Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 88551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
My little angel takes it with a huge grin on his face. Adrian’s guards start to cross the distance between us, probably seeing the clowns as a threat.
My spine jerks upright, but for a different reason entirely. The mini circus is enveloping Jeremy. He dances with them, laughing and calling me over. I try to get to him, but they keep me out while smiling and juggling balls in the air.
I shove through them, my palms turning sweaty. “Jeremy!”
A heavy grip closes around my wrist and I shriek as I’m pulled back, but the sound is drowned by a hand against my mouth.
All I can breathe in is leather as he drags me away from the crowd. I attempt to kick him, but he grabs me by the hair. “Stay fucking still, Duchess. We don’t want to snap your beautiful neck now, do we?”
“Jeremy!” I mumble against his hand, but it barely comes out as a word.
He doesn’t release me until we’re in an alleyway with my back pressed against a wall. I’m breathing harshly as I stare up at him. He’s wearing a black hat and a mask that covers his nose and mouth. Only his eyes are visible, they’re brown, deep, and so familiar.
“I told you I’m taking Jeremy with me,” I say, panting.
He chuckles, the sound condescending. “You think Adrian will let his only son leave his sight? He’ll flip the world upside down for him.”
“Still—”
“Shut the fuck up with your whining, Duchess. You said you have something for me.”
“I won’t tell you until you take me and Jeremy away.”
“Away? Your mission is here. Why the fuck should you go away?”
“But—”
“You don’t remember, do you?” He expels an exaggerated sigh. “You’re a pain in the fucking ass, Duchess. Always were.”
“What?”
He removes his mask and I gasp. His face, the one with the slight stubble and the straight nose. It’s the same from my nightmare. The man who was holding my hand as I grabbed the gun and pulled the trigger. “You!”
“Yes, me. Your one and only—or what-the-fuck-ever.”
“But you’re not real. It was a nightmare.”
He pinches my cheek. Hard.
“Ow. What was that for?”
“It’s how you differentiate between reality and a hallucination, Duchess. Pain means it’s real. Lack of pain means it’s a sick game playing in your head.”
My mouth drops open. “How…how do you know that?”
“I know a lot of things about you, but most important of all, I know you didn’t get your mission done, Lia.”
“I’m not Lia,” I mutter. For the first time, the words feeling insincere.
“Yes, you are, Duchess.”
“No. The real Lia is lying in bed, staring at nowhere.”
He raises a brow. “Is she real, though? Did you test your pain?”
My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth and I force it down as I murmur, “No. I’m not Lia. I’m Winter.”
“You really believe that shit, don’t you? Just how far have you gone this time?”
“It is real,” I snap. “I’m not Lia.”
He leans over to whisper, “Then how did you help me with Adrian’s assassination attempt a year ago? The nightmare you saw me in? Yeah, that was a memory, Duchess.”
I shake my head frantically, not wanting to hear this, not wanting to let the influx of energy that’s flowing through my veins hit my head.
My limbs tremble and I’m terrified of what that influx will bring.
“I’m Winter. My name is Winter Cavanaugh and—”
A flashback hits me so hard, my words die in my throat.
I’m standing in the middle of a church, murmuring “I do” as I stare up at Adrian. He’s in a tux that makes him tenfold more handsome while I’m wearing a white wedding dress.
His strong hand wraps around my nape as he pulls me against his chest. “You’re mine now, Mrs. Volkov.”
His lips meet mine in all consuming kiss that robs my breaths.
I don’t kiss him back.
All I think about is how to finish his life.
I gasp as I’m thrust back to the present.
“Do you remember now?” Luca asks. That’s his name. Luca. My partner in all of this.
And I do remember.
It’s true.
My name is Lia. Lia Volkov.
TO BE CONTINUED
Adrian and Lia’s story continues in the following book of the Deception Trilogy, Tempted by Deception.