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“Mafia.” I say the world tentatively and really hope Apollo wasn’t kidding with me. Mind you, it’s pretty obvious and is confirmed when Serena nods.
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“Is Alexei, um, mafia too?” I’m a little lightheaded as I discuss the word, as if its meaning is unknown to me.
“Not really.” She shrugs. “He is a businessman, and yet our worlds are much the same.”
I sit on the bed beside her.
“What does he do?”
“He’s much like your brother, I believe. A businessman who is extremely successful. He is one of many similar brothers and they have one sister who is successful in her own right.”
“What does she do?” I’m intrigued.
“She’s a lawyer with her own company. Impressive, huh?”
“It sure is.”
I am way out of my league with this and shake my head. “I’m still unsure what I want to do with my life. I hate that about myself.”
Her hand slips into mine and she whispers, “It kind of goes with the territory. I’m the same. I want to break away and find something just for me, but this is all I know. It’s why I’m traveling with Alexei. He has opened the world to me, and I am determined to take advantage of that.”
“You are very lucky.”
She nods, her eyes shining with happiness.
“I took a chance, Melissa. I was offered a proposal that many would refuse. I accepted it was risky, but I went there anyway.”
I stare at her in shock because that’s exactly what happened in my situation, and I gasp. “The same. Apollo made me an offer I should have refused, but I seized it with both hands.”
I’m shocked when her face falls at the mention of his name.
“What did I say?”
She shakes her head and forces a bright smile on her face.
“Nothing, carry on.”
“No.” I stare at her hard. “What do you know about Apollo?”
My heart is racing because the signals have hit me hard. It’s as if every look, the pitying glances from the crew and the unspoken words between us come back to bite me as the rose-colored mist clears and I face the possibility that everyone knows something I don’t.
“Tell me, Serena, please, I’m begging you.”
She stares out of the window at the departing boat that is about to disappear on the horizon, and says with a deep sigh.
“You have a right to know, I guess. Just don’t shoot the messenger.”
I nod, not daring to breathe for a second as she leans back against the pillows on the bed and pats the space beside her.
As I take my place, she laces her fingers with mine and says sadly, “Where do I even begin?”
She takes a deep breath and says in a low voice.
“Apollo and Adonis grew up much like I did with Killian and Shade. We led a protected life, and this is all we’ve ever known. Much like us, they were protected and had very few friends. We had each other, which had its good points and its bad ones.”
“It sounds a lot like my upbringing. My father was very protective of us and vetted our friends. They were only allowed to come over if their parents were in some way connected to us and it made for an elite group.”
