Chapter 43 No Thanks
Anushka's P.O.V.
I watch Christov with Dakota, and I can forget that he's a mob boss for a minute. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this man being my father. How did Stewart find out, and why did he never say anything? I also have a hitman coming after me.
"Anushka, you have five half-brothers. I'm going to meet with them tonight to tell them about you. You will inherit 25% of my business when Dakota has her fifth birthday." I stop him before he can go on.
"I don't want any part of your business. I'm doing fine, so leave things as they were before you knew about me." I'm positive I want no ties to the Russian mob. That's an extra headache we don't need to deal with.
"I insist. You don't have to be involved in the business. You can just sit back and let your inheritance grow." I shake my head.
"I don't want any affiliation with it or the attention it will bring to my family and me. I don't mind you spending time with us, but as a father and grandfather, no business involved." He sighs and looks at Dakota, who's sitting on his lap.
"Mommy and Daddy are already bosses. I'm going to be a boss when I get big," she smiles at him, and Christov's face softens.
"I know you're going to be a great boss one day. You're already smarter than most of the people who work for me." Dakota tilts her head to the side.
"Does everybody who works for you talk funny like that?" she asks him. Christov chuckles lightly.
"Yes, most of them do. Your uncles are more American, so their accents are barely noticeable." I frown while I listen to them. I have five brothers who may want to kill me as much as the hitman. This gets better and better.
"Chrissy, do you have kids at your house?" Jordan and I try not to laugh when she calls him Chrissy. I look at his men and notice they are trying hard not to laugh, too. I can only imagine what he would do to someone else calling him by that name.
"Can you call me Grandpa?" he asks her. Dakota squints her eyes at him.
"Do you have kids at your house, Grandpa Chrissy?" Jordan and I laugh out loud while Christov shakes his head.
"One of your uncles has a son, but he doesn't live around here, so I never get to see him. When your mommy feels better, I would like you to visit my house." He looks at me, and Dakota does, too.
"Can we visit Grandpa Chrissy?" she asks, raising her eyebrows at me. I like it better when she does that to other people.
"Maybe once I can get around without the wheelchair," I reply. Christov smiles and nods.
"I need to go so I can have a talk with your brothers. I'm leaving a few of my men here to assist the ones you already have. We will work on finding Cyrus." He gets off the floor and lifts Dakota in his arms.
"I would argue we don't need anyone extra, but I'm not taking any chances with their lives," Jordan tells him.
"How do you think your sons will react when they find out about me?" I ask Christov. He sighs and looks thoughtful.
"I think a couple of them won't care one way or another. One will probably want to meet you as soon as possible. He's a lot like you and would prefer not to be part of the business. I'm not sure about the other two, but trust me, none of them will hurt you." The fact that he has even a slight concern that my brothers would hurt me makes me fear all of them.
"What are their names?" I feel like I should at least know that if they're going to know about me.
"Yegor, Victor, Yurkov, Zakhar, and Kozar. Kozar is the youngest and only about a year older than you. He's the one I think will want to meet you and the only one I would trust to come here, but I'll let that be your decision," he replies. I went to college with a Kozar, what a coincidence.
"Can I call him Uncle Kozy?" Dakota asks. Christov laughs and nods.
"Yes, please let me be here when you meet him for the first time. I would love to see his reaction to you." He kisses her cheek, puts her down, and hands me a card with a phone number. "We're going to leave. Please call me if you need anything."
"I will. Despite the rocky beginning, I'm glad you came. Thank you." Christov kisses my head and pats my shoulder.
"My only regret is not finding out about you sooner. Oh, is there anyone else we need to be concerned about?" He asks. I look up at Jordan.
"There is a man who works for me that I just found out killed my mother when I was nineteen. I don't know what his plan is, but I know it can't be good." I know Jordan isn't comfortable telling Christov about Gregory. However, we already know what he's capable of. Jordan gives him Gregory's information.
"We will work on getting him, too. Jordan, I'm sorry for the way I came in here. I can tell you love Anushka just as much as I loved her mother. You're a good man." He shakes Jordan's hand.
"We will talk soon. Dakota, can I call you?" My heart melts a little when he squats in front of her, asking if he can call her. She puts her hands on his cheeks and looks into his eyes.
"I guess, but I don't want any guns next time you come over." Christov smiles.
"Deal, little boss lady." He hugs her and kisses her forehead before standing back up. They leave a minute later, and I feel like I can breathe a little easier. Dakota runs to her room to get Courtney and the kids. I don't know how I feel about this new development. It could be good to have someone like Christov on our side. At the same time, it puts a lot more targets on our backs. We'll just have to take it one day at a time.