Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 427(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 427(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
All I have to do is open my eyes.
That’s all it’ll take. His face is exposed right now, inches from mine. I can stop the kiss and look at him, and then I’ll know. But I don’t want to stop kissing him, and I don’t think I could even if I tried, because I’m so lost in this moment, my head spinning and wild with him.
Then someone pounding at the door breaks the spell.
We freeze. Jackal pulls back and I catch a glimpse of a nose, cheekbones, eyes, before the mask drops down to cover him again.
“What’s that?” he asks.
More pounding on my front door. Then it hits me.
“Oh, shit,” I whisper, grabbing his arm. “You set off a security sweep.”
“What now?” He stares at me with real intensity and there’s a nervous energy in his posture.
“When anything big happens, the guard team sweeps the full oasis. They’re going to come inside and make sure I’m okay.”
“Can you get rid of them?”
“Yes, and you could stay in the basement, but once they’re done with the sweep, they’ll be on lockdown. Nothing in or out for at least a few hours. Sneaking back out of here—”
The knocking gets more insistent. Jackal curses and paces away. “I should go,” he says, and he sounds like it kills him.
It kills me, too. But he’s right. “Go out the back and hurry. Jump the fence at the back-right corner. It’s in the most shadow, and I don’t think anyone watching will see you.”
“It’s okay, baby.” He turns back to me and grabs my wrist, pulling me against him. I’m surprised when he brushes a thumb across my lower lip. I open my mouth and bite it gently. “I’ll message you when I’m safe.”
“Coming here was stupid. You know that, right?”
“I know. But I’ll be back.”
I want to ask him what his real name is. I’m tired of calling him Jackal. I don’t want this distance between us anymore.
I want to play with the man behind the mask.
He turns away and strides to the door. I watch him go, feeling a sense of determination wash over me.
It’s against the rules, but screw that. This whole game is about creating a new way to live.
I’m going to find out who Jackal is. Not because I want this to be over—but because I want it to last.
Chapter 21
Marco
Valentina’s on my couch when I get home late that night. She’s got some spaghetti Western playing where everyone’s shooting each other but nobody seems to actually die. I grab a beer and sit on the couch, and she gives me a look from the other end, her legs tucked up underneath here.
“Where have you been?” she asks, sounding more curious than anything else.
“With a girl. Don’t you have your own apartment?”
“Yours is nicer.” She sits up straight. “You were with a girl?”
I take a nice, long pull on my beer. “Yeah, I was.”
She laughs and turns off the TV. I knew she’d react this way and I’ve been dreading mentioning stuff with Laura to her, but Valentina’s my best friend. Eventually, she’s going to find out that I’m seeing someone.
If I can even call what I’m doing with Laura seeing someone. It’s more like consensual stalking. I broke into her house, started a minor crisis on her family’s property, and kissed the fuck out of her before running away. It’s a minor miracle that I’m not dead, but still.
Things are changing with her. I can feel it, and I think Laura can feel it too. Whatever we’re doing, the game isn’t as important as it was before. I crave being close to her, tasting her, feeling her hands on my body, watching her chest rise and fall as she sucks in air. I want to tell her who I am so fucking badly, but I know the moment I do, things will go wrong.
And I don’t want to lose her.
It’s selfish, I know, but it’s how I feel.
“I met her at the Bianco thing I crashed a few weeks back.” I watch Valentina’s reaction, but she only seems eager for more. “We’ve seen each other a few more times since then.”
“I’m honestly shocked. I never in a million years thought you’d get involved with someone. I mean, how do you have time for a girl when you’re practically married to the idea of bringing down the Bianco Famiglia?”
“I’m not that obsessed,” I say, staring down at my beer, because I know she’s right, and I’m also very aware that I’m the biggest fucking hypocrite in the world.
“You are, but it’s okay. You have every reason to be.” She gets up from the couch and walks to the refrigerator. “I mean, I hate them too, right? They killed my dad, and they did the same thing to your parents. You’ve been living with this feeling for a lot longer than I have.”