“Because Mom sold us to the Salvatores before we were born. She’d washed her hands of us in the womb.”
“I wish she would have just given us to Pops. If we had grown up in Devil’s Creek, things would have been different.”
“I doubt it. Luca and I would still be engaged. You’d still be a Knight. There’s no escaping Arlo Salvatore.”
He nodded in agreement. “So what’s the plan for today? Wanna sketch together and blow off some steam?”
“How would you like to paint with me in Evangeline Franco’s studio?”
He flashed a toothy smile. “Like you even had to ask.”
“Nothing will change after tomorrow night,” I told him.
“Lexie, your entire life is changing. After the ceremony, you will be our queen. And in one week, you will be a Salvatore.” He reached across the desk and slid a package of paintbrushes in front of me. “I bought you new brushes as a peace offering for hiding the truth from you.”
I lifted the package from the desk and smiled. “Apology accepted.”
Alex
Luca moved behind me, staring at me in the mirror as I fixed the silky, white gown into place. The paper-thin ceremonial dress barely covered my breasts. Not like it mattered since you could see my nipples through the fabric. A slit ran up the length of my thigh. I wasn’t wearing panties because what was the point? We would undress in front of The Devil’s Knights.
Nerves shook through me. Luca pressed his warm body against my back, and I felt safe, comforted by his touch. He always seemed to know when I needed him.
“Don’t be afraid, mi amore,” he whispered into my ear. “The Knights will do anything for their queen. This isn’t about sex. It’s about them showing their loyalty to you, about them welcoming you, worshiping you as their queen.”
I spun around to face him. “I’m ready to become your queen.”
“Our queen,” he corrected with fire behind his words and mischief in his eyes.
He led me downstairs, where his brothers waited in the sitting room with Sonny, Drake, Callum, Finn, and Cole. They stopped talking when we walked into the room holding hands. All of their eyes drifted up and down the length of my body, stripping me bare.
“Let’s go,” Luca ordered.
He placed his hand on my back and led me out of the sitting room, headed toward the front door. The Knights trailed behind in silence. I could hear my heart pounding as we approached the limousine waiting for us out front. Everyone piled into the limo, and we drove off the estate.
“All of this uncomfortable silence is freaking me out,” I told them. “Someone, please turn on music and open a bottle of champagne.”
Luca laughed beside me. He told Sonny to deal with distributing the alcohol. Someone hit a button on the wall and a rap beat floated through the air, ridding us of the awkward silence.
Luca pulled me onto his lap with one hand on my breast and the other between my legs. “Already making my cock hard,” he groaned. “Wait until we get to the temple.”
To torture him, I rubbed my ass on his erection. “Can’t wait.”
We arrived at the marina a few minutes later.
“I got you,” Luca said as he helped me out of the limo.
A chill roll down my arms. “It’s cold out here.”
Luca slid his arm behind my back, warming me up as he led the way. “We’ll be underground in a few seconds.”
My dress swept across the ground as we walked toward the bay. My shoulders were bare, causing my skin to dot with tiny bumps from the soft breeze that blew off the water. I felt like a Roman goddess in this dress, elegant and ethereal, in every way Luca’s queen.
We walked down a flight of stairs, past The Founders Club entrance and into the catacombs beneath Devil’s Creek. Salt and the scent of moss floated through the air. With each step we took underground, my nose twitched from my stupid allergies. I sneezed a few times by the time my feet hit the bottom of the staircase.
At the end of the hallway, Luca removed a skeleton key from the pocket of his black robe. He pulled a brick from the wall, inserted the key into a lock, and Marcello helped him open the hidden door.
We rounded one corner, then another, the space dimly lit by lanterns hung on the walls. It wasn’t as rustic as the catacombs beneath Luca’s house. Peculiar symbols etched into the stone walls lit by lanterns.
I pointed at them as we passed. “What are those?”
“You know how the Freemasons have symbols?” Luca said. “We have our own.”
“Don’t the Masons work with their hands? I can’t see a bunch of rich boys hanging out down here to carve symbols into the walls.”
“I take offense at that,” Sonny said with laughter in his tone.