13. Lily
CHAPTER 13
LILY
I always knew they’d be back, that I would have to pay for my family’s retaliation against them.
Nico wasn’t being his normally overly protective self for no reason. He suspected something was about to happen, although I seriously doubt he thought the enemy would open fire on me outside of a Vegas nightclub.
But that’s the thing about this life.
Enemies always seem to strike when you least expect them, when you’re complacent, when you forget that they’re lurking.
That’s when the hits hurt the most, because you didn’t see them coming in enough time to avoid getting bullet-torn.
I was lucky this time…
I close my fingers tight around the steering wheel, staring straight ahead at the bunch of drunks stumbling down the strip like there wasn’t just a drive-by at one of the hottest clubs in the city. They’re just walking in oblivion with their blue and red yard-stick cocktails in hand, unfazed and unaware.
There’s the whole bliss thing I missed out on in my own life.
With a quick look in the rearview mirror, I see one of Zeno’s friends with his arm around Chloe. She’s starched and about ready to pass out despite the fact that we literally just dodged a slew of bullets.
And death.
“I didn’t get a chance to s-say goodnight to my friends-s,” she slurs, her head draped on the friend’s shoulder. “And then we almost got s-shot.” She giggles. “S-shot. Yes-s, I’d like another, pleas-se.”
“I think you’ve had enough for tonight,” I say through clenched teeth. “I’m going to take you home right now, okay?”
“But I haven’t even hooked up yet,” she says, tilting her head backward and staring at Zeno’s friend. “Hey, what about you? What kind of job do you have?”
I roll my eyes and Zeno presses a hand to his forehead. “Is she for real?” he mutters.
“For better or worse, yes,” I murmur.
“What’s-s your name?” Chloe asks him.
“It’s Bruno,” he says.
“Bruno,” she muses. “I had a dog named Bruno once.”
The other guy next to them in the backseat lets out a loud chuckle.
“Chloe, why don’t you just close your eyes for a little while until we get home?” I say, taking a sharp right in the direction of Chloe’s apartment.
“You know, you’re my best friend, Lily, and I love you,” Chloe says, her head falling into Bruno’s lap. “Even if you wouldn’t hook me up with your brother.”
My brother.
Shit, I need to get in touch with him and my parents.
If this attack isn’t just some random occurrence of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and I can’t believe that it was, then I’m not the only one who’s at risk. Nobody in my family is safe. Neither are the Severinovs. Our enemies don’t just believe in an eye for an eye. They go for the whole body and then ravage it, limb by limb, leaving a giant bloody carcass in their wake.
Charming thoughts to top off this horrific night.
“Are you going to tell me—?” Zeno starts, but I put up my hand, shaking my head.
“No questions, okay?” I snap. “I’m going to drive my friend home and put her to bed. Then, I have to figure out where the hell I can go to hide out until I decide what to do next.”
“What makes you think that drive-by was directed at you?” he mutters, turning up the stereo volume and raising the bass.
I open my mouth to reply and then my brow furrows. “Why do you say that?”
“I think there’s a possibility we might have gotten caught in each other’s crosshairs,” he says, raking a hand through his thick hair.
“So someone wants you dead, too?”
He shrugs. “Someone always wants me dead.”
“This isn’t a joke,” I whisper-shout.
“Yeah, no shit,” he mumbles. “Look, until we figure out what the hell is happening, you shouldn’t be alone anywhere.”
“Well, since I have no family here, and my only friend is obliterated beyond belief, I think I’ll have to take my chances. I can go to the animal shelter until morning and then figure this all out.” Nobody will look for me there, and I’d wanted to check on Vito, anyway. Then I can call Kat. She’ll know what to do. I let out a deep breath. Everything will be fine. I can take care of myself. I did it tonight with that handsy jackass, and I will do it again.
I may not look like much of a threat, but I’m no delicate flower.
I have thorns, dammit. Sharp and deadly ones that will tear the shit out of anyone who gets too close.
That’s how I got away from the kidnappers the first time.
They never saw it coming, either.
I can be unexpected, too.
I pull up to the curb in front of Chloe’s apartment and put the car in park. I reach over to open the door and Zeno’s hand closes around my wrist. His grip is not too hard, just enough where the sensation of his fingertips on my bare skin send tingles up my arm.
“Wait,” he grunts before getting out of the passenger-side door. With a quick look around, he opens my door and shuttles me out of the car and over to the entrance of the building with Bruno carrying Chloe behind us.
I grab her purse and fumble around inside until I find her key. I stick it in the lock and we hurry into the building, darting for the elevator. The entire bottom floor is glass-enclosed and I’d really rather not be trapped in a fishbowl if another ambush is imminent.
As the elevator creeps up to Chloe’s floor, I take the few seconds to mull over Zeno’s question.
What makes you think that drive-by was directed at you?
He had… has …a gun, too. Was it to protect himself or to launch an attack of his own?
Out of the corner of my eye, I see him staring at my profile.
Illicit pasts.
I guess you really never know by looking at someone what skeletons are hiding in their closet….and exactly how deadly they may be.
And judging by the fact that Zeno is friends with Kazimir Severinov, it doesn’t shock me that his closet may be full, too.
I let us into Chloe’s massive apartment and help her into the bedroom. Her parents might not have much of an emotional connection with their daughter, but they definitely make sure she lives well. As much as I hate leaving her, I have to prevent her from getting caught in my sticky, tangled web.
Because once you’re locked in, there’s no way out.
I was na?ve to think there was hope for me.
I help her into her pajamas and settle her in her bed, putting her cell phone on the nightstand next to her. She’s barely awake at this point, so I turn to tiptoe out of her room. But before I take a step, she reaches out for my hand, pulling me back to her.
I drop next to her and a smile plays at her lips. Her eyes open a crack and her mouth moves without any sound coming out. That’s atypical for Chloe. I kneel next to her, straining my ears to hear what she has to say.
“You always take care of me,” she whispers. “And I don’t deserve to have a friend as good as you. Thank you for always looking out for me.”
I smooth her hair away from her face. “You’re welcome.”
“I’m not s-stupid. I know s-something bad happened tonight. And I know that you helped s-save me. Thank you.”
“Hey,” I say, holding the sides of her face. “We’re good and safe and nothing is going to happen to either of us, okay?”
She nods and lays her head back down on the pillow. “Okay. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
I wait until her breathing evens and she drifts off into a place where I hope, at least for a little while, she can find peace.
I don’t have the same hope for myself tonight.
I walk out of her room and look at the guys. “I can’t leave her. I’m going to stay here. She’s got plenty of room and I’d feel better that she’s not by herself.”
Zeno’s lips stretch into a tight line. “And what are you going to do if it turns out you really are the job someone has to finish?”
I let out a frustrated sigh. “Well, why don’t you just leave me your gun, then?” I snip. “I’ll bet you have another laying around.”
His jaw twitches. “You shouldn’t be here by yourselves.”
“I’m beginning to wonder if I’m ever going to have that luxury again.” I let out a dry laugh. “And while I appreciate your concern, I am the one who brutalized that guy at the club while you watched. I think I’m good.”
Bruno and Aldo exchange a look and must see the battle of wills raging.
“We’re, ah, gonna give you guys a minute,” Aldo says before they head into the kitchen, leaving us.
“Let me help you, Lily.”
A snort escapes my lips. “Unless you can give me a new last name and a new life far away from this one, I don’t see what kind of magic you can do for me.” I clench my fists. “Oh, hell. I don’t even really want a new life. I love my family. I love being out here on my own. And I love the plans I’ve made for my future. But my God, I hate being the victim who has no say, the one who has to deal with the aftermath of decisions made on her behalf!”
“I get all that but you shouldn’t be alone. I’m going to stay with you tonight.”
My jaw drops and he smirks.
“Relax. I’ll stay out here in the living room. That way I can fire my own gun if needed.”
“You don’t trust me?”
He steps closer. “Not even a little bit,” he says in a husky voice.
“You’re a stranger. Why should I trust you ?”
“I saved your life.” His blue eyes darken as he continues to close the distance between us.
“So? You’re the one with the gun. How am I the untrustworthy one?”
“Because there’s too much fire in you and you don’t know when to pull it back. You’re out of control.” His fingertips graze my arms, sending shivers fluttering through me.
“And you think you can tame me?” My voice cracks as I think of all the ways I’d love for him to do just that.
Jesus, what the hell am I even thinking right now? There is at least one, potentially more, assassins scouring the city for me, and I’m obsessing about Zeno, those thick fingertips…and other parts of his body that haven’t yet grazed my prickled skin.
He nods, his lips curling into a devilish grin. “I know I can, not that you could handle it.”
This is so sick and twisted. Someone is plotting my death, and instead of focusing on how the hell I’m going to save myself, I can’t think about anything other than launching myself at this virtual stranger in my best friend’s living room.
“That sounds like a challenge.”
He shrugs. “So is staying alive when you have the kinds of families we do.”
“True,” I muse. I stare up at him, swallowing hard, channeling all of the angst twisting my gut and transforming it into something much more carnal. “Good thing I’ve never lost a single one.”
“Yet,” he whispers, stroking the side of my cheek.
“Well, I hate to break it to you,” I breathe against his ear. “But I don’t need a babysitter. And I definitely don’t need anyone who thinks they have the power to control me.” I lean forward, purposefully puffing out my chest even though my heart feels like it might explode out of it.
I’ve never been so captivated by lust before in my life and it’s making me woozy with need. A thick fog settles over me as his hot breath flutters against my cheek. Damn, this whole cat and mouse game is making me way hotter than it should. I sway against him, feeling more drunk than I did at the club earlier.
His musky scent, his deep-set eyes, his fuck-me-now smirk — it all has me sufficiently twisted and trapped under a spell so strong, I don’t know if I can break free.
And for once, I don’t care.
I’m a damn liar for telling him I don’t need anyone who thinks they can wield any power over me. And I’m a worse liar for telling myself I don’t want him .
A random hotel security guard who just so happened to save my life.
Except he’s so much more than that…so much more that I still need to become acquainted with.
So much more that I plan to experience firsthand.
And while there are plenty of other things that should be weighing on my mind like calling my friend for much-needed help, I force it all into the dark corners of my mind. In this second, I don’t want to think about the dangers that lurk outside the walls of this apartment.
I don’t want to waste time worrying about what will happen when we leave this delicious little slice of seclusion.
And I sure as hell don’t want to scare myself with the reality that my life, as I know it, may be over.
No, right now I only want to experience Zeno and the blissful sensation of his devious tongue sliding into my?—
Heavy footsteps startle me, and I jump back with a gasp.
Bruno clears his throat as he approaches from the hallway. “So, uh, should we just stay here or, ah…?”
My eyes flicker toward Zeno’s hooded ones, the corners of his mouth curling upward. “Go back to the hotel with Aldo,” he grunts to Bruno. “Tell Serge I’ll explain everything when I call.”
Bruno rolls his eyes. “Oh, yeah, like that’s gonna go over well. Can’t you just call him before I get there? You know the way your cousin gets when he’s in interrogation mode, and I’ve got ten fingers and a cock I’d like to keep attached to me.”
“Tell him I’ll call him later, that the immediate threat is gone,” Zeno says in a more forceful tone, never once tearing his hungry gaze away from me.
Bruno lets out a frustrated sigh and throws his hands in the air. “I guess I’ll just call an Uber, then?”
That jolts me and I run toward my purse and grab a set of keys, tossing them to Bruno. “No, take my car.”
He dangles them and narrows his eyes at me. “Great, so if someone really is looking to ice you, they’ll just come after me instead.” He tosses them back at me. “I’ll take my chances with Uber, thanks.” He pulls out his phone and stabs the screen as he walks out the door, Aldo following close behind.
I bite down on my lower lip. “Do you think he’ll be okay?” I whisper. “I mean, he’s by himself out there and we don’t know who might be waiting?—”
Zeno rests his fingertip against my lips and I fight the urge to take it into my mouth and suck on it. “The biggest problem he’s gonna have out there is dealing with my cousin.”
“You mean, if he makes it to the hotel.”
“He’s gonna make it,” Zeno says in a gruff voice. “And that’s gonna give me the rest of the night to deal with you.”
Oh, sweet Jesus. Wet heat pools between my legs. “Deal with me how?”
“I already told you. You’re reckless. You’re so quick to swing a fist, quick with that tongue of yours, but you don’t think about consequences, do you?” He steps toward me, the palm of his hand sliding against my cheek and then down my neck, stopping just above the low neckline of my dress. He then reaches behind me and gently fists my hair. “ Do you? ”
“No,” I rasp, my head yanking backward. Holy crap, why am I so turned on right now? I abhor everything about this situation — the overpowering guy and his cocky attitude, the feeling of being dominated and simultaneously consumed by the irrational and very erotic thoughts scrambling through my mind…
Who the hell am I?
“I think you’re very dangerous,” he hisses, tightening his grip on me with one hand, dragging the other down the front of my dress. “You need to learn how to be more obedient so that you don’t get hurt.”
“You think you’re the guy to teach me a lesson?” I yelp, locking my legs together at the knee.
As if that’s going to do me any good right now since my panties are pretty much soaked with the same desire raging through my body while my mind is screaming, Yes, teach me! Please! Preferably with handcuffs!
Jesus good Christ.
I really should have just stayed home tonight to study. None of this would be happening if I’d stuck to my plan.
My plan.
It’s the only thing I can cling to right now, the only hope I have for normalcy.
Ha! The irony.
My quest for a new normal and my resistance to the old, twisted normal are what drove me out here to Vegas in the first place, and now look at me.
Nothing about tonight can be classified as even remotely normal, but yet I crave it with the deepest part of my soul.
Maybe that mafia princess crap really is in my blood, and no matter how much I try to fight it, she’ll always win.
My lips part slightly as I stare up at Zeno.
Maybe this time, I want her to win.
“Not only can I teach you,” he murmurs. “But I’ll make sure you never forget the lesson.” He snakes an arm around my waist and I let my body give in to his unspoken demands. “Are you prepared for that, Lily? Are you ready to handle what I’m gonna do to you?”