Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 98075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
I could tell myself I was doing it for trust, or out of worry for my family, but it was a lie. Faced with the sudden decision, my dark connection to Luka had grown too powerful to sever.
“Yes, sir,” I said. “I’m fine.” I squeezed out a tight smile.
It did the trick, because the officer handed the plastic card back to Luka. “You can’t park here. Find somewhere else for your conversation.”
“Yes, of course. Thank you.”
We hurried to the front seat, and as soon as I was buckled, we were off. We rode in total silence until he was back on the freeway and I could breathe again.
His word was gentle. “Why?”
“What?”
“I could be sitting in the back of his squad car right now.”
I watched the reflectors on the guardrails blur past as I assembled my thoughts in my head. “I don’t want that.”
“Why?” He repeated it with more urgency, and perhaps it was tinted with hope.
Because I cared about him. “Because you and I,” I said, taking a deep breath, “are similar creatures.”
He rewarded me with his perfect smile.
π
Goran Markovic’s Christmas Eve party started in less than an hour. I put on my blue dress and finished getting ready, but apprehension bounced around inside me like a dozen pinballs. Luka was in the walk-in closet, his collar up, and he was balancing the ends of his tie when I appeared in the doorway.
“I’m not sure I can do this,” I admitted. His family was criminals, and I wasn’t anxious to meet any more of them.
“Why?” He looped the end of his tie over the other.
“I don’t know. Probably because the last time I saw your father I was naked from the waist down. And, oh yeah, he threatened to kill me and my family.”
“That won’t happen.” Luka slowed to a stop, abandoning his goal, and the tie fell open. He encased me in his arms so his hands were warm against the exposed skin on my back. “That’s over. You’re mine, and they know it. No one would touch you, so don’t even think about them.”
It was hard to do. I had a lifetime of caring about other’s opinions to brush off. His family was going to look down on the poor farm girl who had no business being in their lives.
Of course Luka could read the thoughts going on in my head. “Fuck them, whatever they think. You’re smart, and beautiful, and pure.” His eyes filled with intensity. “They’ll be envious. Maybe even jealous of what you have, but it doesn’t matter, because they’re beneath you, Addison. Every last one of them, including me.”
I squeezed my grip on his shoulders to support myself, and gazed at him with disbelief. He was the most confident person I’d ever met, and he thought I was better than him?
“We make an appearance,” he added, “and then we’re out of there.”
The party was strangely normal. The Markovic family was large, and the main living area was packed with adults talking while kids darted through parents’ legs and stole cookies from the dessert tray before dinner. The nine-foot-tall Christmas tree was decorated exclusively in gold and looked like it belonged in a department store rather than a home. I’d always preferred the trees littered with homemade ornaments in various states of wear. Plus, the gold was gaudy and over the top.
Luka kept his arm around me as we made our rounds. I was introduced to dozens of people, but never spoke unless directly asked a question. Not only was I extremely uncomfortable, but this would speed along our exit.
Vasilije lingered in the kitchen, drinking a beer and talking with two men, one of whom I recognized. Michael, Dimitrije’s bodyguard. Vasilije glanced at his older brother, then to me, and a smile quirked on his lips.
The relationship between brothers was strange. Luka rarely talked about Vasilije. He’d seemed just as envious of his younger brother as I was mine, when it came to being popular and well-liked. But like me, he was also fiercely protective. Vasilije was eager to get involved in the criminal side of the family business, but both Dimitrije and Goran made it clear they wanted Luka to step up. As reluctant as Luka was, I sensed he’d do whatever he could to prolong the inevitable for his brother.
“Hey there, naughty schoolgirl,” Vasilije said. His gaze wandered over my dress, and . . . holy crap, was he checking me out?
I tried to emulate Luka’s confidence. “Hey there, Satan.”
Luka laughed. It was brief, but it was amazing to hear the genuine sound. Vasilije laughed as well, but his was wicked. His expression was lecherous, and instinctively I shifted closer to Luka.
“Her name’s Addison,” Luka said.
“Yeah, I know.” Vasilije’s face melted into boredom. “Dad’s told me all about your wife. I’ll try to keep out of your way.”