I nodded. “That’s right.”
She broke off again, heading into the living room. Hand on her hip, one on her forehead. Incoherent ramblings exploded from her lips, mirroring her frantic movements.
I grabbed her by the wrist, turning her to me. “What is it?”
“You can’t do that again. You just can’t.”
“I had to.”
“No!” Her sharp voice echoed off the vaulted ceilings. “No,” she said in a whisper. “I lied today. I broke my oath, and I lied for you. I lied for Helena. What am I even doing?”
She buried her face in her hands.
“Angel, come here.” I pulled her to my chest. She was crying, trembling in my arms. Emotions I couldn’t place or knew what to do with pummeled me mercilessly, settling in the pit of my stomach. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for you to have to do that.”
“Derek, you could have died.” She tilted her head to look at me. “I’ve lost so much. People I love and care about. And I just found you.”
My thumb wiped at the tears sliding down her cheeks as I held her face. “I’m not going anywhere. And I’m not that easy to kill,” I said with a wink.
Evangelina rolled her eyes and sighed. “Nothing about this is funny.”
“Hey, worrying about me is pointless. This is about you. Yuri is dead, but you still have a target over your head. How do you think that makes me feel?”
Spanish expletives spouted from her pretty lips. And as inappropriate a thought as it was, all I wanted to do was kiss her.
“That son of a bitch, Belov. He really tried to have me killed, didn’t he?” Fresh tears filled her eyes. “Oh, God, and Sam...”
She rested her forehead on my chest and cried.
* * *
The shower stopped running over an hour ago. I hung back, listening outside my bedroom door, ensuring she didn’t need me. As much as I wanted to be in her company, I knew she needed space and time to clear her mind.
I’d given up being surprised by my actions and the kind of shit that mattered to me now.
Leaning against the door, I tipped my head back, closing my eyes.
Who are you?
Those three words were on repeat in my thoughts. The truth was, I had no fucking clue. She made me feel so much. Made me act outside myself.
As naive, broken children, Kai and I looked out for each other against assholes with ill intentions. While it hadn’t always worked, we survived. But even through the darkest moments, I’d never consoled him like I had Evangelina. She was in my arms until the last tear had fallen.
I clenched and unclenched my fists as I tempered my emotions. There would be time for blood later. I’d get my revenge, even if it meant obliterating the entire Belov lineage.
The door opened behind me, and I stumbled a step before catching myself. Eva was wearing one of my shirts. The white garment was massive on her petite frame, almost reaching her knees. Bare legs were adorned with my black dress socks, pulled to mid-calf.
“I know. I look ridiculous.”
“You look… a lot of things, but ridiculous isn’t one of them.”
She leaned a shoulder against the doorframe and pushed a strand of dampened hair behind her ear. “We didn’t exactly think this through. I don’t even have underwear.”
I bit the inside of my lip and gripped the frame above her head so hard it felt like it would splinter in my grasp. Eva looked up through her thick lashes.
“What? You didn’t expect me to wear yours, did you? And every pair of pants I tried on fell to my ankles.”
I reached for her, hands on her hips, slowly gliding up the hem of her top as if to confirm she was bare underneath. Only my eyes never left hers. Fingers feathered along sheer skin, digging into the supple flesh of her ass.
