“Are you trying to be the new boss?” I whispered.
“I will be the boss.” Lucien’s cold, hazel gaze glittered in the dim light.
Slow realization of what this meant began to sink in and fear blossomed in my stomach. He had made an alliance with our enemies and he was using me to seal the deal. My future, my marriage, my body. He had sold me out again, but this time to an unknown stranger, a modern warlord who had wreaked havoc on our outfit for months now.
“Lucien, please,” I begged. “Please, don’t do this.”
“It’s already done.”
I blinked rapidly as hot tears spilled down my cheeks. “Please,” I whispered.
Lucien’s hard face softened for a moment and he wiped the tears from my face with his thumb. “It’s already done, Sienna. But trust me on this, you’re going to be a lot better off now. Aurelio would have broken you.”
“And Viktor won’t?”
Lucien shook his head, his mouth set in a grim line. “He won’t.”
“How do you know?” I sniffled.
“I spent the last three weeks meeting with him and planning everything for tonight. He’s a good man,” Lucien said.
I pulled my face from his hands and crossed my arms, leaning back against the shelves. I didn’t believe him. Lucien was a made man to his core, hardened by brutality from an early age, and he had a much different idea about what constituted a good man than I did. But I didn’t want to argue with him, in fact, I didn’t even want to look at him. I closed my eyes, my head spinning with all this new information.
“Wear Aurelio’s ring until it’s all over,” Lucien ordered. “And say nothing because if this goes badly, they’ll kill you too. Now, clean yourself up and make an appearance before dinner starts at least.”
Then he was gone and I stood in the cellar and allowed myself the luxury of crying.
After several minutes, I got to my feet, brushing off my dress, and went upstairs to fix my makeup. The girl in the mirror stared back at me through miserable, puffy eyes and my chest ached as I gazed at myself.
Maybe, just maybe, Lucien was right and Viktor was a good man. Maybe he was handsome and his touch was gentle. Or maybe he would just leave me alone and let me do what I pleased once the wedding was over. The thought gave me a spark of hope and I managed to stop crying and wash my face in cold water.
I moved through the evening in a haze, a lump in my throat that I couldn’t wash away no matter how much I drank. Everything around me was normal, even the way Aurelio leered at me from across the room. My heart pattered against my ribs as we ate dinner and I couldn’t keep from darting my gaze between Lucien and his brother, Duran. Searching them for a sign of what was to come.
They remained completely casual, completely relaxed as they ate. There was a flicker of tenseness from Duran’s wife, Iris, who had apparently also just learned of Lucien’s plan to overthrow the boss. Lucien’s new wife, Olivia, gave no sign of fear or anticipation. Instead, she flirted with her husband, enjoyed her food, and swept about the room like a typical mafia princess.
It was getting late and I stood in the far corner of the room, yet another glass of champagne in my hand. From somewhere rang a shrill scream and the room surged, everyone moving back against the wall in a great wave. My heart skipped a beat and I pushed forward, trying to make my way out of the corner. The room spun and I collapsed onto my knees, my stomach roiling like an alcohol soaked drum.
From the corner of my eye I saw Lucien, dripping wet and drenched in blood, throw the body of the boss to the ground. He landed with a sickening thud that shook the floor beneath my feet. One of the women in the crowd started sobbing hysterically and Aurelio surged forward, a gun in his hand.
One of Lucien’s men, Ahmed, appeared in the doorway. Without missing a beat, he put a bullet in Aurelio’s head, sending his body spinning to the ground to join his father. Revulsion rose in me like a wave and I retched, champagne spattering on the ground beneath the enormous Christmas tree. Thank God everyone around me was too distracted to notice.
I managed to get to my feet and steady myself. In the background, I was dimly aware that Lucien and the underbosses were talking, but I couldn’t hear them. Then someone nudged me hard in the ribs and the crowd around me fell back, leaving me exposed. Every eye in the room fell on me and I wrapped my arms around my body, feeling like a scared fawn looking down the barrel of a gun.
My heart pounded and my ears roared as my gaze found the only stranger in the room. There was a man standing behind Lucien who hadn’t been there a moment ago. And his pale eyes were fixed on me with intense interest.
He had a thin mouth that curled a little too far at the corners in a hard line. His expressive eyes were light blue and piercing, his pale brows resting over them in a faint expression of consternation. He was unusual looking, his lean face with a square jaw giving the impression of a handsome wolf. But despite those glittering eyes and the cruel tilt to his wide mouth, he was incredibly attractive, albeit not in the conventional sense.
My body reacted despite the chaos and blood surrounding me. My nipples hardened and a soft pool of warmth gathered between my thighs. My eyes fell to his long, lean fingers and lingered over the shape of his body through his tweed suit. Although he was tall, he wore the thick suit to make himself appear bulkier. From the slender curve of his neck, I could tell he was lean and hard with muscles, but made as gracefully as a thoroughbred racehorse.
What did he want me to do? I stood, hesitating at the edge of the crowd. Then Viktor dipped his head and held out his fingers.
My throat clenched and I forced myself not to gag and empty my stomach all over the floor in front of everyone again. I’d known for years I’d have to face a man I didn’t love, but now that the time had come, I could barely lift my leaden feet.
Now a stranger with an expressive gaze that burnt right through me and warmed my body, beckoned me to him. I took a quick breath and my feet moved, carrying me across the room to where he stood beside Lucien. The room around us had gone so quiet I could hear my own heart, pumping in my ears like a drum.
I felt Lucien take my hand and offer it to Viktor. The Russian godfather studied me for a long moment, his lips parted and his gaze consuming me, eating me alive. I remembered then what kind of man he was and my stomach turned over. My body tensed, urging me to run, to fight, to do anything to save myself.
“Sienna Esposito,” said Viktor, taking my hand in his lean, square fingers. “It’s lovely to meet you.”