Page 13 of Beautiful Enemy

“I don’t understand the question.” She wraps her arms around herself, shivering like crazy. It is cold down here. I don’t want Nadia to ever get too comfortable.

“Tell me I’m Italian trash.”

“Why?”

Because it will be easier to hate her if she hates me for a part of myself I cannot change.

“Don’t you think so?”

“No,” she says simply.

“Were you not raised to hate Italians?”

“My father hates you but… I don’t really like to agree with my father. So, no. I don’t hate you for being Italian. I hate you for kidnapping me. And for what you’re going to do.”

“And what am I going to do?” I ask eagerly.

She finally looks me straight in the eye. Her eyes are doe-like. Large and brown. Beautiful. Innocent. “You’re going to hurt my family.”

“Iamgoing to hurt you family. I want you to hate me. I want you to despise me.”

“Why do you have so much hate inside of you?”

The question is so innocent, so child-like, that it makes me laugh. I only answer when my laughter subsides. “Because your family put it there.”

Nadia’s eyes widen comically. There’s no way she can be this innocent. I know how Bratva women are raised – Mafia girls too. They’re raised to be virgins until their wedding night. I’m sure Nadia was a good girl and never gave herself to any man.

But just because she’s a virgin, doesn’t make her innocent.

“Tell me. Did you ever kiss him?”

She blinks. “Who?”

“Viktor. Your future husband. Did you ever kiss him?”

“No,”

“Why not? You two were betrothed for many years. Why not explore before the wedding?”

“Because he’s an honorable man. He wanted to wait until I was a full grown adult before marrying me.”

“Well, good for him,” I mock. “I guess he has a code. I guess he’s better than me.”

“He is.” She doesn’t say it to be biting. She says it simply as a fact.

Somehow, that makes her comment sting more.

“Well, I’m not good like Viktor is.” I take her face back into my hands and make her look at me in the eye. “I just might have to take your first kiss from you.”

She inhales sharply.

“Ah… that got a reaction out of you.” I pat her cheek then let her go. “But I won’t kiss you now. I’ll only kiss you when you beg me to kiss you.”

“You’re my kidnapper. I could never.”

“Don’t sound so sure of that, Nadia. I’m going to put you through torture. You just might come around to me soon enough. And that’s the real pain I’m going to cause to your family. I’m going to make you want me. Your enemy. And it will kill your sister right to the core, which will kill Erik in turn. And it will piss off your father, which will just make me laugh.”

“I’ll never be able to love you.” She doesn’t say it with passion. She says it with dejection. Sadness.

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