Page 53 of Cruel Honor

“By letting me go. Divorcing me. Sparing me from Abram’s wrath.”

“Then Dima would come right for you.”

“Then I’ll go to the police. It’s still an option.”

Roughly, he shakes his head. “No. It’s not an option.”

“Why not?” I whisper.

“Because I want you to be mine. God knows why I’m so drawn to you. I just am. You’re mine, Evie. Might as well get used to it.”

His eyes flick down to my lips, and I can’t help myself—I wonder what it would be like to be truly kissed by Dimitri. Would it be soft and sweet or fast and passionate? He’s the kind of man who could get any woman to do bad things.

But not me. I can’t be drawn into his world. The darkness and violence are taking a toll on me.

The door opens, and Dr. Wilson steps inside. Dimitri doesn’t back away. Instead, he places his hand behind me on the exam table, not quite touching but letting me know it’s there.

“So, good news,” the doctor says. “There’s no damage. You’re going to have a headache for a while, but you’re good. Very fortunate.”

Dimitri lets out a fast breath. “Good. That’s good.”

But is it? I got lucky this time, but eventually, my luck will run out. How can Dimitri keep protecting me when he’s the reason I’m in trouble in the first place?

The last person I would expect to see standing on the doorstep is my stepmother.

Dimitri is gone off to work today. I tried asking him about what exactly he does, and he was very cryptic in his reply. So, it’s just Katya and me at the house with instructions not to leave.

But I’ve been missing the library, so I decide to go and am stopped by Juno when I open the front door.

She gasps when she sees me, her hand flying to her heart dramatically. “You’re finally here. I came by yesterday, but you weren’t here.”

That’s because I was getting kidnapped by Abram.I decide not to tell Juno this.

“Did you need something?” I ask her.

“Yes. I want you to come home with me, Evelyn. I miss you.”

“Do you really? Or do you just miss the fact that I would cook and clean for you?”

“Honey, no. I missyou. Not for your skills in the kitchen but for your lovely personality. You can’t honestly want to stay here with the man who kidnapped you, do you?”

She has a point. But do I really want to return home with the woman who’s made my life uncomfortable ever since my dad’s death?

“You really miss me?” I ask, not believing her.

“Yes. We had some good times together, didn’t we? We would go ice skating at Rockefeller Center. We would get facials and our nails done together.”

“We did that once,” I remind her.

“But we still did it together, and we can do it more. Honey, I’m sorry if I haven’t been the best mother to you ever since your father died. But I want to be a good mother to you now. Let me. Let me get you out of here and back home.”

“Dimitri won’t like it. He’ll come for me. And then there’s Dima.”

“Dima?”

She doesn’t know. I sigh, resting my head against the doorframe. “He’s a serial killer who tried to kill me. He’s the one the police have been looking for.”

Juno’s eyes are comically wide. “Then we need to go to the police.”

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