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A shudder rolls through my whole body as his warm breath caresses my skin.
My survival instincts are screaming at me to get the hell out. The desperation inside me is begging me to grab Rico by the collar and throw him into my apartment and then fuck his brains out right there on the floor.
With one forearm still braced against the wall, he reaches up with his other hand and places it on my throat. Not squeezing. Just holding my throat in that casually powerful way that drips of complete command.
Lightning flickers through my veins, and my pussy throbs. I rest the back of my head against the wall as that wicked mouth of his continues towards mine. My heart is slamming so hard against my ribs that I fear they might crack.
He slants his lips over mine, just shy of touching.
“Tell me to stop,” he breathes against my mouth.
God, I want this. By all the gods and hell itself, I want this so fucking badly. I want to feelalive. I want to have a real life. I want—
“Stop,” I gasp out breathlessly, forcing the word from the depths of my mind. “Stop.”
Rico steps back immediately. His hand falls away from my throat as he takes two steps backwards, giving me space to breathe again without drowning in that intoxicating scent of him.
I drag in an unsteady breath, suddenly feeling both embarrassed and panicked. “I’m sorry. I—”
“Don’t apologize. You have nothing to be sorry about. I overstepped.” He gives me a small smile while walking backwards down the hall. “Thank you for coming to dinner. I’ll see you at Blackwater on Monday.”
And with that, he turns around and strides down the hall before disappearing into the stairwell.
I slump back against the wall, feeling like I have just run a marathon. I can hear my own heart pounding in my chest.
Fuck, that was close. Too close.
Regardless of how sinfully hot he is, and regardless of how alive I felt when his dominating hands were on my naked skin, Rico Morelli is dangerous. I am his worst enemy. His most hated enemy. If he finds out who I really am, he will most likely kill me.
And if he finds out, and if I’m by some miracle still alive after that, it will only be a matter of time before the Hands of Peace find me. And then they will kill me as well as him.
I need to be careful. I need to keep my guard up at all times around Rico fucking Morelli. Because one slip-up, and we will both be dead.
So I push myself off the wall and drag in a deep breath to steady myself.
And then I walk alone into the dark empty apartment that belongs to the girl who doesn’t exist.
18
RICO
If looks could kill, the entire metal table before me would be soaked in blood right now. Amusement plays over Jace’s mouth as he glances between Kaden and the table a short distance from us in the university cafeteria.
“What did you do?” Jace asks, that wicked amusement leaking into his voice as well.
Kaden just continues eating his lunch. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“The Petrovs are staring at us like they want to bathe in our blood.”
“The Petrovs arealwaysstaring at us like they want to bathe in our blood.”
“Yeah, but they’re not staring at us this time. They’re staring atyou.”
At last, Kaden looks up from his plate of cod and potatoes. After setting down his knife and fork, he twists in his seat so that he is looking directly at the table where all five Petrovs are sitting. His gaze settles on Alina, and that psychopath smile of his slowly spreads across his lips.
Alina quickly drops her gaze to the table.
Her brothers and cousins instinctively shift closer to her. Mikhail grips his utensils so hard that his knuckles turn white, and he raises the knife in Kaden’s direction in a clear threat. Kaden just chuckles and then turns back to us.
