Chapter 33: You Touched Her!

She handed it over, watched as he turned the screen to face him.

"Mike," he said calmly.

"You MOTHERFUCKER!" Mike’s voice exploded through the speaker. "You fucking TOUCHED her? You touched my baby sister?"

"Yes."

Just yes. No apology. No explanation. Just confirmation.

"I trusted you! You’re my best friend! You PROMISED me you’d stay away from her!"

That made Eve’s head snap up. "What?"

But Dimitri was focused on the screen, his expression unreadable. "I did promise. And I broke that promise. I’m not going to apologize for it."

"You’re not going to....." Mike made a sound that might have been a laugh or a growl. "When I get back, I’m going to kill you. Do you understand? I’m going to fucking kill you."

"You can try." Dimitri’s voice was still calm. Deadly. "But you won’t succeed. And you’ll ruin your relationship with your sister in the process."

"Don’t you dare...."

"She chose me, Mike. Chose to be with me. I didn’t force her. I didn’t trick her. She walked into this with her eyes open."

"She’s vulnerable! She just got divorced! You took advantage...."

"I took nothing she didn’t offer." Dimitri’s voice hardened. "And if you want to be angry, be angry. Come back and try to kill me if that makes you feel better. But don’t you dare make Eve feel guilty for choosing what makes her happy."

"Happy?" Mike laughed bitterly. "You think you make her happy? You’re a fucking criminal, Dimitri. You’re dangerous. You’re....."

"I’m the man who will protect her with my life. The man who will give her everything she needs. The man who will never betray her the way her husband did." Dimitri’s voice dropped lower. "And yes, I’m dangerous. But never to her. Never to what’s mine."

Silence on the other end.

Then Mike said, very quietly, "She’s not yours."

"Yes, she is. And deep down, you know it."

"When I get back...."

"When you get back, we’ll talk. Like men. But for now, your sister is safe. She’s cared for. She’s protected. That should be enough."

"It’s not enough!"

"Then come home early and deal with it. But until then, leave her alone. She doesn’t need your judgment or your anger. She needs your support."

Mike’s face was red with fury. "Let me talk to her. Now."

Dimitri handed the phone back to Eve.

She took it with shaking hands, looked at her brother’s face on the screen, and felt tears burn her eyes.

"Mike..."

"Are you safe?" he asked, his voice tight.

"Yes."

"Did he force you? Threaten you? Trick you?"

"No. Nothing like that. I chose this. I chose him."

"Why?" The question sounded broken. "Why him, baby sister? Of all the men in the world, why Dimitri?"

"Because he’s good to me. Because he makes me feel things I’ve never felt. Because..." She glanced at Dimitri, who was watching her with those intense gray eyes. "Because I think I’m falling in love with him."

The words hung in the air, surprising even her.

She’d never said it out loud before. Hadn’t even admitted it to herself.

But it was true.

Dimitri’s expression shifted, something vulnerable flickering across his face before he masked it.

Mike closed his eyes. "Jesus Christ."

"I’m sorry I lied. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. But I’m not sorry for being with him."

"Does he..." Mike swallowed hard. "Does he love you back?"

"I....."

"Not yet," Dimitri said, his voice carrying to the phone. "But I will. Soon."

Mike looked at him through the screen, and something passed between them. Some understanding that Eve couldn’t decipher.

"If you hurt her," Mike said, his voice deadly serious, "I will kill you. Best friend or not. Brother or not. I will end you."

"If I hurt her," Dimitri said, "I’ll let you."

Another long silence.

Then Mike sighed, suddenly looking exhausted. "I’m coming home early. We need to talk. In person. All three of us."

"When?" Eve asked.

"End of the week. I’ll text you the details." He looked at her, and his expression softened slightly. "I love you, baby sister. Even when I’m pissed at you, I love you."

"I love you too."

"And Dimitri?"

"Yes?"

"You better treat her like the fucking queen she is. Or I will make what you did to Simon look merciful."

The call ended.

Eve stood there, staring at the blank screen, her heart hammering.

"Well," she said into the silence. "That went terribly."

***

POV: DIMITRI

Dimitri watched Eve set down her phone with shaking hands, watched the tears finally spill over, and felt something twist in his chest.

Guilt. An emotion he’d thought he’d eliminated years ago.

"I’m sorry," he said quietly.

She looked up at him, surprised. "What?"

"I should have told you. About the promise I made to Mike. About why he’ll be so angry."

"What promise?"

He moved to sit on the edge of the bathtub, pulled her to stand between his legs.

"Seven years ago, when you were eighteen, I told Mike I was attracted to you. We were drunk. He’d just gotten home from your graduation party, and I made the mistake of being honest."

Eve’s eyes widened. "You told him?"

"I told him you were beautiful. That I couldn’t stop thinking about you. That if things were different, I’d...." He stopped, shook his head. "He lost his mind. Told me to stay the fuck away from you. That you were too young, too good, too innocent for someone like me."

"And you agreed?"

"I promised him I’d never touch you. That I’d keep my distance. That I’d treat you like his sister and nothing more." His hands settled on her hips. "I kept that promise for seven years, Eve. Seven years of wanting you and staying away."

"Until the bar."

"Until the bar. When you walked in, drunk and devastated and desperate, I couldn’t stay away anymore. Didn’t want to. So I broke my promise to my best friend and took what I wanted."

"Me."

"You." He pulled her closer. "And I’d do it again. Every time. In every life. Mike’s anger is justified. His betrayal is real. But I won’t apologize for choosing you."

She was quiet for a moment, processing.

Then she said, "I told him I think I’m falling in love with you."

"I heard."

"I didn’t mean to. It just came out."

"Did you mean it?"

She looked at him, and the vulnerability in her eyes made his chest tight.

"Yes," she whispered. "I think I did."

He stood, cupped her face, forced her to hold his gaze.

"I don’t know how to love, Eve. I don’t know if I’m capable of it. But what I feel for you...." He stopped, searching for words. "It’s consuming. Obsessive. All-encompassing. If that’s love, then yes. I’m falling too."

Her breath caught.

"But I need you to understand something." His thumbs stroked her cheekbones. "Loving me won’t be easy. My world is violent. Dangerous. You’ve seen glimpses of it, but there’s so much more darkness ahead. And if you stay with me, you’ll be part of that darkness."

"I know."

"Do you? Because Mike is right. I am dangerous. I am a criminal. I’ve done things that would make you run if you knew the full extent."

"Then tell me. Show me. I can handle it."

"Can you?" He studied her face. "Can you handle loving a monster?"

"You’re not a monster."

"I am. But I’m your monster. And if you can accept that, if you can love me anyway, then I’ll spend the rest of my life proving I’m worth it."

She reached up, pulled his face down to hers, and kissed him.

It was soft. Tender. Nothing like their usual claiming, possessive kisses.

It felt like a promise.

When she pulled back, she whispered, "I can handle it. All of it. Because I’m falling in love with the Devil, and I’m not going to stop."

Something shifted in his chest. Something that felt dangerously like hope.

"Then we’ll face Mike together," he said. "And whatever comes after."

"Together," she agreed.

He lifted her, carried her back to bed, and for the first time in four weeks, he held her without demanding anything. Just held her. Let her feel safe. Let her feel loved.

Because maybe....just maybe....he was capable of it after all.