Carol of the Bellskis Read Online Free PDF Page B

virus, affecting
    every nerve, every muscle. No matter how life had treated him before, he always had those secret
    lunchtime trysts with Lars to look forward to or their Saturday mornings or those rare occasions
    when the two of them would go out to dinner and a movie. It wasn't a regular schedule, nor was
    it reliable.
    But it was potential , and that potential had given Seth the courage to face every morning,
    the anticipation he needed to get him through a monotonous job and an uninspiring social life.
    Without that to look forward to, Seth felt the bleak emptiness of his life and foundered there, at
    the kitchen table, in self-pity.
    He might have stayed like that all night if a loud rap on the back door hadn't startled him
    into an upright position.
    Seth froze for a moment, shocked by the intrusion. The door off the kitchen was in the
    back of the house, and it would have been hard for a guest find it in the total darkness outside.
    Besides, the snow had started up again. Whoever made it here had done so in the midst of the
    storm.
    And then Seth realized it had to be Carl and Judi sneaking in after hours. All his self-pity
    fled immediately in the absolute joy he had at their return. He unlocked the dead bolt and swung
    open the door.

    24
    Astrid Amara

    Lars Varga stood there, teeth chattering.
    “Miss me, baby?”
    He gave Seth a crooked smile.

    Carol of the Bellskis

    25

    Chapter Three

    Seth stood and stared in stunned silence.
    Lars's grin was wide. It took over his entire face.
    “Babe?” he asked after a moment.
    He had a rolling suitcase gripped in one hand. His expensive charcoal wool overcoat was
    draped over the other arm. It looked like he stood in an airport terminal, not in a blizzard with
    snow dampening his golden blond hair and the face of his expensive Movado watch growing
    steamy.
    Seth finally found his voice, although it squeaked with shock. “What the fuck are you
    doing here?”
    Uninvited, Lars stepped inside. He slipped past Seth through the narrow doorway, his cold
    chest rubbing Seth's as he passed. Seth hurriedly shut the door from the cold.
    “I was hoping you'd still be awake,” Lars said in a low voice. “It's snowing like a son of a
    bitch out there. This place needs a better sign, by the way. I passed it three times before—”
    “Lars!” Seth ran a hand through his hair. “What the fuck are you doing here? What part of
    'it's over' do you not understand?”
    Lars rolled his suitcase into the corner. “Have you got anything to eat? I drove straight
    from a meeting in Everett. All I've had since three o'clock was a strudel and two cups of coffee.”
    Lars's jaw clenched and unclenched, something Seth knew happened only when Lars was very
    anxious. But outwardly he showed no signs of remorse or even understanding.
    Seth crossed his arms. “I'm not giving you jack shit until you explain yourself!”
    Lars sighed. “What choice did you leave me? After the way you stormed out of the hotel
    room yesterday, I had no option but to follow you. It's what you wanted, right?”

    26
    Astrid Amara

    “No!” Seth said, growing angrier by the second. “I want you to come out to your business
    partner!”
    “Look, baby, sometimes we don't get everything we want.”
    “You're very right.” Seth walked over to the door and opened it again. “Get out.”
    Lars stood there for a moment. A tentative smile still lingered on his lips.
    When Seth didn't move, didn't change his stony glare, Lars noticeably withered. His cocky
    expression crumpled, and his shoulders dropped.
    “Christ, Seth. Don't throw me out.”
    “We're done talking,” Seth said. His heart hammered in his chest, each beat bruising. “Get
    out.”
    “Just hear me out,” Lars said, reaching out as if to physically hold Seth back. Seth had seen
    Lars pull that trick in court too many times to be moved.
    “I have enough to worry about without you showing up here,” Seth told him. “My aunt and
    uncle are missing,