Page 134 of Caged

But, I trust Mikhail’s judgment more than anything.

For now, I’m happy living in my bubble for a little while longer. We have Jax and Sofia coming over soon so we can meet Maverick, their new baby boy.

It makes me think about the possibility of expanding our family. And the thought of Mila being pregnant with my child gets me all kinds of turned on.

“Come on little one, time for bed.”

“One more song?” Elena pouts at Mila. But, Mila herds her toward the stairs, sneaking a look in my direction.

Elena has been helping Mila with cleaning, by singing and dancing to her. It’s cute to watch.

“How about, I braid your hair so when you wake up in the morning you have the most beautiful curls?”

Elena’s eyes light up and she squeals, darting up toward her room.

I chuckle as Mila saunters toward me, clearly pleased with herself.

She should be.

She loves my daughter as fiercely as her own mother did.

A sharp pang shoots through my chest, enough to have me stumbling backward.

“Niki, what’s the matter?”

Her face fills with concern as she stops in front of me, framing my cheeks with her hands.

I can’t fucking believe this.

I shake my head and she taps my cheek.

“What’s the date?” I ask, my voice hoarse. Maybe I’ve got it wrong. No.

“September 14th last time I looked. Why?”

“Katerina. Fuck,” I hiss, backing away from Mila.

The guilt eats away at me.

How could I forget?

I can see her face in my mind, but I haven’t seen this since I fell for Mila. I let the memory of my wife die.

There’s a tug on the back of my shirt. As I look up, Mila is standing over me with a frown.

“Talk. Now.”

Running my hand over my face, I let out a slow breath.

“I forgot her birthday.”

Mila’s eyes go wide. “What, Elena’s?”

She taps my bicep and shoots me a glare as I shake my head.

“Niet. Katerina. My wife.”

Mila’s face softens, as she brushes my stubble with her thumb. “You didn’t forget. It’s still her birthday, right this second, isn’t it?”