She nods. “Pretty much, yeah.”
I choke on a laugh while Luka snorts.
“Good job I have a sense of humor,” Chiara comments. “God knows I need it when dealing with his father. Feel free to off him if you bump into the old bastard.”
“Noted.” Kyril snatches his wife’s hand and tugs her away, heading around the dance floor toward the VIP section. We watch as they ascend the glass stairs and disappear.
Angelo turns back to the three of us. “Luka, stay with Kane. I don’t want to have to rescue you as well.” Luka’s blank expression doesn’t give much away, but Chiara reaches for his hand and squeezes.
“If any bitches touch you, let Kane stab them, yeah?”
I love how possessive she is, and from the way Luka gives her a soft smile before nodding, he does too.
“I’ll be fine,” he reassures her. She slants a look at me.
“If anything bad happens to him, I’ll blame you,” she warns. I pull her into my arms, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair.
“You can trust me, kitten. I won’t let anything happen to your sweet pup.”
“Good,” she mutters against my chest.
“Meet back here in an hour unless you find something,” Angelo snaps, unamused at my blatant show of affection for his wife. “And if you spot Remington, disable him so I can ask him some questions.”
44
Luka
This is the first time I’ve left the house since theincident, as I refer to it in my head. Before Chiara, I was never at home, not needing an excuse to party.
Drinking to excess, smoking questionable substances, and fucking any willing body was the best way I knew how to numb my emotions. But as a good therapist would say, seeking validation in others is a shitty way of managing one’s self-esteem.
It also led to a lot of awful hangovers and questionable decisions.
When Chiara arrived, I stopped partying for fun. The only time I went out was for work events, at the behest of my former manager.
And since theincident, I’ve turned down every opportunity that’s come my way.
It’s not like I need the money. I have more than enough saved to keep me comfortable for a few years. But I’m here tonight for the woman I love. Sure, she doesn’t need me to protect her. She has my brother and Kane for that. But I’ll offer emotionalsupport because I know that while she’s good at using humor and sarcasm to deflect, she’s also terrified we might not find Fina.
“Have you been here before?” Kane keeps his voice low as we navigate a path around the small dance floor. The place is heaving with men and women, all of whom wear the trappings of wealth along with bejeweled masks.
This is no ordinary club. The heavily muscled and armed bouncers at every exit tell me that much. I have no clue how we’re supposed to get past them to search for Fina.
“Once,” I admit. A woman I saw twice, an actress many years older than me, brought me here as her arm candy. He doesn’t ask for details. We both know what goes on beyond this generic part of the club.
Masked women dance and grind around me. Many gaze at me, their eyes crawling over my body. There was a time when I would have lapped up their attention, but not now. Now, it makes my skin itch.
A hand gropes my ass as I pass two older women. One pouts and thrusts her chest out, but I ignore her. Kane’s attracting a lot of attention, too, but he seems oblivious.
There’s a smaller bar on the far side of the room, on a mezzanine floor. Kane heads that way, and I follow. He stops dead a few feet from the pink neon-lit bar as a pretty brunette with long, dark hair looks our way. She’s wearing a sequin-covered cat-eye mask - I don’t recognize her, but he seems to.
“Cal? I didn’t know you had a membership here?”Who the fuck’s Cal?
“Sienna, hey.” Kane shifts awkwardly, which is weird. Unlike my brother, he’s usually a chill guy. Is this one of his exes?Color me intrigued.“I’m here as a guest with someone from work.” Since he’s not made it clear we’re together, I sidle past and order a drink at the bar while listening to their conversation.
“Um, I’m surprised cops come here. It’s pretty pricey.” Sienna sounds suspicious. Her eyes narrow. “You’re here with a woman? Is this the woman you ditched me for that night?” My eyebrows shoot up. Sienna must be an ex.
Kane huffs in annoyance. “Who I’m with, Sienna, is none of your business. Now if you’ll excuse me…”
