Page 81

His hand comes up immediately, brushing against my lips in a gentle shushing motion.

“No need to apologize,” he says softly.

“You were having a nightmare,” he repeats, then pauses. “Do you want to talk about it?”

I shake my head. Because talking about it would mean explaining where it comes from. The past. The things I’ve spent years trying to bury.

And I’m not ready to face all of those yet.

He studies me for a moment, then his expression softens. He reaches out and gently brushes a strand of hair away from my face.

“Whenever you’re ready to talk about it,” he says quietly, “I’m here.”

I swallow hard and give a small nod.

He stays quiet for a moment, then he asks, “Have you seen your family since you got back?”

The question catches me off guard.

I blink at him. “No… why are you asking?”

He shrugs slightly. “Nothing.”

Did I say something in my sleep?

I study his face, trying to read him, but he gives nothing away.

“You never really told me the reason you don’t get along with your family,” he continues after a beat. “Aside from the fact that your stepsister slept with your boyfriend.”

His eyes stay on mine, steady, searching.

“But I have a feeling,” he adds slowly, “that things between you and them were already bad before that.”

He pauses, like he’s waiting for me to fill in the blanks.

I don’t. Another moment passes.

“Your relationship with your father isn’t good either?” he asks.

I swallow.

“No,” I say quietly.

I shake my head, forcing myself to hold his gaze. “I really don’t want to talk about it.”

For a second, I brace myself, expecting that stubborn insistence he usually has when he wants answers.

Without another word, Andrei shifts and lies back down on the bed, then reaches for me, pulling me gently with him until I’m resting against his chest. His arm wraps around me, and his hand begins to move slowly up and down my back in a soothing rhythm.

I’ve never woken up to find Andrei in bed with me.

Most mornings, he’s already gone. He wasn’t back from his talk with Luke before I went to sleep yesterday.

A strange sense of relief settles in my chest. I’m sort of grateful he was here when the nightmare hit. Even if it’s embarrassing that he saw me like that.

I shift slightly against him, resting my cheek on his chest. “How did the talk with Luke go?”

His hand keeps moving along my back. “Luke understands now,” he says calmly. “To stay away from you.”