Page 65 of The Agreement

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Karine stumbled out into the alleyway in the dark of night with a shaky inhale of icy rain that chilled her down to the bone. She didn’t think she would make it this far without being stopped or caught by somebody from the bratva. Behind her, the emergency exit door of the restaurant swung shut and finally, she heard nothing but the soft drizzle of rain falling on the loose gravel by her feet.

And those deep breaths of hers.

One after another.

She’d been right.

Breathing was easier like this.

Despite it being the first week of August, the rain was cold in the warm air, making the droplets warm on her bare arms. It at least made the temperature bearable, even if she did barely consider it before coming out.

It was another thing that didn’t matter much in the grand scheme of things. Like how her dress was going to be soaked, her makeup smudged and ruined by the drizzle from above. What would her father say? What would Dima do if he saw her like that?

Who cared?

She should.

She should care.

God.

Karine wished she did.

The heaviness of that ring on her finger hadn’t left. She opened her mouth to suck in more big gulps of fresh air, hoping it would calm her. Except the effects of the pills were fading, and fast. She wasn’t in that glazed daze anymore—life didn’t have the same bright, shiny appeal that came with a medically-induced happiness—and that was what made her run out of there like she had caught on fire.

“Seems we keep running into each other like this, huh?”

The deep velvety voice came out of nowhere. Karine gasped into the darkness, instinct making her hand fly up to her throat even though her racing heart dared to slow down at the same time. She knew who it was before she even turned to look.

She couldn’t forget that voice.

Roman.

The handsome stranger with those striking soul-blue eyes. She had no idea he was supposed to be at the engagement announcement tonight. Either way, he had missed the announcement if he had been outside.

“Or maybe it’s not an accident at all,” he added as she turned to see the handsome grin curving at the edges of his gorgeous mouth. Something about the sight of his pleasure at seeing her made Karine’s stomach do the strangest things. Dangerous things. “Maybe one of us is spying on the other.”

With hands thrust deep into the pockets of his slacks, he had his head tilted to the side as he studied her. Waiting for her reply.

Karine was surprised to find she had to remind herself to actually speak. “Well, if one of us is the spy, it has to be you.”

His smile grew wider, clearly amused at her answer, and he took a few steps towards her. Careful steps, she noticed. And with the way he kept his head cocked to the side like that, she thought he seemed ... wary of himself.

Or maybe her.

What was she going to do?

Bite him?

“You look like you don’t know what to do with yourself,” he noted.

Karine swallowed hard, replying only, “I rarely do.”

He inched closer still.

She eyed him up and down, wondering what he might do when he finally reached her. A part of her welcomed the idea—good or bad. At this point, what did Karine really have to fucking lose?