28. Eli

Chapter 28

Eli

I was still thinking about the venue as I stepped through the front door, with Maxim trailing behind me. Most of the drive, he’d barked orders in Russian to various people through the speakers, alternating between agitated and furious.

“Tough day at the office?” I’d asked at one point between calls, giving him a side glance.

“ Da ,” he grumbled. “That mudak thinks he’ll steal from us while I am out of town.”

He wasn’t really speaking to me, though; his thoughts were a million miles away, and already he was dialing another number as he thought of something else he needed to do.

I’d been surprised that he had come to Arizona to handle Spato personally and come alone. I’d known several made men, but the bosses didn’t travel alone. Maxim didn’t seem to give a fuck, though.

I followed Maxim into the house, the smell of pizza hitting me as soon as we stepped inside. The low hum of the TV echoed down the hallway, and as we walked into the living room, I spotted them—Veronica and Reed, sprawled out on the couch, surrounded by empty pizza boxes and blankets. The TV still played some cheesy rom-com, the credits rolling while soft music filled the room.

Veronica had her head on Reed’s lap, both completely passed out. Reed’s hand still clutched a slice of pizza like she hadn’t quite finished her last bite before drifting off. The sight was surprisingly domestic. For all the chaos that usually surrounded Veronica, moments like these were rare and precious.

Maxim stopped just behind me, his sharp eyes taking in the scene. A small smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, barely noticeable. “It’s good she has friends like Reed,” he said, his voice low. “Helps her feel... normal.”

I glanced over my shoulder at him, surprised by the observation. I didn’t know Maxim well, but I would guess he rarely spoke about emotions, let alone allowed them to surface. But he was right. Reed was good for Veronica—gave her that sense of normal in a way that even I couldn’t.

I sat down on the arm of the couch, brushing a stray piece of hair from Veronica’s face. Reed stirred slightly, mumbling something unintelligible before rolling over and burying her face in a pillow. I couldn’t help but smile.

Veronica opened her eyes, a lazy smile spreading across her beautiful face. “Hey, you.”

“Rise and shine, sleepy heads.”

I snorted, moving to sit beside Veronica. “Looks like they’ve been through a war zone.”

Reed tossed a pillow in our direction, her aim terrible as it fell short and landed on the floor. “It was an emotional battle. You wouldn’t get it.”

Veronica shifted, leaning into me. “We needed a break. Rom-coms and pizza are essential after something like this.”

“Pizza is essential,” I agreed, wrapping an arm around her. “What kind did you get?” I asked, leaning and looking in the box.

“I saved you a piece.”

I flipped up the lid and recoiled. “What’s this?” A piece of pizza lay sadly in the center of the box, but that wasn’t the worst. It was one of those nut-job Hawaiian pieces with pineapple . I gagged a little. “Pineapple?”

“It’s good.” Reed’s tone was accusing as she sat up from her position on the couch and narrowed her eyes. “Only psychos don’t like pineapple.”

“Do you like pineapple?” I asked Maxim.

“Of course, I like pineapple. I’m not a psycho,” he said pointedly.

Veronica rolled her eyes dramatically. “You’re so dramatic,” she said with a chuckle. “Everything good at the venue?”

“Yeah,” I replied. “It’s all set. Maxim liked it.” I looked at her critically, wondering if I could bring up the pineapple without seeming like an absolute weirdo. “Did you have pineapple on your pizza?” I asked her idly, wondering if I would get contaminated if I kissed her after she ate the pineapple or if it would be worth it anyway.

Maxim chuckled. “It is an impressive setup, Eli. I didn’t expect something like that. Ronnie, you should see what he’s got going on. You wouldn’t believe it.” Maxim froze as the words spilled into the living room, and Veronica looked at him and then at me .

Trying to cover, I laughed nervously and babbled. “We’re running a high-stakes game. Can’t do that in a dive,” I said, glancing down at my phone, hoping she wouldn’t have caught the slip-up. The last thing I wanted was for Veronica to want to come to this particular fight. “People like a bit of class when dropping serious cash.”

“I’d like to. See it,” she said, pushing her hair from her eyes. “Could I?”

I groaned and gave Maxim a dirty look. The thing was … normally, I would love that, but with the whole Spato thing, I didn’t think it was safe. Luther and I had built a successful fight club that drew people in like nobody else. Our organization was professional and well-respected. I was proud of it. To have Veronica come and see what I’d built from nothing would feel good.

“Angel,” I began, already tripping over my words.

“Nat’s going,” she piped in eagerly. “Reed and I could sit with her. Right? Pike and Dimitri are sending her with a guard. Tiny and some of the guys.” I frowned and looked over at Maxim. “We’d be safe.”

He shrugged. “Should be fine as long as they have a guard.” He seemed wholly unconcerned that he had plans to murder a man there. “It isn’t an issue. The venue will be protected. It’s secluded.” His words were spoken with veiled intent. Veronica wasn’t privy to what he meant, but I understood perfectly.

He’d already scoped out his plan. I still didn’t like it. I thought it was stupid to bring the girls when there were actual plans to murder someone. Maybe murdering people was a regular occurrence for him, and he didn’t seem to see the issue, but I’d learned long ago that anything could go wrong when you let your monster out. I did my fair share of killing people, but I’d never had to worry before about protecting someone.

“We can talk it out later,” Veronica was peering up at my face, her cheeks pink and her teeth worrying her lower lip. “Reed ordered the pineapple, not me,” Veronica confessed. “I don’t like it either.” She winked, and I melted a little bit.

Thank God. I thought, leaning forward. I kissed her hard, earning a smack from Maxim, which I ignored.

“You guys and your P.D.A. You’re burning my eyes,” Reed groaned.

“So? Doug? Find anything else out?” I asked, settling down next to her. Maxim had just begun to move out of the room, but he stilled .

“That mudak that was stalking you, Reed? Did you find him, Ronnie?”

“Yeah,” she stacked the pizza boxes and started tidying up. “He’s got a flight tomorrow here to Phoenix.”

“Good. He can come in nice and close,” I said, looking over to Maxim. I was pretty sure we were on the same page with this. Catching his dark look, there was no doubt about it.

“I’ll text Dimitri to see if he wants to join us. There might be a local spot for this sort of thing,” Maxim said, casually pulling out his phone. That wasn’t a bad idea. I’d already looked for a spot for a body dump, but the locals always had their favorites.

“Good, glad you boys can handle it,” Veronica said with a toss of her hair as if we spoke every day about getting rid of bodies. I did not doubt that she knew exactly what we were talking about. “So, I wanted to take Reed to town and show her the diner. The Duck is such a great spot. Do you want to come? Max, you too.” Veronica had perked up on the edge of the sofa.

“Sure.” I’d found that there wasn’t much I wouldn’t agree to regarding Veronica. “Whenever you want. ”

“Awesome. Let’s go get changed, Reed.” Yanking her friend by the hand, she pulled her from the room.

Chuckling at me, Maxim watched them go. “Oh, you are in trouble. I almost feel sorry for you.” He shook his head at me ruefully.

“Why is that?” I asked, stacking up the trash and carrying it into the kitchen.

“You’re domesticated now. You’ll never get away. No more bachelor life for you.”

My eyes widened. “Who says I want to? I’ll spend all my minutes, all my days with Veronica and be fucking thankful. If she wants me to go to some cheesy diner, I’ll go.” Being with Veronica was a joy and a privilege. I was happy she asked me to go with them.

His mouth compressed, and he shook his head, looking away. I knew that look better than most. That was the look of betrayal on his face, and I wondered who had stabbed him in the back and twisted the knife. “At least my cousin is a good one.” The words were tinged with bitterness.

“She is,” I agreed. “I’ve known my fair share of people that weren’t worth much.” Seeing his bleak face, I added, “Look, I’ve never had a woman or partner before. I’ve always been alone. It isn’t something I want to keep doing.” I looked down the hallway where Veronica had taken Reed. I could almost picture her sliding her clothes off, dabbing her wrists with that scent she wore. “Whatever she wants, she can have. My heart? My soul? My life? It’s hers as long as she doesn’t leave me. I’d do anything for her.”

Maxim looked away but said nothing more about women and being domesticated. If truth be told, in the dark of the night, Veronica’s illness scared the fuck out of me. The fragility that had drawn me to her now made me frightened. But if her flame burned out, I would let it light me up and set me on ablaze, too — we would burn together.

I couldn’t lose her — ever.