Page 284 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

Perhaps it was because of Marcus’ death. Was there some rogue Brotherhood Assassin out there killing off Elders? Would Wilhelm be next? What about Kurt? What would she do if she lost them? Oh, she was furious at them, but that didn’t mean she wanted them dead.

“You okay?” Aaron asked.

Anna shrugged. “Missing Alex.”

Aaron gave her a sympathetic look. “Yeah, the Russian Tea Room might not have been the best choice for Mr. J to pick, but it’s not like he’d have any idea what it would mean to you.”

“I guess I can just focus on Peter.”

“True. You have good memories of him.”

“But then it just makes me feel even lonelier.” She sighed heavily. “I don’t know if I’ll be very good company tonight.”

“Anna, you go to him for sex. There’s no relationship, remember?”

It was hard to remember when he seemed to put so much effort into their nights together. “His wife must be truly awful for her not to realize what a great guy he is.”

“Maybe. Or maybe he doesn’t try with her.”

“Or maybe he has tried and she brushed him off.”

“What woman would brush off romance from her husband?”

“I might with Kurt.” She chewed her lip. “I don’t know if I could ever fully trust him after all this.”

Aaron squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry. It really sucks that he’s turned into such a jerk.”

Anna shook her head. “The same thing happened to Tyler when he became a Son. He was a pretty nice guy and then all of a sudden he turned into a mini-Devin.” She sighed. “I thought Kurt would be different...”

“I can’t imagine Wilhelm allowing Kurt to treat you that way.”

“But you saw how distant he was when he visited.”

He nodded his head. “You want me to kick Kurt’s ass on Thursday?”

Anna laughed. “Maybe.”

Despite the lively atmosphere of the club and dancing with Aaron and the other dancers, Anna’s heavy mood weighed her down. Why, of all nights, couldn’t she get her mind off of Alex? Mr. J had planned a wonderful evening for her and her mind was ruining it by insisting she think about her dead husband?

“You’re rather subdued tonight, Miss Katrina,” Simon said as they rode the elevator up to the eleventh floor of the Library Hotel.

“I’m sorry, Simon. Just... have a lot on my mind.”

“Anything I can help with?”

“Not unless you know how to bring the dead back to life.” She gave him a sad smile and then shook her head. “I’ll be okay. Mr. J is good at getting my mind off of things.”

Simon studied her for a long moment and then nodded. “I hope so. I believe he also has a lot on his mind. Perhaps you can distract each other.”

“If he’s not up for tonight?—‍”

Simon shook his head. “He has been looking forward to it. He just had some business to attend to yesterday and is having a hard time letting it go.”

She smiled. “Well, then, maybe we really can help each other.” They walked down the hall to the room at the end, and she gave Simon a doubtful look. “The Romance Room?”

Simon shrugged and held up the blindfold. “Ready?”

Once again, she was blindfolded and led into the hotel room. The room smelled delicious, as it usually did, but there was something off, though she couldn’t quite pinpoint it.

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