Page 19 of Dark Obsession

I shrug, playing it off like I’m indifferent. “I don’t want to start any trouble; I just want to talk to him. Give him a piece of my mind, maybe send a message for all the other girls he’s probably ghosted.”

The bartender leans back, considering me for a moment. He looks like he’s weighing whether or not to take the bait. After a few seconds, he nods. “Let me go check something in the back.”

He leaves without another word, disappearing through a door behind the bar. I take a sip of my drink, trying not to look too smug. It’s working. This guy’s hooked.

As I sit there, pretending to be just another woman scorned, I can’t help but feel a surge of satisfaction. I’m making progress.

After a few minutes, I realize the bartender’s been gone for longer than I’d like, and a little knot of unease starts to tighten in my stomach. I take another sip of my drink, my eyes scanning the room, checking the other patrons for any sign that I might be in over my head.

A couple of guys sit hunched over their beers, mumbling to each other, but they don’t seem like a threat. Still, something feels off.

My watch vibrates. Shit, the timer. Ten minutes are up, and I know the guards will start to become suspicious if I don’t get back soon. The last thing I need is them losing their heads.

I’ll head back to the boutique, give them a sweet, innocent apology, and promise to keep things quiet. They won’t want Luk to know they lost track of me, so it’ll be an easy deal.

Thunder rumbles outside, the low growl sending vibrations through the windows. The bartender still hasn’t come back. The unease I’d been trying to push down returns, stronger this time. I need to move.

Before I can even push back my stool, someone sits down next to me. I don’t look at first, trying to keep cool. But I can feel him looking at me, his gaze cutting into the side of my face.

“You look like someone who’s somewhere she shouldn’t be.”

Shit.I turn slowly and come face to face with my half-brother Alexei.

His eyes narrow, and I know I’m busted.

Chapter 9

Elena

“No hard feelings, right, guys?”

I grin halfheartedly at the two guards who are standing in front of the boutique when Alexei and I pull up. Neither of them says a word. Their eyes are glued to the road, their expressions stoic. I can feel Alexei’s smirk before I even turn to look.

“There’s no point in that,” Alexei says. “They were in on it.”

He leans back, looking entirely too pleased with himself. “They were ordered to message me the minute you were out of their sight. We were all expecting you to pull a stunt like this.”

I sigh, slumping into my seat. “Of course you were.” I should’ve seen it coming. My brothers know me too well, and Alexei… well, he’s just as crafty.

I glance at him out of the corner of my eye, trying to keep my frustration in check. "I guess I should’ve known better."

“Yeah,” he says, his smirk growing wider. “You should’ve. Lucky for you, the bartender knows our family and gave me a heads-up.”

“Figures.”

“What were you really hoping to gain, Elena?” Alexei asks, his sharp grey-blue eyes studying me.

I pause for a second, weighing my options. It’s a good thing Alexei and the rest of my brothers don’t know the finer details of what’s going on with Grigori. If they did, they’d lose their minds. I need to tread carefully here.

“I already told you,” I say, with a casual shrug. “I was just trying to get some info on someone.”

He raises an eyebrow, not buying it. “Why?” Then he grins, teasing me. “Let’s be real here. You’re not much of a dater, so that ghosting story was pretty rich.”

I roll my eyes, leaning back in my seat. “I wasn’t doing it for myself, I was doing it for Sasha. This guy did her dirty and she’s a little too nice to handle it herself, unlike me.” I add a smirk for good measure.

Alexei chuckles though it’s hard to tell if he actually believes me. “Sasha, huh? Sure.” His tone drips with skepticism, but he doesn’t press further. Still, I can see that glint of suspicion in his eyes. He’s always been good at reading people.

“Well,” he says after a moment, “I hope you get your story straight when you tell Luk, Lev, and Yuri. They all want to talk to you.”

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