Page 65 of Revelation (Love Isn't What It Seems 3)

“Maybe,” I muttered, barely getting the words out. I turned to Livy. “How about that coffee?”

I didn’t think I could take a bite of anything to eat right now and not choke on it. I wished I stayed in bed. This was not good news. Between the looming ‘pay the blackmailer day’ tomorrow and potential exposure of auctioning myself at Revelation, I could snap in half any minute.

The last thing I needed was for Maxim to find out what I had done in his club. What if he saw me? A lingering thought I refused to acknowledge kept dancing in my mind.

Fuck, now my body heated for a completely different reason.

Livy took my hand and dragged me through the house and towards their dining room. “It is ready.”

“You should give our club a try, Layla,” Daniel continued in a nonchalant tone, walking behind us. He was annoying the shit out of me right now. “You never know what you might find.” I stumbled at those words, and Maxim’s hands instantly wrapped around me.

I swallowed hard. If he saw me, I was ruined. I kept telling myself everyone wore masks, although at this moment it wasn’t a consolation at all. There was no way someone would have recognized me. Right?God, please ensure nobody recognized me.

“You can let go now,” I bit out, a tad bit too sharp.

Maxim would have said something if he recognized me.Unless… oh my God, I can’t think about it.

Livy and I took several steps away from the men before she continued in a low tone. “Be nice to Maxim.”

“I’m being nice,” I defended myself. “Sometimes he just makes me react.” There were two possibilities now that plagued me. Maxim might have caught me red handed selling myself to a stranger for money. Or my nagging feeling about Luke’s and Maxim’s resemblance meant something more that I was scared and excited to admit.

God, everything Luke and I had done. It felt so damn right, so good and exciting. I had to hold back from going back to that building and searching him out. Would it be bad to find out that Luke was actually Maxim? But if MaximwasLuke, wouldn’t he have told me sometime during that night? Like between orgasm number three and four? Was it just a game to him? Was I just someone to use and discard? Did I mean that little to him?I think I’m going to be sick.

Or have I finally lost my mind?

I had to admit it was farfetched. But then so was owning a club like Revelation! Didn’t I think Maxim was too good of a guy to visit a club like that? And here I find out he owned it!

“In a good way?” My sister’s eyebrow arched in question. I debated what she was talking about and then I remembered our conversation.

“Does it seem to you like it’s in a good way?” I answered vaguely with a question.

“Well, I don’t know. You seem to bicker with him more than anyone. So maybe, it means you like him.”

I rolled my eyes, although my heart screamed ‘Yes, Yes, I like him!’ though I had no idea if the feeling was mutual. He probably liked my body, but what about likingme?“What kind of idiotic logic is that?” I replied instead.

She smiled softly and glanced behind her. I didn’t have to follow her gaze to know her eyes went to Alexander.

“Well, it was kind of true with Alexander and me.” Then she slowed down her step. “Wasn’t it, husband?”

Alexander Caldwell could be so intimidating with his piercing gaze and his towering frame. But around Liberty, he just melted. Maybe I craved to have something like them. Or a fraction of it. I knew it was rare but it would be nice to be loved and wanted.

“What’s that, my love?”

“You two will make me barf.” I rolled my eyes again, just to nail the point home. Sometimes it was easier, or maybe just safer, to keep my walls up and keep up my tough attitude.

Liberty chuckled. “I’ll tell you later.”

I turned my attention to Brandon as we sat down around the table. “How was your trip, Brandon?”

He was probably the safest person to talk to in this room. I should probably stick to only talking to him, to ensure I didn’t run into any other invisible landmines.

“It was cool,” he answered enthusiastically. “The castle had ghosts and old knights.”

“Umm, really? That sounds scary.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t let them get to you.”

I chuckled. “Thanks, buddy.”

---