Page 43 of Bloody Lace

“That’s impressive,” Val says, her eyes widening. “Good for you.”

“Right?” Dahlia nudges me under the table. “I’m so proud of her.”

I know she actually is proud of me. She’s proud of me for taking the opportunity I was given and making the most of it, instead of giving up. But I feel bad for telling the white lies about what’s really happening, even though I don’t know the other two women all that well.

“Well, things have been good at the Met,” Dahlia says, quickly changing the subject. “I have a new exhibit opening next month. You should all come. It involves Norse sculpture, and I’m really excited for it.”

With the topic having steered away from me and the boutique, I’m able to relax a little. And I’m genuinely interested in what’s happening with Dahlia’s exhibit. She’s eager to talk about it, and she fills us all in as we order a tower of sushi rolls to share and Bonnie chimes in with the newest gossip in the world of publishing.

It feels good to just sit and talk with my friends, eating sushi and not thinking about anything else other than small talk about work and dating gossip. The latter makes me a little nervous, since I don’t want to say anything about my new marriage, but fortunately, the other three women have enough to go around. Val is seeing some hedge fund manager that she thinks is already cheating on her, and Bonnie tells us about an intern that flirts with her every morning when he comes in. Dahlia laments the fact that she hasn’t had anything other than a one-night stand in months… “and even those have been disappointing,” she adds, rolling her eyes as she tosses back another sip of sake.

I sip at a small cup of cold lychee sake too, nibbling on toro tartare and salmon avocado rolls, and the time passes without my thinking about it. For just a little while, I’m able to stop thinking about everything that’s making me feel uncertain, everything that makes me wonder if I made a huge mistake marrying Dimitri.

Dahlia hangs back at the end of lunch, after we’ve all said our goodbyes and the other two women leave, while I’m looking for an Uber. “Are you alright?” she asks quietly, her voice muted by the bubbling of the bamboo fountain in the restaurant lobby. “I wanted to check on you, since last night was the first night you stayed with him.” She bites her lip. “Did everything get to you okay this morning? And Buttons? He wasn’t happy going with the delivery guy that was sent over, but I gave him lots of treats. Probably too many.”

“He’s fine,” I assure her quickly. “He’s all settled in now. Thank you for watching him.”

“Anytime. Especially now that he’s living in that swanky penthouse I bet Dimitri has.” Dahlia grins. “How’d that go over?”

I wince, remembering Dimitri’s reaction. “Not well,” I admit. “I probably should have warned him, honestly. But what if he’d freaked out?”

“I get it. And he’ll get over it.” Dahlia glances around, her gaze drifting to the window. “Speaking of things Dimitri will be upset about, where’s Gus?”

The look of instant guilt on my face gives it away. Dahlia’s eyes widen instantly. “You slipped out without a bodyguard? Evie, what were you thinking? Dimitri is going to be furious with you.”

I wince, tapping the button to call my Uber. “I haven’t told anyone other than you aboutanyof this,” I hiss, biting my lip. “Not the fire, or Dimitri, or the marriage, or any of it. I didn’t want to have to explain to Val and Bonnie. I don’t know them that well. It was hard enough dodging their questions as it was, imagine if I’d shown up with abodyguard?”

“I know, but—” Dahlia frowns. “Evie, you’ve never been threatened by anything like this before. The kind of people you’re dealing with, even the kind of people Dimitri isalignedwith—these are dangerous people. If Dimitri thinks you need a bodyguard, I believe him, honestly. And you should, too.”

That guilt worms its way back in. “I’m headed back to the penthouse now,” I promise her. “See?” I hold up my phone, with the Uber a few blocks from us. “I just needed some space from all of this. I’ll be back at Dimitri’s in no time, no harm done.”

Dahlia sighs. “I’m not trying to tell you what to do. I just want you to be safe. I don’t know this world well either, but I knowa little, from the kinds of people my father deals with. This isn’t anything to take lightly. You need to listen to Dimitri.”

I wrinkle my nose. “You, telling me to listen to a man?”

She laughs. “I know. But just for now. You’re my best friend, Evie. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.” She leans in, giving me a tight hug, and I return it just as my phone vibrates, letting me know that my Uber is almost here.

“I gotta go.” I squeeze her once more, and then hurry out into the cold, looking for the gold Nissan that’s supposed to pick me up. I see it coming around the corner, but just as I start to walk that way, a black town car swings out of the side street, pulling up to the curb right next to me.

Fear jolts through me, and I grab my purse, terrified of who it might be and preparing to bolt. But I don’t get a chance, because before the car has even fully rolled to a stop, one of the back doors swings open and Dimitri steps out right in front of me.

I’ve never seen anyone look so angry. His face is tight, jaw clenched, his eyes darkened as he looks at me. A chill runs down my spine, and I realize, in this exact moment, that I’ve made a terrible mistake.

Dimitri isn’t just upset with me. We aren’t just going to argue about this. He’s fuckingfurious, and I might have just ruined everything.

“Get in the car.” His voice is hard and angry, and I balk at it despite knowing that if there was ever going to be a time for me to listen to him, this is it. I’ve never been the kind of person to just fall in line and obey, and it’s instinctual at this point for me to be independent. To do my own thing, my own way.

This time, that tendency might have gotten me into a lot of trouble.

Dimitri sees my hesitation, and his jaw clenches even tighter. “I will pick you up and throw you in the car myself, Evelyn, if you don’t get in this instant. I amnotgoing to fucking fight with youabout this.” His tone is a deep growl, so full of fury that it makes my knees quiver. “Get in the car.”

This time, I obey. And I realize, as I step past him and slide into the warm leather interior, that I’m in over my head.

Not just with the Crows, or the Bratva, or trying to keep my shop from completely falling apart. With Dimitri himself.

I underestimated him. Ioverestimatedmy ability to handle him. And now I have no idea what’s going to happen.

He’s dead silent as he gets into the car next to me. The driver pulls away from the curb, and I look at him out of the corner of my eye, knotting my hands in my lap so that my fingers don’t start trembling. “Dimitri?—”

---