Page 67 of The Bratva King

His eyes go to Gabby and Luke. He steps forward. “I’m Pasha,” he says to Gabby.

“Hello. Gabby.”

He crouches in front of Luke. “You must be Luke.”

Luke looks at him. The usual assessment. He doesn’t speak.

“I’m Pasha.” He points at Luke’s shirt. “You like dinosaurs.”

Luke looks down at his shirt.

“It’s a brachiosaurus,” Luke says.

Pasha nods slowly. “I thought it might be a different one.”

“Which one?”

“The one with the long neck and the plates.”

“That’s a stegosaurus.”

“Good to know.” Pasha stands up. “What do you think of the place?” he asks Gabby.

“It’s beautiful,” she replies.

Pasha looks around the space, hands in his pockets. “This room will be the best in the city.”

“I agree,” Gabby says.

Pasha is pretending to be casual. Making small talk. He’s sizing her up. Trying to decide if she might shank me in my sleep. I see the moment he decides she’s safe.

“My daughter is six,” he says. “Mila. She spends her days with my mother. I think she would enjoy hanging out with another kid.”

Gabby blinks. She wasn’t expecting that. “Oh.”

“She’s loud,” he says. “Fair warning. Very loud.” He glances at Luke. “I thought maybe if it wouldn’t be too much, she might come over sometime. If that’s something Luke would be okay with.”

Gabby looks at her son. She’s deciding what Luke can handle. What he needs. Whether the disruption is manageable.

“I think that would be a great idea,” Gabby smiles. “Luke doesn’t spend much time with other kids. He might enjoy it.”

Pasha looks at me. “You should have told her about the playdate earlier.” He looks back at Gabby. “When he told me you two were staying with him, I suggested a playdate, but he didn’t know what that was. Figured it was better to go right to the source.”

She frowns. “Why would he?” she says. “He doesn’t have children. He’s a businessman.”

Pasha stares at her for a moment. Then he looks at me with an expression I don’t know what to do with.

She doesn’t even know she did it. She defended me. To my best friend. The one guy I know would never intentionally try to hurt me. But the little lioness stepped up.

She’s already moved on, walking toward Luke. Luke reaches for her hand without looking. She takes it just as automatically. The two move toward the doorway in perfect sync without even trying.

Pasha leans slightly toward me. “I like her,” he says under his breath.

“Drop it.”

He grins at me. He’s not going to drop it.

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