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Wickedly Twisted 28
ErosGareth lights his cigar and takes a few puffs. My close friend and lawyer grins at me through the smoke and sighs as he leans back in his chair. We're hidden away in a private room at an upscale club in the heart of Chicago, a location loyal to my family.Though I wonder how long. News about Cara is spreading, and there's already a lot of grumbling."I'll be honest, Eros, when I got the call about setting up marriage paperwork, I thought it was a joke." Gareth peers at me over the glowing end of his cigar.He laughs quietly to himself. Gareth's tall and handsome for a lawyer, with broad shoulders and sparkling blue eyes, but I don't let his boyish looks fool me for one second. The man has the heart of a lion and the morals of a killer, though I'd trust him with my life if it came to that. I've known him since college where we were a part of a club called the Atlas Group, and our little organization has remained tight ever since. We're spread out across the United States, though m
Wickedly Twisted 29
Eros"Sorry to tell you, but it'll have to be." Gareth's smile is apologetic as he puffs on his cigar. "For now, at least. If you want to marry her sooner, you could always kill her ex-husband." He grins at me like he's joking, but I stare back at him, not smiling."I will gladly end that fucker's life. Murder is certainly not off the table."He sighs and shakes his head. "Well, if you get caught, give me a call.""Find a loophole, Gareth. Find a way for me to make her my wife tomorrow. Find me something."He ashes his cigar and considers me for a moment. "Eros, if this is just about making sure your family will accept her, do you really need to make it legal? Go through with the ceremony. Sign the papers. Do everything except, you know, actually file with the state. The moment her divorce goes through, you can get the legalities squared away, but what does a guy like you give a shit about the law? Besides, by the time she's officially back on the market, I bet your little problem wil
Wickedly Twisted 30
CaraWork the day after dinner is surprisingly calm. There are still a dozen made men sitting around and eating through Demetrios's stock of lamb. I notice a few of them staring at me, and when I look back, they don't turn away like they used to. There's an intensity to the way the guys are looking at me. I assume it's because I'm the lord's fiancée, but I get a weird vibe and I'm not sure what to do with it, so I just ignore them.But otherwise it's quiet, no angry Greek lords or ladies bothering me while I'm trying to do my job.Except Phel, of course. "My dad was basically glowing after Eros spoke to him yesterday," she says with a massive grin. "You should've seen him at home. He was like a schoolgirl with a crush.""I can get him Eros's autograph if he'd like.""Girl, don't joke, he'd freak out if you did that."I laugh despite myself. Demetrios is a good man and he's been more than kind to me, so I don't want to get involved in his daughter's good-natured teasing, but it does fe
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We laugh together and some of my nervous energy clears up, but that doesn't last long, because another small crowd of made men enter in a rush, followed by a tall Greek girl in a white blouse with dark wide-legged pants and perilously high heels. She stands looking around like a goddess straight from Mt. Olympus until she spots me and smiles.Helen walks over and waves hello. Eros's sister looks like him, but not as big, and her features are softer and much more feminine. "Hello, Cara," she says and glances at Ophelia. "You're the owner's daughter, correct?""Uh, yeah, hi," Phel says. "You're Helen Khazan."Helen laughs lightly. "The one and only. Mind if I steal Cara here for a second?""Please do." Phel gives me a look that means I'll be talking about this with her later."Tell your dad I'll be back soon," I say even though I'm sure Demetrios would gladly let me close the entire diner down if I asked him to.I follow Helen toward the back where her security entourage cleared some ro
Wickedly Twisted 32
ErosI step over broken glass and the smell of burned wood and scorched plastic fills my nostrils. Lycus moves behind me, and several of my most trusted soldiers are spread throughout the building."When did this happen?" I ask quietly.Lycus grunts as he picks up an expensive bottle of whiskey, the bottom cracked and the insides already leeched out and likely burned. "Last night," he says. "Fire company got here but by then it was too late."I clench my jaw and nod. The club is blackened and ruined, the central bar a pile of charred and destroyed wood. I can barely make out the shape of the place—the dance floor, the tables, the decorations on the walls and the lights in the ceiling—but the scatter of bullet holes near what's left of the DJ booth are unmistakable."I assume the proper bribes were dealt," I say and Lycus nods. "Do we know who it was?""Pavone," he says with gravity in his voice."No doubt about it. Witnesses claim it was four Italian guys.""Only four?" My eyebrows ra
Wickedly Twisted 33
CaraI'm standing on the balcony looking out at the lake when Eros comes home. The sun's setting over the water and the colors sparkle with the waves, and I force myself to turn away and meet his gaze."Always beautiful," he says, staring at me and not at the water.I feel myself blush. "How was your day?""Uneventful." He joins me at the railing. "The Italians are making noise, but nothing I didn't expect.""Really? Are you okay?""We're fine. You worry more about yourself." He glances at me. "I haven't spoken to you much since dinner. Are you holding up okay?"I grimace slightly and stare down at my hands. I'm not sure how I'm feeling—it's really hard to piece it all together. He tried to warn me that things would be difficult, but I didn't really believe him, not until Anissa was standing there calling me a piece of trash to my face at least."Your sister visited me today at work."His eyebrows raise. "Really? She set foot in that little diner? Amazing."I give him a look. "Why do
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CaraI'm a nervous wreck all the next day at the diner. I keep thinking about Eros, the paperwork, becoming the Greek crime lord's wife, everything that goes along with my new position in the world—and it scares me half to death.But it's better than being out on the street with nothing but a pair of expensive vintage sneakers to my name and a violent, angry ex-husband trying to hunt me down.I keep catching looks from the made guys hanging around. I'm not sure if they know what's happening tonight, but I keep wondering if they're going to come up to congratulate me. Instead, they remain silent, keep their distance like always, and I'm left alone with my anxiety."You okay, girl?" Phel asks midway through the afternoon, once the lunch rush is over. "You've been jittery all day.""It's nothing, I'm fine." I give her my best smile. It feels completely false.Phel leans against the counter, eyebrows raised. "Ooookay, right, so what's up? You look like you're about to vibrate out of your
Wickedly Twisted 35
CaraThe coffee is warm and strong. It tastes good as I step out into the alley behind the diner. There isn't exactly fresh air since the dumpsters make the whole place smell faintly like garbage, but at least back here I can sit down on the concrete and get my head together.I knew this was happening. Marrying Eros was always part of the plan.Now it's real.He protects me from Christopher. I provide him with some legitimacy in his family. It's mutually beneficial—and won't last forever. Someday, maybe someday soon, we'll go our separate ways.But I keep thinking about him, about his hands on my hips and his mouth against mine, his low laughter, the way he spreads my legs. I think of being with him, being with him for real—not for some short time, not for weeks or months, but years, an entire lifetime. Could I be the crime lord's wife? Could I give him children and live in this world?I don't know. It scares me, but it also fascinates me.The power and the drama, the terror and the e
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