He nodded.
“I was drunk. But it’s not untrue,” he disclosed, jerking his chin toward the attendees. “Many of them are the socialites I was talking about.”
I’d be lying if I said his confession didn’t make me uncomfortable in a way. But I wasn’t scared of him. I knew he had a dangerous side from the first time we met; now I was just a bit more curious.
“I don’t understand. If they’d been blackmailed by you, why are they here for your art show? Aren’t they supposed to be your enemies?” Then a realization struck me. “They don’t know you’re their blackmailer?”
I caught the bodyguards’ glances in our direction, but none of them looked directly at my face.
“It’s not about the secrecy. They’re here for different reasons, but on the surface, they’re just attending an art show like any other. In their search for answers, they’ll reveal things to the wrong people.”
“By wrong people, you meanyourpeople?”
He shrugged in response. “None of them know the other person is being blackmailed. Besides, some of them haven’t been blackmailed yet.”
“Poor socialites,” I mumbled sarcastically, emptying my drink.
He chuckled as he took my glass and passed it to one of the bodyguards.
“Now I think I get why you always move with bodyguards,” I commented.
“Darling, you have no idea.”
That smooth smile was on his face again.
“There’s another reason? Please tell me you’re not an assassin,” I rushed, laughing.
“Oh, no,” he answered.
His amused expression shifted to a serious one as one of the bodyguards came to whisper something in his ear.
“I’ll be back soon, darling,” he promised before disappearing, some of his bodyguards following him out of the large room while two remained.
I thought back to what he said about me having no idea.
What else does he do?
I noticed that the place was now more packed than it was when I arrived. Still, there was room for many more people.
Regardless of the secrets underneath, it was still an art show.
So I’ll just move around while Lucien handles whatever business he needs to.
“Here you go,” Lucien remarked, all smiles, coming to my side. He handed me another glass of champagne and rested his hand on my lower back.
“Thanks.”
“So, where were we?”
“Telling me about your non-assassin business.”
“Oh, yes.” He moved his face closer to mine. “You should keep whatever you hear or see here to yourself.”
“Of course. I’m not stupid,” I assured.
“That’s why I like you, darling.”
He gave me a kiss on the cheek.
