Page 74 of Hunt Me
I chuckled. “Sergio was indeed in charge of my security team.” She’d paid very close attention to what had been said. While she’d been terrified before, not only had her defiance returned, but she was also eager to learn more about me. My instincts said it had nothing to do with her father or whatever agenda he had on the table. I’d seen her very quick look of irritation when I’d mentioned him.
Perhaps it was possible she believed her own father had manipulated her. Everything was on the table at this point, but I still couldn’t trust her any more than she could me.
“Why murder him? Was your organization threatened?”
“A very good question. I won’t lie to you, Bristol. My family is steeped in power and control. That provides anample opportunity for threats to come in every manner from emails to phone calls. Even social media posts. Most aren’t taken seriously. However, our business is entirely legal. We’re businessmen. We give to charity. We provide our employees with top notch benefits and a fantastic work atmosphere. The days of slaughtering people in the streets are long gone. You might choose to believe a reporter looking for his fifteen minutes of fame, but I have no reason to lie to you.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
“My sister is very much like you are, Bristol. But if you were friends, you already know that. She believes in right versus wrong. She never knew the life my father and uncle lived, or that I experienced at an early age. My parents didn’t want that for their children, which is why they left Moscow.” I honestly wasn’t certain why I was telling her my family’s history, other than coaxing her to trust me.
“How honorable and admirable.”
“Yes, it was. They sacrificed significantly. Lilia had a chance to be anyone she wanted to be, which wouldn’t have been the case if we’d stayed in Russia.”
While she frowned, I could tell she was paying close attention, processing everything I’d told her.
I studied her in the light, her long, dark hair spilling out over the comforter. She was more diligent in her resolve to escape than I had envisioned, which kept my cock aching and my balls tight. I’d expected her to whimper, cowering like the majority of other assholes who dared to cross me. This girl was entirely different, her acts of defiance creating a spark deep within me.
She rose onto her elbow, completely comfortable in her nakedness. I took a few seconds, brushing the tip of my finger down her arm, rolling it under her breast.
Her smile was slight, an almost knowing look in her eyes. Perhaps she believed she knew me. She was wrong. But she did bring out a side of me so unexpected I was caught in a moment of seeking more than just answers from her.
Yet I would temper my desires.
For now.
“You’re truly trying to tell me you aren’t doing anything illegal. You own half of Las Vegas. That much I do know.”
Now I laughed. “I wish I did own half. Yes, my family owns several profitable resorts and we have interests in several other corporations, but the days of backroom decisions skirting the law are long gone. However, reporters love to push the idea we’re nothing but brutal men.”
“You aren’t?” Her smile was sly.
“No, we are not.” When she kept her heated gaze on me, I pinched her nipple. “At least not usually. Unless we’re pushed.”
She shuddered from my touch, her eyes now half closed. I caressed her skin, lightly tracing the length of her arm. When she finally pulled it away, I fisted my hand.
“You have an idea why your friend was killed. Don’t you?” The attorney inside her was asking.
“To be honest with you, I’m uncertain. For once, I was completely caught off guard. There were no recent or pointed threats.”
“How did you know I was at his house?” When I didn’t answer, she groaned. “He had security cameras both inside and outside his home.”
“Yes. Sergio was very careful, a secure man, although the cameras outside were disabled and he only had a camera on the front door, but there was no sign of forced entry.” Why was I sharing the information with her? Did I think she’d suddenly place her trust in me? I doubted that.
As her eyes darted back and forth across mine, I leaned closer until we were just inches apart. Most people in this position would pull away by instinct if nothing else. She inched closer until our lips were almost touching. “Did you see anyone else?”
“No, but I wasn’t on the scene very long. I plan on going back. Now, I need to know the truth about this. What did Sergio say to you?”
The single tic in the corner of her mouth indicated she would try to hold out on me.
“He said nothing of value. Gibberish. He was dying, Mikhail. The poor man was foaming at the mouth.”
I cupped her jaw, absently rubbing my thumb across her succulent lips. “Then what did you see once you were inside?”
“Nothing. I heard a noise in the kitchen and knew I was in danger. That’s why I ran and called the police from the car. I refused to become another victim.”
Exhaling, she didn’t blink when I blew hot air across her face. My instincts were almost never wrong. She was keeping something significant from me. Perhaps out of fear, lack of trust, or perhapsanother reason that I’d need to explore. Right now, she believed we were equals in this game of push and pull.
