Page 99 of Beautiful Enemy

“We shouldn’t have done that,” I whisper, staring up at the ceiling.

Dante goes eerily still beside me. “What?”

“Dante… we shouldn’t have done that.” A tear escapes my eye.

“I thought you wanted to be mine.” He props himself up on his elbow and looks down at me with confusion. I hate that I put that confusion there. I wish things could just be more simple.

“You said I was yours, which means you won’t let me go. You won’t let me return to Anya.”

“But I thought you didn’t want to go back. Your father will find you.”

“But I need to see my sister again. You have to understand that. I can’t be with you unless she can also be in my life.”

He grabs my face. It’s not exactly rough but it’s not exactly gentle either. “You are mine. You gave yourself to me. Do you regret it?”

“Maybe,” I admit. “I was supposed to wait for my wedding night.” Now, if Dante does ever let me go, no Bratva man will want me again. Now that I’ve been defiled by a Mafia man.

But I know I don’t want to be with another man. I want Dante.

I just can’t want him without Anya in my life.

“Too late now, baby. I just fucked you. Your innocence is gone.” He wipes my tear away with his thumb.

“I don’t know what to do.”

“Stay with me. Be with me. Forget your family. Leave it all behind.”

That’s the difference between Dante and I. He doesn’t have a family to miss. He wants me to be his but I can’t be. Not when Anya is still worried for me.

Not when me being here is torturing her.

“I need to see my sister again. She needs to know that I’m ok.”

“She won’t understand. She’ll think you’re crazy for wanting to be with me. And if you return to her, Erik will never let you go. He will keep you from me. And then he’ll try to kill me and more people will die. You saved my life to try to save more lives. So you can’t go.” He gets out of bed, anger radiating off him.

“I thought I wasn’t your prisoner any longer.”

“You just have to be smarter than this. It’s either me or your family. You can’t have both.” His words are like a slap to my face.

Dante storms out of the room before I can get another word in.

The sad part is, I know he’s right. I have to make a decision.

It’s not going to be an easy one.

Anya

My father shows up on my doorstep, covered in blood and sweat.

“You’re not welcomed here,” I snap. Before I can slam the door in his face, he speaks.

“I found Nadia.”

I go cold in my bones. Erik was out looking for her but couldn’t find her. My father getting his hands on her was the last thing I wanted.

“Where is she?”

“Back with that filthy Italian. I tried to take her home with me but she did the stupidest thing. She made me crash my car. It was like she didn’t want to leave with me.”

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