Page 26 of One of Them

There were no stoppers in place. No parents to worry about. No shame to drag me down. For this reason, I was grateful to be an orphan. Combined with the attitude I carried, it was a recipe for disaster. A delicious, hot mess I planned to enjoy.

I scanned the crowd. A few people gazed my way in open invitation, some I even recognized. I was free to pick like a kid in a candy store, and this club was the headquarters of Haribo. Men, women, couples. Point to the right one, and your life would never be the same. Your taste buds would change forever.

The problem? They all carried themselves with pride, but only a few knew how to handle me. Luckily, I’d never had an unsatisfactory experience.

If you possessed something, there was no need to prove the fact. But I enjoyed the game: the teasing, the power play. Easy wasn’t the way.

Disguised as prey, I began the manhunt.

But this time? The death I brought with me manifested in repeated orgasms.

Their lucky day.

I wasn’t one to turn down a party, but this? My sister’s engagement? I came to drink, celebrate, and keep a close eye on the man who might one day be my brother-in-law. If I ever think of him that way. Until then, I’d be breathing down his neck.

Andrei stayed home with his wife, paying his respects by attending the earlier festivities. Date night, they said. Whatever that meant. Just an excuse to sin on all the furniture in the house…

Since when did I become the one left in charge? First it was the operations, now this? Age wasn’t a reflection of maturity, and I was living proof of that.

I spotted the Italian in his usual spot. Bored out of my mind, I headed his way, ready for more forced pleasantries.

“Lorenzo.”

The man couldn’t be happier to see me again.

“Maxim,” he growled my name, sounding just as irritated.

“What are you doing?” I asked, taking in his jaded expression.

He glanced around the room, as if he, too, was wondering the same thing.

“Growing Ilya’s tab,” he retorted, taking a sip.

“You and me both.”

We clinked our shots, then turned to scan the crowd below.

The dance floor was packed, way over the club’s capacity, but no one cared.

I almost convinced myself I was scanning the space to keep an eye on my sister. Almost.

While still true, she sure wasn’t the one I kept stealing glances at.

Was it wise to seek her? Nope. Did it stop me? Hell no.

A short midnight blue dress hugged her body tightly. It fit even better than the previous one. Her hair was still loose in blonde curls, swinging wildly as she danced next to Alisa. She threw her hands up, sporting a wild smile, mouthing the lyrics to the song.

Fiery things with attitude, my weakness.

Remembering earlier events, I turned to Lorenzo and probed further. “So, her and Malek?”

“Are you here to get more gossip out of me?”

The grin on my face was impossible to disguise. My intention exactly. “Depends on what you got.”

“As shocking as it sounds, we don’t braid each other’s hair and spill our darkest secrets regularly.”

“No? How else do you explain the haircut?” I reached for the ends of his long hair, but he swatted my advances away.

---