Page 8 of Sinful Lies

I shake off the feeling.

This is exactly the sort of thing I’m trying to avoid. So, as much as I want to go running after Zara and force her into the passenger seat of my car so I can drive her home myself, I turn my back on her and go in search of another drink.

I think about finding someone to warm my bed for the night, but after being with Zara, no woman here can compare.

3

DIMITRI

It’s beena week since I pretended to be Zara’s boyfriend and I can’t seem to shake the haunted look in her eyes from my mind. It plagues my dreams, turning them into nightmares.

Something about the situation with her new boss doesn’t sit well with me.

I’ve known countless men like Giovanni, and they’re ruthless. They prey on girls like Zara, using their power and wealth to cover up their tracks.

I have influence atSpencer & Meyers. They’ve worked for my family for years and if I tell them to fire the bastard, they will, but there’s no way that it wouldn’t get back to Zara. I know she’s worked hard to get to where she is, and I don’t want to risk jeopardizing her position at the company. So, I’ll keep quiet.

For now.

My phone pings with a message from my older brother, Alexei, asking me to meet him at our family home in Forest Hills.

I don’t really have the time to drive out to Queen’s, butwhen Alexei says something is urgent, I have no choice but to make the trip.

But it does mean I get to sneak in a few cuddles with my new nephew before I’m due back in the city this evening.

The drive out there is second nature. I’ve done it so many times, I barely register what my hands are doing as I sit behind the wheel.

Our family mansion was bought by my parents just after my youngest brother, Danil, was born on the premise that we needed more space now that there were four kids running rampant.

When they died, Alexei and I discussed selling the property. It holds a lot of memories for us, ones that were becoming too painful to face now that our parents were gone, but Danil was adamant he wanted to keep the house.

He was barely sixteen when our parents were murdered, and the life that he knew was torn to shreds. It was the only place he ever felt close to them, so we kept it.

It had barely been used in the nine years since their death, with the four of us brothers only escaping out to Forest Hills if we ever needed to lay low for a while.

Our line of work often means targets are put on our backs, and as much as I’d prefer to put a bullet in the head of every single fucker who dared look at my family the wrong way, we sometimes have to pick and choose our fights.

So, Alexei would order us out of the city for a few days, and we would retreat to our home in Forest Hills.

That was until Alexei decided to take up permanent residence at the estate with his new wife, Bianca Bellucci, the daughter of our once rival, Emilio Bellucci. Their arranged marriage joined our two families and bought Emilio our protection from Mario Gilanto in exchange forinformation that ultimately helped us take down the Gilanto mafia.

I must say, I didn’t have high expectations for their marriage, considering the circumstances that brought them together. But it turned out to be the perfect match in the end, with my eldest brother becoming smitten with his new wife almost immediately.

So, the two of them decided to settle into married life outside of the city at our old family home where they’re now raising their five-month-old son, Leonid. Little Leo.

I can’t say I’m not jealous of what my brother has. Married life and fatherhood suits him well.

I’m curious to know what Alexei is so insistent on talking to me about in person. I tried pushing him to just spit it out over the phone, but he refused. So, I know whatever it is can’t be good.

By the time I’m pulling up to the front gates, my body is a ball of nervous energy, and my jaw aches from grinding my teeth together. I’m desperate for a drink to take the edge off before I sit down for this meeting with my brother.

What makes matters worse is the sight of Zara’s baby blue Volkswagen Beetle parked outside the front of the house.

My stomach twists.

Has something happened with Giovanni?

Abandoning my car in the drive, I sprint up the front steps, my heart hammering in my chest. I quickly scan my fingerprint to unlock the front door and head inside, almost running straight into Bianca.

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