Page 95 of The Darkness is Calling

I snort, faking amusement, but I use it to take a step back, only because I need distance from his large, dominant body.

“But I will,” I answer shortly. “And do you know why? Because I can rely on him. Because, right now, he is the only man I still trust.”

“You’re making a mistake, Ekaterina.” I don’t let myself be swayed by his warninglaced voice, nor by those eyes that seem shadowed by a pain I don’t believe anymore.

“A mistake was everything I allowed to happen for the last few weeks, Artem.” My voice is so cold I can feel the air around us chilling.

“That picture was taken out of context. I don’t have a mistress, and I never have. And since you stepped into this house, I haven’t been able to touch another woman, because you were the only one in my head.”

He strikes his temple hard, with his index finger, but his words, no matter how deeply they might have moved me under normal circumstances, weigh far too little compared to the order of priorities in his life.

The fact that he confirms he was in the club while I was waiting for him, only makes the wound in my soul grow deeper.

It no longer matters whether he was with another woman or not.

He chose not to be beside me, and that thought tortures me.

I trusted him.

“It doesn’t matter anymore, don’t you understand?” I shoot back at him, my voice loaded with pain. “You broke your promise! And I don’t care that it was the word of Pakhan. It was your word to me!”

Toward the end, my voice rises, and I jab one finger into his chest.

“So leave me the fuck alone, Artem, because from the second I touched those piano keys and you weren’t there, I realized I have no obligation to you. That the two of us do not exist and never will. Instead, I am engaged to a man who, even though he couldn’t be there physically, still managed to make me feel I wasn’t alone. That he was with me. That is what I need. Not a man who wants me only so he can sleep with me until he gets bored, then go to a club looking for whores!”

I don’t even realize tears are sliding down my cheeks while the words keep pouring out like an avalanche.

“I came to London to escape from Bratva and people like you. That is exactly why, in ten days, I am going to marry someone who will keep me away from this rotten world I no longer want. Starting with you.”

But the bastard starts laughing, and the next second, he gently grabs me by the throat and pulls me back in front of him.

“You really think that is what will happen? A wedding and a life far away from the mafia?”

My bags fall to the floor, and with my hands free, I try to hit him in the chest and arms. He doesn’t let me go, and I don’t have enough space to land a strong blow, but one of them makes pain twist across his face, wiping away his arrogant grin.

“You are wrong on both counts, dusha moya,” he breathes over my lips. “That wedding will happen, but you will marry me, while your dress will be stained with the blood of your current fiance. Do you understand?”

“You’re crazy...”

“About you, yes.”

He presses his mouth to mine so hard I feel as if the brutality of it might draw blood.

Then he releases me, making me sway on my own legs, which have nearly turned to jelly.

Fuck.

I recover immediately.

“I hate you,” I say in one breath, furious.

“I hate you too. But I love you more.”

His words make no sense.

“Stay,” he asks, but this time his voice is a little softer, and I can feel my heart breaking again.

“It’s too late,” I manage to say with a coldness that visibly trembles.