Page 61 of Unruly

Cross laughed dryly. “I know them enough to stay away.”

Zeke cringed.

“Then you probably know you will not work very much out with them, no?”

“It’ll be handled.”

That was all he could offer the woman.

Cross took a seat on the couch across from Katya. “Tell me about you, Katya.”

Her wary eyes glanced between Cross and Zeke.

“Why?”

“Because the more I like you, the less likely I am to hand you back over when the threats start coming in.”

Katya swallowed hard. “I—”

“Cross,” Zeke said quietly.

He held up a single hand, silencing his friend. “Keep in mind, Zeke, it was you who introduced issues into our famiglia, not me. It was you who put my family in danger without even considering my wife or child. You, not me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I know you are.”

And he did know.

It still didn’t make it better.

Cross gave his attention to Katya once more. “Start talking.”

Catherine stared hard at the wall while Cross went over the details with his father about Zeke and the man’s … wife. He continued to have to remind himself that’s what Katya was to Zeke. A wife. A made man’s wife.

As pissed off as he was about the shit storm they were about to face because of Zeke’s choices, Katya was still the man’s wife.

That meant something important.

Calisto scrubbed a hand down his jaw, and the office chair squeaked when he leaned further back. “Well, this is quite the … situation.”

“Right?” Cross shook his head. “A fucking mess, that’s what it is.”

“And that,” his father agreed.

“So what,” Catherine said from beside Cross, “we just play dumb and wait for the Russians to throw a fit about all of this?”

She was not happy.

She felt unsafe.

Cross understood entirely.

“No,” he said quietly. “I’m going to reach out and put some feelers before I make any decisions.”

“So yes, wait.”

“Catty—”