Page 92 of The Dark Side

Jolie leaned against the bar, sipping her water while watching Mally leave the rooftop. The woman turned at the last minute and met her eyes, but Jolie quickly bowed her head as her heart raced.

What did Mally expect from her? She wasn't made to be a spy. Jolie hadn't brought the pen with her for multiple reasons, but none of those excuses sounded good enough for the agent. This place was probably a goldmine of information, but like every guest here, she had been searched before being allowed entry.

Jolie looked over her shoulder nonchalantly, finding Adrik. He was standing beside his brother, so anyone could think she was looking at Alexei. He wore a matching tux, and Alexei and Adrik were models on the runway side by side. Anyone passing would call them twins, but she could see their differences. Alexei viewed the world with humor, without stress or worry. But Adrik appeared with a dark cloud hanging over him. His gaze constantly scanned the crowd, eyeing people, trying to find their deception. She wondered what caused him to be so paranoid.

His blue eyes landed on her as he took a sip of his drink. Jolie quickly bowed her head to hide the flush on her cheeks and the shiver that rolled down her body. The power of his stare was overwhelming. To have a man like him desire her gave her a confidence she hadn't possessed before. Jolie lifted her head to meet his gaze, but he turned away, focusing on Katia.

Jolie's smile drifted.

Katia clung to his arm, looking at him with a mischievous smile. He leaned down and nuzzled her cheek, saying something into her ear that made her gush.

All the good feelings fled, and she turned her attention to the other brother as a distraction.

Alexei was talking to a woman, too. She was ridiculously close, the side of her fat breast touching his arm as if she didn't know. The woman giggled and reached across to caress his bicep. Jolie knew the woman was entirely wrong for him. Without ever having a conversation about it, she already knew Alexei's type. She was his type, and it was something she was trying not to bring awareness to.

Jolie knew what kind of man she attracted in high school and college. The loners, the nerds, the acne-covered, the quiet and distant. But she wasn't attracted to them. She liked guys with confidence, like Vincent and Adrik. The fact that they weren't all that different was obvious to Jolie. Butshe was different. Shewas no longer an innocent teenager. She could handle Adrik's dark side in a way she could never have dealt with Vincent's.

Alexei glanced over his shoulder at her when the woman touched him, but Jolie turned away. Whether she turned from him or Adrik, he didn't know and didn't care. He removed the woman's hand from his arm and left the circle. Adrik was in a more challenging position. He couldn't leave his wife, but Alexei had no such obligation. Jolie was his priority, and the world would know it.

Alexei leaned his elbows on the bar, his jacket touching Jolie's arm. Perhaps it was slightly forward of him, but he had drunk plenty tonight and was happier than he had been in a long time, so pushing the limit to what he could and couldn't do wasn't as intimidating. She was his date; if he didn't touch her at all, it would be noticed. Jolie smiled at him, but then her gaze went over her shoulder. He could see the devastation on her face, tearing his stomach apart. Alexei clenched his teeth, fighting the urge to chastise his brother for doing this to her. He ordered another drink before telling her, "Don't watch."

Jolie shook her head and assured, "I'm fine."

"They are faking, you understand?"

"Yeah, that's what Adrik says."

"We may not be perfect, but we aren't liars. It's a pet peeve. We have tempers, and lies are a quick way to get on our bad side."

A silly smile stretched on her face, "You have a temper?"

He chuckled, sipping his drink, "Most will say worse than my brother."

"I don't see it."

Alexei shrugged, "That's because I don't brood." They glanced over their shoulders. Adrik was alone and looked tense, miserable, and ready for a fight. They chuckled, leaning into each other.

Jolie felt relaxed in Alexei's company. It made her confident enough to ask, "Do you know what happened to the man that attacked me?"

Alexei's dark brows knitted. "Someone attacked you? When? Who? What happened? Are you okay?"

She giggled as she watched every expression on his face. There was no way Alexei talked about killing her. There was too much care in his face. Jolie shrugged. "I'm fine. It was a bit ago." Alexei clenched the bar, his knuckles turning white. Jolie rested a hand on his arm. "Adrik told me the police couldn't find him. But a, um…a person I knew said he was killed. I'm just wondering what happened."

Alexei didn't need to know what happened to make the right assumption, but it was probably something Adrik didn't want her to know. The panic receded, and Alexei took a small sip of his drink. Adrik would have taken care of it, but it aggravated him more than it should have because Alexei wanted to be the one to take care of it. To be the one to take care of her.

"Come on. Before another of Katia's friends accosts me and my temper comes out." Alexei threw back the rest of his whiskey and slapped the glass on the table harder than needed.

"Oh, and I was just starting to enjoy myself." The sarcasm wasn't lost, and he cackled, resting a hand on her lower back. It gave him a thrill he didn't want to acknowledge.

They stepped inside the hotel and into the foyer of the elevator. Two guards were standing, and one pressed a button for them. Into his wrist, the soldier whispered to the guards in the garage to prepare their cars.

Adrik and Gil entered behind, and Alexei dropped his hand, feeling slightly ashamed. "After party?" Gil suggested, leaning on his crutch.

"I'm done." Alexei shook his head. "My body hurts. I need a bath."

"A bath…what a pussy. What you need is a Swedish massage."

Adrik stood on the left of Jolie, staring at her through the steel of the elevator doors. She met his gaze shyly, fighting a grin. She looked beautiful tonight, and he fought himself from approaching her the entire time. A spotlight followed Jolie, a beacon that he couldn't ignore. He struggled to stop himself more times than he wanted to admit. And every time his brother laid a hand on her, Adrik wanted to punch him in the face. This night left him bitter, but it wasn't going to end that way.