Painted Scars (Perfectly Imperfect, #1)(14)
“The library, the lounge, dining room, both downstairs bathrooms, the basement, armory as well.
Varya bugged the kitchen and the pantry for me. That’s it.”
“The cars?”
“All except Leonid’s, Mikhail’s, and Sergei’s.”
“You don’t have to bug Sergei’s car. If he had been the one who set up that bomb, I would have been dead. Together with the whole damn block probably. It’s not Mikhail either.” I tap my finger on the desk, thinking. “Have Valentina place a bug in Leonid’s room and the office.”
“Valentina?”
“Why not? She can be trusted.”
He shakes his head. “Well, let me put it this way. Last night, Nina was sitting on your lap, with her hair in disarray, barefoot, clutching her arm around your neck as you were groping her leg under her dress. Your shirt was unbuttoned, and you were kissing her like a man possessed,” Maxim says and raises his eyebrows at me. “The whole staff knew every single detail the moment Valentina rushed back to the kitchen, as well as her conclusion that you two are soul mates and will have beautiful babies soon. She’s loyal, but her tongue is a mile long. There is no way she can keep her mouth shut even if her life depended on it.”
“Fucking great.” I take a deep breath and look at the ceiling. Is there anyone in this household who is even remotely sane?
“We should get Nina to do it. The staff or the men still haven’t met her, and if you instruct her to pose like a giggly, simple-minded idiot, no one will pay attention to what she’s doing.”
“I would never marry a giggly simple-minded idiot, Maxim. Everyone knows that.”
“Of course, you would. You are a man possessed, remember?”
I close my eyes and shake my head in irritation. One of these days, I’m going to strangle Valentina.
“That’s settled then.” Maxim straightens his jacket, puts his glasses on, and turns to leave. “Let me know when you want me to come and explain the procedure to Nina.”
*
When I get back to my suite in the east wing, I don’t see Nina anywhere–not in the kitchen or the living room–so I head to her room, which I find empty as well. For a moment I think she changed her mind and somehow got away. I turn my wheelchair, planning on raising the alarm, when I notice her, and the pressure I didn’t realize was gripping my chest vanishes.
She is sitting cross-legged in the furthest corner of the library with her back to the bookshelf, a bunch of paper towels spread on the floor around her. I wheel myself across the living room, stop a few paces away, and watch. She’s sketching something on one of the paper towels. It’s very basic, but I can see the shape of a woman holding something in front of her. Most of the other paper towels scattered around bear similar compositions, some just unrecognizable lines, others more detailed. I couldn’t have been gone more than an hour. How did she manage to do all that in such a short time?
“Can you send someone to my place to bring my stuff?” Nina asks without removing her eyes from the drawing. “There are three large boxes in the living room. Tell them to be careful, my canvases and paints are inside.”
“When do you need them?”
“Yesterday. Since I’m stuck here, I better do something useful with my time. I have the exhibition in three weeks, and I only have six pieces done. I need nine more, as well as the big guy.”
“The big guy?”
“My main piece. I ordered the canvas for that one, it’ll arrive next week.”
I watch her work a few more minutes, noticing the way she narrows her eyes on some detail from time to time, or how she cocks her head to the side and bites her cheek when she is thinking. Her hair is a mess of tangled strands which she collected at the top of her head and fixed there with a pencil.
Such a strange creature. So different from the women I’m used to spending my time with. It’s refreshing, and dangerously alluring.
“I need to talk to you, when you are done,” I say when I manage to take my eyes off her. “I’ll be in the living room.”
“Yup.” She places the finished sketch on the side, takes the last unused paper towel, and starts drawing on it.
It looks like I’m being dismissed.
After making a trip to my bedroom to grab the laptop I keep there, I transfer myself to the sofa and turn on the news. I prop my right leg on the table in front of me, open the laptop in my lap, and start going through the emails. I’m almost done when Nina drops down next to me and yawns.
“Sorry, I got carried away. What did you want to talk about?”
I close the laptop and turn to face her. “I need you to do something for me while you’re here.”
“Like vacuum and dust?” She scrunches her nose. “I don’t remember agreeing to that. Ironing is okay, dusting as well, but I hate vacuuming.”
“To place some bugs here in the house, without anyone noticing.”
She looks at me with a mix of confusion and disgust on her face, so it seems I have to clarify.
“Listening devices. Not insects.”
“That is a really strange request, Mr. Petrov. Care to elaborate?”
“It’s Roman from now on. Please make sure you don’t slip when someone is around.”
“I won’t slip, Roman.” She smiles and winks at me. She fucking winks at me.