expected it to be bad.
It was worse.
“He’s an arms dealer,” said Adam. “Started out in the
Russian mob, just like his dad, Vasiliy. Together, they’ve
made millions—maybe billions—selling guns. Vasiliy’s
getting old, so he mostly stays cooped up in a fortified
mansion while Luka handles all the day-to-day running
of things.” Adam looked right at me. “Luka keeps
everyone in line. And very, very afraid.”
My stomach flipped over. I’d been fantasizing about this
guy.
“We believe Luka is setting up a big deal to bring guns
into the US. We need to find out who the buyer is.”
I frowned. “I didn’t realize arms was our thing. Isn’t that
more FBI or ATF?” Then I flushed. Who was I to
question the head of Special Activities?
“We have our reasons,” he said stiffly. “Luka will be at
his place in New York on Saturday, the first time he’s
been over here for months.”
“Can’t you just arrest him? I mean, once he’s on US
soil?”
Adam shook his head. “We don’t have nearly enough
evidence. That’s why we need to bug his laptop.”
I swallowed. “So how do I fit in?”
Adam smiled, relaxing a little. “He’s throwing a party.
He’s hired a string quartet and we can get you in as one
of them. You play some music, slip into his office and
plant the bug and then walk out. Simple.”
I’d see him. Actually be in a room with the man I’d been
fantasizing about. I was still reeling from the idea of
Luka suddenly being...evil.
You moron. You knew he was a bad guy. Why did you
think the CIA were tapping his phone?
“What’s he...like?” I wondered. And then realized I’d
said it out loud.
“Brutal,” said Adam. “Unyielding. He did some jail time,
a few years back, and that hardened him even more.
Luka’s the new prince. He’s inherited the kingdom from
his dad and he’s not going to let anything get in his
way. He’s killed several times—that we know about—
rivals, mostly, who’ve tried to encroach on his family’s
territory. He’s not afraid to use his fists, when someone
needs to be taught a lesson. People are terrified of him,
right across Moscow.”
And he twisted his computer screen around to show me
some photos. Suddenly, I was face-to-face with Luka.
I’d thought he’d be old, but the face looking back at me
couldn’t have been thirty, yet. His hair was cut short—
longer than I’d imagined, but still short—and it was so
dark I could only just see the soft texture of it.
He had high, prominent cheekbones and a wide,
sensuous mouth, one corner curling up in a smile that
was all dark malevolence and sex.
He wasn’t handsome. Handsome is too bland.
Hollywood celebrities are handsome.
This guy was beautiful. Savagely, brutally beautiful, like
mountain peaks that have been shaped by wind and
rain.
I’d realized I was staring. It had only been a few
seconds but, for someone who can memorize a face in
an instant, that was a lifetime. I couldn’t remember ever
staring at a photo like that. I dragged my eyes away.
There were more photos below, some of them half off
the screen. I got a few glimpses of his naked back,
twisting black tattoos over heavy slabs of muscle. Very
different from the slender, gym-toned bodies that my
boyfriends had had. He looked hard...solid in a way they
never were.
I quickly looked away.
“The party’s on Saturday,” said Adam. He must have
read the worry on my face because he gave me a
reassuring smile. “You can do this, Arianna. A few hours
of violin and a few seconds of action. In and out. Easy.”
Easy.
Until it all went wrong.
<<<>>>
Lying and Kissing is out now Contact Me
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Document Outline
Copyright
1. Angelo
2. Irina
3. Angelo
4. Irina
5. Angelo
6. Irina
7. Angelo
8. Angelo
9. Irina
10. Angelo
11. Irina
12. Angelo
13. Irina
14. Angelo
15. Irina
16. Angelo
17. Irina
18. Irina
19. Irina
20. Angelo
21. Angelo
22. Irina
23. Angelo
24. Irina
25. Angelo
26. Irina
27. Irina
28. Angelo
29. Irina
30. Irina
31. Angelo
32. Angelo
33. Irina
34. Angelo
35. Irina
36. Irina
37. Irina
38. Angelo
39. Irina
40. Angelo
41. Irina
42. Angelo
43. Irina
44. Angelo
45. Irina
46. Irina
47. Angelo
48. Irina
49. Angelo
50. Angelo
51. Irina
52. Angelo
53. Irina
54. Angelo
55. Angelo
56. Irina
57. Angelo
58. Irina
Epilogue
Lying and Kissing Chapter 1
Lying and Kissing Chapter 2
Lying and Kissing Chapter 3
Lying and Kissing Chapter 4
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