Her face softens for a fraction of a second before she gives me a hardened glare. “Did you forget the part in this little story that you are already engaged?”
I roll my eyes with a huff. “She was part of the deal. Whatever Anthony asked of me, I did, and he kept you safe in return. When he told me that I was to propose to her, I didn’t bat an eye. She was never you and she never could be, but she was a necessary evil for the sake of your life.
“Anthony also wanted our families to be tied together with a pretty green bow. Green is the only color he truly sees, no matter how dirty it is.”
Dahlia props her chin up on her palm and lightly shakes her head. “Go home, Kai,” she whispers with the pain laced in her words. “Go home to your fiancée.”
“She means nothing to me, bambolina,” I tell her quietly. “That ring never belonged on her finger. I have no home with her. My home has always been with you and I’ve been homesick for a fucking decade.”
The room falls silent as Dahlia’s eyes grow wide and she watches me like a deer in headlights. Her chest rises and falls in short shaky breaths. She drops her arm onto the countertop and her chin quivers as a wave of indistinguishable emotions pass through her eyes.
“She started planning the wedding and all I could see was you. No matter how hard I tried, I could never picture a future with anyone but you. You’re the one who holds all of my tomorrows, not her and not anyone else. You are my past and you are my future... be my present, bambolina. A life without you isn’t a life that I want to keep living.”
“You need to leave,” she demands in a rush and clenches her teeth.
I’ve let out more than I anticipated, but she needed to hear it all sooner or later. Her reaction was exactly as I had imagined it would be.
Dahlia shakes her head as my eyes search hers. “I can’t do this right now, Kai.”
Cocking my head to the side, I raise an eyebrow at her. “Can’t or won’t?” I counter.
“Both,” she says in a clipped tone and points her finger at the front door. “Out. Now.”
I shrug indifferently and turn around toward the door. “The princess gets what the princess wants, right?”
“Excuse me?” she barks at my back. “Call me princess again, fucker.”
With a smirk, I turn around to face her, amused and enamored by her. In the blink of an eye, it’s like someone struck a match and the fire blazes brightly. “And what happens if I do?”
She narrows her eyes and shoots daggers at me, but she doesn’t utter a single word.
“That’s what I thought,” I chuckle. “You love me too much to hurt me.”
Physically.
Turning on my heel, I head back to the front door and quickly undo the countless number of locks before pulling it open.
“I’ll be back,” I assure her as I step out onto the front porch and begin walking down the walkway. “Don’t try and pull some dumb shit because we’re not done here.”
I stop as I hear her marching to the door with her fire trailing close behind her. Coming to a stop, she grabs the doorknob and puts her other hand on her hip. “Is that supposed to be some kind of a threat?”
“No, bambolina.” I smile, shaking my head and wink. “That’s a promise.”
Dahlia
THE STREET IS BUSY outside, too busy for my liking, as I stand in line inside the small coffee shop. The line runs along the glass wall made up of windows and stops right outside the door.
Staring outside, the view isn’t much to see. The windows stretching from the ceiling to the floor are rather idiotic. I watch the people rushing around, bumping into one another as they rush through the crowds.
This is why I’ve become a vampire.
People like this, this is why I sleep during the day and stay home. I have no desire to fuck with the chaos that a morning is in New York.
This morning I decided that I would try something new. I woke up before noon, got dressed like an acceptable member of society and ventured out of my house for a cup of coffee. The moment that I got stuck in this line, I instantly regretted it.
My Keurig at home was calling my name.
These coffee beans could have been coated in gold and this still wouldn’t be worth it.
Stepping out of line, I spin around on my heel and weave through the sea of bodies in the crowded coffee shop. The line shifts to the left and I get blindsided as someone shoulders me from behind.
Gritting my teeth, I wince as the hot coffee singes my skin through my thin shirt. Balling my hands into a fist, I keep my head facing forward, toward the exit, and wait for the group of people to start walking.
Acceptable member of society.
It’s only spilled coffee. Hot, fucking burning, coffee. Accidents happen. I can’t walk around like the loose cannon that I am constantly.
“I’m surprised they let whores in a place like this.”
Her breath is hot like the fire from a dragon’s mouth as she talks into my ear.
Aliana.
Spinning around, I get directly in her face. “What the fuck do you want?” I seethe.
Acceptable member of society, my ass.
“Want or need?” she probes with a smirk. “Because I want you dead, but it’s not time yet.”
“Listen, bitch,” I growl, taking another step closer and lean forward until my lips are by her ear. “I don’t have time for you or your cryptic bullshit. So, you can start talking or I can plant a bullet in your pretty little forehead with the Glock that’s in my purse.”
An audible gasp slips from her lips that she quickly tries to recover from. Clearing her throat, she pulls back and narrows her eyes at me.
“Stay the fuck away from Kai,” she warns.
I shrug. “I’ll do what I want, but thanks anyway.”
Aliana shakes her head with a smirk. “The two of you deserve each other, trust me,” she chuckles. “But you don’t know who or what you’re fucking with here. And you... you’re royally fucking this all up.”
My hand slides over my purse, slowly creeping inside. The Glock slides effortlessly across my palm as I wrap my fingers around it.
I gave her fair warning, yet she continues with the cryptic shit. Not a single thing she has said makes sense, except for me to stay away from Kai.
“Excuse me?” a little voice utters from my side, pulling on the side of my shirt. Glancing away from Aliana, I look down at a small dark-haired little girl. Her soft brown eyes are filled to the brim with tears as she peers up at me. “Can you help me find my mom?”
Crouching down, I grab her small hands. “What does she look like? I can help you find her.”
“Remember, princess,” Aliana says quietly as I stand back up with the little girl’s hand in mine. “You’re just a hole for men to fuck, like you’ve always been. You’re just a whore now, princess, and he’ll never be your prince.”
A short, plump woman plows through the line of people and quickly tears the little girl’s hand from mine. She glances at me with her eyes wide and quickly looks back and forth between Aliana and I. Looking down at the little girl, she quietly scolds her for leaving her sight and then they slip away.
“Know your place,” Aliana calls out as she walks out the door.
She slips out onto the street, leaving me alone in the crowded coffee shop. I breathe deeply, as the loud sounds all mix together in my ears.
Aliana was expecting me here, but why? To warn me to stay away? That couldn’t be it the only reason...
And the little girl... I know her, I can feel it, but from where?
Quickly exiting the coffee shop, I stumble down the street to the parking garage in search of my car.
None of this makes sense anymore.
Nothing has since he came back into my life.
And it never will so long as he is in it.
Kai
HUMANS TEND TO BE CREATURES of habit. Most crave structure in life and some sort of routine. Familiar faces and familiar places p
rovide a certain serenity that you can’t just find anywhere.
We each have specific places that ground us or make the world seem clearer when it’s suddenly turned upside down.
Some of us crave control and sometimes we lose that. We naturally gravitate to our shelters; the ones that can fill the void and provide what we so desperately need.
Dahlia needs to exercise a certain amount of control in her life. She lost that the moment I took the steering wheel from her. I dumped a massive amount of information onto her lap and she had no control over any of it.
Her car is the first one that I see as I pull into the dimly lit parking lot.
I knew that I would find her here.
The club is her second home, it’s her safe haven. This place is one of the only places where she has total control over everything that she is doing.
The bouncers glare at me as I walk past them and walk inside. Dahlia’s boss doesn’t want me here, the bouncers know that, but Dahlia never agreed with that. Like the fucking queen she is, she exudes power and the men drop to their knees without a second glance. She had them all in her pocket and her word was gold. She ran this fucking place, whether they wanted to admit it or not.
It isn’t her night to work, so finding her at the bar isn’t a shocker. The half empty bottle of Patron in front of her says she didn’t get what she came here for. There was no control for her to find when it comes to us and she knows it. So, she came here, for her safe haven. Instead of finding control, she’s losing every ounce of it instead.
Leaning across the bar, I reach out and grab the bottle and pull it away from her.
“What the hell?” she growls and spins around on her bar stool, freezing when she sees who is holding the bottle of liquor.
Pressing the rim of the bottle to my lips, I throw back some of the burning liquid and sit down at the bar next to her. Her eyes are wide and on me the entire time. Placing the bottle on the bar, I turn toward her and her expression changes as she scowls at me. She whips her hand out, reaching for the Patron when I smack it away.
“You have had more than enough,” I concur, narrowing my eyes back at her. “Your body needs more than just tequila to survive.”
Casting her eyes down, she spins back toward the bar. “Who said that I even want to survive?” she mutters under her breath.
Scooting closer, I throw my arm over her shoulders. Her body tenses as I lean close to her ear. “Because, you’re a survivor, bambolina... it’s what you do.”
Leaning forward, she shrugs my arm off of her. “You’re right,” she agrees as she turns her head toward me. The vicious flames in her green irises burn through mine as a hardened expression washes over her face.
“I survived this long without you in my life, there’s no way I’ll survive it with you in it.” Dahlia pauses with a scowl.
“No weaknesses, remember?” she sneers.
Dahlia’s words hit me in the center of my chest like a ton of bricks. She’s ice cold and hardened, but underneath it all, she’s as fragile as a splintered piece of glass. She holds her guard steady, but only one person can shatter that glass.
It’s me. I’m her weakness, just as she’s always been mine.
“You’ve been my weakness from the first time I saw you. My survival never mattered, not if it meant you were safe,” I admit as I grab the bottle of tequila and throw back a large gulp. “Keep pushing me away and I’m only going to push back harder. Death is the only thing that will keep me from coming back for you.”
Dahlia’s eyes soften a fraction as she stares at me, slowly processing my words. Her mouth falls open in an attempt to respond when Tierney pops up.
“Dali!” she calls out in a frazzled tone. Dahlia quickly looks to her, her expression still a mix of shock and confusion. “Do you think you could hop behind the bar for a little to help out?”
Dahlia glances over at me just as Tierney does and her eyes quickly widen. “Shit, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
Dahlia quickly shrugs it off and pulls herself back together with her mask in place. “You’re not. He was actually just leaving,” she insists without a glance my way. “I got you, girl.” She smiles and rises to her feet.
Tierney lets out a sigh of relief and a grin stretches across her face. “You’re the fucking best!”
She quickly bounces toward the other end of the bar as Dahlia pushes in her bar stool and glances over at me. “Sorry to cut this short, but duty calls.” She shrugs with a smug ass grin. “I’m sure your fiancée is waiting for you at home anyway.”
Ignoring her, I grab a napkin and a pen from the edge of the bar. “There’s only room for one queen in my life and she was never royalty material.”
Dahlia rolls her eyes and scoffs as I scribble on the napkin. Looking up at her, I slide it across the bar to her with a smirk. “Since I already know you don’t believe me, let me prove you wrong.”
Picking up the napkin, she scowls at it before meeting my gaze. “What the fuck’s this?”
With a shrug, my lips curl upward as I stand up and wink at her. “Come after you’re done here, and you’ll see.”
She scrunches her nose as she looks at me confused and full of conflict.
Chuckling lightly, I push in my bar stool and take one last swig of the tequila. “I’m not a patient man, so don’t make me wait too long,” I inform her in a low tone and turn toward the front of the club without another word.
As I walk away, I hear her voice call out over the loud music. “Don’t hold your breath!”
Smiling to myself, I let her get the last word in as I push through the crowd to the front doors.
I’ve been holding my breath for years. She’s the breath of air that my body’s been starved of.
She won’t keep me waiting any longer.
Her body is just as deprived as mine.
Dahlia
WHAT THE HELL AM I doing?
Mirrors cover the inside of the elevator from the floor to the ceiling. I watch in silence as the number changes rapidly on the screen above the panel next to the door. The PH button is illuminated, staring me down as I wait impatiently to reach my floor.
Well, not my floor. His floor.
I don’t know what possessed me to actually come here. I never had any intentions of following his wishes and keeping his address. Maybe it’s curiosity, maybe it’s out of torture. Either way, I’m here, riding the elevator up to his penthouse.
He would live in a fucking penthouse suite.
I have money, I come from money, but the amount he possesses is unattainable. He’s untouchable, just like he always has been.
Just like his fucking father.
The elevator finally comes to a stop with a quiet ding and the doors slide open. Stepping out, the doors close and I’m left alone in a small foyer type area. I stare at the large door in front of me, willing it away.
Willing away the man standing on the other side.
But that isn’t possible. I came here for a reason and it’s better to get this over with sooner than later. Marching up to the door, I raise my hand to knock, but it’s pulled open before I can make contact.
Kai stands in the doorframe with nothing but a pair of grey sweatpants on. His chest is bare and sculpted and his pants hang low on his lean waist. The tops of his hips and lower abdomen play at his waistline.
Fresh out of the shower, he runs a hand through his wet hair, looking like a wet dream.
“You came,” he concurs with a satisfied smile as his soft brown eyes shine.
With one touch, I’m sure I would.
Clearing my throat, I shake the lust-driven thoughts from my mind. He’s more than a cock with legs. Although, he does have a cock... and a nice one at that.
Get your shit together, Dahlia.
“Um,” I cough lightly. “Why am I here?”
“You tell me,” he deadpans. “You wouldn’t have come if you didn’t want to.”
He smirks as I cut my eyes at him and cross m
y arms over my chest. Reaching out, he grabs my arm and pulls me inside with him.
“I wanted you to see where I live,” he tells me as he shuts the door behind us. “Alone.”
Turning around, I take in the vast open floorplan and note its appearance. It’s like a clean, blank slate. The only decorations are tasteful art pieces and they are few and far between. It’s your stereotypical billionaire’s bachelor pad.
This isn’t my first rodeo.
“What’s your real address?” I question him as I turn to face him.
His brow furrows as he cocks his head to the side. “This is it.”
“What’s your and Aliana’s address?”
Realization passes through his eyes as he finally catches on to what I mean. Kai rolls his eyes and sighs deeply. “We don’t have a place together. I don’t have some secret hidden life. This is it. What you see is what you get.”
“And I’m just supposed to believe you?”
His face falls before he quickly recovers. “I’m telling you the truth.” He shrugs. “Whether you believe me or not is on you.”
Kai walks into the kitchen part of the suite and pulls down two glasses and a bottle of whiskey. Without thinking, I follow after him and take one of the glasses from him.
Taking a sip of the burning liquor, I stand beside the counter facing him. “Did she live here?”
“Nah.” He shakes his head. “She didn’t like it here. Too sterile she claimed. I liked it that way. This was my space and I needed as much as I could get from her.”
My mind drifts back to Aliana and the coffee shop. The bitch never got the place she wanted and she didn’t get the man either.
But I did.
Feeling bold and slightly cocky, I throw back the rest of the whiskey and place the glass on the counter. “Aren’t you going to be polite and give me the grand tour?”
Entangled Chaos (Entangled Duet Book 1) Page 15
