Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 109562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
“It’s perfectly fine,” I say with a grimace.
“Nonsense.” She gives me a chastising look. “Never do anything in half measures.”
Jumping to her feet, she swiftly carries the cups to the kitchen and dumps the tea in the sink.
When she’s settled opposite me again, she lifts the pot high in the air and serves the infusion in clean cups.
“It’s not only to let the tea cool,” she explains as she hands me a cup. “It changes the energy, you see.”
“You were talking about Anya,” I remind her.
Her smile is patient. “I know. Drink your tea. Do you taste the difference?”
To appease her, I take a sip. Surprisingly, it tastes less bitter. “It’s great, thanks.”
“Good.” She picks up her cup. “Where was I? Oh yes. The fire. Mary vanished. Anya and I searched for her all night. The police finally found her badly beaten in a park. While she recovered in hospital, I convinced Anya to move in here so that she could use the rent money to pay for the rehabilitation center.”
“I’m glad she had you.”
“To make a long story short, that girl endured enough. She deserves happiness, and if you’re going to break her heart, I will personally rid the earth of your pleasant-looking face.”
Despite the seriousness of the discussion, her words make me grin. “Don’t worry. I’m here to stay.”
If she picks up on the sinister darkness of that promise, she doesn’t show it. A bright smile lights up her face. “In that case, we’re going to see a lot of each other.”
I raise my cup. “I’ll drink to that.”
My phone pings in my pocket with the notification tone I use for the man tailing Anya.
I put down my cup and pull my phone from my pocket. As I read the message, I clench my jaw.
“Work trouble?” Livy asks.
“I’m sorry.” I push to my feet. “I’m afraid I have to cut our visit short.”
“Don’t worry about that. You’re a breadwinner. You have priorities.”
Yes, and no priority is more important than this one.
She scrunches up her face. “What exactly do you do for living again?”
“I own a few software companies,” I say with a tight smile as I give her a hand to help her up.
“That’s good. That’s the way of the future.”
“Thanks again for the tea.”
“Thank you for the flowers,” she says with a lady-like nod.
In a few long strides, I’m out of the door, clutching the phone in a death grip as I reread the message.
Anya is at the Supreme Court, and there’s only one reason she’d visit one of the highest powers in the state.
She’s going to tell on me.
Anger drives my steps as I make my way to the car.
“Supreme Court,” I tell Kevin when I get inside. “And step on the gas.”
CHAPTER
FIFTEEN
Anya
My gaze is trained on the floor as I walk through the security check into the lobby of the State Court Building. Absorbed in my troubles, I don’t pay attention to the people or the environment around me. I can’t think about anything else but the problems I’m facing.
What am I going to do?
Frustration wells up inside me, followed by a bout of despondency.
Why must everything be such a battle? How wretched is my life that a couple of bottles of vitamins and a blood test are unobtainable?
Pushing my hair with both hands from my face, I take a deep breath.
Get a grip on yourself, Anya.
I refuse to be pathetic. I’ve always been good at finding solutions to problems. There’s nothing I hate more than to beg. I’ve done enough of that in my life.
No more.
I’ll just have to come up with another idea.
Maybe I should try gambling. If that doesn’t work out, there are always the loan sharks, but I’d never be able to pay back a loan with the high interest they charge, and I don’t want a loan shark to come after me.
I’m so lost in my thoughts that I don’t notice the wall of muscles materializing in front of me until I’m almost on top of the man. Stopping short, I lift my head, and then I part my lips with a gasp that doesn’t escape.
Saverio stands in front of me, looking like a god who just descended from heaven. No, not a god. A demon from hell. A beautiful demon, but a dangerous one nevertheless. If I forgot how big he is, I’m sorely reminded of his size as he towers over me, observing me with an ominous glint in those icy blue eyes.
“Saverio,” I whisper-cry, battling to come to grips with his sudden appearance. “What are you doing here?”
He drapes an arm around my shoulders in a strangely protective manner and says in the gentlest way, “I’m here for you, tesoro,” but I don’t miss the menace that rides on those soft-spoken words.
Not giving me a chance to reply, he ushers me to the exit. I’m too flabbergasted to protest, not fully registering what’s happening, that he’s here. Because how? Why?