Ghost (Boston Underworld #3) - A. Zavarelli Page 0,27

I study his tattoos.

“What do they mean?” I ask him.

He looks up at me, and it seems like he didn’t hear me. There is concern in his eyes, but I’m not sure why.

“Your tattoos,” I clarify.

Again, he remains silent. The way he did at Arman’s. He seems tense. And I can’t help but feel like I’m missing something here. Either he doesn’t want to talk about them, or he didn’t understand me.

“You want to know about my tattoos?” he asks.

I nod when he looks up at me.

“The stars on my shoulders I received when I became a Vor,” he tells me. “I have them on my knees, as well. And it is the same reason you also wear my star. To let others know you belong to a Vor. But, more importantly, to me.”

My pulse beats a little faster when he says those words. So full of ownership. But not like Arman. With Alexei, it is different, and I don’t know why. I feel like those words mean he will protect me. Like he promised he would. But that’s a dangerous thought to allow.

“What about the ones on your hands?” I ask.

“These signify my crimes. The time I spent in prison. The rose on my shoulder means that I turned eighteen in prison.”

“What for?” I ask.

“You are a curious kitten,” he remarks, but there is the hint of a smile on his face. “Now that you are speaking.”

I shrug and wait for him to answer. He watches me carefully as he speaks, gauging my reaction.

“You must serve time in prison to become a Vor. It is the old way of doing things. The tradition was still valued at the time I wished to be inducted. So I hacked into a bank at sixteen and diverted the funds of a corrupt politician.”

“So you got caught on purpose?” I ask.

“Yes. But it was nothing. Just a few years. Every Vor must do his time.”

I don’t understand it, but it makes sense to him. He finishes quickly. Too quickly. And I don’t want him to leave yet. So I lean forward into his space and kiss him. The tools in his hands are discarded on the floor, and then he’s on top of me, pressing me back into the bed.

It happens fast. And he kisses me hard. I kiss him back. My hands are in his hair, and his tongue is in my mouth. He is hard against my stomach. And my body aches for him in a way that terrifies me.

But he pulls away abruptly, his eyes wild and confused.

I press my fingers to my lips, never allowing my gaze to leave his as he hovers over me.

“Not yet,” he tells me.

And then he gets up and leaves the room.

14

Alexei

Viktor has paid me a visit as I knew he would when he received the news. The pakhan rarely makes personal house calls without a good reason. But I gather as he sits in my office that this is the exception.

“I’m beginning to think that I’m losing my own hearing,” he tells me when I finish pouring his drink. “Surely, I’ve been given some misinformation Alexei.”

I fold my hands across the wooden desk and study him. Talia is asleep down the hall. I don’t want her to hear this. Outwardly Viktor appears calm, but inwardly, I can see his anger. I was supposed to marry Katya. It is what everyone believed would happen, even though I never agreed to it.

“I have fulfilled my duties as your councilor and I continue to secure the future of the Vory through my work. But when it comes to who I marry, the choice was mine to make. Katya did not suit me.”

“Why?” he demands. “Because she is well bred? Beautiful? Or is it the fact that she was brought up to do exactly as she was told? Which is remain loyal to this family.”

Loyal, Katya is not. But Viktor is right. She was raised with one purpose. To marry a Vor. Perhaps this is what makes her greedy to sample as many of them as she can, but it is not my place to determine. I will not be responsible for her death, so I keep my lips sealed on the matter.

Which only serves to irritate Viktor further.

“You cannot possibly care for this girl,” he tells me. “She is a whore, Alexei.”

“Enough.” I warn him. “That is my wife you are speaking about. It is done.”

Viktor smirks. He has always found it amusing that I speak