Romani Prince

Chapter 35: His Family and Mine

"Oh, hell no!"

I push away from Luka so abruptly that I almost fall back down.

He tries to hold me but I stumble back, again, avoiding his touch.

It is his turn to panic about my reaction, as all the blood must be gone from my face.

"And you couldn't think to tell me about this little detail before?"

He hides his face once more in his hand. "It was never... real! She isn't important in any way, to me!"

I gawk at him as if he had just spoken in Klingon.

"What?"

"She's only fourteen! We've been engaged since she was ten. She's Irish and we met only once, at our engagement party. We don't even know much anything about each other."

I lean against the dresser behind me. "Oh..."

He has my full attention.

"Arranged marriages aren't uncommon, among the Romani. Especially in my case."

Luka rests against the dresser by my side.

"What do you mean?"

"Bloodline... She's also from old blood... Another important family name. It's supposed to solidify my place with the union and strengthen my bloodline."

With a jolt, I move back to the couch and drop on it with my head in my hands.

"Oh, great! Just another reason for your family to never fucking accept me! Shit! Shit! Shit!"

I jump, startled, when Luka surprises me by grabbing my jaw, making me look at him.

"And what a dirty little mouth, you have."

I scoff. "When the situation calls for it! Yeah!"

He leans over me with a wicked grin on his face. "Hmm... I'm going to have to do something about that..."

My cheeks feel hot. No. Luka is not getting away with it so easily.

Slipping from under his arms, I limp away from him.

"You need to do something about your fiancee!"

I must keep a distance because Luka already knows how to manipulate me with his tantalizing kisses and touches.

"And by-the-way, Mina told me why you had to hitchhike and train hop here. Your father found out about me. What now?"

Luka gets up to stalk me across the room. He oozes that inherited confidence of his that only aggravates me even more.

"Stop that!"

He raises his eyebrows at me as I reach the bed. The back of my legs pressed to the mattress.

"Stop what?"

I glare back at him. "Stop acting like everything is going to happen exactly the way you want it to!"

I drop down to the soft covers while Luka towers over me.

"But it will, mierea."

My attempt at a laugh comes out sounding more like a snort.

"l told Mina... We could rent her pool house, I'd get a job, we'd figure it out like so many people do. But it's not that simple, anymore... I can't abandon my mother!"

"What about your brother?"

I look away. "They... don't really get along."

Luka chuckles. "Why am I not surprised?"