Page 62 of Onyx Realm

Time seemed to stop as my brain momentarily went offline. Only once, while escaping the law sent on a witch hunt, had I set foot on that yacht. My brothers were utterly ridiculous. Sandro bought a big boat as a statement, but never had the time to use it. So of course, Leo had to one up him and buy a better yacht, christen it a similar name, and become a boating enthusiast just to subtly outdo his big brother.

“Leo? You mean Leo?” I hissed. Markos knew. How did this monster find out about my family? And now....Oh, madonna, no!I just watched this man snap the neck of a man attacking me.

Markos’s body practically vibrated with wrath. “Do not say his name around me again, prinkípissa.”

What the hell did this man know about Leo? “Who told you?”

“Evangelia might be an airhead, but she’s picked up on a few useful things from you,” he said smoothly, doing a damn fine job of concealing the storm behind his words. “You recognized the model of a yacht in our marina. You said—”

“I’d been on theFortune’s Favorite,” I breathed. That small slip, that momentary lapse in judgement, and my secret was out. I remember that conversation with the girl, but it must be how he knew. There was no other way he could have found out about my brother.

A wicked glint flashed in the monster’s eyes. “I already have a hit lined up to take out the Chicago businessman.”

He was going to hurt my brother. “That makes absolutely no sense. Why would you hurt him? He’s done nothing!”

Leo might not be an active part of our lives, his business façade separating him from us, but he was still blood.

“If you want him to live, you’ll never return to his arms. I will kill him. Without a moment’s hesitation. So you must think of your relationship with him as over.”

Wait. What?He thought we were lovers? A rough laugh bubbled up from my gut. It was either find humor in the mistake or be sick at the thought of being in love with my brother. “You have it all wrong—”

Markos grabbed my jaw, holding it in a terrible grip. Those hard fingers dug into my flesh, making me squirm.

“You will forget about him, and you will marry me,” Markos growled.

I whimpered, trying to pull away from his unforgiving grip. “Please! You’re hurting me.”

His touch softened, but only a fraction.

Air filled my lungs. Enough to spit out, “I’m not marrying you!”

I was planning to sleep with him, but after this? Abso-fucking-lutely not!

“Then look for Mr. Baldwin’s obit in the paper tomorrow.” Markos shoved me backward.

“You’re mad!” I lunged forward, stumbling off the back of the vehicle as the damn broken shoe twisted my ankle wrong. But that didn’t stop me from shouting at the monster in front of me. “What about your other woman? Hmm? The one you weresupposedto marry?”

“She doesn’t matter.”

That was not elation flickering inside my chest. I was too angry to feel that.

“Of course she doesn’t,” I scoffed. “Because nothing matters to a cold, dead fish-man.”

“You have thirty seconds to decide, or I’m leaving on the flight to O’Hare and personally taking your lover’s life,” Markos growled.

I marched right up to him and stabbed him in the chest. “You bastard!”

His jaw clenched tight.

“I hate you.” I stepped closer, trying to get right in his face.

He didn’t even flinch.

It would be so simple to tell him he was wrong. That Leo was my brother, not a lover.

But some inner sense of preservation stopped me. The technicality wouldn’t matter. Markos would still use Leo against me to force my hand. And then I would have revealed one of my most well-kept secrets for nothing.

No...it was better this beast didn’t know I was also from the underworld. That I had two brothers, and one was a powerful mob boss. It would only put more lives in his crossfire.

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