“Who else would I be talking about?”
My brother stretched and leaned back against the cushion, a hand over a still-sleeping Diego.
“This is one cool cat. He’s been hanging with me all day. You should see how he bosses Deimos around.”
I clenched my fists. “Are you purposely fucking with me? I’ve had a very stressful forty-eight hours. I don’t give a damn about your day with Eva’s cat.” I leaned in and lowered my voice. “What went down between her and Ronan?”
“Come on. Don’t you think I would have told you if something serious happened?”
I was simultaneously relieved and frustrated by my brother’s unhurried communication.
“Okay, so what did you mean?”
“Alexa. Her cousin.” He whistled out a puff of air and shook his head. “That broad can talk. She’s fine as hell, but goddamn.”
The night I’d reached out to her and told her what had happened at the hospital, the woman began spouting off at rapid-fire speed, switching between English and Spanish like she was possessed. I barely got a word in before she was racing across her apartment, demanding to see Evangelina.
He put a hand on my shoulder. “She’ll be happy to see you.” His expression suddenly shifted. A crease formed between his brows as he leaned forward, head hung low, and clasped his hands together. “Derek, I hope you know what you’re doing here. This woman. You’re in deeper than you thought… maybe deeper than you know.”
I couldn’t deny his claim. Similar thoughts had been consuming my mind since I parted for New York. I’d just made a deal with the proverbial devil to orchestrate a massacre of the Belov family in the name of seeking revenge on behalf of Evangelina. Consequences be damned.
“How was your meeting with Amalia?When do we go knocking down some doors? And is she as vicious as the rumors make her out to be?”
I stood up, the need to see my girl with my own eyes now overwhelming. “Aside from the part where her people almost killed me? Twice. It went as planned. I paid her half of what we discussed, and the other half will be collected later at her discretion.”
Kai rose, arms raised at his sides, his face twisted with confusion. “What the fuck does that mean?” I was already halfway up the staircase. “D, why do I feel like this will come back to bite us in the ass?”
Without answering, I kept pace toward my bedroom, assuming Eva was asleep, until I heard the faint whooshing sounds of water from deep inside the room.
She was in the shower.
My dick’s reaction to that news was instant, straining against the front of my pants. I pushed open the door, confirming she was indeed in the ensuite and not asleep. The bed was undisturbed, still made since what I could only deduce to be some time that morning. One of her bags was open on the bench, the clothes in disarray as if she were frantically searching for a particular item. I made a mental note to question her about it later, knowing I’d set out to get her anything she needed if that were the case.
Damn, Derek, this woman’s got you all kinds of bent out of shape?
I slid off my jacket and tossed it on the bed, not wanting to waste another second. I’d had a taste of her, and I’d been longing for another ever since.
As I neared the door, her voice poured over me in smooth velvet waves. She was singing, calling to me, drawing me in like a goddamn Siren, leading me to ruin.
CHAPTERTHIRTY
DEREK
Steam billowed from the bathroom when I opened the door. My eyes immediately fell on her naked silhouette behind the fogged glass. Her hands were tangled in her hair as she stood under the spray of hot water, suds running delicious rivulets down the curves of her body.
The door clicked behind me, startling her just enough to make her gasp until her anxious gaze found mine.
“It’s just me, angel.”
“You’re back,” she whispered.
“Don’t stop. Sing for me, baby.”
Eva tipped her head back, the lyrics flowing out of her like poetry. Her hands were back in her hair as she rinsed out the shampoo. Only now, there was a slight sway in her hips, a cunning smile on her face, and her fingers moved at a slower, more calculated pace. I gripped the edge of the vanity, fighting back the urge to rip open that door and take what was mine.
“You have no idea how fucking beautiful you are.” I worked the buttons of my shirt, pulling it out of my pants before kicking my shoes against the door. The sudden thud forced her eyes open, her voice trailing off.
“Thought I said not to stop.”
