I never wanted Lily involved in any of this, not with her being an innocent civilian. She was only supposed to be a memory of a thrilling night tucked in the back of my head, but now, she’s right in the middle of it. And now, I can’t let her get away with any knowledge of me or my brothers.
Whether it was a coincidence, fate, or even karma that yanked her back in again, I don’t know. I just know I feel a sick satisfaction from the situation at hand.
As much as I want to hate that she knows more than she should, I’m strangely grateful.
After weeks of thinking about her, I had the chance to look at her up close again. To remember all the parts of the face that pulled me in and haven’t let me go since.
Now, I have a reason to keep her close, regardless of how ridiculous it is.
Standing in the hall with my jaw clenched, a thousand possible outcomes are already moving through my mind. But I need clearance before I can do anything. I have to check in, even if I’d rather not.
Feeling Nikolai’s questioning gaze on me, I already know what he’s thinking before he gets the words out.
“How do you know her?”
I sigh and reach for my phone, hoping he keeps his questions short. “I met her at one of the clubs a few weeks ago.”
His brows lift. “And I’m assuming you did more than share stories about your occupation.”
“Yes, obviously,” I mutter, vaguely annoyed by his prying.
He chuckles and leans against the wall with his arms crossed. “It seems Ivan’s antics are rubbing off on you.”
“Please, my younger brother isn’t an influence on me. None of you is,” I mumble with a shake of my head before I exhale heavily. “But more importantly, she didn’t know anything about me or us at the time. Now she’s in it.”
“Hip-deep,” he returns, allowing a rare but subtle smirk to settle on his lips. “She’s a little on the young side for you, no?”
I scoff and push past him. “Shut up…I’m calling Roman. Keep an eye on her.”
“Sure thing, Casanova,” Nikolai chirps as he chuckles and lingers by the door. “Don’t leave your girl waiting too long.”
My girl.
I shouldn’t enjoy the way that brings me a sense of satisfaction, but I do.
Forcing my brother’s amusement out of my head, I push into one of the empty rooms and close the door behind me before settling in a chair.
Scrolling through my contacts, I find Roman and hit the call button.
He picks up on the second ring, sighing before his groggy voice comes through.
“Do you have any idea what time it is?”
“Yes, I do,” I hum, grinning to myself while I lean back. “Sounds familiar.”
Another breath from him, then he murmurs, “Are you calling because someone’s dead or because someone needs to be?”
“Maybe somewhere in the middle.”
“Then get on with it.”
Despite enjoying teasing him every once in a while, I get to it, well aware that the situation is more important than my mind is letting me believe, given how close Lily currently is.
“We ran into a problem tonight. Nikolai and the guys flushed out a rat, and in the middle of handling it, a woman in the alley saw it go down,” I begin, absently stroking my chin. “…and I happen to know who the witness is.”
He pauses, and then his words come out almost hesitantly. “Let me guess, you’ve had sex with this woman before.”
Despite being alone, I can’t fight the sheepish expression on my face. “Yeah.”
