Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 58442 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 292(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58442 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 292(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
I’m tongue-tied until Raiden gives me a nudge.
“Don’t be shy now, beautiful.”
“I did, Mr. Luis,” I say.
“Martino, please.”
“I designed it. I made it.”
“Absolutely incredible. You must allow me to give you my card. Call me, I’d love to know more about your designs.”
Before I can say anything, he’s taken his card from his pocket and thrust it into my hand.
Once he’s gone, I turn to Raiden. He’s still beaming down at me, not allowing his own heartache to stop him from being happy for me.
“Did that seriously just happen?”
Raiden smooths his hand over my cheek, tucking hair behind my ear, then kisses me on the forehead, leaving a warm imprint. “It did, and you deserved it. You’re a genius, Aurora. Don’t roll your eyes at that.” When I stop mid eye roll, he grins. “I mean it. I’m so proud of you.”
I throw myself into his arms, and he hugs me tight. When we find each other’s lips, it’s not a show. The rest of the room drifts away, and it’s just us, the heat and the passion and the natural sensation of belonging.
It’s not as big as the L-word, like Evangeline said in the limo.
But it’s not nothing either.
“Oh, great,” Raiden mutters after the kiss.
“What’s up?”
He nods. It’s Victor, the man who went full douche on Raiden at the Retreat party. His eyes are no longer red, which means he must’ve been wearing contact lenses.
“Word is you set up the murder yourself,” he says, slurring his words. “Drum up sympathy—”
“Victor, just fuck off,” I hiss.
He gapes at me like I’ve grown not one, but several heads.
“Excuh… cuse me?” he snaps in disbelief.
“You heard me. We’ve got enough on our minds this evening without you stumbling over here like we’re supposed to care or be impressed or something. If you need me to tell you again, I will.”
Victor turns to Raiden as though he’s going to save him.
“Don’t look at him. He agrees with me, but he’s too civilized to say it. I’m just a poor girl with no filter who is seriously sick of the sight of you.”
Victor stumbles away as though I’ve hit him, supremely offended.
Raiden laughs loudly, pulling me in for another kiss. “That was amazing,” he says between the hot, hungry press of our lips. “You’re amazing.”
“We should get out of here,” I murmur, smoothing my hands over his back. “I know the deal was I had to be the perfect date, but I think I’d rather be alone with you right now.”
His hands glide to my hips, making my heartbeat quicken, the fabric of my dress rustling sensually against my body. His manhood grows hard, pushing against my stomach.
“I don’t care about the deal,” he says. “I just don’t want you and your grandma to lose the shop.”
If we have sex tonight, it has to be the last time.
I try to say the words out of habit, but I can’t. I don’t want to ruin the moment. Even if they should be true, I’m not sure I can stick to that.
“Let’s find Grandma,” he says. “We’ll see if she’s ready to leave.”
We walk through the ballroom together, finding her nowhere. The more time that passes, the more obviously worried Raiden becomes, until his hand is a tight talon on mine and his expression is etched with terror.
What if Sebastian got to her somehow?
When we finally find her in the hallway, she’s sitting in a chair, tears streaking down her cheeks.
“They searched the house,” she moans, gazing up at us with bleary eyes. “Didn’t they call you?”
Raiden checks his phone. “Shit. I didn’t feel it.”
“They searched the house. He’s not there. He has a small apartment too, but he’s not there either.”
“He’s gone on the run, then,” Raiden growls. “Which means it was him.”
“They found notes and photos in his room at the house,” she says. “Notes about me, you, and Julian. Photos which he’d drawn on. Letters about how much he hates us all, how he wants us to die, all of us. He was going to kill me too.”
“He wrote letters about wanting to kill you?” I say, bringing her into a hug without even thinking. “That’s just awful, Evangeline. I’m so sorry.”
She claws onto me desperately. “I thought I was helping him. I thought I was doing my best. The entire time, he hated me. He was thinking about how to take my life, my fortune, my trust, my… everything.”
I look at Raiden over the top of her head. Evangeline has melted into me like a scared child, pressing her face against my chest as if she can’t handle this. I don’t blame her. She gave him all her love, and he spit in her face in return.
“I think we should go,” I say.
Raiden doesn’t hear me at first. He looks like a man ready to erupt, his muscles bunching against his suit like the fabric is going to tear away Hulk-style, his chest heaving. He stares off into space as though he can see Sebastian, as though, in his head, he’s doing evil things to him.