Settimo clasps a hand over my mouth and leans in close to me. He puts his hand on my thigh and I shudder.
“Stop. Please. I’m the don of the familia. I get that you know me differently than most people, but don’t be stupid.”
He takes his hand off my mouth and leans back, his chin high, demanding.
“My loyalty is to the Italians,” I lie, which is exactly what he wants me to do.
His lips pull into a slight smile, and he runs his hand from my thigh to my neck. He tucks my hair behind my ear. “Good. Because the familia needs you to do something.”
My blood runs cold, and my chest tightens. I pull his hand away from me and scoot inches away from him.
“Thefamilianeeds me to do something oryouneed me to do something?”
“They’re the same thing.”
“No, they aren’t.”
Settimo considers this for a moment. His eyes dip and then lock on my face again. “Fine. I need you to do something.”
“In that case… no.”
I hop off the ledge and head for the door, hoping,prayinghe doesn’t follow me. This was a mistake. As bad as the one Carrie made just before her bullies dumped pig’s blood on her. Who am I to think Settimo cares for me? Of course he doesn’t.
Settimo grabs my wrist, and I spin to glare at him. I yank, but he doesn’t free me. “Leave me the fuck alone,” I sneer.
“It’s easy, Alex. Nikita has already asked you to tell him anything you know about me. All I need you to do is—”
“If I betray Nikita, I die. Do you fucking get that?” I belt out a humorless laugh toward the Las Vegas night sky. The prettiest sky I’ve ever seen. “Of course you know that. You just don’t care.”
“Nikita isn’t going to do shit to you.”
“Oh yeah? How do you know that?”
“Because he won’t know I’ve asked you to confide in him. If I thought you would betray me, I would’ve just told you what I wanted him to know, then waited for you to tell him.”
“How do you know I wouldn’t betray you? Is your ego really that big?”
“You care about me.”
I grind my teeth but can’t think of anything to say. I could deny it, but we both know it’s useless. I’m here, aren’t I?
“You wouldn’t betray me,” he says with absolute confidence I hate him for having. “And I wouldn’t betray you.”
I yank my wrist away successfully this time and take a step back. I raise my arms and gesture around us. “Thisisn’t a betrayal? You’re using me.” Tears spring to my eyes, and I bite down on my cheek and will them away. “Everyoneuses me.”
Settimo stands without saying anything. He isn’t even denying it.
A tear leaks onto my cheek, and I viciously swipe it away.
Settimo closes the distance between us and puts his hand on my shoulder. I jerk away from him.
“Look at me.”
I meet his eyes, and his expression is no less serious than it was earlier.
“I care about what happens to you. I wouldn’t ask you to do this if there was a better way to get Nikita’s attention.”
I have nothing to say to that, so I wait for him to go on. He’s going to tell me whatever it is he wants whether I like it or not.