“She needs stitches,” I say, shaking his hand. “Some fucker split her head open at the club.”
Layla mumbles her name like a timid school girl switching schools in the middle of the semester. She sits on the bed, hands in fists, eyes closed even before Carlton gets anywhere near her.
“She can’t handle the sight of blood,” I explain. “And while we’re here, we need to get her on birth control.”
“One thing at a time.” He checks the wound and cleans the dried blood, grabbing a hemostat. “Three stitches should be enough. You’ll feel a bit of pressure.”
Layla stills, frozen like a statue. The fear etched into her expression cuts me so deep I feel like my lungs are filling up.
I wheel a chair from the desk to the bed and take her hands in mine. “How was the party?”
She starts breathing again but clutches my hands so hard she cuts off circulation. “Julij apologized for Dubai and has been on his best behavior. We had fun.” A smile on her lips tells me she can easily imagine my surprise. “I know. I didn’t expect it either. Turns out he tried to woo me back then.”
“Uh-oh,” Carlton smirks.
“No, it’s not like that. He’s over it, I think.”
“Are you telling me you spent the evening babysitting a guy who’s in love with you, and you had fun?”
She smiles again, relaxing a bit. Too bad my mental well-being gets the kicking.
“Jealous, are you?”
I ghost my lips over her knuckles. “Not at all.”
Carlton fake-coughs, sets the hemostat aside, and moves on to clean the stitched area.
Julij’s not one of my enemies. We only met six months ago when I visited my mother in New York. Nikolaj hunted me down and invited me for a drink. He wanted us to work together behind Frank’s back, but while they remain business partners, I want nothing to do with the New York King.
Thanks to my partners from Detroit, or their chemist, to be precise, I supply the best coke on the market. More addictive than street shit and less lethal, which means more long-term customers. That’s what Nikolaj would love to get his hands on. I’ve got a good thing going with the V brothers from Detroit, and easy access to the ports from Atlantic City, so Europe’s within my reach. New York’s closer, sure, but it means working side by side with Frank which won’t ever happen, so I shot Nikolaj down.
Julij joined the meeting, acting as if he owned the goddamn state. He was hitting on the waitresses, snapping his fingers at Nikolaj’s men, and looking down at me despite being a fucking newbie in this world. I wasn’t thrilled that Layla had to deal with him tonight, but she has a knack for putting people in their place. I wasn’t too worried before the party. Now, knowing she likes the brat who’s apparently in love with her, I want to dislocate his jaw.
“All done,” Carlton says. “I put dissolvable stitches in, so no need to come back. Keep it clean, and don’t use a brush or sleep on that side. You wouldn’t want to pull the stitches now, would you?” He looks at me. “Where the fuck were you when she got hit?”
Layla jumps to her feet, arms akimbo. “I don’t need a nanny, thank you very much.” She rolls her eyes at the skeptical look on Carlton’s face. “I can take care of myself.”
He cocks an eyebrow, taken aback by all her sass. “Feisty like her daddy. A bit of supervision won’t do you any harm. You’re in the middle of a war, Layla. It’ll be best if someone’s always watching over you.”
We’ll need to come back some other day for the contraceptive pill. I steer her out of the office before she starts hissing. Carlton will go down like a house of cards if he tries to argue. I pat his shoulder and close the door behind us.
“He didn’t mean anything by it, Star.”
“I know, but—”
“But you don’t like it when people treat you like a clueless princess. I know, but sometimes it’s better to let them say what they want.”
She crosses her arms with a frown. I’m ready for a snarky remark, but instead of snapping, a satisfied grin twists her mouth. “So, you’re jealous?”
She’s so adorable, sexy, and fucking irresistible when she holds her bottom lip between her teeth. I push her against the wall, and my teeth replace hers. We’ve spent so much time together this past month that seven hours without her mouth, scent, and closeness are more than I can handle.
“I am a very territorial man, and you are themostprized of my possessions.Jealousdoesn’t begin to cover it.” I kiss her forehead. “How sore is my pussy, baby?”
She rests the back of her head against the metal wall of the elevator. “Sore enough that you can forget about round two tonight, baby. I want a hot-water bottle and a big bucket of ice cream.”
“Done. We’ll stop at the store on the way home.”
CHAPTER TWENTY