“You won’t be alone, Evangeline,” he said. “Never again. You’ll have my brother and cousins and me. Especially me. But also friends. I want you to meet Siena and the other wives.”

She lowered her lashes. He was coming to know that was rejection of whatever it was he was telling her.

“I don’ need friends. I have Saria and Pauline and I suppose if I wanted, Charisse. I’m not good at relationships, Fyodor. I never had them so I don’ really miss them.”

That was a lie. He could hear it in her voice. She wanted those things, she just didn’t think she could have them. He picked up her hand and brought it to his mouth, first kissing her fingers and then turning her hand over to place a kiss in the center of her palm. “I want you to have the best possible life, Evangeline. There are things I can’t change. What I am. Who I am. I made a commitment and there’s no way out now. But the rest of it, I can do for you and I will.”

She turned her head and looked at him again. Straight in his eyes, the way she always did when she meant something. “I’m happy, Fyodor. I take responsibility for my own happiness. I always have. I don’ want you to think you have to do anythin’ special for me to be happy. You make me happy. My leopard. The bakery. Even the boys, as weird and crazy as they all are, I sort of consider them family. They’ve been comin’ in the bakery for so long, especially Timur and Gorya.”

He suckled at the center of her palm, drawing her skin into his mouth. Her hand was small and soft. Her voice was drowsy. He’d worn her out, and he liked that too. “Did I hurt you?”

“You know you didn’t.”

“In a minute I’ll get a washcloth and clean you so you can go to sleep.”

“Not before you tell me what happened tonight. Who keeps tryin’ to kill you?”

He was silent. Leopards didn’t lie to each other. He couldn’t give her everything, because he didn’t want her to have any part of his business, but on the other hand she deserved the truth. He sighed. “Not me, Evangeline. You. They came after you. In the bakery. At the hospital and here.”

Her eyes widened. She frowned. “Why in the world would someone want to kill me? Who? Who wants me dead?”

“It was Patrizio Amodeo. Evidently he blamed you that the meeting he was counting on didn’t go so well.”

“That’s insane. I’ll talk to him . . .”