Page 77 of Twilight Sins

“That’s what crowdsourcing sites are for. I’ll downsize. We can figure it out.”

Kayla and her boyfriend just moved into a two-bedroom apartment together that she loves. I also know Kayla loves me. She would pack up, sell her stuff, and move back to their dinky one-bedroom place in a heartbeat if I needed the money.

I can’t do that to her.

I don’t even know if I want to do that.

I like being here with Yakov. Mostly. I think. Minus the times when my insides are tied into a knot and my head is spinning, it has been really great.

“I’m fine here. There are security guards and three meals per day. Staying here is easier.”

“Fuck ‘easy,’” she snaps. “I’ll do so many hard things to make sure you’re happy and healthy, Loon.”

Tears well in my eyes like the big mushy sap I am. “Thanks, Kay. Ditto.”

“So, are you? Happy and healthy?”

It’s hard to answer that question when my current roommate is a hot and cold Greek god who is giving me sexual and emotional whiplash on a daily and sometimes hourly basis. It’s also tough to answer when “healthy” is dependent on me not being murdered by unknown, shadowy, may-or-may-not-be-real enemies.

“I’m safe,” I say instead. “I can tell you that much. Right now, I’m safe. Yakov won’t hurt me.”

“Is that an option? Are you worried about that?”

“No, no. I’m not afraid of him. I just?—”

“Just what?” she snaps. “Either he’s keeping you safe or he isn’t.”

“He’s keeping me safe! He’s just doing that by not telling me anything that is going on. He thinks information is dangerous.” I sigh. “I believe him. Telling me more than necessary probably would be dangerous. But I think the fact I’m here at all is dangerous. Being near him is dangerous.”

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t—God, it sounds crazy. I haven’t said it out loud yet.”

“The Crazy Ship set sail ages ago. You can’t shock me anymore. Spit it out.”

I take a deep breath and say exactly what I’ve been thinking. “His dad was shot in the chest in front of him. Then we had to leave a restaurant because we were in danger. Now, people are apparently out to get me because I was on a date with him. That sounds like some serious Goodfellas stuff, doesn’t it?”

“I’ve never seen that movie.”

“Mobsters,” I say plainly. “The classic shoot ‘em up, breaking legs, send-you-to-sleep-with-the-fishies kind of criminals. I don’t know if that’s exactly what he’s involved in, but it has to be something like that. Some sort of black market, underground stuff.”

With anyone else, my thought would be that they’d gotten roped into the wrong crowd. But I don’t think anyone could rope Yakov into anything he didn’t want to be a part of.

Whatever is going on here, he is clearly the man in charge.

“Last I heard, accountants and doctors aren’t taking out hits on people. So you might be onto something.”

“I haven’t gotten up the courage to ask him yet,” I admit.

I can’t tell Kayla that Yakov distracted me with his dick. She won’t trust my judgment. Operation Dolphin would be back on in an instant and I’d have to explain to Yakov why the police were banging down his door.

“Maybe you shouldn’t,” Kayla suggests. “Ask him, I mean. Maybe it would be safest to keep that thought to yourself. If he hasn’t told you he’s a criminal, bringing it up might not go over so well.”

“I’m not afraid of him, Kay.”

She sighs. “I know. I just wonder if maybe you should be.”

It hits me all at once: this was a mistake.

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