“He is Viki,” Matleon says.
Viki smiles. “Nice to meet you, Miss Mikhailov.”
I nod, returning his smile.
“Have her luggage arranged in the room downstairs,” Matleon instructs.
Viki nods, passes a phone to Matleon, and then leaves toward the room with his robots.
Matleon passes the phone to me. Everyone in my family—and their extended family—uses custom-made phones, or things could get really difficult. The Mikhailovs have their own people to make their phones, and I’ve been using one of theirs like everyone else in my family. This one is different. People in Matleon’s family use phones made under Zo’s supervision. I open it; the interface is different from mine, and it feels strangely unfamiliar. I enter my IDs and start retrieving all my data from my previous phone.
When I look up after getting it all done, I find Matleon watching me. I shift uncomfortably in my chair.
He smirks. “Congratulations, Angel. You’ve successfully seduced me.”
My lips part at his words. As the shock settles, my face starts heating with a mixture of anger and…something useless.
I frown. “I’m not seducing you. You’re the one getting carried away all on your own.”
His gaze moves slowly down my face, to my neck, and then to my breasts. I feel the robe tightening and loosening at the same time.
“You’re a pervert, Matleon. I will tell my papa about your behavior, and let’s see what he has to say about me staying in your goddamn house,” I hiss.
He chuckles, meeting my eyes with his dark, intense gaze. “Go ahead, Angel. Tell your papa and your whole family.”
He gets up from his chair and approaches me. I also rise. He stands in front of me, facing me, the nasty smirk never leaving his face. He lifts my chin with one finger. I clench my jaw and slap his finger away. His smirk widens, and in the next moment, he grabs my jaw.
Now I know what will happen next. I could try to force his hand away, but he won’t relent; his grip would only tighten. So I do nothing. I simply stand there, letting him dictate the moment.
He leans down. “Tell the entire world, Angel…” His hands travel to my waist, pulling me inexorably toward him. “That Matleon wants to fuck you.” He whispers, looking straight into my eyes. His hardness presses firmly against my belly.
My heart is beating so loudly, I don’t think it ever raced this much, not even when I was holding a gun, ready to kill. It feels like my blood has ignited, coursing through my veins just to make me feel as if I’m standing in the middle of a wildfire. No—not a wildfire.The fire of hell. You can only feel the heat of hell’s fire when you are inthe devil’s arms.
“I won’t stay in your house, Matleon, if these are your intentions,” I mutter. I had planned to shout these words, but with his face this close, it’s impossible to even speak.
He runs his thumb over my cheek. I know I must be blushing right now. I always do when I’m angry, and I’m angry. So angry that my heart feels on the verge of bursting from overwork, my lungs constricting like there’s not enough air in the world for them. This is anger,a new kind of anger, I tell myself, one I’ve never felt before.
And then it’s gone. Not the new kind of anger, but Matleon. He frees me completely, stepping two feet back with his hands in his pants pockets. His eyes roam over my face, admiration written plainly in his expression.
“If you are going to live in New York, you will live in this house. Or you can leave for Vlad,” he says calmly, certain in every word.
I purse my lips. “We will see.”
Viki comes out of my room. I don’t waste another second. I take a deep breath, cast a quick glance at Matleon, and make my way to my room. The first thing I do is get dressed. I open the bag of my undergarments, pick out a pair of panties, wear them, then change into pajamas and step out of the closet. I lay down on the bed and make a call to Dex.
He picks up after a few rings.
“Hello, Dex. It’s Iselyn.”
“Hey, Lyn. How are you?”
“I’m fine. How are you? Have you reached your place safely?”
He hums. “I’m also fine.”
I sigh in relief. “I was just worried about you. It was your stepmother behind that attack.”
He replies in a hard tone, “I know.”
