Page 31 of Depraved

I try to ignore the heat in my cheeks. “When she asks, just say we’re old friends from after I left my foster home. You can tell her we met in the ring. She knows that much.”

“I’m guessing you don’t want me to tell her about the Bratva?” he drawls.

“You know I don’t want that,” I shoot back. “All she knows is that I earned my fortune as a fighter. She knows I have a friend who’s good with tech. That’s enough.”

“Good with tech?” He snorts. “I guess I’ll keep the fact that I’m the best hacker in the world to myself, then.”

I sigh. “Are you going to be able to check your ego and keep my secrets, or not? I really do need your help to watch over her.”

He sobers slightly. “I get it. I’ll be there, and I won’t let anything happen to your girl.”

“Thanks, Ghost.”

“Just take care of her,” he grumbles, uncomfortable with our moment of sincerity. “And try not to completely fuck things up with her. I don’t want to be in the middle of your drama.”

He ends the call.

I pull her closer to my chest and kiss her forehead. I hate her drug-induced sleep, but I didn’t have a choice.

Nothing bad will happen to Karolina. I won’t allow it.

9

KAROLINA

Rand’s arm is heavy around my waist, his muscular body cradling mine from behind.

For a moment, I think I must’ve fallen asleep while he was massaging my shoulders.

My head clears a bit, and a hazy memory surfaces.

The prick of a needle on my neck.

Rand holding a syringe.

The last of the fog dissipates from my mind, and I sit bolt upright.

He doesn’t fully release me, but he loosens his grip enough that I’m not helplessly trapped in his arms.

I cast a frantic gaze around the unfamiliar bedroom. I barely took the time to study my surroundings when he carried me in here, and then I threw myself at him like I needed him more than my next breath.

We’re lying on a massive four poster bed, cuddled up under the plush black duvet. The walls are painted hunter green, like a billiards room. Sturdy antique furniture in carved dark wood punctuates the space.

I look out the window, and my heart drops when I see verdant fields and woodland.

I remember that we’re not in York. We’re alone on his vast estate.

And he drugged me for some reason.

“What’s going on?” I demand, somewhat tremulously. “You drugged me.”

His face draws tight with regret, and his dark eyes flash with panic. He watches me warily.

“I have to protect you.”

As though that explains everything.

“Tell me why!” I demand. “Right now.”