Page 82 of Claimed By Desire

“I’m interested,” Adriano confesses. “But it won’t be easy to convince my father, and you’ll have to get your side on board.”

“But this is a start.”

“It’s a start,” he agrees.

I lower my gun and shove it back into its holster. He smiles and his arm up in the air like he’s gesturing at someone.

I follow his gaze—and spot a man standing in the second-floor VIP lounge with a sniper rifle aimed at my head.

Mother fucker.

Adriano stands up and extends a hand. “My apologies for shooting you before.”

“And my apologies for killing your associates.”

“These things happen.”

We shake, and I get the sense that Adriano’s playing his own game, apart from his father’s goals, but I don’t really care what he’s after.

So long as this war never turns into an outright slaughter and I fulfill my promise to Valentin, nothing else matters.

I just have to figure out how the fuck I’m going to convince Lev to marry an Italian.

Chapter 32

Natalya

I’m sitting on the couch with my legs on the ottoman when the house talks to me.“What do you think you’re doing right now?”

I stare around the room, heart racing. “Alex? What the hell was that?” I grab a pillow and pull it against my chest like that’s going to protect me from a ghost intruder. But there’s nothing in the kitchen, nothing in the hallway, no spirits floating up near the ceiling.

“Up here, darling wife.”

The mechanical whirr of the motor that moves the camera in the top corner. The red light blinks to life.

“How are you talking to me right now? And do you actually hear me?”

“I see all and I hear all.”

I hold up my middle finger. “Fuck you, creep. Do you hear and see that?” The camera stares at me, the red light unblinking. Ihesitate, feeling a little stupid, and slowly lower my hand. “Alex? You still there?”

“I’m still here.”

“Seriously, what’s going on right now?”

“I installed an intercom system.”

“I guess that makes more sense than ghosts.”

“No, darling, I’m not haunting you. But you can pretend I’m a vengeful spirit if you want.”

“I’m not roleplaying.”

“Good, because I’m not playing. You’ve been mouthy, my darling, and you haven’t gotten up off that couch since I left earlier.”

“Are you seriously calling your pregnant wife lazy right now?”

“Lazy, filthy, and selfish.”

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