Page 3 of Fallen

I rolled my eyes again, allowing myself a moment of pure disgust at the two of them. They would both shag anyone that said yes, and then spend the next three days telling me about their experience. Honestly I thought they probably took too much pleasure in it—both the shagging and the retelling. I always gagged over it and they always laughed... and then went and found some other poor girl or guy to serve their purposes.

I should really go over there and give them a piece of my mind now, before they blew the whole night. All it would take was a moment of them not paying enough attention for everything to go sideways on us. We were here to make contact with the man I’d been told about, and if we did our jobs, we’d find him and save him from a horrible fate.

But it would take all of us, and that didn’t leave room for standing around, fucking girls with our eyes.

I spun on my heel and headed in the other direction, though, leaving them to it. I needed Antony, not Mattias and Valentine. Snagging the contact was my one and only job. If my so-called brothers didn’t do their jobs, that was on their heads. Not mine.

Yeah, I know that sounds selfish and self-serving. I get it. But this was my first mission and I was nervous as hell. I didn’t have time to take care of my brothers as well as myself. I was sent here to prove that I could be part of a team like this, and I wasn’t going to fucking fail.

I’d let them fall on their faces in a heartbeat, though. And I’d probably laugh as they fell.

I slipped through the door to the kitchen, which was just as crowded, and looked through the people to find the face I needed. Antony was standing at the stove in all his blond, blue-eyed glory, the glow coming off him almost otherworldly. I paused, my breath caught in my throat. He was nearly godlike in his beauty, and I knew I wasn’t the only one who’d noticed. The cooks were moving around him like he was some sort of sun that might burn them, their eyes downcast except for quick glances up at him. Their cheeks were flushed, their fingers clasped tightly around spoons and bowls.

Yes, every woman in here was thinking about what she’d do if she got him naked.

And not one of them would be brave enough to ask for what she wanted.

This did bring a quick smile to my lips, and I felt my mind calming as I moved toward him. Antony was my mentor and teacher, and had chosen me by hand for this mission, teaching me as we traveled and giving me the tools I’d need to succeed. He was nearly as big a flirt as Mattias and Valentine...

But he was also a father figure to me.

“Antony,” I said, interrupting him as he tested the nearest stew.

“Natasha,” he breathed, dropping the spoon into the pot. He wrapped me in a quick hug, then stood back and looked me over once. “You’re not dressed.”

I waved that off as unimportant. “I need to know what we’re doing tonight.”

At that, he nodded once, took my arm, and steered me into a corner. When he spoke again, his voice was lower. He ran through the people who would be at the party, what their positions were in New York, and whether they were in the underworld or not.

And by ‘underworld,’ I meant the mafia. Not the actual underworld. I was still having trouble getting used to the difference.

“And the Rossi?” I asked breathlessly.

“Not a Rossi,” he corrected. “Someone who works for the Rossis. I have received word that he’ll be here, though I don’t know his name. But you’re to steer clear of him. I’m not sure yet whether he’s the one we’re seeking.”

I frowned at that. “I thought we knew exactly who we were here for.”

Of course, he didn’t have the man’s actual name. I did.

And I’d been told not to tell Antony.

He frowned back. “Yes. There have been... conflicting orders.”

I felt my frown deepen. Conflicting orders? Other than the ones my superiors had given me when they’d pulled me to the side before I traveled here? That didn’t make any sense. The orders came right from the top and I’d worked in the office that generated them. They were always very clear. If Headquarters had given Antony conflicting orders, that was a problem.

“But I thought it was my job?—”

“Not anymore,” he interrupted. “He may or may not be here, and if he is, Mattias and Valentine will take care of it. You’re here to be the bait, not the hook.”

I reared back at that, part furious and part surprised. The bait? I was here as eye candy? Since when? That wasn’t the contract I signed when I agreed to take on this job. Sure, I didn’t have much experience when it came to running missions, but I’d been in charge of organizing them at the head office. We never deviated from plans. Or reassigned roles.

The missions were too important for that sort of flexibility.

“What’s going on?” I asked quickly. “Why is there a change?”

Instead of answering my question, he turned me and shoved me toward the door. “Leave the questions to me, little one. Everything’s fine. But I don’t want you involved. Your job tonight is to observe. If you see anything that doesn’t look right, you come to me. Immediately.”

Before I knew it, I was in the back hall, the door to the kitchen shut behind me.

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