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Maggie giggles, clearly charmed by him, and I rub my temples again, realizing that this is my actual life now.
My mafia husband and my best friend planning a baby shower together.
What could possibly go wrong?
24
LILA
The second the door clicks shut, I exhale, rubbing my temples. “Well, that was…an experience.”
Mikhail doesn’t say anything.
I glance up at him, finding him still standing by the door, hands tucked into his pockets, his expression carefully neutral—which, with him, is never actually neutral. It means he’s thinking, and usually, that means trouble for me.
“What?” I ask, crossing my arms.
He tilts his head slightly. “Tell me about them.”
I blink. “Who?”
“Maggie. Alex.”
I frown, walking toward the kitchen. I suddenly feel very thirsty. “Why?”
His lips press together for a fraction of a second, like he’s debating something, before he says, “I want to know who’s been in your life while you were gone.”
I snort. “Uh, normal people? People whodon’tplot world domination for a living?”
Mikhail doesn’t even blink at the dig. “And Alex?”
I roll my eyes. “Ah, I see what’s happening here.”
His brows lift slightly. “Do you?”
I grin, shaking my head. “Don’t tell me you’re jealous.”
Mikhail doesn’t react at first. And for a split second, I think I’ve won.
Then he moves.
One step.
Then another.
Until my lower back presses against the kitchen counter, and his body is just inches from mine, his presence swallowing me whole.
Mikhail places a palm flat on the counter beside me, caging me in. His other hand lifts, fingers grazing the side of my neck, slow and deliberate, tracing a lazy line down to my collarbone.
When he speaks, his voice is low, dark, a whisper of sin.
“No one touches what’s mine.”
My pulse jumps.
I tilt my chin up, forcing myself to look unaffected. “I don’t belong to anyone, Mikhail.”
He smirks, but it’s not playful. It’s a promise. “We’ll see about that.”