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She’s wearing a black taffeta cocktail dress, showing off her toned, trim legs. The front plunges into a deep V, but it’s lined with floppy ruffles that play peekaboo with her breasts. From where I’m standing halfway across the room it covers just enough of her gorgeous tits. Fuck me, but my woman is stunning.
I may not be able to acknowledge her publicly quite yet, but that doesn’t mean I can take my eyes off her either. I’m whisking another champagne flute off the tray of a passing waiter when I clock Roxie from the corner of my eye. She’s sauntering up to me with an exaggerated sway of her hips. I let out a sigh.
This is going to be a long night.
Determined to ignore her, I dive into an animated discussion with Marku. Roxie stops beside me and drags a finger down the sleeve of my tux. I tense at her territorial move. Irritation simmers in my gut. I’m not her fucking property.
Instead of taking the hint, she bats her eyelashes at me.
Roxie’s no fool. She senses the tide turning away from her, and whether she cares for me or not, I imagine her mother has given her a lesson on how to seduce me back by her side. Not gonna work. I only have eyes for one adorable book nerd who happens to be dressed in a once-in-a-lifetime sexy cocktail dress.
But that doesn’t mean I can put Roxie in her place like I did at school. Not here. And knowing that, she’s taking advantage of the fact that there are power players here, and she’s trying to stake her claim on me.
My snub only encourages her to plaster herself to my side, cooing some nonsense or other in my ear. I grind down on my back teeth and play nice, giving her as little attention as possible without insulting her parents. I discreetly watch Star and catch her dashing tears from the corners of her eyes. Crina is forcefully whispering in her ear, gesticulating in my direction with slashing motions.
Aww, fuck.
Star shakes her head. Crina wraps her arm around her friend and, shielding her, guides her out of the reception room.
Fury snaps at my heels. I pluck Roxie’s hand off my chest, place her away from me with a mumbled excuse, and stalk up to Cristo, who’s in the middle of a circle of men.
“Cristo,” I interrupt.
He smirks at me meaningfully. Knowing him, he’s seen everything that’s happened from Roxie’s excessive flirting to Star’s sudden departure. That guy doesn’t miss a thing.
The men part to give me space.
I step into the inner circle and declare, “I’m going to marry Star.”
Cristo cups his ear and commands, “Sorry, didn’t hear that. What’d you say?”
I grit my teeth. This guy. I respect him, but he likes to work my last nerve.
His eyes shift to his left, toward Alex, who’s standing a couple of feet away. I see what’s happening here. He wants a performance.
After all, it’s not every day a Popescu gets engaged to a Lupu.
Loud and clear, I pronounce loudly, “I’m going to marry the Lupu girl, Star.”
This time, everything stops. The conversation, the clinking of glasses and silverware. Even the catering staff seem frozen in place. I hear a feminine gasp to my right, most likely Roxie or her mother.
Alex’s head snaps in my direction. He arches an eyebrow like this is the first he’s heard of it. Jesus, the fake-ass acting is ridiculous. His eyes sweep me up and down, taking stock of me as if for the first time, as if we hadn’t battled each other like two gladiators in a Roman arena.
He suavely glides in our direction, stops beside Cristo, and claps a hand on his shoulder.
Cristo stiffens. His little sister might be married to Alex’s brother, but there’s still no love lost between these two.
“What’s this I hear? A Lupu becomes a Popescu this time, I see.” He nods in approval. “Congratulations are in order. The timing couldn’t be better.”
Alex raises his voice for everyone to hear. “It will strengthen our ties and show the Bratva we are united in the oncoming war.” He winks at Cristo. Cristo’s jaw muscle pops. “I always knew you’d eventually be as conniving as your father.”
“Yes, it’s a good alliance at the right time,” Cristo agrees between gritted teeth, ignoring the last dig. His eyes flare with pure hatred. “But not for a war I started,” he says pointedly.
Dismissing his comment, Alex looks at me critically and asks, “And who is this? Seems a bit young.”
For fuck’s sake, he damn well knows who I am. My fists clench momentarily, but this is the kind of games they like to play, so I wipe any emotion off my face.
“My newconsilier,” Cristo replies with a slight uptick of one side of his mouth.
