Page 61 of Love to Defy You
“That’s interesting.” Alek picks up his wineglass and holds it up to inspect it in the light. “Did your mother at least tell you his identity?”
Enzo puts his elbows on the table, folds his hands together, and leans forward. “Why are you asking me this?”
“Or did she sleep with so many men that there was no way of knowing?” Alek asks.
I throw Alek a pointed look, but he pays no attention to me. His focus is fixed on Enzo Messina, who meets his challenging gaze, but neither is close to backing down from the other.
Alek turns to his sister. “Ana, would you and Prisha excuse us? Why don’t you show Prisha the sauna room?”
She crosses her arms. “But I don’t want to miss the suckling pig.”
Prisha glances at me, unsure what to do. I give her a small nod and mouth,Go.
She seizes the opportunity to escape, and her shoulders relax with relief. The atmosphere is so thick we’re all choking on it, and I pray Alek will excuse me along with them.
Prisha wipes her mouth with her napkin before pushing her chair from the table. “The sauna sounds nice after a heavy meal. We’ll sneak some pork on our way back.”
Ana stares at her brother, but after a few long moments, she withers under his stern gaze. “Fine. Let’s go.” She flips her hair over her shoulder and stands up, then follows Prisha out of the room.
Alek turns toward the piano player and excuses him. He stops playing mid-melody and retreats to the kitchen. The only people left in the room are those who know about the Order of Apollo.
“There’s something I can’t seem to figure out.” Alek sets down his wineglass. “How does one get invited into the Order without having a father who was a member?”
“My stepfather is the Prince of Liechtenstein, as you are well aware,” Enzo explains in an even tone. “He himself went through the trials at Weltner decades ago.”
Alek scoffs. “Forgive me if I’m mistaken, but the prince never married your mother, isn’t that right? So, he’s not your stepfather. In fact, you aren’t bound to him in any legal way.”
Enzo lets out a disarming laugh. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Kurochkin. Not all initiates are nepo babies. The Order often invites first-generation candidates who show great promise.” He takes a sip of his wine and shrugs. “As for me, I completed the initiation trials and proved myself worthy. We’ll see if you can do the same.”
“I’m not worried.” Alek reaches into his suit and pulls out a pack of cigarettes. He takes his time in sticking one in his mouth and lighting it, takes a drag, and releases the smoke into the air. “But it sounds like you wormed your way into our elite circle of society the same way your mother did. Except insteadof whoring out your body, you whore out your dignity to curry favor with the elite.”
“Alek.” Mikhail shakes his head in warning.
Josie, Birgitta, Henri, and I keep our heads down and our hands folded in our laps. None of us want to witness the heated exchange we’ve found ourselves in the middle of.
“I’m just trying to understand.” Smoke curls around Alek’s face as he stares across the table at Enzo. “You’re not inheriting any money or assets from the prince upon his death, and I doubt his wife will continue to pay your mother a stipend. You’ll be destitute. Why would the Order want someone like you?”
“The same could be said about you.” Enzo’s mouth ticks into a leering grin. “Now that you aren’t the heir apparent to the Andarusian presidency, you’ve been cast out from Russian high society. The Kurochkin name doesn’t hold any power or social standing anymore.”
Alek spreads his arms wide, gesturing toward the walls of his grand chalet, and grins. “As you can see, I’m doing just fine.”
Enzo lets out a soft chuckle. “Appearances can be deceiving. But in either case, the Order has chosen you, just as it has chosen me. Neither of us can resist the call.”
Alek takes another drag from his cigarette, stretching the lull in conversation to the point where we’re all shifting in our seats. Unhurried, he blows out the smoke, assessing Enzo from his throne at the head of the table. At last, he picks up the small bell sitting beside his place card and rings it. A server enters the room.
“We’re ready for the next course,” Alek says. “Let’s not keep our guests waiting any longer.”
Was that Alek’s big plan? Confront Enzo Messina at dinner and grill him about his past? It’s so anticlimactic.
But when I turn to Alek, he’s staring at Enzo with a devious smirk that hints at one more trick in his deck.
Chapter 14
Willow
The next morning, I wake up with a pounding headache. I reach for Alek, but his spot is empty, and the sheets are cold. I stumble out of bed and find my robe before heading downstairs to look for him.
When I reach the balcony, I find a flurry of activity downstairs in the living room. A bartender is setting up his station in the corner, and the staff are building an elaborate buffet table on one wall. There’s even a DJ booth near the Christmas tree, complete with gobo lights and a dance floor.
