He rolled his eyes, but his lip quirked. “Should I make a duty roster? Relieve the housekeeper for the duration, so you’re not bored?”
“You wouldn’t,” I said, recognizing his teasing tone. I was only glad he was acting normal because it suited my plan, not because I missed our easy conversations. I sighed again, widening my eyes as if I was worried. Not too hard to fake. “Is it safe here?”
“Absolutely,” he said, puffing up his chest, which drew my eyes. “According to my intel, no one even knows we ended up in San Diego. They’re searching up north, and even down in Mexico.” He was very proud and even smug about this, and I relaxed back into the chair.
“So there’s no reason we can’t go out and have a nice day like normal people,” I said. He blinked. I had won. “You could show me this city I’ve never visited before.”
“That does sound fun,” he said, reaching for his phone. “What were you thinking? Art galleries, shopping? Looks like they’re famous for their zoo.”
“No zoo,” I said, pleased at how easily I could twist him around my finger. “I won’t look at other creatures that are locked up.”
With a laugh, he reached over and chucked me under the chin. “Who’s locked up? You were just playing in the water and building a sandcastle.”
“And you were watching me,” I said, not exactly displeased. “Like a warden.”
“Like a man enjoying the view.” To prove his point, he let his eyes make a slow descent down my body, and he was grinning by the time they reached my face again. “I’ll meet you at the front in half an hour. Be prepared for anything.”
It wasn’t just the prospect of a taste of freedom that had me racing back to my room. I was actually looking forward to some time alone with Kon.
“To get him on my side again,” I told myself firmly, grabbing a pretty green sundress from the closet. Along with the loom, more of my clothes had been delivered. I twirled in the mirror, more concerned with my looks than usual, but only because I was on a mission.
Our first stop was a charming place called Seaport Village, which was packed with shops and restaurants. We meandered along walking trails, taking in the views, both natural and manmade. When a trolley passed us, Kon grabbed my hand, and we hurried to find the next stop to jump on, jumping off again to grab some ice cream.
I was having such a nice time, I tucked myself under his outstretched arm without thinking about strategy, and I tipped up my chin for a vanilla-flavored kiss without trying to beguile him. I had almost completely forgotten I had a plan at all after we left, laden down with shopping bags.
If I so much as glanced too long at something, Kon bought it for me, and before we got in the car, he rummaged in one of the smaller bags to bring out a necklace. It was ridiculously expensive with the gold chain and diamonds set around the polished black pearl, and it took my breath away. Sweeping my hair aside, he fastened it around my neck.
Our kiss was long and lingering, and I melted against him, but it was over too soon when he said we had one more thing on the agenda. After about half an hour of trying to guess what kind of restaurant he was taking me to, he remained silent, with a secretive smile on his face.
It wasn’t a restaurant at all, but a lighthouse set high on a hill. We were just skating in under the closing time, but Kon charmed the ticket takers by putting on a heavier accent while wrapping his arm around me.
“We leave for home tomorrow, and it’s the only thing my wife wants to see.”
I played along, and then we were running up the path that seemed to have no end. “This better be worth—”
My complaint was cut off when we finally reached the lookout point. All I could see was the ocean and sky, the coastline spread out below us as far as the eye could see. Kon put his arm around me, and I rested against him as he pointed out Mexico, not so far away.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so beautiful,” I said. getting misty-eyed under the majesty of the vast sea and deepening blue sky.
Kon agreed, but when I turned, he was looking at me. The scene lay out below us was all but forgotten as I got lost in his gray eyes, shining like the new pearl around my neck. A parkranger told us we had to move on, and the spell was broken, both of us bursting into laughter for no reason.
Or maybe just because everything was fine for that teeny tiny second, and it felt good. We held hands the entire way down, our fingers entwining again as soon as we were buckled into the car. He leaned over to kiss me, but I nudged him away with my nose.
“Home,” I said.
His eyes darkened, and he nodded, turning the car back toward the beach house. He had to drop my hand to use the gear shift, but randomly stroked my arm or turned to swipe a lock of hair behind my ear at a stoplight.
“This is taking forever,” I said, making him chuckle, though the set of his jaw told me he was also brimming with impatience.
I shut up and turned to look out the window, shocked at how far I was taking this. Was I really going to sleep with Kon in order to get what I wanted, which was information and cooperation? Was that the kind of person I had become? And if so, didn’t he push me into this with his refusal to believe in Papa’s innocence and his inability to trust me?
I didn’t like thinking I could have become so depraved in such a short time. But it was almost worse how much I wanted him, and that orchestrating getting him into bed might have been the main objective all along.
Chapter 30 - Konstantin
The day out was a risk, but minimal with my enemies looking in all the wrong directions and my discreet guards following us at a distance. It was worth it to see Tati smile, a treat I had gone without for much too long.
Those smiles were like oxygen to me, her laughter a hit of adrenaline. Her touches and kisses were getting more and more necessary, like an addiction, or like life itself. Her eagerness to get home was as cute as it was intoxicating, and as much as I wanted to whisk her straight to bed, I didn’t want this sudden, easy coalition of ours to end.