Page 19 of The Crimson Lily

“So, the dagger is in a safe?” Béatrice asks again, just to make sure. “How will you guide him? How do you even know how to open it?”

I sigh. “I don’t know how or why I know, but I know. That’s why the Bratva came to fetch me.”

Alejandro gasps and frowns. “Hang on, the Bratva? Is that Maksim guy Russian mafia?” I’m saying too much. He looks at me with increasingly concerned eyes, like he’s getting a panic attack.

Béatrice and I nod simultaneously. He looks very surprised that it doesn’t surprise us anymore.

“You never mentioned anything to me about a safe, Lili,” Béatrice says again.

What she just said scares me. It’s something I didn’t tell Béatrice, my best friend, the one I tell everything.

I am left with a thousand questions and no answers at all.

Why do I know about a safe and she doesn’t?

I’m feeling anxious—no longer about what will happen to me, but about the part I played in all of this in my previous life.

Was I in on it with William de Loit? Is that the reason?

Béatrice must have noticed my distress because she lays a gentle hand on my arm and looks at me with softer eyes.

“Don’t worry about whatever happened before; what matters is what’ll happen now,” she says in her wise tone.

I feel a little glimpse of relief, or is it redemption? Alejandro looks a bit clueless about what he’s supposed to do next, so Béatrice fills in the blanks for him.

“We’ll be there tomorrow,” she declares, leaving me no room to refuse.

“We will?” Alejandro asks, completely unaware of the plan Béatrice just made.

“Yes,” Béatrice confirms. “Let us know when, and we’ll be there.”

I shake my head. “No, guys, please. Maksim will kill me if you show up!”

I realize what my words sound like and chuckle.

Béatrice looks worried and incredulous, and Alejandro seems like he doesn’t know what to make of this.

Getting Maksim angry would be one thing, but another obvious reason for them not to show up is that I know this won’t be safe for them.

I didn’t think about it until now, but what if Maksim gets caught and they come for me next?

What if they capture Maksim, torture him, and he reveals my location?

What if they kill him? Then I realize how anxious I’m getting—and not necessarily at the idea of these people heading my way.

I am afraid for Maksim. I don’t want them to hurt him.

I tell Béatrice ten more times not to go through with her plan.

She eventually surrenders, but as Béatrice as she is, I have a feeling she won’t really change her mind.

I’m just hoping she will. Once that woman gets an idea in her head, it is extremely hard to dissuade her.

I guess it’s because Béatrice has fought for many things in her life, which is what has made her so resilient, so powerful.

I kiss both of them goodbye, then I head back to the hotel, with no single clue as to what’s going to happen.

Maksim, in a white T-shirt and jeans, stands by the black desk in my hotel room, his back to the bed, fiddling with an open briefcase full of electronic equipment.

He’s pressed a few keys on a small silver laptop that seems to be running diagnostics all the time.

The laptop is connected to the apparatus in the briefcase, the one with many buttons.

I close the door behind me and walk to him slowly, wondering if he’s seen me or not.

I clear my throat to get his attention. “Is that the equipment for tomorrow?” I ask.

He doesn’t respond or look at me. I take that as a yes.

I’m starting to figure out a few things about him, about his behavior.

Maksim doesn’t respond to questions that have a logical answer, and he doesn’t respond to questions when the answer is none of my business .

Yesterday, he mentioned having equipment delivered today—and this definitely looks like equipment.

I pass behind him and go sit on the bed, where I remove my white scarf. After a few minutes of staring at his back, I start making sounds by blowing through my pursed lips, unconsciously and most probably out of boredom. Maksim still ticks on keys and buttons while I just stare out of the window.

A few more minutes later, I’m checking my phone and Twitter, which I haven’t opened in what feels like weeks.

I see a Facebook notification of Alejandro’s friend request, which I accept.

It was nice today—Béatrice, Alejandro, and me, like a band getting back together.

I briefly look through his timeline now that I can see all his pictures.

I see his happy selfies all over Paris, and pictures from his trip to Mexico, along with one to Rome I don’t know about.

I see a group picture at the University of Columbia with all three members of the band.

I smile. I’m happy for him, and I’m happy to have him back in my life.

Happy to have them both, Béatrice and him, back in my life.

I go back to Twitter to see what the world is about, as if something has changed since the last time I checked.

Nothing has. Just more cute animals to find, like that very funny red panda picture and the goat selfie.

I lock my phone and make that sound with my lips again.

Grow up, Liliana. Stop being so childish!

All right, I’ll check on Maksim. That’s when I notice he’s looking straight at me.

I force my lips to pop back to normal because the way I’m holding them isn’t the most flattering.

“All set up?” I ask the mute giant, clearing my throat.

He gives me one confirming nod, nothing else. He’s still looking at me, and I don’t really know what he expects—if he even expects anything. I start fiddling with my hair, which has become blond again, because this is getting too awkward.

“Are you hungry?” he finally asks after what felt like ten long minutes of silence.

I check my phone’s clock. 6:30 p.m. That’s far from French dinner time.

“You want to eat now?” I check, wondering at the same time if we’ll dine together.

“I’m ordering room service,” he replies. “Just tell me what you want.”

You. I want you, Maksim. I want you more than anything else right now. But I don’t say that, do I? Instead, I walk to the hotel menu and pick one of the few vegetarian dishes available. Pasta arrabiata. The funghi was a delight; I have a feeling this isn’t going to disappoint me either.

Maksim ordered at least three different dishes for himself and a big dessert.

He eats it all as if he hasn’t eaten in weeks.

I head to the bathroom as soon as I’m done with my delicious pasta, which I gulped down on the bed, cross-legged in my big sweatshirt.

When I come out of the shower, I spend two minutes brushing my teeth, flabbergasted again by the lack of steam on the mirror.

After that short moment of awe, I see the mark on my neck has darkened even more.

I trace a line with the tip of my index finger from the mark to my breast, sliding along my collarbone, letting my thoughts flow to the memories of last night.

I slide farther down my skin until I reach above my thigh, then I brush back up all the way to my lips.

I sigh to repress a moan. All I can see in my mind is Maksim exploring me.

I’m a little worried that he knows exactly what’s going on in this bathroom, or maybe I’m…

?eager. Now I realize I forgot my pajamas somewhere beyond the door.

Shit. I just have a white towel wrapped around me like a nori sheet, nothing else.

I peek out of the room to see where Maksim is and find that he’s in the seat by his dinner, finishing his glass of complimentary wine. I want to sneak by in search of my clothes, but he’s already spotted me.

“Your pajamas are on the bed,” he says.

I go for it. I press the towel shut around my chest, making my breasts actually look two times bigger than usual, then halt by the bed and slip into my oversized shirt. I need panties out of my suitcase, but, at least right now, I have a large piece of white cloth covering me.

I hesitate to turn around, as I have something to hide. My body is screaming for him and I don’t want him to see. But I take a deep breath and a shot of courage, then I spin on my heels and face a Maksim who has snuck up on me.

I gasp, my hands reaching for his chest. He stands so close to me that I feel his breath caress my hair.

I feel his gaze, his hungry stare landing on me to analyze me.

I look up, and our eyes make four. I don’t know what gets into me at this exact moment, what comes over me.

I open my mouth, and the only thing I find to say is…

“Maksim, just take me already.”

That’s his cue. He leans in to get a hold of me and lifts me up.

Once I’m at his height, he gives me a short kiss, not long enough that I can enjoy it, then trails kisses down my neck.

I run my finger through his thick black curls.

He holds me against him with one arm, unbuckling his belt with his free hand.

He lets me drop to the bed when he’s done.

I land on the soft mattress, my body writhing from the desire that begs for him.

He crawls on top of me and goes for my lips.

He lets low groans escape every time I return his kiss.

He clenches my hair with a fist and leads my head back so he gets easier access to the skin of my neck.

He goes lower and lower until he can’t anymore because my shirt is blocking his way.

So he rips it off.

One effortless move of his big hands.

“I actually liked that shirt,” I whine a little between breaths.

Maksim responds with a grunt. “I’ll buy you a new one.”

He explores my skin, revisiting the parts he’s already seen and sinking his teeth in certain places, eager to leave memories. His tongue tastes me with delicate swirls in all the right places. My head goes wild.