“Yes,” I say calmly. “I know you can. Set up a peace talk. Outside Decadence. No guns. Make him think it’s somethingelse. He won’t suspect you because I bet he hasn’t seen that side of you yet.”
She is a master of deception. Of playing people to get them to make the moves she needs. The Preacher is no different.
She runs her tongue along her teeth. “This is why I always liked your mind. Why I needed you when I took over everything in Russia. And why I’ll need you when I come to America.”
I shrug. “I’m on the right side now with the Quinns. The side you will have to take down should you fucking dare step foot there.”
“Do we have a deal?” I ask.
I need her gone.
Tatiana lets the knife fall to the floor. Her hand slides up my chest.
My future balances on this moment.
“Maybe,” she says.
I don’t blink. “And call off your men on Lev. He’s not your enemy.”
She tilts her head. “That will require something to seal it. You’re asking for a lot.”
“And you need that necklace, Tatiana.”
She doesn’t react.
I inhale slowly. “Name it.”
She steps in close enough that I can feel her breath.
“This,” she says.
Before I can react and before rage can stop it, she rises onto her toes, grabbing my neck as her mouth crashes into mine.
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
Lily
Song- The Other Side, Ruelle.
I wake up because something feels… wrong. It’s still dark outside.
The bed beside me is empty, the sheets still warm where Drago was only minutes ago. My chest tightens, that old familiar anxiety creeping in, so I pull on his shirt and pad quietly toward the door.
I don’t mean to spy. I just want to feel safe again. And that seems to happen when he’s with me. I crack the door open, and that’s when I see it.
Drago is standing in the kitchen, rigid, tense in a way I’ve never seen before. There’s a woman in front of him. She’s blonde, tall, and beautiful. Her body is pressed into his space like she belongs there.
Am I still drunk?
My hand slaps over my mouth, and tears are falling down my face. Part of me, the old Lily, wants to go out there and confront them both. But what would that achieve?
It’s my stupid fault for falling for him this fast. I don’t know his past. Not really. I don’t even have time to process anything they’re saying before she reaches up and kisses him.
Not a soft kiss. Not hesitant. Her mouth crashes into his like she’s done it before. Like she owns the right.
The sound of it hits me harder than the sight.
My breath leaves my body in one sharp, silent rush. Every bit of happiness I felt before this point dissolves when his lips touch hers.
