Page 93 of Heartless Sinner

"No." I shake my head and laugh. "No more presents."

Just before we left New York, he bought me a car, and for the wedding, I wore a sapphire necklace that cost God knew how much. Lucy nearly fainted when she saw it.

"One more present." His expression holds a hint of mischief that makes my heart flutter.

I sigh and smile back at him. "Okay. One more, then no more. You've given me enough."

"You'll like this one, but it's a weird present." His eyes dance with barely contained excitement.

"What is it, Micah?"

He pulls me onto his lap and slips his arm around me, his skin warm against mine through the thin silk. "Have you heard of Adrian Domachenkov?"

I give him a deadpan stare as if he's asking me if I knew the sun was in the sky. "Of course. He's a media mogul. He owns a studio and..." My voice trails off when I realize something and my heart races. "Micah, why are you asking me if I know Adrian Domachenkov?"

"Because you have a meeting with him when we get back." His words send electricity dancing along my nerves.

My eyes nearly pop out of my head, my whole body going still with shock. "What are you saying to me?"

"He's a friend of Jaxon's. When I told him you were trying to get auditions, he put me in touch with Adrian. After we spoke, Adrian took a look at your resume and your previous work and loved you. He thinks you'd be perfect for the lead in a movie he's making. But he wants to meet with you and do a mini-audition."

My body feels heavy with the thrill of this news, like gravity has doubled. "No way. This can't be possible."

"But it is." He chuckles, brushing his nose against mine, his breath warm against my lips.

"Oh, Micah." I throw my arms around him, and he holds me, too, his strength enveloping me like a sanctuary. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me." My voice trembles with emotion.

"I think I do. I told you I'd take care of you."

Tears of happiness flow from me. "Yes, you did. Youare."

"Anything for you, Scarlett Delarosa." His words resonate through my heart, and I feel more cherished than I ever thought possible.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Micah

I rest my hands on the table and listen to Scarlett talking heartily about her meeting with Adrian. She’s so excited she’s barely touched her food.

She met with him earlier today and did her audition. I thought it would be nice to take her out to dinner so we could celebrate her win although she hasn’t had confirmation of the part yet. I feel she’ll get it. Not because I know Adrian Domachenkov and, unknown to Scarlett, we come from the same world.

Adrian is from the Knights, a secret society like the Enclave, but they have more alliances with the Creed and other organizations.

Regardless, Scarlett’s achievement will be solely based on her talent.

Her melodious voice drowns out the sounds in the restaurant—the chatter from the nearby tables, the waitress going over the orders she’s taking, the clatter of cutlery on plates as people eat. But it’s not enough to completely subdue my worries.

I’ve been trying to balance my thoughts, but it’s hard to concentrate when I have so many loose ends to tie up and it feels like nothing is being done.

Nothing new has happened since well before the wedding. Jaxon set up his system, but the hackers haven’t made a move. Brahm has kept a track on Anton’s men and their conversations, but nothing more has been said about Anton’s return to the States or getting Scarlett back.

More than a whole fucking month has passed since then. On top of all that shit, my father and I are barely speaking. He’ll be cordial when he’s around me and Scarlett, but I know he’s still pissed that I didn’t marry Eloise.

I’m thankful that my mother is the way she is, because I can’t worry about my father now.

It’s never good when things go quiet. It’s like the calm before the storm, the silence before a war, the heartbeat before death.

No one is ever equipped to do anything in either of those situations until they know what’s coming next.

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