I frown, confused. “How is it like?”
“It's more complicated than that,” he says through clenched teeth.
Now I’m really getting at him. Good. Maybe he will rethink keeping me around.
“Maybe for you.” I shrug, turning away from him.
Ren slams down his glass and I jump, the whisky spilling over the sides.
He storms towards me, his face inches from mine, his breaths heaving. “For me?”
I turn and face him, surprised by his outburst. My heart speeds up, but he’s not looking at me like he’s about to hurt me.
“Nikolov is going to be looking for you now. I’m trying to protect you.” He’s still spitting mad, but the way he says it, he really believes it.
But can’t he see that this isn’t helping me and there is another way he can protect me.
“I can easily disappear again. He won’t find me. But you’re the one that made the deal. You could have let me go.” I swallow, looking deeper into his eyes and say quietly, “you still can.”
Our eyes are locked, my plea hanging in the air.
“I’m not letting you go.” He doesn’t say it with force, he says it in a way that makes my belly go all warm and fluttery.
The heated gaze from his dark eyes just adds to the electricity crackling between us. He lifts his hand, brushing his fingers across my cheek, and pushes a lock of hair behind my ear. My breath hitches, and my heart starts to pound in my chest. He must hear it; it’s thundering so loud.
“You’re mine now,” he breathes.
My lips part, and I bite down on my bottom one, drawing his eyes to my mouth.
The sound of Amari’s heels, slowly retreating breaks the spell. With unknown strength, I break eye contact with Ren, taking a step away from him, turning to see her back away.
She plasters on an awkward smile, rubbing her hands on her thighs. I bet she wants out of here as soon as possible.
Join the club.
“So… um dinner?’ she says, eyes flicking between Ren and me, settling on me for an answer. “How about tomorrow night?”
"Dinner sounds great," I say, doing everything I can to ignore the way my stomach flips, still feeling Ren’s gaze on me, like he's going to pounce any second.
“Okay. Let’s say Enzo’s at eight?”
I see Ren nod in my peripheral, but I still haven’t heard him speak. That’s probably a bad thing, or a good thing, I don’t even know anymore.
“Perfect.” I smile at Amari and wish she was taking me with her, but still happy to be getting out of the house.
“Okay… I’m just gonna…” She points to the door. “Bye Lilly, It was nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you to Amari.” And it really was.
She scurries the rest of the way out the room, and I stay looking at the door until I hear her pattering feet all the way out of the house.
There’s nothing left in front of me but empty space, so it’s time to bite the bullet and look back at Ren.
This time Ren is the first to talk. “I know you’re pissed at me. But my sister isn’t like us. She still believes in fairy tales and all that shit. And you’re wrong, Sergei won’t stop looking for you. Especially if he found out you weren’t with me anymore. He is embarrassed. I embarrassed him and made him look like a punk ass bitch in front of his men. He isn’t going to just let that slide you know.”
Oh, boy how I know that.
“I know. That’s why every second I’m in Sydney is one step closer to him. You’re thinking he’s going to care I’m with you. He won’t.”