Page 20 of Toxic Temptation
“What exactly do you think I am, Vesper?”
I wave off the idea. “I’m not gonna embarrass myself by making guesses as to your official job title. But I think it’s safe to assume you don’t get a W2.”
Kovan laughs again. As he does, I feel a bright rush of pride.I made him do that. I made his gargoyle face split and show a little bit of the human beneath.
It feels good to do.
I kill that feeling before it gets out of hand.
He leans his head to the side to look at me from a new angle. “Yes, that is a safe assumption. And you’re right. The road here was… less than smooth.”
“So?”
“So what?”
“So what happened to you?”
He chews slowly, considering. “My father built an empire on fear and violence. My brother inherited it and tried to run it on love and honor. Guess which one of them is still alive?”
It’s my turn to stop for a second with my food-laden fork hovering in mid-air. “Your brother…”
“—was an idealist. He thought he could change things from the inside, make the family business more… civilized.” His laugh is bitter. “Love made him soft. Soft got him killed.”
“So you decided to be hard instead.”
“I decided to survive,” he corrects.
“What about Luka? What happens to him in your world of survival?”
The iciness reclaims his face, and any trace of the laughing or smiling vanishes like it was never even there. “Luka is why I survive. Everything I do, every choice I make, it’s for him.”
“Even kidnapping random doctors?”
“Especially that.”
“You’re insane,” I tell him flatly, even though part of me almost wants to laugh.
“Probably.”
“Definitely.”
“And yet you’re still here.”
“Because you threatened me.”
“As I already told you once, I’m not threatening you anymore.”
He’s right. The gun has remained out of sight since we left the hospital. His posture is relaxed, his voice gentle. If I didn’t know better, I’d think this was actually a date.
And why not? Why couldn’t it be?
“Why did you really bring me here?” I ask.
“As I also already told you once, I needed to figure out if you were a threat.”
“And…? Am I?”
His eyes drop to my mouth, then back up. “Oh, you’re definitely a threat. Just not the kind I was worried about.”
