Page 48 of Brutal Monster
"Neither have you." Challenge flashes in her eyes. "We aren't people who say things, Vanya. We're people who do things."
I cup her face in my hands. "Then let me do this. Let me be clear." I hold her gaze, refusing to look away from what I'm about to admit. "I love you. Not for what you bring to the table. Not for the alliance. For you. The woman who calls me on my bullshit. The woman who thinks three steps ahead of everyone else. The woman who makes me want more than power."
Her breath catches. For a terrible moment, I think I've shown too much, given her a weapon she never asked for.
Then she kisses me, fierce and demanding. Her fingers thread through my hair, holding me to her as if I might try to escape. As if I would ever want to.
When she pulls back, her eyes shine with something I've never seen before. Vulnerability, perhaps. Or hope.
"I do love you. “It feels impossible, but I do,” Inez whispers against my mouth. "God help us both."
CHAPTER NINETEEN
INEZ
Istare at my reflection, looking like a stranger wearing white. The wedding dress feels like armor, heavy with expectations.
"Hold still," My assistant, Carla, says, pinning something into my hair. "Perfect." She flew in late last night from Mexico City with my gown in hand, fresh from the dressmaker.
I don't feel perfect. I feel like I'm balancing on a knife's edge, waiting for the blade to slip. I no longer fear or dread marrying Vanya. He’s not only good for the security of my family’s empire–he’s good for me. We’ve fallen in love in such a short time, and I believe with all my heart this is how things were meant to be. Yet, I can't shake the feeling of impending disaster.
The door opens. Lucia, my security chief, slips in, her face tight with an expression I know too well. She's bringing bad news wrapped in her typical professional restraint.
"Perimeter's re-secured," she says, voice low. "We've doubled security at all entrances."
"And?" I ask, because there's always more.
Lucia hesitates. "We can't confirm Adan's status."
The room goes silent. Carla's hands freeze in my hair.
"What do you mean you can't confirm?" My voice remains steady even as my pulse accelerates. "Dead or alive isn't complicated, Lucia."
"The team found blood at his last known location. A lot of it. But there was no body." Lucia shifts her weight. "Could be he bled out somewhere we haven't found him yet."
"Or could it be he's still breathing and planning to make my wedding memorable." I stand, the dress rustling like whispered threats. "Find him. Now."
Carla touches my shoulder. "Inez, your father is expecting you downstairs in twenty minutes."
"Then we have nineteen minutes to locate my step-brother." I grab my phone and scroll through the security feeds. "If Adan's alive, he won't miss this opportunity. Too much pride. Too much hate."
"I've got teams searching," Lucia says. "But he knows our protocols."
Of course he does. He helped write half of them before I took control. Before I became the thing he despises most—the woman who stole his birthright.
"The ceremony is about to start," I say, calculating. "We must find Adan or make absolutely certain this venue is impenetrable."
"You could postpone," Carla suggests quietly.
I meet her eyes in the mirror. "And show weakness? Never."
My wedding day. My alliance. My empire on display. I won't let Adan take this from me, too.
"Get me my gun," I tell Lucia. "The small one with the pearl handle."
"For your wedding?" Carla looks horrified.
I smile thinly. "Something borrowed, something blue, something to put a bullet through anyone who tries to stop this marriage."
