Whispers

Windy meant kites. Made it silly. Sorry.

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“What?”

Zoya grimaced. She'd made that awful noise that passed for her laughter, hadn't meant to, but Alexei seemed to get that out of her more than most people did, far more than she liked. She looked at him, and he gestured with his hand, telling her to go on.

She shrugged. “You were singing Disney.”

“So?”

She mimicked a helpless look. “So I never thought you would be singing Disney of all things. Where's the traditional Russian lullaby?”

He gave her a look that was half-glare, half something else. “My mother was deaf. She didn't learn to sign until she got to the states. She didn't learn any Russian lullabies. She doesn't know Russian. No one bothered to teach her. To their minds, she was good for cooking and little else. That's what she learned, what she taught us. I don't know Russian or lullabies in it. I do, however, know Disney.”

“And you want to go fly a kite?”

“Up to the highest height and send it soaring,” Alexei agreed, taking her hand without thinking in that way he always did even though he knew she didn't like being touched. “Look at that wind. Perfect for flying a kite. Coming with me?”

“You're nuts.”

“Khrystyn will be so jealous that she had to work.”

“I am not flying a kite.”

“Will you at least paint mine? Just a small thing, make it pretty? You're good at that.”

Zoya rolled her eyes. “There is something wrong with you.”

“If you don't paint my kite, I'm going to have to commandeer you for a musical number.”

“Ridiculous,” she mouthed because he still had her hand, but he just grinned and pulled her into an impromptu dance while singing the song, and she didn't know if she wanted to laugh or curse this day for being windy. She knew one thing for sure—she was lucky Khrystyn was working right now.