- And how do you like my daughter? She looks like me? - I hide behind the facade of the house, brazenly eavesdropping on the conversation.

Oleg freezes in place for some time, delaying in answering, and I ask all the saints to have mercy on me, and my father did not find out about anything.

“No, it doesn’t look like it,” Oleg answers briefly, and I sigh with relief. “I didn’t know you had such an adult daughter.

“Only she looks like an adult,” my father grins, and I can still feel the wry smile on the man’s face.

The conversation about me does not continue. The men switch to work and I leave my hiding place. I go up to the second floor. Once in the bedroom, I take off my wet swimsuit. I blot the moisture on my skin with a soft towel and hastily put on a light sundress that barely covers my buttocks. I go back to the pool to pick up my phone, but I still can't find it.

“Maria Konstantinovna,” Raisa calls, and I almost startle in surprise. - Konstantin Vladimirovich is waiting for you in the gazebo.

Thanks, Raisa.

I approach the gazebo, but for a long time I do not dare to go inside. To meet face to face with Oleg after everything is such a prospect. I gather my courage, mentally count to ten and go into the gazebo. The men sit at the table facing each other. Father immediately notices my presence and smiles, and Oleg turns around at my voice and seems to hold his breath when I head to their table.

- Well, hello, Mouse!

“Hi, dad,” my father rises to his feet to hug, and I put my finger to my lips, urging Oleg not to say anything.

- How did you get there? Max met you?

“Met it,” I sigh, remembering the pompous jerk.

- Now let's have lunch. Stay with us.

“Thank you, but I don’t want to disturb you,” I look around at the pile of papers lying on the table with a dull look.

- Well, what are you, Mashenka, stay. You do not interfere with us at all, but on the contrary. - Oleg intervenes in our dialogue and pushes a wicker chair next to him, inviting to sit down.

- Oleg is talking business, stay, Mouse. - Raisa appears from around the corner, carrying a large tray of dishes in her hands.

Under the onslaught of the views of two men, I am forced to stay. True, I do not dare to sit next to Oleg. It was much safer to be at the opposite end from him, she became next to her father.

We dine in silence. I hardly prick meat on a fork and bring it to my mouth. Oleg does not take me out of his eyes. He looks furtively and quickly, clinging with a sharp look to his lips and chest. I flare up when cutlery falls on the floor and Oleg and I simultaneously squat down to pick it up.

“Thank you.” My throat scratches from the inside like shards of glass, so my voice sounds too fake.

Before rising to his feet, Oleg furtively runs his finger along my cheekbone, and then stops it on my lower lip. I look at him with a hazy look while he squints his eyes. Oleg is the first to rise and sit on a chair, as if nothing had happened the day before. I can not boast of excellent endurance. I'm just torn apart by the surging emotions.

- Mouse, are you tangled in a dress? The Beast's sarcasm makes me jump to my feet abruptly.

- No, - silently, I sink into a chair and continue to pick meat with a fork.

- Oleg, let's sit at home this weekend? You will bring your blockhead, and we will introduce them to Mashka closer. You look, and we’ll become grandfathers in a couple of three years, - my father looks expectantly at Oleg, and I notice how his jaws are shaking on his face.

Oleg noisily throws cutlery on the table and reaches for a glass of water. He drinks it in one gulp, and then loosens the collar of his shirt. He unties his tie and pulls it off his neck in one tug.

“That's not a very good idea,” Oleg finally replies.

- Why? – I am watching the conversation of two adult men, not having time to look from one to the other. - Do you think Masha is too good for your offspring? I agree. She's too good for anyone.

My father bursts into resounding laughter, winking slyly at me, and Oleg clenches his fists in anger, trying not to look in my direction.

- And how old are you, Oleg? - I muster up the courage to look at Oleg's gloomy expression and expectantly waiting for an answer.

- Thirty seven. - Answers the father. - What is it that interests you so much, Mouse?

I blush to the tips of my ears. A shiver runs through my body and it becomes difficult for me to breathe, as if the air has become somehow poisonous. My father notices my eloquent reaction, so he touches my shoulder, and I jump on the spot in surprise.

- Masha? Are you okay? - I nod my head approvingly, swallowing a lump in my throat, but this does not calm my father. - You're overheated, right?

The beast presses the back of his hand to my forehead and then heaves a sigh of relief. There is tension at the table. Oleg and I try not to look at each other, but my father does the opposite. He shifts his surprised look from me to his friend, not understanding anything.

- Did I miss something? - Finally, the father says, breaking the protracted silence.

- I will go. Affairs in the city. Sorry, Kostyan, we’ll finish another time, - Oleg takes off and, silently, leaves, and my father and I are left alone.

I bite my lips and squeeze the hem of my sundress with my fingers, anticipating something bad. The beast pretends to be calm as adrenaline rushes through my blood.

Masha, do you want to tell me something?

What should I tell you, dad? - I draw out in a hoarse voice, continuing to tremble under the stern look of my father.

– What happened here now? Do you know Oleg?

- Not!

- Yes, Masha. Yes! Hell!!! - The beast slams his fist on the table with a swing, touching the dishes, causing them to fall to the floor and break into small fragments. “Were you in the pool with him when I arrived?” Yes?

I nod my head, but apparently not very convincingly. My father grabs my hand, squeezing his fingers painfully on my bicep. Under the onslaught of his gaze, I mentally level with the ground.

- If I find out that there was something between you, then I’ll blow your head to hell and Oleg. Understood? Mouse, do not try to play adult games. Oleg is my business partner and good friend, and you are completely green. You will break your teeth in this game, my girl.

“Dad, you misunderstood everything.” I try to unclench my father’s grip on my hand, but it’s useless. I'm not interested in your friend. He's old!

“Old man,” my father snorts, letting go of my hand. - So remember this, Mouse. I didn't raise my only daughter for this, so that some kind of horseradish would be approved at your expense.