Page 93 of Vicious Kingdom

There was warmth in that tone. There was.

But there was something else…. Possession. As if he needed to make sure I stayed where he could see me.

“Okay, I’ll move in,” I breathed. This was what I wanted. I just hoped there wasn’t going to be anything to cause backlash.

Leo nodded. “I’m going to head to the office now that you’re awake. Here’s the spare key and a guest pass to the building. Sometime this week, there will be a card with your name on it.”

A jolt of surprise ran through my chest. He was serious. I could stay here. Last night he’d said as much, but I thought it was just a reaction to seeing me broken and a mess at his front door.

I picked up the slim piece of metal. “This is really happening.”

He hummed in agreement. “There’s one more thing.”

I braced myself, ready for his question. He wanted to know what happened. The lies were already on the tip of my tongue. I wasn’t going to share my history or tell him the Tormentor’s name. Shame welled inside me. After coming home from the bakery, the Tormentor surprised me. No one was at the house, and he’d raged. He’d struck me. And then he’d gone crazy,saying that I pushed him to do that. As if it were my own fault I was beaten.

I hated myself for involving Leo in that mess, for letting him see me like that—for telling him that I couldn’t fight the demon on my own. So I would keep the story vague, not revealing this was an ongoing occurrence. Which was partially true. Last night was the first time an encounter escalated to violence. If I was careful, I wouldn’t be caught again. There was no reason to tell Leo what really was going on. While I wanted the pest gone, I didn’t want it to backfire on Leonard Baldwin, the businessman. If he was caught, if there was any evidence tying him to the demon’s demise, I would never forgive myself.

“This is for you. I’ve already cleared it with my financial officer.” Leo held out a shiny black credit card. “The wedding needs to happen this weekend. Call whichever planner you want, but make it happen.”

I balked. “The best planners are booked. Mom’s been in a fit trying to find one with availability—”

“They’ll drop everything for me,” he said with finality. “Pay them double, triple their rate. Our wedding is their number one priority.”

Leo unfolded from the barstool and gathered his things but stopped in front of me. “Make it spectacular, Annaliese. You’re only getting one wedding, and you deserve it to be a big, opulent affair. One that the city talks about for years to come.”

There was a shake in my voice. “Okay.”

It was hard to believe. Part of me thought he would fight the marriage, try to escape the blackmail. I certainly wasn’t expecting this rush to the altar.

Gently cupping my cheek, Leo brushed the pad of his thumb under the tender, bruised flesh of my blackeye. “I want the world to know you are under my protection. Marrying you willsend that message. And you deserve nothing but the grandest of weddings.”

He didn’t ask.

He wasn’t pushing.

That made me more emotional than if he’d raged and demanded an explanation.

He’s giving me time and space to trust him.

Because the alternative, that he didn’t actually care was far from the truth. It was there in his eyes. He wanted to tear the city apart to give me vengeance. But it was on my terms, not his.

“Any details you want?” I breathed. “It’s your big day too.”

He smiled. It was small and didn’t reach his eyes. But it was real. “No one looks at the groom.”

“That’s not true,” I protested. “I’ll be looking at you, Leo.”

He dipped down and pressed a soft kiss against my mouth. “Hold a single rose when you walk down the aisle. The reddest you can find.”

With that, he dropped his hold and left. I could have sworn the room grew a bit darker, but that flicker of warmth bolstered me to get through the day.

***

“I hate that you don’t get to be my maid of honor,” I dropped the garment bag on the island.

“Matron—I’m an old married woman now,” Serena joked.

Lord, Florida looked good on her. Curled in an armchair, my friend watched me through the phone. It’d been weeks, but now I better understood the radio silence. She’d been accidentally kidnapped by the Greek mafia, forced to marry one of their leaders, and now was living her best life in a cozy cottage by the sea.