she sucked me off. I was sure He didn’t approve, but maybe He should lower His expectations so we could all be happy. The skirt of a sunflower dress slipped into view, and I sure as fuck knew my imagination wouldn’t come up with floral patterns. Apparently, Mila rose just as early—or she was only up in an effort to find an avenue of escape. I was hardly concerned. Yesterday flooded back: the taste of her mouth and the feel of her body pressed against mine. The only thing that stopped me from fucking her against the shower wall was the intrusive thought I’d tricked her into something her young, volatile hormones couldn’t handle and that her submission wasn’t genuine. I could be generous when I wanted to be. Since then, my decision stuck with me like a bad toothache. There were a million productive things I could be doing right now, but instead, I stood there with the need to see what my pet was up to this early in the morning. When Mila stepped around a tree and into sight, my eyes narrowed before sliding down her body. She was wet and muddy, the luxury fur coat I bought her hanging off one shoulder. At this point, a thrift store would throw it away. If I wasn’t positive I didn’t have any pigs, I’d assume she’d been rolling around in a hog pen. The most ridiculous part of what I saw didn’t have anything to do with her appearance but what she was doing. Yulia entered the room, the familiar swish-swash of her dress sounding. Before she could announce breakfast was ready, I gestured for her to come stand beside me and said in Russian, “Explain this to me.” I could see as clearly as Yulia, but I still needed confirmation. She took a second, tilted her head to view the scene at a different angle, then straightened and crossed her arms. “The girl is climbing a tree with a baby crossbill in her hand. She must be trying to see if it can fly.” I ran a thumb across my bottom lip, which lifted with dry amusement. I knew Mila wasn’t about to drop the baby bird from a tree branch. Rather, it was too young, fell out of its nest, and she was putting it back. “Birds have parasites.” Yulia wrinkled her nose. “And she’d better not bring all that mud in the house.” “Thank you, Yulia. I'll be in for breakfast shortly.” She nodded, quietly pleased she could be of service, and left the room.