He snarled, baring his teeth. “That’s the last time you’ll ever tellmewhat I can or can’t do, Sister.”
Before I could reply, he disconnected the call.
I stopped pacing and hung my head, feeling my heart shrink with dismay that the Cartel I’d once been so proud of was no longer going to survive in this environment of mayhem he was allowing.
31
MAKSIM
Isat in the chair and waited for Carina to exit the bathroom.
Without trying to eavesdrop, I heard it all.
I’d left the door open when I left her to shower. I hadn’t planned to, nor had I cared to secure the door and make sure it was shut all the way. Modesty was an unnecessary afterthought between us, and we seldom closed the bathroom door when we showered anymore. Often, we were in the spacious stall together.
I hadn’t wanted to go far, though, anticipating that she would be upset and perhaps want my comfort.
It couldn’t be easy for her, knowing that her previous family was threatening her current one. Her past ties were conflicting with her wishes for the future.
While I would have preferred for her to tell me that she intended to contact Arturo on her own, I respected that she didn’thaveto.
It was in that moment as I calmly sat in the armchair and waited for her to exit that I accepted how profoundly I trusted her.
She wasn’t stupid.
She wasn’t duplicitous.
More than once, she’d shown me how she wanted to be with me and valued our marriage. How she understood that we were together, no matter what.
I trusted her to have my back off the side of the road when we were ambushed.
I trusted her instinct to pull me to safety during that drive-by.
I trusted her every time she gave input when we discussed a smuggling run.
And I definitely trusted her with our child who was growing in her belly.
Yet, a lingering flicker of annoyance resided in me that she’d called him before telling me that she might.
Rein in it.
She’s not a problem.
We don’t have a problem between us.
But I stayed, waiting to confront her about her calling him instead of letting this go.
When she stepped out, she halted mid-step and froze. Her brows shot up high. Her lips parted.
In nothing but a thick, terry towel, the whiteness of the fabric a sharp contrast to her sunkissed skin, she stood still and stared me down.
“Maksim.” She cleared her throat as she furrowed her brow. “I didn’t realize you were still here.”
I can tell.
She wouldn’t look this startled or surprised otherwise.
Crossing her ankle in front of the other, she licked her lips and watched me closely.
