Page 52 of Shutter and Sin
“Of course.”
“Stay close to my men and have a drink. Mingle with the ladies.” He kisses my forehead and adds, “But don’t go far.”
“Where would I go?”
He smiles as if he knows exactly what I’m thinking before he walks away. I’m left standing there alone, feeling completely isolated despite being surrounded by hundreds of people. I snatch a glass of champagne from a passing server and down half of it immediately. This is apparently what my future looks like - expensive gowns, boring events, and a lot of waiting around.
“Sorry to bother you.” A man’s voice sounds beside me, and I turn to look at him. He is tall with light hair, looking aboutthirty-five and handsome in an unremarkable way. His suit is expensive, but it looks like he just bought it. “Want to dance?”
I find Alexei’s guard in the crowd. He’s already watching me, and he shakes his head once to tell me not to do it.
“Yes. I’d like that,” I say, letting my rebellious side take over. I take his hand, and he leads me onto the floor. We settle into the dance, his hand finding my waist while mine rests on his shoulder.
“You enjoying yourself?” he asks as we move.
“Not particularly. You?”
“These events are always tedious,” he says, guiding me through a turn. “Though you look especially miserable.”
“Is it that noticeable?”
“You’re practically radiating escape plans,” he tells me. “Do you work in the city?”
“Not exactly. I’m between things right now.”
“Ah. Career transition?”
“You could call it that.” I avoid giving any real details. “What do you do?”
“Import-export, but it’s mostly legitimate.” He grins. “Mostly.”
“Sounds thrilling.”
“It pays well.”
We turn again, and I see Alexei across the room. He’s in the middle of a conversation, but his attention is completely on me. When our eyes meet, he winks. My face warms. I look away and focus on my dance partner instead.
“You seem distracted,” he observes.
“Sorry, I’m just keeping track of where people are.”
“Smart. In a room like this, it’s good to know where the dangerous ones stand.”
“And where do you stand?”
“Safely in the middle. Not important enough to be a threat, but not insignificant enough to be ignored.” The music begins to slow, and the song starts to end.
When the last note draws out, we separate and step back from each other as people clap politely and the dance floor begins to clear. “I just realized,” he says. “We’ve been talking this whole time, and I never even introduced myself. Malachi.”
“Oh. I’m…”
“Married.” Alexei is suddenly behind me, appearing casual and relaxed.
I move closer and lean against his side. “Yes. I’m married.”
Malachi freezes, his face going pale. “I had no idea. I’m so sorry, sir. I didn’t mean any disrespect.”
“Malachi.” Alexei says the name like he’s testing it out. “Interesting choice. Anyway, I need you to create some distance between us. Say, twenty feet? Thirty? You know what, just keep walking until I can’t see you anymore.”
