A taxi shot past the opening of the alley, its headlights sweeping over the brick walls. Somewhere farther off, a siren wailed into the night.
When I turned onto the street, all was quiet. Even wearing sneakers, I could hear my footfalls as I walked.
A tingle went up my spine, subtle but unmistakable. I was hit once again with the sensation of being watched—not by a stranger but by someone whose attention was wrapped around me like swirling smoke. He was out there. I knew it with the same certainty I knew my own name.
It was the Russian. It could be no one else.
I wasn’t sure how I knew it was him. I just did. The air changed when he was near—became charged, oppressive, and intimate all at the same time. Delgado’s man had made my skin crawl. My Russian stalker made my skin hum with awareness.
He wasn’t going to touch me tonight.
Not unless I asked.
And I didn’t know what terrified me more—that he might put his hands on me.
Or that I might want him to.
I slowed my pace, just enough to give him the chance to approach me.
He didn’t take it.
Didn’t show himself.
Just lingered in the shadows where he always was—unseen but never absent.
I imagined his eyes following me, tracking my shape beneath this hoodie, remembering the taste of me.
Soon I reached the corner and turned toward home, still not looking back.
My apartment building came into sight ahead, the vestibule light in the entryway flickering through the glass. I keyed in my code, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.
Only once did I glance over my shoulder as I ascended the first flight of stairs. There was no one there of course.
My stomach rumbled loudly in the silent hallway. God, I was starving. My thoughts turned to what I might be able to scrounge up for a late-night snack.
Chapter sixteen
The cigarette burned between my fingers as I lifted it to my lips. I drew in a deep drag, let the smoke coil against the roof of my mouth, and exhaled into the frigid, damp night. The tendril drifted, curling upward like a ghost.
The Sacrifice was in full swing, just across the street from where I waited. I had eyes on every exit, every window. I’d been standing here monitoring the camera feeds for the past hour.
I could’ve sent someone else. Should’ve, maybe. I had men trained to tail, protect, and report. I owned an entire security firm, for fuck’s sake.
But she was mine to look after.
And tonight, I was on edge.
The moment Carmine had called, I’d known something had gone sideways.
Last night, I’d finally cracked the club’s internal system. For now, I only had access to the security cameras. Delgado paid well for his network protection, but it wouldn’t hold up much longer.It was only a matter of time before I’d be able to peel back the layers, gut the code, and strip it down until I owned it.
But I didn’t need to see anything else to know what Delgado was doing here.
He’d shown up in person tonight.
Front table. Center seat.
And she had danced like her fucking life depended on it.
