Page 31 of Bound By Revenge

“You know, Nik, you should check out these new gadgets they have nowadays, they're pretty cool. You can use them to get intouch with anyone, whenever. People call them cell phones. You might want to check that out.”

“Cute.” He pulls out a stool and motions for me to sit. “Sit. Eat. I saw you eyeing the lasagna.”

I can’t deny it—the lasagna looks divine, and I’m too hungry to put up a fight. I plop down on the stool while he piles his plate, grabbing a bit of everything before sitting across from me.

“Speaking of cellphones,” he says, reaching into his pocket and handing me mine. “Figured you’d want to let people know you’re alive.”

I’m caught off guard, but then I remember—he knows I can’t escape him. I take the phone, my fingers brushing his. My life’s turned into a stupid teenager flick, so, obviously, sparks fly at the slight contact. I try to hide my embarrassing response, but then I see the same reaction flicker in his gaze.

“Thank you,” I say. He nods. I glance at the screen: over twenty missed calls from A.J. and a flood of messages. I quickly text her back.

Sorry I missed our meeting. I’m fine, can’t talk right now. Will explain later tonight.

She replies immediately with a wall of text. I can't read it right now—not with Nik looking over my shoulder. I send another quick message.

I’ll explain everything later. I promise.

She replies with a single message:

You better.

I set the phone down, feeling Nik’s gaze still on me.

“So,” I say, turning to him. “Tell me about the job.”

He studies me for a long moment, then finally says, “Let’s talk about it tomorrow. You need rest.”

“I feel fine. Besides, thanks to your goons, I already got plenty of rest today.”

Nik grimaces. “Yeah, sorry about that. But they had to drug you—it’s not like you’d have come willingly.” His eyes spark with humor. “I heard you gave Boris quite a fight.”

I stiffen at the memory. “Which one is Boris?”

“The one with the scar.”

“Ah,thatone. Well, nasty little fellows such as himself always get their comeuppance, trust me.”

“Easy, tiger,” he chuckles. “The guy was just doing his job.”

“Like that makes it okay.”

“Considering you got in trouble for doing your job, I'd expect you to have some sympathy for Boris.”

“I don’t hurt people.”

He snorts. “Debatable.”

“No, it isn’t,” I retort. “I may be a thief—allegedly—but my hands are clean of blood. Can you say the same?” I find immense satisfaction in rubbing this in his face.

He pauses, clearly unfazed. “I won’t apologize for doing what I have to, Kat.” Another pause. “But let’s discuss business tomorrow. You need a break.”

“What else would we talk about?”

A grin spreads across his face. “Us, of course.”

“There’s no us.”

He leans in, his voice low. “I don’t think you believe that.”

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