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“So, you and Abby?” I ask, taking a bite out of the sandwich he got for me. I don’t know why I keep going back to Abby. Yeah, I do. It’s because I’m curious about the type of women Nikolai might have dated before.
"We're friends."
"Oh, I thought—" I trail off, not sure how to phrase it. I’m actually not even sure if I should talk to him about it. I wouldn’t want to tell Sal about my sex life.
"That we fu—" Sal catches himself. "Sleep together?" I feel my cheeks heat, but I nod. "We do, but it's just sex. That's about all a lot of us have to offer when you live this life."
"You can say fuck, Sal."
"It's not the word fuck; it's more about discussing sex with you. I said I wanted to nudge Nikolai. Don't need him losing it on me. God knows it's a damn mess when he does."
I can’t help but wonder how many times Nikolai has lost his shit on people. I want to ask Sal more about it, but it somehow feels like an invasion of privacy or man code or something. I’m sure it always has to do with the lifestyle. If you know anything in this life it’s to not ask questions about that. Ever.
“He’s really touchy when it comes to you,” Sal continues.
“He’s hard to figure out.” I mean, give me some credit, I tried to hold out, but Sal seems to want to offer up information, and I’m desperate to try to understand Nikolai.
“Give him time. He’s gonna make some mistakes, but just know that I’ve never seen him like this before.”
“Like what?” Sal glances over at me, but before he can respond, his phone rings.
I go back to eating my sandwich. My thoughts now are on Sal saying that sex is casual for their lifestyle. Is that what Nikolai is after? It would be a casual thing. I hate to think of all the women he’s been casual with before.
Sal gives me a nod when we pull up to my school, still on the phone. I mouth goodbye to him before I get out. It’s my luck that the first person I see is Becky.
“Where’s your brother?” Becky asks with a smirk. Is she referring to Nikolai? Did he tell her that?
“I don’t have a brother,” I mutter as I pass by her. Weirdly, she falls into step next to me. Did Nikolai tell her that he was my brother?
“The man from the other day. With the tattoos.”
“He’s my boyfriend,” I lie. It slides so easily out of my mouth. Becky bursts into laughter.
“Fucking liar.” She suddenly shoves me hard. I collide with another student before hitting the ground. I let out a yelp of pain. Do cheerleaders lift weights or something? She’s freakystrong. Becky stands over me. I want to reach out and kick her, but her minions join her, surrounding me. “I want his number.”
“I don’t have it.” That isn’t a lie.
“I thought he was your boyfriend.” Becky laughs harder, then her smile slips away in the blink of an eye. She might be a sociopath. "Well, you better get it by lunch, or you’ll see I’ve only been doing child’s play when toying with you.” The smile lights up her face, but it doesn’t meet her eyes. “Laters.” She wiggles her fingers in a wave at me before strutting off with her minions.
Yep, a total sociopath.
9
NIKOLAI
Iglare at Matteo, who I know is suppressing a laugh. Sal, however, is not. I push his feet off, which he has kicked up on the table in front of the couch in Matteo’s office.
“Don’t hulk out, man.” Sal says this through laughter. Matteo’s lips twitch. I run my fingers through my hair, frustrated.
“They didn’t have a bigger size.” I grab the sleeve of my white polo shirt and try to stretch it out so it doesn't dig into my biceps. Sal isn’t wrong. I do look like I’m about to hulk out. At least I can wear my own black slacks. There is no way in hell I am wearing fucking khakis.
All right, that’s bullshit. I would have done so if I had no other option. I’ll do what I have to do to protect Riley. Something is going on at that fucking school, and I’m going to figure out what it is. Riley is going to learn that when I want something, I don’t stop until I get it. Right now, I want to make sure she’s okay. I have this burning need to take care of her. To not let anyone else ever hurt her again.
“Nikolai.” Matteo’s face grows serious now. “There are a lot of powerful people’s children at that school. Let's not make a bigger mess than needed. I prefer to keep the favors I’ve earned.” Matteo does love to collect his favors. I’d call them more debts owed to him. It’s how he remains so powerful. The high-powered men he’s talking about like things taken care of, but they don’t like to get their hands dirty.
“I’m not making any promises,” I tell him. I’m not going to lie to Matteo. “You don’t want people to think they can fuck with your sister and get away with it. Do you?” It might be his sister-in-law, but it still matters. I know my words hit the mark because I see Matteo’s clenched jaw. There is no way in hell Matteo would allow such disrespect toward his family.
Matteo isn’t one to really have any tells, except when it has to do with something surrounding his new wife. His emotions run higher. I get it. I've been a hothead since Riley came stumbling into my life. I am always itching for a fight. It helps burn off whatever is inside me that she’s brought to life.