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“Kuban-vino, from the Château Tamagne collection. It has a walnut and orange taste to it. Come over here.” He takes my elbow and guides me back to the drinks section. Then he pours me some more wine. “Drink.”
I drink and it reminds me of our first meeting all over again, just with more expensive liqueur.
“So, did you learn anything of interest from the Knights’ database?” he asks, his eyes drifting between my eyes and my lips.
I learned several things. Most of which led me to more questions. Jeanne said he would tell me the story of his parents and other things himself at some point. I’m tempted to ask about that. “I didn’t know your family was so prominent or powerful worldwide.”
“They are. I guess now that we know a little more about each other, it’s put us on equal footing.”
“I still don’t know you. I don’t believe a database or the web pages can tell you the raw details about a person.” With people like him, such things show what they want others to see. Nothing deeper. “And just because you have whatever information you do on me, it doesn’t mean you know me either.”
“No?”
“No.” I shake my head. “Reading something differs from hearing the details coming from a person’s mouth.”
“Then maybe I just caught glimpses of you when you told me about Gage Miller.”
My mind skids to a stop at the mention of Gage’s name. I’d actually forgotten that I had to tell Malik about him on the night things went crazy with Conrad.
I didn’t tell him much regarding my relationship, but what I had to reveal was enough to stir the humiliation in my soul. I should have also preempted that Malik would ask me more about Gage at some point.
“He was a mistake I wish I never made.” I try to keep asphyxiating memories of Gage from resurfacing in my mind.
“Did you love him?”
The question rattles my brain and I bite the inside of my lip. “I thought I did.”
The darkness deepens in his eyes. “Thought. Either you did or you didn’t.”
“I did at one point. Until he screwed me over and I found him in bed with a stripper on my birthday.”
“I see.” He looks me over and seems to form some opinion because he nods. “He was your first.”
I stifle a groan and press down on my back teeth. “How could you know that?”
“A good hunch, from your tone. I’m right, aren’t I?”
“Yes.”
“So it was love like that.”
I hate calling it love because Gage thought I was a fool. In the end, he turned me into one. “It doesn’t matter. I guess he fooled the wrong person.” I sound cold-hearted. “He met his match.”
Malik’s lips tip into a half smile. “Was it you? Did you kill him, sweet Gwen?”
He can’t be serious. “Me? Really? You think I could do that?”
He touches my cheek and trails over the skin right down to my neck. “No. Maybe I want to believe there aren’t that much differences between you and me. That the good girl is a façade and you’re really a bad girl who would kill a motherfucker for cheating on you and stealing your money.”
I wrinkle my nose. “There is hardly any comparison between you and me, Malik Volkova.”
He stares at me for a few beats, takes a sip of his drink and sighs. “Our fathers weren’t that much different.”
He sets his glass down and I stare at him, wondering if he’s going to confirm what I suspected about his father. “Weren’t they?”
“No.” He leans against the table, keeping his gaze trained on me. “They both loved women they weren’t married to and pursued relationships with them when they shouldn’t have.”
I was right. His father cheated.
