Cy would have a field day with this, record it, and show it to my goddamn grandchildren.
I clear my throat. “I’ll take over fucking Chicago and become so powerful, no one would dare to fuck with me, Mom, or Alya. I’ll be their shield even if it’s the last thing I do.”
“Hmm. That’s nice.” He sounds a bit sleepy. “I have so many people to protect, too. Mom, Dad, Lidya, my family’s legacy…”
He trails off, his head falling against my shoulder.
I hold my breath, willing my heart to stop beating so loudly.
He’ll definitely feel it against his palms and ridicule me…
“We should help each other out when we’re older, Yulian. We could make a great team. You can be the muscle, and I’ll be the brains…”
I wait for him to keep talking, still barely breathing, but nothing comes.
So I wait some more.
And more…
I peek at him, and huge fucking mistake.
His face is so close to mine, I feel his steady breath on my skin. His eyes are closed, long lashes fluttering against his smudged cheeks.
It’s so unlike him to be so unclean, but I messed him up with my blood, the dirt, everything.
My finger reaches for his face, wanting to…what? Wipe the grime? Push away that sole strand of hair that hangs close to his face?
I pause, my finger twitching.
I swallow thickly, but it gets trapped in my throat, because, fucking hell, he’s so beautiful.
That’s what I’ve been thinking since the fight this morning.
Maybe even for a while before that.
I kept thinking that he looks so fucking handsome that I want to sink my teeth into him.
And that kind of freaked me out. It’sstillfreaking me the fuck out because the feel of his body against mine has me buzzing in ways I can’t control.
As if it’s a hit of nicotine.
Drugs.
Every fucked-up substance on the market.
I’m feverish, so this could be a hallucination, but I simply can’t take my eyes off of him or direct these rampant thoughts away from him.
Don’t do it, Yulian.
I know. I won’t.I pacify the little surviving morsel of logic in my brain.I’m totallynotgoing to do anything. I’m just chilling.
Yulian, this is the worst idea you’ve ever come up with, and all of your ideas are shit.
Rude, brain. Don’t go calling yourself names.
Vaughn releases a long exhale, and I close my eyes as the feel of his face on my shoulder gets warmer and warmer.
It’s the fever.
