Page 91 of The Brigadier

The powerful man lifted his eyebrows, shooting me a look of amusement. I shrugged.

If either one cared the little boy was soaking wet, they certainly didn’t show it. Nikolay crouched down, accepting a wet, sloppy hug and kiss.

I could only admire the jabbering the little boy was engaged in, mostly full sentences being used. Maybe I was coming closer to another lock being disengaged. Why did I have a feeling that could prove more useful now than ever?

I didn’t use the stairs, easily lithe enough to hop out, grabbing a towel from the table. I powered down the rest of my water, realizing it was a little chilly given a couple of clouds had rolled in.

Finally, I walked closer and Nikolay had placed his sunglasses on Damien, who was giggling louder than before. When he lifted his head, staring me in the eyes, I was suddenly icy cold.

I could see in his eyes that I was right.

Something horrible had occurred.

While he’d removed his jacket, I noticed more than a few drops of blood on his shirt as well. Why did I have a feeling there was much more covering him?

“Swimming, huh? You are turning into a far too big of a boy. Maybe I won’t let you do that. I’m going to keep you this size forever.” As he stood, trying to fake a grin, Damien planted his hands on his hips.

“Daddy. Don’t be silly. Little boys my age grow about two to three inches a year. You can’t stop progress.”

I was certain the two of us were going to choke.

“Is that so?” Nikolay finally managed.

“Yep. You need to watch the Discovery channel.” This time, Damien’s statement was chastising.

Which prompted me to slap my hand over my mouth.

Damien was shaking his head as if he was Mr. Know-It-All. It was adorable.

I couldn’t see but I had a feeling the kid was now squinting. When he pointed to Nikolay’s shirt, I sighed.

Blood had soaked into several spots, his trousers too.

“Daddy. What’s this?”

The sexy Russian didn’t miss a beat. “Paint. I accidentally got in the way of someone who was using red paint and he flung his brush. My fault.”

“Silly Daddy. You need to be more careful.”

Nikolay threw me a quick glance and I nodded my approval. Even though I wondered how long it would before his own son would simply be too old to fib to.

Not long at all at this rate.

“Tell you what. Why don’t I get you a little snack, Damien, including one soft drink. One. I’ll get something for your daddy and me.”

He craned his neck so he could look at me. “Tay. Hungry.” He rubbed his tummy and something told me the almost always hungry kid was going to be a very big boy.

Just like his daddy.

“Perfect. Daddy dog. What would you like to drink?”

“My favorite libation. If you can, bring the bottle.”

That meant whatever had occurred had been even more horrific than I originally believed.

My heart fluttered both from hearing his sultry tone and because of what that meant. “You got it.” The one thing that hadn’t been stocked was the outdoor kitchen, which was fine given the circumstances. I wasn’t worried about the men, only the possibility of Damien being too curious as to what was inside the pretty little bottles.

I had so many questions running through my mind, but I squelched them for now, snatching a tray I’d found earlier from the top of the fridge.