crystal-blue eyes, and skin so fair it resembled snow, was the man who had been buried deep inside me just days ago.
My heart raced—but for a different reason altogether.
In a black t-shirt and jeans, he was dressed casually compared to Lucian. The only time I’d ever seen Balto wear something nice was the night of the opera. Any other time, he stuck to jeans. He didn’t need to wear a suit to seem powerful. Only losers like Lucian did.
He didn’t look at me once, his eyes on Lucian. He pulled out a chair, sat down, and then stared at Lucian like he was a cockroach. “You aren’t even going to offer me a drink?”
My breathing hitched, but I tried to cover it. The tension was palpable between the two men. All the guards had their fingers on the trigger, waiting for the massacre the second it broke out. I didn’t understand why I needed to be there, why Lucian would risk my safety just to show me off.
“Why would I do that?” Lucian asked.
“Because I’ve been kind enough to let you live this long.” Balto cocked his head slightly. “But my kindness is running out.”
Lucian was still as a statue.
“What is your decision?” Balto didn’t cross his legs the way Lucian did. He was always casual, taking up as much space as possible and failing to use manners. He didn’t seem to care what anyone thought of him—because his reputation was good enough. The skull ring sat on his right hand, the diamond so flawless, it was impossible to ignore. The metal band was always hard to the touch when he palmed my breast and ass.
Lucian held his silence.
Balto reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigar. He lit it a second later then let the smoke escape from his mouth with a slow rise. Every time I saw him with Lucian, he had a cigar in his mouth, but when I kissed him, I never tasted the ash. He took another deep puff then rested the cigar between his fingers on the table. He glanced at Lucian’s burned hand, a subtle hint to what he would do next.
I knew Lucian well enough to understand he was afraid. Surrounded by armed men on his own property, he was still afraid.
Balto seemed perfectly comfortable. “I’m going to ask you one more time. The diamond or the explosives? What will it be?”
“And if I choose neither?” Lucian asked, keeping his voice strong even though sweat gleamed on his forehead. “You can’t kill me. You need me for whatever plans you have. And you have no idea where I’ve placed the diamond.”
Balto leaned forward over the table. “We both know there are worse things than death.” The cigar moved to his lips, and he drew the smoke into his mouth. A second later, the gray smoke escaped from his nostrils.
Lucian kept his hands in his lap, glancing at the men around him.
“So that’s your final answer?” Balto rudely put out the cigar on the surface of the table.
Lucian said nothing.
“Be a man and voice your decision.”
Lucian cleared his throat. “My final answer is neither, Balto.”
The smoke slowly dissipated from the burned-out cigar. A pile of ash formed on the table, and the smell faded away. Balto stared at Lucian with an unreadable expression, a look so calm, it was actually terrifying.
With Balto there, I was safe. But I was definitely unnerved.
Balto rose to his feet. “I was hoping you would say that.”
“I’ve got no family left, so what are you going to do?”
Balto gave him a cold look. “You do have family left.” He turned his gaze on me, and just as if we were alone together, he gave me the same heated look he did when he was deep inside me. “And now, she’s mine. Leave your ring on the table and come with me.”
I sat still because I couldn’t believe what Balto had just said.
Lucian couldn’t hide his surprise either. “Wait—”
“I gave you a choice.” Balto’s eyes turned back to him. “You refused to make one, so now I’m making it for you. Your wife belongs to me now.” He turned his gaze back to me. “Get your ass up now. I won’t ask again.”
My body immediately responded to the power in his voice, and I rose to my feet.
Lucian did the same. “She’s off-limits.” He turned to me. “Cassini, sit.”
I finally had a ticket out of here, and I wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity. I would go from the ownership of one man to another, but at least this man was preferable. I stayed on my feet but didn’t move toward either man.
Lucian turned, enraged. “You can’t just take her—”
“Yes, I can.” Balto extended his hand to me.
Lucian looked at me. “If you take one step—”
I let my anger get to me, and I did something I’d wanted to do for years. I slapped him across the face, hitting him hard with the metal from my ring. “I’m not a dog.” I yanked the ring off my hand and tossed it on the table.
Lucian didn’t retaliate, shocked by my response.
Balto grabbed me by the elbow and pulled me with him. “You crossed me once, and you paid the price. You crossed me twice and paid the price again. I will fuck your wife every night, in every way imaginable, and while you sleep at night, my come will sleep inside her. Next time I ask you to make a decision, you’d better make it.” His arm moved around my waist, and he escorted me away from Lucian and off the patio.
His men stood guard, but no shots were fired. There were equal men on each side of the war, and if they did open fire, it would just be a bloody graveyard. Lucian didn’t fight for me, and Balto didn’t try to execute him.
Balto’s men opened the back door, and I got inside.
In the getaway car.
I was finally leaving Lucian for good.
I didn’t know what to expect with Balto, but my existence had to be better.
I considered myself lucky.
Balto got in the seat beside me, and the car drove away.
We departed the estate, leaving it far behind us.
I stared at Balto in the dark. “Thank you—”
“I didn’t rescue you.” He stared straight ahead. “I took you. You belong to me now. You will live with me. You will listen to me. The only freedom you’ll have is the small amount I give you. I did not liberate you—I stole you.”