Page 22 of Cruel Longing

I cracked the door. “Join me.”

She nodded. The phone was pressed to her ear. “Just a few more minutes,” she mouthed.

“I’ll start without you.” I winked, closing the door so the steam could collect inside.

I stepped inside the shower. The water felt good. So did the bath last night. We had talked for hours. Had tub sex. More sex. Talked again until we fell asleep.

I lathered the soap between my palms. I kept watching the door, waiting for Amara. I thought I heard the outside door slam. I turned off the water and grabbed a towel.

I stepped from the glass enclosure and wrapped the towel around my waist. “Amara, what’s taking so long?”

I opened the bathroom door. I stared at the bed. It was empty. I wandered to the kitchen. She wasn’t in the suite. I spotted the brass key on the table by the front door. Next to it was the necklace. I lifted it in the air. The diamonds sparkled around the pearl. Why had she left it? What the fuck was going on?

There was a note scribbled on the Vieux Carre stationery, pinned to the hotel latch on the door. What the hell had happened while I was in the shower? I yanked it off the lock.

I know it’s you. I know what you’ve done.

That was all it said. I clasped the pearl in my hand. Shit.

The water from the shower puddled at my feet. I closed my eyes. She wasn’t coming back to the suite. That note might as well have been a death threat. She was going to come after me with everything she had.

I had to be ready.

Only, I didn’t know which sin of mine she had uncovered. I had to prepare for her to unleash all the power she had against me.

Twelve

LUKA

FIVE YEARS AGO

My eyes burned. My temples throbbed. The hangover from the wedding and lack of sleep had taken hold of my body.

The last suitcase was in the back of the black SUV. My mother and Katya had pleaded one time too many for me to stay a few extra days I gave them each a hug and shook my father’s hand. There was a formal post-wedding breakfast at the Petrovs’ house this morning. The caterers had begun packing up the china and crystal. The rental company arrived to dismantle the dancefloor and the tents. The magic from the wedding was erased and folded into trunks and moving trucks.

It was time for me to leave. I was as much an accessory in the wedding as the bouquets.

“Call when you get to Paris,” my father instructed. We had gathered together in the driveway. An unusual display of family sentimentality. Weddings and funerals had lasting effects on families.

“I will,” I answered.

Katya wrapped her arms around my waist and squeezed hard. I peeled her tiny body away. “I’m glad I was able to be here for the wedding.” I kissed her on top of the head. “You should go be with Andrey and get ready for your honeymoon.”

“I’d rather go with you,” she whispered.

She was scared. There wasn’t anything to do now. Her future was with Andrey. She had to start to rely on him. She could have a partnership with him if she would only try. I wasn’t going to be much help an ocean away from the family.

“We should get going, sir,” the driver called across the car.

“But it’s late,” Katya argued. “Papa, he could go in the morning.” Her head whipped around to beg our father to change his mind. “Why take such a late flight?”

“No. The flight is booked. No changes.” My father was immovable. He had been on edge in the few days I had returned. We spoke little about business, only that he wanted an update on the fire and if there had been any disruptions in the training schedule.

What mattered most was that we always had another soldier ready to take the next assignment. A soldier who was fully trained and loyal to the Novikov name. The longer I delayed my return to France, the more he worried there was a hold-up in the production of viable Bratva soldiers.

“Have fun in Tahiti.” I squeezed Katya’s shoulder. “Try to relax and enjoy the sun. It’s beautiful there. You’ll have a great honeymoon. Just give it a try. Okay?”

“Please,” she whispered, tugging my hand so neither our parents could see. “I can’t do this without you, Luka. I don’t want to.”

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