Page 43 of Love to Defy You
“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Alek growls beside me.
Enzo chuckles. “Haven’t you learned by now? Everything will be revealed when it is meant to be revealed. Trust the process.”
“Do you always speak in riddles?” Alek’s eyes narrow into slits.
Enzo gives his wineglass a lazy swirl before drinking from it, but his eyes dance between Alek and me from above the rim.
The rest of the meal passes this way, with Alek and Enzo glaring daggers at one another. Birgitta and Josie ignore them and chat the night away, although Mikhail chimes in with a joke every now and then between heaping gulps of food.
“Where’s your date, Henri?” Mikhail asks.
A lanky boy with glasses sits next to Birgitta, but the seat on his other side is empty. He’s been quiet the entire meal, though he seemed content to hear us chat. Henri’s face grows red when we turn to him.
“Oh, well, I couldn’t find a date.” He shrugs. “I haven’t been here long enough to meet anyone.”
“Well, let’s change that, shall we?” Enzo interjects. His chair scrapes the wood as he pushes away from the table, and when he rises to his feet, the room falls silent again.
The way he commands their attention, how they wait for him to give them instructions, is unsettling.
“Gentleman, who’s up for a nightcap?” Enzo rubs his hands together. “Ladies, please excuse us. You may continue to enjoy the meal or take the night air in the yard. I promise to return your men in one piece.”
My stomach flips as I turn to Alek. I didn’t expect us to be separated tonight. What if a surprise trial is about to take place and he’s in danger of getting injured—or worse?
Mikhail stands up and claps Alek on the back. “You two can stand to be apart for an hour or two. Come on. Let’s play a round of billiards while the girls paint their nails or whatever girls do.”
Josie scoffs. “You’re an absolute nitwit.”
“Love you too, baby.” Mikhail plants a sloppy kiss on her cheek before tugging Alek from his seat.
Alek leans over my chair to whisper in my ear. “I’ll keep my phone on if you need to reach me. I’ll come find you as soon as I can get away.”
“Okay. Be careful.”
He kisses the top of my head and follows Mikhail out of the room, but he pauses at the door to give me one last look before he disappears. All I can do is watch him leave, and for all I know, he could be walking into a trap. It makes me feel completely helpless.
Once every man has vacated the room, Birgitta goes over to the door and closes it.
Josie reaches into her clutch purse and pulls out a plastic baggie of rolling papers and weed, and with a mischievous grin, she wiggles it in the air. “Okay, ladies, now we can let loose.”
The fifty or so girls remaining in the room burst into laughter as they reach into their purses and pull out bags of pills, weed, and cocaine. Which is exactly the opposite of “keeping my wits about me,” as Alek put it.
I reach for my water glass and take a long swig, praying Alek will be back soon.
Chapter 10
Alek
The men wander toward the opposite end of the estate. Mikhail, Henri, and I bring up the rear of the group, but the guys up front start whooping and hollering like dogs when they reach the door.
Mikhail swings his arm around Henri’s neck. “First lap dance is on me, but if you want your cock sucked, that’s between you and her.”
Henri startles, and his glasses slip down his nose. “W-what?”
The wood-paneled billiard room has been converted into a nightclub. Heavy bass pounds over the loudspeakers as purple and blue lights pulse in time with the music. Women in lingerie are scattered around the room, pulling men onto leather sofas and grinding on their laps or wandering through the crowd offering cigars. Another woman at the bar is mixing drinks for the group.
“Is this another test?” I ask Mikhail.
“No, this is a party.” He claps me on my chest. “Lighten up, will you?”
