Page 50 of Diamond Don

“If you really must know,” Nik mutters through gritted teeth, “McGuire hated Maxim because Maxim was in love with the man’s daughter.”

“That’s it?” I ask, confused. “That doesn’t sound too bad. It certainly doesn’t sound like enough reason to murder someone.”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Well, explain it to me, then. I thought that was the entire point of this conversation.”

Nik shoots me a glance meant to warn me to take it easy with the sassiness, but I ignore it. I have a hard time feeling threatened by the man who, a moment ago, was tenderly holding an ice pack to my bruise and looking out for my health.

“It’s complicated,” he says. “She’s been promised to someone else her entire life. By hooking up with her, Maxim put an arranged alliance in danger and publicly embarrassed McGuire. Suffice it to say, if anyone hated Maxim enough to kill him, it was McGuire.”

Before I can respond, he gently brushes his fingers against my temple. “Does it feel any better?” he asks.

I roll my eyes, fully intending to tell him off, but his genuine concern makes me pause. “I’m fine,” I say instead. “Don’t worry about it. The doctor will confirm I’m as healthy as a horse.”

Nik seems unconvinced, but he doesn’t reach for the ice pack again. I’m relieved he is willing to drop the subject when his hand touches my neck. It stops there, and my breath hitches in my throat. After a brief hesitation, his fingertips trail down to my shoulders.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“You’re all knotted up, Kat. That can’t be comfortable. You’re carrying a lot of tension on your neck and shoulders.”

To my utter despair, Nik starts rubbing his knuckles down the column of my neck. Up and down, repeatedly. His movements are gentle but firm, and my eyelids grow heavy.

“Well, that’s what being kidnapped does to a person, Nik,” I say, clearing my throat. Maybe my tone will push him away. God knows I’m too weak to stop him, otherwise.

Nik sighs, and I’m both satisfied and disappointed that it might have worked. But his hands drop to my waist, and he lifts me, plopping my ass in front of him, between his parted legs. His hands return to my shoulders, and he kneads my tense muscles.

“I’m sorry it came to this, Kat. Abducting you, I mean. I wish there had been another way to bring you to me. For what it’s worth, you can rest assured that Boris and Ivan will be punished for harming you.”

“And who’s going to punish you for having me kidnapped in the first place?”

19

KAT

“I’m sure you will punish me, as you have so far—repeatedly and in so many ways,” Nik whispers against my skin.

He laughs softly, and there is a flutter in my stomach as his chest vibrates against my back.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask.

“Shh. You’re getting tense again. I can feel it on your shoulders. Just relax. Forget I said anything,” he whispers in my ear. I shiver in response to the proximity of his mouth.

“Nik—”

“Just relax and watch the footage, Kat. Look, there’s Connor sneaking away. See?”

I glance at the screen as the man he pointed out as Patrick McGuire’s enforcer leaves the museum’s gardens.

“McGuire’s whereabouts are conveniently accounted for throughout the entire evening. But Connor comes and goes a handful of times through the night,” Nik says. “I don’t know where he goes for sure since the museum’s internal footage is missing, but I’d put good money he was off doing McGuire’s dirty work for him.”

I try to focus on the video before me, striving not to let myself get carried away by his touch again. But it’s a losing battle. It’s just so difficult to resist his allure.

Nik’s strong hands firmly knead my knotted shoulders. When his thumbs trace the length of my neck, I feel like I can barely breathe.

It gets even worse once I notice myself in the video footage. More specifically, I spot myself in Nik’s arms on the dance floor. I observe our back-and-forth as I try to leave the party, and he convinces me to stay. As I watch us on the screen, Nik’s firm hands never stop rubbing my shoulders and neck.

His soft laughter tickles the back of my neck. “Ah, there you are, Kat.”

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