“Security detail?” I asked in disbelief.
Alex had been shadowing us for weeks before Richard had shown up in my life. Thinking the Bratva was after me had taken years off my life.
Alex shrugged at the glower on my face. “Talk to the boss.”
“Speaking of our father,” Maverik interjected. “If he told you to put us right back on a plane to Washington, we’re going to have a problem.”
Alex laughed, but his eyes darkened at Maverik’s underlying threat. “My orders are to escort you to a hotel and make sure you don’t leave the suite.”
Kingston waved his hand dramatically. “Lead the way, my friend.”
I opened my mouth to object, but Kingston gave my arm a squeeze. “Trust Mav on this - he knows what he’s doing.”
We followed Alex to the car in silence, but I couldn’t get in the car without asking more questions. I wasn’t in a trusting mood.
“Where are you taking us?” I asked.
“To a secure location,” Alex said professionally.
“Probably the Four Seasons,” Maverik said without looking up from his phone. “Dad has an agreement with them, and their staff is highly trained on how to keep their mouths shut.”
“Then what?” I asked impatiently.
“Just get in the car, Katya,” Maverik said with a roll of his eyes.
“Let’s go, Kitty Kat,” Kingston called to me cheerfully as he hung out of the car. “Dad probably plans on coming out here since he didn’t tell Alex to force us back on a plane.”
I grumbled to myself, but let Maverik nudge me into a seat between him and Kingston. I stewed in my own thoughts as Alex drove us to our next destination. I planned to surprise Ryan when I got to New York, but now I was worried he wouldn’t come to the hotel to see me if I were trapped there. If we were face to face, I know he’d break down, and we’d have a real conversation. I couldn’t do this over the phone.
“I texted him,” Maverik told me as I gnawed on my lower lip.
“Who?” I asked in surprise.
Maverik shrugged. “Ryan’s going to meet us at the hotel.”
I was flabbergasted. “Just like that?”
How did Maverik always seem to be one step ahead of me? And how did he know I was thinking about Ryan?
A corner of Maverik’s mouth twitched in an almost-smile. “That’s how Wilders do things.”
I rolled my eyes at his arrogance, but I was also relieved. This trip wouldn’t be wasted. I’d get to see Ryan, and I’d have a chance to fix our relationship. I needed to make sure Ryan genuinely wanted to make all of these changes in his life, and he wasn’t just sabotaging himself while in a Kamikaze depression. Even though it seemed Maverik might be helping me, I still didn’t trust him.
“You were expecting Alex, weren’t you?” I asked Maverik. “You weren’t surprised to see him at all.”
Maverik gave me a blank look.
“That’s why you let Kingston get the first-class tickets,” I pressed. “Because you knew it would flag your father, and he’d immediately send someone to come get us.”
“Why would I do that?” Maverik asked as he held my gaze steadily.
“I don’t know,” I admitted in frustration. “Because you didn’t want to come, but you didn’t want to be the one to stop me?”
He didn’t want to go to New York, but then he drove me to the airport. He let Kingston buy first-class tickets, even though he knew it would get us caught. Yet, when Alex met us at the airport, Maverik made it clear we weren’t leaving New York without a fight. Nothing Maverik did made sense to me, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was missing something important. Somehow, I’d played right into Maverik’s hands. What was he up to?
Maverik casually shrugged as if he didn’t care what I thought. “Looks like we’re at the hotel.”
“I really want to strangle your brother,” I complained to Kingston.
Kingston yawned. “Mav wouldn’t set you up without a good reason.”
“Us,” I reminded him. “You’re going to be in trouble, too.”
“That’s right,” Kingston said with a grin. “We’re a team now.”
Maverik gave me a sharp look at Kingston’s statement. I stared at him in challenge, but he didn’t say a word. He held my gaze for a second, then picked up his phone as if I weren’t worth his attention.
I threw myself back in my seat. “Now I want to strangle you both,” I said irritably. “Don’t you take anything seriously?”
“Nope,” Kingston said without any shame whatsoever. “Taking life seriously is no fun. Just relax and enjoy the ride, Kitty Kat.”
Alex opened the car door and gestured for us to get out.
“We should get the Gotham suite this time,” Kingston said brightly before hopping out of the vehicle.
Maverik deigned to give me his attention again, but if I didn’t know better, I’d swear those grey eyes had a tinge of sadness to them. “King’s right, enjoy it while you can.”
He motioned for me to get out before him, and I didn’t argue. Babulya’s death had shown me that anyone could be taken from you without warning. If you didn’t treasure what you had in the moment, it could all be ripped away.
Chapter 31
Katya
I combed my fingers nervously through my hair and stared at myself in the mirror. I had been determined to get here by any means, but I hadn’t thought about what I would say to Ryan. I knew our relationship was a mess right now, but merely standing in a room together wouldn’t automatically fix it. We were going to have to work through our problems, and I would have to convince Ryan that he didn’t need to cut me out of his life.
Alex dropped us off
