Page 127 of Blackwood

“Oh yeah?” he says. “What’d our boyfriend say?”

“Our boyfriend said that you’re impulsive,” I say, lifting a brow. “Reckless. A psycho with a serious anger problem.”

Lex puts a hand to his chest like I physically just wounded him. “Ouch.”

“But,” I add, narrowing my eyes at him, “he also said that you can be very sweet when you want to. He said you are the most loyal person in the world as long as they’ve earned it.”

“What else?”

“How do you know there is more?”

“Because I know Cade more than anyone, now what else?”

“That you love harder, faster, and deeper than most people. And that when you attach yourself to someone, you never let them go.”

“Well, he’s not wrong.”

I tilt my head. “How are you so okay with all of this?”

“All of what?”

I throw my hands up, exasperated. “Me. This. My past. My whole fucked-up life. How are you so calm about it when I just met you, and Cade…” my voice cracks. “Cade, who once carried me out of a party when I was sick, held my hair, cleaned me up, and never told a soul.”

I take a deep breath, “Now looks at me like I’m some kind of monster.” My voice splinters on the last word. “How does that even make sense?”

Lex leans in, voice low and sure. “One, Cade doesn’t think you’re a monster.”

“Yes he does. He all but said it back at The Pit.”

“No, he fucking doesn’t, baby.”

My lips press together, but I don’t argue.

“And two, I’m cool with all of this,” he waves his hands dramatically mimicking my gesture from before,“Because you and me? We are way more alike than you realize.”

“Bullshit,” I say, arms crossed.

Lex raises a brow. “Excuse me?”

“I read your—”

“Black Book?” he cuts me off, his voice dropping an octave. “You have the Barinov Black Book?”

Shit.

I shrug. “Yeah. When Cade and I first started dating and he talked about the three of us being together, I used my resources to check you out.”

He leans in, arms crossed now, full brute-mode activated. “And what all did you find?”

“I know your dad is Daniel Barinov. Bratva royalty, up to his neck in dirty deals, sure. But that’s not what keeps him up at night. It’s the buildings. The steel. The lines. That obsession with control etched into every inch of concrete and glass. That’s what he truly lives for, the architecture.

Lex’s mouth twitches, pride flickering in his eyes.

“I know Zeke and I lived in one of his buildings. It’s a fucking fortress. Every Barinov structure is. I know that at the lowest level of every single one of them there’s a bunker. That’s where your mom and Rez’s dad have established their gun running empire all over the East Coast.”

Lex leans in, smooth as always. “And Europe.”

I was getting there,” I nod.