Page 33 of Deadly Sins

20Grant

DONE. MY FIRST PLAN OF attack went off without any setbacks.

I sat on my bike outside Panthers in the middle of the day, watching Ksenya’s fine ass as she walked inside, her blonde hair covering her shoulders. A man whistled at her from his car—the bastard was probably jerking off.

I had to admit this scene was pathetic. After getting to know some strippers over the last couple of years, I’d learned some hard truths. Most of the women were either drug addicts, victims of abuse, or plain down on their luck. They were not the sexually empowered temptresses I’d deluded myself into believing they were. I’d always justified coming here thinking strip clubs were places to bond with my brothers for boys’ nights out. At least I’d convinced Ksenya to quit so she wouldn’t be flashing her tits to the construction workers devouring their free lunch buffets.

Getting her the job yesterday at the bar gutted me. I knew Kyle and my buddies would keep her safe, but it made me nauseous to think that this full mindfuck could actually be happening. Had Mia worked her ass off to be an actress, only to now throw away her career to save her brother? She’d be serving drinks to a bunch of fucked-up alcoholic frogmen while they ogled her. I prayed I was wrong about Ksenya being Mia in disguise.

I couldn’t allow myself to think about the implausibility of this situation. I had to concentrate on the task at hand. I needed to get some sort of proof, something tangible that convinced me, without a doubt, that Ksenya was Mia.

If I was correct, I might let her keep her ruse up to the outside world, especially if we could glean any information that could save her brother. But that was it. No feelings, nothing beyond this operation. I wasn’t even sure if I should sleep with her. Sure, I’d love to fuck her sweet pussy again, make her scream my name, but I couldn’t risk getting addicted. She was toxic to me, like heroin. I’d quit her once. I wasn’t sure I could do it again.

She walked out of Panthers, her high heels making her gait lack the casualness Mia’s once had. Even so, from a distance, all I saw was my dream girl. I couldn’t stop staring—it was almost as if Dr. 90210 had created her just for me. I had to remember that if my theory was correct, nothing about this girl was real, not her face, not her tits, not her hair. I wouldn’t say she was a sociopath because she clearly had ruined her life to try to save Joaquín’s. But she had no problem using me to get what she wanted. If she could be this callous and treat me as little more than a stepping-stone, what we had must’ve been bullshit all along.

I stopped myself. Man, I was so self-centered. This was not about me—this was about Joaquín. I had been a dick to Mia. If she was doing this, it was because I had shut her out. In a way, I had forced her into this.

I just never thought she would take it so far.

She stood next to my bike, her elbows pressed to the side of her body, making her look even more petite than usual.

I stepped on the gas and handed her the helmet. “How did it go, babe?”

Her lips were trembling. “It was fine. He understood. Said thank you to me for the hard work. I will take my car home now.”

Not so fast. Time to up the game. “I’ll bring you back here later. Come with me to my bro’s place—his wife just had a baby.”

Her brow furrowed, and she hesitated for a second. I was actually worried that she would decline. “Okay. I go.” Her expression went slack, her bright eyes turned dull…and were those tears?

I handed her the helmet. I didn’t know what to think—her body language conflicted with her words. No way would she turn down an opportunity to hang out with my friends if she was Mia. But why did she look so sad? I fought the urge to comfort her.

She pushed the helmet over her head and gave me an empty stare. “And who it is that I say I am to you?”

She had a point. Though Ksenya had met my buddies and would be working for Kyle, we never brought strippers to family functions. But Annie was cool and would probably feel bad for Ksenya. “Just tell them you’re my girlfriend.”

Her chin dropped, and she gave a weak nod.

I squeezed her hand, and she climbed on the back of my bike, wrapping her tight body against me.

What just happened? I suspected that she would be nervous about being around people who knew Mia, but I didn’t understand why she seemed to be upset. Mia loved babies, and she had to know I was talking about Pat and Annie’s newborn. I was still suspicious Ksenya was Mia, but something was off. Either way, I needed to take her to this party, see how she acted around my friends. She had to slip up soon.

I took off on the bike, the road rumbling under me, Ksenya’s head nestled against my back. Though the sounds of the traffic and the roar of the engine vibrated loudly in my helmet, I could almost swear I heard sobs muffled by the wind.