by Katee Robert
He wanted to marry her.
She hadn’t believed him before.
She believed him now.
“We’re worried about you,” Anya said quietly as she turned onto their block, heading for the garage entrance. “And now Lorelei is married to Romeo instead and…”
She still couldn’t believe it. “I need to talk to her.”
“Good luck. He’s whisked her away to the other side of town, and she’s dodging our calls.” Anya glared out the windshield. “Probably because she knows I’m going to kick her ass the first opportunity I get.”
“Probably.” Rose barely waited for Anya to park in the row of SUVs in the garage before she climbed out of the passenger seat and headed for the door. She loved her family, but she needed space from them right now to think. For once, her sisters took a hint and didn’t follow her up to her room. She took a long shower that did nothing to calm her down and started pacing back and forth across her room.
She had lost her mind. It was the only explanation for her actions in the past couple hours. No, she couldn’t even say that. Her actions since learning the man she was dating was Dante Verducci had been off.
Had she pulled her shot?
Up until this moment, she would have sworn under oath that she didn’t. That she’d truly intended to kill him for the position he put her in. That their months of dating, of falling for him, hadn’t softened her heart to the man she’d discovered was the enemy.
Now? Now she wasn’t so sure. She was a fucking crack shot, especially at that range. Even with him moving quickly, she should have anticipated it and auto-corrected. She certainly had in the past.
She couldn’t talk to her mother about this. No matter how Mama and Papa’s relationship started, they wouldn’t be understanding. There was too much on the line for Rose to do something as reckless as fall for Dante Verducci. They would only see the cost. It didn’t matter that Papa terrorized Mama’s family for years before their marriage. It was all ancient history now.
She stopped short. No, Mama wouldn’t understand… But maybe Aunt Carrigan would. Rose grabbed her phone and dialed before she could second-guess herself. Of all her many aunts and uncles, she was closest to Carrigan. From a young age, she’d admired her gorgeous aunt and how effortlessly she shared power with her husband…and how unwilling she was to bend to others’ will.
Carrigan answered on the second ring. “I hear you’re right at the center of a brewing war. How very Helen of Troy of you.”
Rose perched on the edge of her bed and gave a wan smile. “I don’t know about that comparison. Seems like Helen got a raw deal with that war.”
“And you’re certainly not one to let others do your fighting.” She paused. “How are you, Rose? I hope that father of yours isn’t pulling some bullshit again. The shock at the wedding was enough for a few decades.”
The wedding where Lorelei walked down the aisle instead of Rose. Guilt swamped her again, threatening to choke her. “I need some advice.”
“Then you’ve called the right aunt. I have it in spades.” Cloth rustled through the line, and Rose could perfectly picture her aunt settling back in one of the grand chairs in her office and giving the phone her full attention. “Tell me.”
Rose took a long breath. Once she admitted this aloud, there was no going back. The thought almost made her laugh. There’d been no going back from the moment she slept with Dante after knowing his true identity. “When Uncle James kidnapped you… How did you get past that? How did the family get past that?” Because obviously they did. It was one of the O’Malley family legends at this point, how he’d hauled her out of the club and taken her home to be a sacrificial lamb for his vengeful father. How he let her escape, and months later they fell in love and fucked up my father’s plans to marry her.
Carrigan was quiet for so long, Rose found herself holding her breath. Finally, she said, “It’s a hard road, Rose. I wouldn’t choose it for you.”
Rose stared at her wall, her chest aching. She should hang up now before she said something she couldn’t take back, but the knowledge bubbled up inside her, needing an outlet. “It’s too late.”
“Ah.” Carrigan sighed, a wealth of experience in that single sound. “Sometimes the heart wants what the heart wants, no matter the consequences. I had a little more freedom than you do because I wasn’t heir.” She gave a bitter laugh. “Back then, women couldn’t be heirs. Even if I were born first, I would have been passed over for Aiden. It made me so angry, but it was a blessing in its way because a pawn is a pawn, regardless of what board you’re playing on. Even though it pissed off…well, your father…I secured an alliance with the Hallorans and stopped that brewing war.” Another bitter laugh. “There were always wars brewing in those days.”
“There’s one brewing right now.”
“That’s what I hear.” She sounded tired. “I can’t tell you what to do, love. I made my choice and decided the risk was worth the reward. No one can make that call except you.”
Rose swallowed hard. “If my family can’t get past this, they might remove me as heir.”
“Yes.” Carrigan didn’t soften the word at all. “That is one of the risks. You have to be the one to decide if you can bear the cost.”
If Rose were passed over, that would put Sasha squarely in the crosshairs. Her sweet, nervous sister would falter, which would mean the entire family would falter. But cutting Dante loose meant another political marriage in Rose’s future, this time likely to someone even more questionable than Romeo Capparelli. She’d long ago resigned herself to a marriage for power instead of for love, but…
Surely she didn’t love Dante Verducci.
The very idea was ludicrous. They’d had several months of lying to each other while they dated, a shooting, a kidnapping, and a week’s worth of fucking. That equation didn’t add up to a happily ever after. It only resulted in a mess.
Even if not everything about their time dating had been a lie….and part of her recognized him on a soul-deep level.
“I don’t know what to do,” she whispered.
“Look, Rose, I’ll be frank.”
That dragged a laugh from her. “Since when are you not frank?”
“Hush.” But she could hear the smile in her aunt’s voice. “You’re a smart girl and you’ve more than earned your place as heir. Right now, you’re reeling from an influx of a lot of shifting components. Take a step back, put that strategic mind of yours to work, and find a way through.”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that.” Another laugh. “Honey, you didn’t call me for answers. You called me to confirm what you’d already decided. Yes, you can come back from falling in love with the enemy, and yes, eventually you can bring your family around to seeing things your way with the right set of circumstances. It’s not impossible, it’s just not the easiest path.”
She released a slow exhale. Not impossible. Those weren’t good odds, but they were better than expected. “Thanks, Aunt Carrigan.”
“Don’t thank me, love. I’ve been waiting thirty-odd years for Dmitri Romanov to get his karma. It’s going to be fun watching him squirm.”
“Carrigan!”
“All was forgiven long ago.” Her voice went evil. “But karma is karma, Rose. He’s going to get his fair share with you girls. I almost feel bad for him.” She laughed. “Now, be sure to call and update me when you make things official. Bye, now.”
She wasn’t sure what to think of Carrigan assuming this was a guaranteed thing. Rose hadn’t even decided yet. Not really. Ultimately, her feelings had no bearing on the situation. She might have strong emotions brewing for him, but if he remained an active threat to her family, there was no way she could justify sacrificing everything for him. There had to be another way.
She still needed to talk to Dante. Really talk to him. No threats, no seduction and lies clouding the issue. Just the simple truth between them. Until they had that, there was no point in projecting beca
use they had no future.
No one came looking for her as the night grew late and the sounds around the house went quiet. Both her parents were night owls, but even they had limits. When she slipped from her room and padded down the hallway to the stairs, everything was dark and silent.
At least until she made it to the main floor and caught sight of a large form standing against the door the garage. Rose jumped and barely managed to keep a sound of surprise internal. “What are you doing here?”
Vasily raised their eyebrows. “I heard what happened when you went out to drinks.”
Of course they had. Even though Anya had driven, she would have passed on the info to Vasily since they were Rose’s security detail. Damn her sister. Rose straightened and lifted her chin. “It’s none of your business.”
“It is if you’re leaving the house.” They didn’t move. Rose might be more than capable of moving them if push came to shove, but that meant potentially hurting them, and she’d never do that. Vasily crossed their arms over their chest. “I’m not your keeper, Rose. I’m no Romanov.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Vasily might be on the payroll, but they were her friend. She’d just never had to pull rank before…or had them do it for her.
“I’m not going to tell you what to do.” They stared down at her. “But if you’re leaving this house, you’re not doing it alone.”
Something went tight and thick in her chest. “You can’t report this to my parents, Vasily. If you can’t promise me to keep silent until I come clean, then you’re staying behind.”
They shook their head. “The only reason they found out before you did about Dante Verducci was because Alexei saw the file and reported it. I would have come to you first and you know it. We’ve already talked about this.”
It was the truth. She couldn’t hold a grudge. Vasily was hers but most of the muscle answered to her parents first and her second. She couldn’t be angry about that fact because it was fact. When she took over this branch of the Romanov family, she’d need that unquestioning loyalty, not to have her people allying themselves with her sisters or something.
Rose rubbed her temples. “Let’s go.”
Vasily turned and opened the door, holding it open for her. They took the same SUV Anya had driven earlier, and she climbed up into the passenger seat instead of taking the back. Rose rattled off the address for the hotel where Dante was staying, and Vasily didn’t so much as raise their eyebrows as they headed in that direction. Good. Because if they questioned her at this point, she might lose it.
At this point, she was hanging on to reason by her fingernails. It didn’t make sense to do this. She was likely walking right into a trap and being kidnapped a second time. But every time reason and logic tried to take hold, she thought about the look in Dante’s eyes as he’d said, We’ll get through it. There will be peace. It hadn’t been soft—she wasn’t sure if that man was capable of being soft—but it truly had felt like he meant it, like he was comforting her in his own way.
Maybe she was a fool to crave comfort from this man. Anyone else in her life would call her such, and she couldn’t really argue with them. Nothing about this was logical.
She wasn’t familiar with the hotel Vasily parked near, but that didn’t mean anything. There were thousands of hotels in the city, and usually when they had visitors they didn’t want in the house, they picked between two nearby.
Vasily turned to look at her. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell them to stay here, but that was too reckless even for her. “Let’s go.”
The pair crossed the street and walked into the hotel lobby. It was luxurious in that generic way so many hotels had. She watched Vasily clock the area and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that they could tell her where all the emergency exits were off that single sweep.
Nerves kicked in as she and Vasily stepped into the elevator and took it up. Was she really doing this? Really considering risking it all for this man? Tonight would be the turning point, one way or another. The only way to find out where she landed was to talk to Dante. Really talk to him.
Rose took a deep breath and opened the door to his room.
Chapter 21
For all his confidence in the moment, Dante honestly hadn’t been 100 percent sure Rose would show up. Nothing about that woman was a sure thing, and if he could appreciate that fact, it still made for a frustrating back-and-forth at times. He was in the middle of pacing the living room of the suite for the twentieth time when the door opened, and Rose walked in.
She’d changed out of the gold dress and now wore a pair of jeans and a sweater. It was the way she used to dress when they were pretending to be other people. Even knowing how he felt about her, he wasn’t prepared for the sheer longing that went through him. He wanted that casual intimacy with her again, the soft times to go with the hard edges he craved. He had appreciated that about his time with her as Jackson Smith. He wanted it again.
His gaze landed on the faded bruises around her throat. “I’ll kill the Mad Wolf for touching you.”
Rose closed the door and leaned against it. “You’re going to have to get in line, because the next time I see him, I’m shooting him.”
“Amata, I don’t know how to tell you this, but you’re not nearly as good a shot as you like to think.”
She smiled slightly. “Haven’t you figured it out, d’yavol? I pulled my shot.”
He’d wondered, but there were too many factors in place to determine shit. He grinned. “Lucky me. Less lucky Casimir Romanov.”
“Da.” She pushed off the door. “Vasily is in the hallway. If something happens to them because of you, I’ll skin you alive.”
Jealousy flared, even as he relished her threat. It likely said something fucked up about him that he liked it when violent words came out of that pretty mouth, but it was also the least fucked up thing about Dante. When one had as much blood on their hands as he did, violence stopped being something to flinch away from. It simply was. “Have you ever done it, amata?”
She narrowed her eyes. “Done what?”
“Any of the things you threaten me with. The more creative killings.”
Rose held his gaze for a moment and then looked away. “There’s a price for power. You know that, even if you’re not the heir to the Verducci family.” She pushed off the door and started for him. “I’ve never actually skinned someone, though.”
“I’ll be your first. I truly am a lucky man.”
Her lips pulled up but fell before he could fully appreciate her smile. “This will never work.”
He expected this. He’d even prepared for it. “And yet here you are. You came even with all the reasonable shit in your head telling you it’s a bad idea. Why?”
“You know why.”
He hoped. Fuck, Dante wasn’t one for hope, but he hoped when it came to Rose. He didn’t move other than to rotate slowly as she meandered around the room, nerves in every line of her body. “Tell me anyway.”
Rose stopped with her back to him. A fine tremor worked through her shoulders, and it took everything Dante had not to go to her there and now. He couldn’t. They needed to have a fucking conversation and the only way that would happen was if they stayed on the other side of the room from each other. If he touched her, they’d be ripping each other’s clothes off in short order. It didn’t sound so bad from where he stood, but Dante had the long game in mind. The more time passed before they settled into something official, the harder it would be to convince her he wanted more than her body.
“You are a Verducci.” She spoke softly. “You come from a family on the other side of the country who’s also the enemy of the Capparelli family, who are our allies here. If I were to choose you, I would be fighting both my family and my allies to do it, which would be challenging enough to navigate, but we have a bigger threat looming. We can’t afford to be divided right now, not with Jovan and his people circling. They already have a target painted on my chest, Dante. If—�
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“You have done everything right.”
She stopped short and turned to face him. “What?”
“You have done everything right,” he repeated slowly. “You have been the model heir. Your people love you. Even the Capparellis were willing to work with you instead of starting a conflict when the shit happened three months ago. They’re still willing to work with you, because Romeo married your sister instead of setting something on fire when the wedding didn’t go as planned.”
She made a face. “I’m pretty sure he all but jumped at the opportunity, honestly. He wanted Lorelei initially. I’m the one who offered myself up instead.” She sighed. “For all the good it did. He got what he wanted in the end.”
Dante had done his research on all the Romanov women during the time he spent in New York. Lorelei might be the youngest, but he had a feeling she could hold her own against Romeo. Anya would have been an even better choice, but she was a lesbian, and with her knife skills and cold ruthlessness, no one was interested in forcing her to do anything. If he misjudged Lorelei and being with Romeo damaged her, he’d cut the motherfucker down. No one hurt Rose, not even by proxy. Not any longer. “The fact remains, if you were a man, this conflict with Jovan wouldn’t be happening.”
She blinked. “You can’t be serious.”
“You know it. I know it. They’ve had a problem with you from the moment your father decided not to marry you off to one of your cousins.”
“Dante.” Rose rolled her eyes. “They’re like third cousin five times removed or something at this point. We’re hardly related. You make it sound incestuous.”
“My point is that your father chose to let you stand on your own instead of bringing in another Romanov to marry you and appease Jovan. This was always going to happen. They were just waiting for a moment to remove you and send a message.”
