Page 62 of Venomous Vows

I smirk. “He always was.”

19

ELENA

The music is so loud,it almost moves the place. Streams of pink and purple lights strobe and skate all over the place at the Vegas club Celine, Marcella, and I are at. I’ve had more than my safe amount of drinks, feeling the buzz of the tequila that I have mixed in my beverages.

Marcella is having the time of her life, dancing with several guys as I keep a close watch on her.

Or was.

I lost her somewhere in the crowd, but I know she’s too smart to get carried away with some dude and leave with him without telling me.

It’s not like her and she knows it’ll drive me crazy.

“So,” Celine yells over the current mainstream song and inches closer to me. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine,” I state with a smile. “I need another one.”

She laughs, pulling some of her blond hair off her shoulder. “Don’t get too buzzed to where you’ll feel it tomorrow.”

Drinking while on painkillers isn’t probably the most intelligent thing I’ve done, but I feel six feet high right now.

“One more,” I say, placing my glass down on the bar top. I’m not able to dance around like Marcella due to my ribs, but just being out of town right now is all I need to feel sane. “Then I’ll eat something.”

“I’m the DD,” Celine professes. “I just don’t want you spending tomorrow in front of a toilet.”

Me neither.

“I’ll slow down,” I promise. “That’s the last thing I need.”

Celine wraps an arm around me and gives me a small squeeze. “You doin’ all right?”

Define all right.

I’m better than most and I’m alive, so there’s that. Marcella is safely home. I don’t have to spend any more sleepless nights worrying about that. However, my arrangement with Adrian has kept me on edge.

I believed that the mistress option would rid me of most of my troubles, but it’s only made me anxious. Giving myself to Adrian, even my body and not my womb, doesn’t seem to fight back the enormous cloud that hovers over my head.

When is he going to make good on my new position? How is he going to be? Is it going to be awful and awkward, and am I going to be able to look at myself in the mirror afterward?

“I’m good,” I lie, faking a smile. “Just…enjoying all this.”

“Good,” Celine replies softly. “But these guys who follow you around?—”

“Precaution,” I say with a dismissive wave of my hand. “I’d rather have them than not, ya know? Better to be safe than sorry.”

She nods. “I know. Of course I want you safe.” She strums her fingers along my shoulder. “Um…so he doesn’t know where you’re at?”

I shake my head. “Nope.”

“He doesn’t like…have a tracker on you or anything, right?”

My blood runs cold at the mention of that idea because, honestly, I never thought about it and I wouldn’t put it past Adrian.

But how?

I would’ve felt a needle go into my skin.I think.

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