Page 25 of Under Control

“Hold on, let me put up the divider. It’s soundproof. You can talk all you want.”

“Your sense of humor always astounds me.” Anton’s jaw works. “I’m serious though. I looked into the girl.”

“And what did you find?”

“I know who she is.” He lets that linger for a moment. I stretch my legs and wait for him to speak. This isn’t exactly a surprise—Anton’s clever and good at his job. It would’ve been a disappointment if he hadn’t figured it out eventually. “You’re playing a dangerous game,” he says finally.

“Yes, well, that’s very true,” I admit, smiling to myself. “But it’s a fun game.”

“I’m serious. Baltimore isn’t Philadelphia. They have their own system down there.”

“And that’s exactly what fascinates me. We’re so regionally divided, but for what? We live in a global world these days, Anton, and yet the Philly families and the New York families and the Baltimore families all act like we’re separated by unfathomable distances.”

“We stay in our own territories. It keeps the peace.”

“Oh, I don’t plan on starting a war. Marriage brings people together, don’t you know that?”

Anton shakes his head, visibly annoyed now. “Let the girl go, Valentin. Forget about her family. Does she even know about them?”

“She doesn’t,” I murmur.

“Getting involved with her isn’t going to bring your father back.”

I stare at Anton, anger simmering in my chest, but we pull up to Stove and Smoke before I can tell him to watch his mouth. The place is a hipster-style gastropub with lots of wood and metal. The exterior door was renovated to look like it’s from the 1700s, even though the place was opened only a year back.

My anger slowly fades, because there’s Karine, standing on the sidewalk all alone, looking so fucking radiant my heart staggers in my chest.

My god. The girl is beautiful.

Anton says something else, but I don’t hear him anymore.

All I can do is stare.

She’s in a black dress. It clings to her athletic, toned body. Her hair is down and in ringlet curls. It’s thick and dark. I remember how silky it felt in my fist. She’s wearing makeup, just a hint of it making her pouty lips look fuller and her eyes dark and smoky. She’s got on heels, and her legs look fucking fantastic, like they might never end.

I push open the door and step out.

Our eyes meet. For a moment, she doesn’t move. I don’t go toward her. The draw between us is hard to deny—I know she feels it too. This girl, her petite little body, her fiery fucking attitude, she drives me fucking crazy, but I made up my mind the moment I first saw her standing naked in my study that she will bemine.

No, no, that’s wrong.

She’s already mine, she just doesn’t know it yet.

“You look beautiful,” I tell her, because it’s true.

A little blush colors her cheeks. “Thanks. You look nice too.”

I help her into the car. She buckles herself and stays on her side. Anton’s glaring at me in the mirror and I stare back at him as I slide the divider up.

Let the bastard stew in his disapproval. This isn’t about what he wants.

This is about what Ineed.

“I just want to make some things clear,” she says as the car starts moving. “I’m not staying out late. I’m not drinking too much. And when it’s over, I want you to drop me off back in front of the Stove and Smoke.”

“It sounds like you’ve already made up your mind about how this evening will go.”

She narrows her eyes. “You know I don’t want to be here. You’re practically forcing me.”

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