My brain is still in fight mode, but I feel the burn in my limbs twist and turn into something much more tantalizing. More potent.
More dangerous.
No one has ever considered any part of me sexy, but you wouldn’t know it by the way Alik is studying my mouth, his eyes darkening as I repeat, “Yours?”
“Until I say otherwise.”
I hate how his breath coasts across my neck. Hate it so much heat flares between my legs. “Or until I finally manage to run away.”
Alik’s answering shrug is so unbothered I start to shove him again. And stop when he brings the gun to eye level. “Now that we understand each other, let’s get back to the deal I was talking about.”
I stare at him.
“A trade. You tell me what happened tonight and I’ll give you this.”
What?!“Why?”
“Why to which part?”
“The gun part.”Obviously.
“Because,” he says, carefully setting his weapon in my lap. “You’ve had a lot taken from you, Marya, and while I can’t give you back your freedom, I’d be a negligent asshole if I didn’t give you a way to protect yourself.”
For the first time in longer than I can remember, I want to laugh. Really, truly laugh. “But I could shoot you.”
“You could. You could do it now. Kill me in cold blood and walk out that door. But then, in addition to being broke and alone, two things would happen.”
“And they are?”
“You’d have more than just what’s left of the Pagano family chasing you down. You’d be running from my family as well. And, for the sake of transparency, mybratvais much better at their job than yours.”
He has abratva. Alik is Russian mafia. Of course he is. As if this situation couldn’t get any worse. “And the second part?”
“You’d lose your chance at revenge.”
Revenge. The idea slips and slides across my skin, seeping into my pores, seeding itself just beneath the surface. Simmering there. “But how? Against who? You said most of the Paganos are dead. Except…you’re questioning Rocco? He survived the attack?”
“In a manner of speaking.” Alik looks every bit a ruthless mobster that I now know he is. “He’s alive for as long as I need him to be. Until he gives me the information that I want.”
“You’ve set a ticking clock on Rocco’s life and a huge chunk of the Paganos are already dead, killed in the Cerreti attack. So…who do I get my revenge on?”
“Easy,moya voitelnitsa. The men who wanted to buy you.”
Revenge. Those seeds burrow deeper, through muscle, down to bone. They settle, start to root. “Just so I’m clear—I tell you what happened tonight and, in exchange, I get to keep your gun?”
“Da. And if you stop trying to run away, I’ll help you get your revenge.”
Revenge.I want it. Badly. For the first time in a very long time, I am excited about something. Looking forward tosomething. Homicidally excited, just the way the Paganos raised me. “Yes. Deal.”
“Khorosho. But you will need to be patient,moya voitelnitsa. The timing needs to be right. I decide, not you.” Alik is eating up all the air between us, his gaze intense as he reads my reaction. His body still so close I can practically taste the sweat and salt of his skin. “There are things I must finish first, before anything else happens.”
“How long will that be?”
“As long as it takes.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“It’s the only one you’re getting.” Alik drags a finger across my cheek, tucks wayward hair behind an ear. “You’re not in charge, Marya. Everything will be much easier if you remember that.”