The Russian's Secret Child (The Fedosov Family Series) Read Free

Americans, especially women.
    A hulking man named Sergei met her in the foyer and escorted her up to the top floor, directing her to a small office on the opposite side of the building from Misha’s office. Thank goodness!
    She entered the room, and was immediately greeted by two women chattering away in English. A petite brunette and a petite blonde. Both women were gorgeous and dressed in the height of fashion.
    Jasmine cringed to think of how she must look coming in here in holey jeans and a too-tight t-shirt. She had donned a well-worn bomber jacket to help dispel the cold. She resisted the urge to cover herself and strove to portray a confidence she didn’t feel. “Good morning.”
    “Hi.”
    “Welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. I’m Julia,” the brunette told her.
    “And I’m Desiree, but you can call me Desi,” her southern drawl making Jasmine smile.
    “I’m Jasmine. I understand you are both going to be staying in Russia and want to learn the language?”
    Both women nodded their heads eagerly, “Well, why don’t we get to know each other a little better and you can tell me what you already know and then I’ll have a better understanding of how to help you.”
    “That sounds great.” Desi drawled, “I hate not being able to communicate with people. I’m a writer…”
    “ Were a writer. Now you’re a television reporter.”
    Desi made a face at Julia before she continued, “Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted… I hate not being able to communicate with people or read the language. You can teach me to read Cyrillic, can’t you?”
    Jasmine sat down and shook her head ruefully, “Not unless you have lots of time and like being frustrated. Cyrillic is one of the hardest languages to learn to read because it uses characters, not letters.”
    “Well, I’m willing to put in the effort, if you’re willing to teach me. I was thinking that maybe I should get one of the primers the elementary kids use. That would be a good idea, right?”
    Jasmine nodded, “Yeah. Are you wanting to learn to read Cyrillic, too?” she asked Julia.
    “It would be nice to be able to read the street signs and such, so yes.”
    “Okay, well, we’ll need to locate some primers…”
    “I’ll ask Mrs. Rusnik. I bet she knows where to get them,” Julia jumped from her chair, leaving the small office.
    Jasmine turned and looked at Desi, “Who’s Mrs. Rusnik?”
    “She’s the dragon lady that keeps this place running and our men in line. She even keeps Misha in line, which is no easy task. Have you met him yet?”
    Jasmine couldn’t stop the blush that rushed to her cheeks. Had she met Misha? Boy, had she ever and then some!
    Desi watched her new tutor blush and laughed, “I’ll take that as a ‘Yes’.”
    Julia returned, “Mrs. Rusnik said she knew just who to call and they should be here tomorrow.”
    “Great!” Jasmine returned, forcing an enthusiasm into her voice. “So, why don’t we take a walk? You can point out the items you already know the Russian words for, and I’ll teach you a few more.”
    Both women jumped up, “That’s a great idea! Come on; let’s go before the men get back.” Turning to Jasmine, they explained, “They’re just a tad overprotective and if we’re still here when they get back, they’ll want to tag along and that would take all of the fun out of the adventure.”
    By all means. Let’s leave before the men get back just in case Misha is with them! “Sure, let’s go now.”
    The women left the building without incident, not seeing Sergei send one of the security guards to follow them. They walked several blocks, naming things, and places in Russian while Jasmine filled in some they didn’t know. When they returned two hours later, Jasmine declined the invitation to go back upstairs with them and meet their almost-husbands.
    She excused herself, saying she had another appointment and hurried off down the sidewalk. Both women shrugged and