Page 62 of Fatal Bonds

Claire gasps, her jaw dropping as she sees the giant rock on my left ring finger. “You gotmarried?” she nearly shrieks.

Oh god.

“Lindsey, what the hell! I mean, I’m so happy for you, but where the heck was my wedding invitation?” She’s practically bouncing with excitement, and she throws her arms around me for another hug. “Wait, is this the real reason you’ve been gone so long? Have you been playing hooky this whole time so you could get hitched and go on a romantic honeymoon?”

“I—no—it’s not—” Anxiety surges through me, my skin tingling as I start to go numb. I have no clue what I’m supposed to say right now. I’m so bad at lying, and it’s not like I can tell them the truth.

“I mean, it’s not a bad strategy,” Annie observes. “Since you’re a newer employee, it’s not like you’d have accrued enough PTO for all the time off, right? So if you can get away with working remotely?—”

“No, it’s not like that,” I promise, glancing anxiously around the room.

We are most definitely making a scene now, and I flush as several heads turn in our direction, people focusing curiously on the noise. Running into Claire and Annie is turning into a major problem—not just for my job, which I was going to have to quit anyway, but I had hoped I could continue with remotely until I got settled in New York. But if the wrong person recognizes me, I could ruin Maks and Lucian’s plan.

“Tell us everything. Who’s the mystery man?” Claire presses, her eyes bright and her smile radiant when I turn back to her.

She and Annie look so happy for me, it makes my heart twinge. They really are good friends, and it’s sweet that they care—even if I didn’t invite them to the wedding. But I wish I could crawl into a dark hole right now.

The hair raises on the back of my neck as I get the distinct feeling that someone’s watching me. Fear races up and down my spine, and I fumble distractedly over my words as I glance past their expectant faces. My heart beat kicks up a notch when I spot Maks. He’s back. Relief surges through me instinctually, but unease settles in my stomach when he moves closer and I can make out his expression. His eyes are sharp with intensity, unbridled fear written across his face. I’ve never seen him look scared before, and it launches me straight into a state of panic as cold sweat breaks out across my neck.

“There you are, beautiful. I’ve been looking for you.”

I recognize the sickly sweet voice behind me without having to turn around, and when something cold and hard presses against the base of my spine, revulsion churns in my stomach, threatening to send my Michelin star meal backup my throat. Goosebumps erupt across my exposed shoulder blades as Emiliano Costanzo steps close to me, his lips brushing the shell of my ear. One hand possessively grips my hip, pulling me closer to him to hide the gun between us.

Annie’s jaw nearly hits the floor as Claire gives another excited squeal, clapping her hands and covering her ear-to-ear grin.

“Is this him?” she asks, her voice muffled by her palms.

“The one and only,” Emiliano answers for me, his lips still close enough to me that it makes my skin crawl, but I don’t dare move when I’m sure he’s got a gun against my back. “Why don’t you come with me, love? I have a surprise for you.”

Icy fear hammers through my veins, and I glance behind Annie and Claire, but I’ve lost track of Maks, and I only have a split second to decide what I’m going to do. I’m tempted to refuse to move.He wouldn’t shoot me in front of all these people, right?But if I’m wrong, there’s no doubt in my mind that his bullet would hurt the baby based on where he’s aiming.

“I’ll see you guys later, okay?” I say, my voice breathy and falsely bright with anxiety.

“Yeah, of course. Have fun, lovebirds!” Annie says, giving me a playful wink.

Then she and Claire turn to put their heads together, giggling excitedly. No doubt they’re whispering about the juicy new gossip that I married a silver fox without telling anybody.

Fuck. Now what do I do?

Heart in my throat, I let Emiliano steer me around the dance floor to a side door at the back of the main ballroom. Every instinct in me screams for me to bolt, but he has a firm grip on me now, and the barrel digging into my spine assures me I won’t make it far if I do try to run.

“Make a sound, and I’ll blow you apart,” he warns as soon as we’re out of earshot of my friends. And like he can hear my thoughts, his grip tightens until he’s holding me with bruising force.

“Please, just let me go,” I plead, my pulse quickening as a white-gloved server opens the door for us, and I pump the brakes as I realize he’s taking me somewhere away from the crowd—away from witnesses.

“Don’t fucking push me,” he growls, jamming the gun more forcibly against my spine as he marches me through the doorway.

The door closes behind us with a sharp click, and as we’re thrown into silence, true panic starts to cloud my mind.How did I let this happen? Why did I insist on coming tonight? Just so I could watch this asshole die?Except nowI’mthe one whose life is on the line. The only hope I can cling to is that Emiliano won’t have much time to get the job done. Maks saw us—and he and Lucian both want Emiliano dead, which means someone has to be coming for me.Right?So if I stall long enough, maybe I can survive this. Maybe I can keep my baby alive.But where the hell is Maks?

“Through there,” Emiliano growls, pushing me toward a door on the far side of the room.

More of the waitstaff watch us, and based on their lack of concern over a man forcibly taking me into a secluded room, I’m going to guess they work for him. But on the off chance that they don’t, I want to make it perfectly clear that I’m in distress.

“Help me,” I implore, turning my attention to the one nearest me.

His eyes slide over me, emotionless and apathetic as he gives the don a nod and opens the next door for him. As soon as we’re inside, Emiliano gives me a hard shove, and I stumble forward on my high heels, bracing against the arm of a couch so I don’t hit the cold marble floor.

“He sure did pick a beauty, didn’t he?” the don purrs, and when I straighten to my full height and turn to face him a shudder ripples down my spine. The way he points his gun at me is so casual, he looks as though it’s a harmless toy. “Maks, that is. Though you’re a bit older than I typically enjoy.” His eyes rake down my body with lewd appreciation.

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