Page 26 of Luka

I let my eyes trail the path from her pretty face down to my hand between her legs. I can’t tell if I think she’s intelligent ornot. She’s brave, and I do like that. I definitely like that she’s cute.

Butsmart? I don’t know. Surely, she understands if there were things I truly needed to know, I could get them without her silly games. And yet, I’m playing them anyway.

“Well,” I start, tipping my head to the side. “You’re right. There’s nothing I can think of that you could do to prolong the length of your life. I can only tell you what would end it quicker. There, question answered. My turn. Did?—”

“No.”

My brows arch at the defiance in her voice. Finally, she looks at me. “If you can think of nothing, then that is a non-answer. You also lied to me to begin with, therefore, you do not get to ask me a new question until you answer one of mine truthfully and definitively. Those are my terms.”

My hand on her thigh squeezes as irritation floods, but other than a small flinch, Lucia doesn’t respond to it. She stares at me intently, waiting to see if I’ll comply.

Is itstillcute?

I chuckle half-heartedly before rolling my neck to loosen tension. “Fine. Ask me your next question again.”

“Who will get bored of me first?”

I shrug. “Impossible to say.”

“Then I get a new question.”

My eyes narrow. “It feels like you’re cheating at this, Peach.”

“It feels likeyou’renot even trying.” Her voice holds an accusing tone to it, like this shit really matters to her. Like she isn’t asking me meaningless things.

She’s going to die. There’s nothing she can do to stop it. Her questions could have stopped there. Who cares about the rest?

I remove my hand from her thigh and rub it over my forehead while I break eye contact.

“You understand I’m not a fortune teller,” I say, dropping my hand and peering at Lucia. “I cannot with one hundred percent confidence answer questions like that.”

She nods. “I want your full consideration and best guess. I’ll be able to tell if you blow it off or lie.”

I huff and roll my eyes but then look away as I think about it.

Who will get bored first?

How the fuck should I know? I can’t read Arseni’s mind. I don’t know what he thinks of the girl, how interesting he finds her. It isn’t as though we do this often or haveevershared a woman for that matter. Already, I can tell I don’t like it. Jealousy flares at the mere mention of it, and although it’s obviously not her fault, I resent her for even bringing it up.

So perhaps I’ll bow out first. Maybe even after handing her over after tonight. The idea of taking her back after Arseni has had her spreads heat through my ears and causes the muscles in my arms to tighten.

I don’t know how I thought I could ever share a woman. Not one that I actually want.

“I will,” I say without even considering Arseni. His short attention span isn’t good news for her if she’s hoping for longevity, but I don’t tell her that. That wasn’t her question.

She lets out a sigh and nods, her eyes half-hooded like she’s relieved.Relieved. Goddamn it, that bothers me.

“Did you run away from home because of abuse?”

“No.”

I raise a finger. “Hold on, I’d like to rephrase. Why did you?—”

“You can’t rephrase. You asked a question, and I answered. If you’d like to ask another, you may do so when it’s your turn.”

I laugh, not a ha-ha laugh, not ayou’re so cutelaugh, but a laugh that makes Lucia’s shoulders raise and her brave face soften. “Okay.” I nod while pinching her ear between my fingers and thumb and dragging her toward me. Lucia yelps and tries totwist her body to lessen the strain but is smart enough not to put her hands on mine.

“Go ahead, Peach. Ask your question.”

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