed it while talking to Hartman. It felt good being with her. Normally at these events I tried to avoid her and pretend I didn’t feel anything every time I saw her. It was nice not fighting it anymore.

“Everyone, let’s move to the living room.” Reese called out. Slowly, people made their way over to where the furniture was rearranged in a circle. Several extra chairs were set up and I found a spot for me and Elena next to Derrek.

He nodded once at me then waved to Elena. “Hey how’s it going?”

She smiled. “Good. Are you on your own tonight?”

He shrugged. “Always.”

I almost felt bad for the kid, but knowing how often he put his foot in his mouth around the guys I figured he was even worse around women. He needed to do a bit more growing up.

“Okay, here are the rules. All the gifts go in the middle. We’ll go around in a circle twice. You can either open a new gift or steal. Each gift can only be stolen twice before it’s locked. Got it?” Reese explained then looked around the circle for confirmation. Everyone agreed before he sat down.

“We’re going to start with our captain,” Chloe said with a wicked grin.

Hartman groaned. “I always start and end up having everything stolen from me.”

Chloe shrugged. “Toughen up, big guy.”

Kendall giggled as Hartman stood and grabbed the closest present. He unwrapped it and smiled. “Nice.” He held up a box of golf balls. I didn’t know much about the sport, but Derrek whistled next to me.

“I might have to steal those.” He said with a teasing voice.

Hartman shot him a glare as Kendall stood.

The game continued through the group then my phone vibrated.

It was a text from John. I opened it and read through it quickly. I gasped and reread the message to make sure I wasn’t going crazy.

Elena leaned over. “What’s wrong?”

I held the phone so she could read it. Her eyes met mine, shining with unshed tears. “Oh Nikolay.”

She jumped up and wrapped her arms around my neck. I put my hands on her waist and pulled her to my lap, holding her tight against me. Wetness touched my cheek but I couldn’t tell if they were her tears or mine.

Derrek looked over with a concerned expression. “What’s going on?”

I shook my head, but we had everyone’s attention now. I cleared my throat. “The visas for Yula and my mama went through. They’ll be here in three days.”

The room cheered. Saying the words out loud made them sink in. They were coming. Elena pulled back, wiping her eyes. “I can’t believe it.”

I nodded, still in shock. “John sent me their flight information. They’re really coming.”

She beamed and Chloe stood up. “I’ll let the doctors know.”

“Thank you.” I looked around the room. “Thank you, guys, for all your help.”

There were nods and shouts of congratulations. I rubbed my face and smiled at Elena. “Thank you. I couldn’t have done this without you.”

She smiled and kissed my cheek. “We’re going to get her better, Nikolay. I promise. And we’ll get Tiana and Samara here soon too.”

I nodded and rested my forehead against hers. The weight that had been crushing my chest for the past few weeks was finally lifting. I could breathe again.

21

Elena

It was Christmas morning and I woke up like a giddy child. I kicked off my blankets and hurried to the kitchen. Last week, before we decided to give things a try, I decided I was going to make blini, Russian pancakes, for Nikolay.