Page 16 of Leave Me (Touch of Death 2)
“Lina,” she breathes.
I should remain stoic, not give Enrique any more ammunition than he already has, but I can’t. My legs eat up the distance between us, and I throw my arms around her neck. The last time I saw Gabi, I was angry and hurt. Betrayal was very much a noose around my neck, and I severed it without looking back. That was then. So much has happened since that day. My father’s death set off a chain of events that neither of us could have predicted. His loss has left its scars on us both. But Gabriella has become who she was always meant to be in his absence, while I’ve drifted into the vast black space of the unknown, more lost and out of place than ever.
I’m so glad to see her, but I hate that she’s here. My trust in Enrique is severely lacking. Fear for my sister burrows under my skin, and I hug her just a little tighter before she pushes me away. Her open expression hardens and shutters before she turns to look at my would-be husband.
I’ve always viewed Enrique as a snake, a weak man with a position he didn’t earn. As he stands across from my sister with two of her men lingering behind him, I realize that there’s an edge to him I didn’t see before. Gabi is smart, ruthless when she needs to be, and well respected, but next to him, she looks like a little girl. I have to ask myself how I didn’t see it before—the power he now wears so effortlessly. Growing up, I only ever saw him in the presence of both our fathers. I hate Enrique, but his father was a strong leader. In the shadow of two titans, he never stood a chance.
“Gabriella,” he purrs, an annoyingly confident smile on his lips.
She hates him, almost as much as I do, perhaps more since she knew about the marriage pact long before I did.
“Enrique, it’s good to see you.” She offers him every courtesy we were taught. Charm and cunning are two of the best traits a woman in her position can possess.
“I’m sure.” That smile remains on his face. “Please. Sit.”
My sister turns, her eyes locking with mine. Something passes between us—an understanding, an awareness of the precariously dangerous situation we’re both in. Her two men remain by the door, though we both know they’re nothing but a token notion. If Enrique wants her dead, two guys won’t stop him, not in a house full of his own security detail. She moves past me and takes a seat on the sofa. One leg delicately crosses over the other. The material of her dress rides up slightly, and she smooths it back down, ever the image of grace. I take a seat beside her, knowing I probably look an absolute mess next to her. It’s always been that way. The fact that Gabi offered her hand in exchange for mine and he turned it down—I just can’t understand it. She reaches out, squeezing my fingers once before releasing them.
“Would you like a drink?” Enrique asks as he pours his own.
“No, thank you.”
My father would always accept one drink when conducting business but never two. Enrique takes his drink and comes to stand in front of us, his eyes flicking from me to Gabi and back again. I wonder if he’s comparing us, regretting having declined my sister.
“Why have you requested this meeting, Enrique?” Gabi gets straight to the point as always.
“Adelina wanted to see you.”
I glance at her and see a flat, unimpressed smile on her lips. “I’m sure. And yet, I’m conversing with you while my sister sits like a pretty ornament.”
I cringe at her sharp words. I know she can’t appear weak, but she’s in his domain. I wish she would tread more carefully.
He smirks. “Well, we are to be married. Anything you need to say to her, you can say to me.”
God, I feel sick.
She tilts her head, that condescending smile still on her lips. “I don’t think that’s how it works.”
He lifts a brow. “No? It does now.”
My gaze darts between the two of them, and that tension crackles in the air. It’s like watching two big cats in a standoff, sizing each other up.
“Is my sister your fiancé or your prisoner?”
His lips tilt up, and he lifts the glass of alcohol, taking a leisurely sip before strolling over to the fire that flickers behind a pane of glass. He stares at it as though mesmerized by the flames. Seconds trickle by, and Gabriella glances at me, as though unsure what to do. I really want to speak to her alone, but it’s becoming obvious that’s not going to happen.
“I invited you here because I’m having a party tonight. You should be there.”
