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Daniel peers into his drink, and his expression turns thoughtful. “A lesser man than me would. A smarter man would have already had a few Blackthornes in my corner, but out of respect for Anita and your father, I’m not going to.”
I grip my glass hard enough to make it shatter, but I don’t flinch when a few of the shards nick me. Daniel doesn’t look up or acknowledge the gesture. And I can only pray that neither Anita nor Isabella come out during the commotion because I need them to be somewhere else.
Anywhere else.
A part of me knows what I need to do in order to ensure my empire is in good hands, but the other part of me is reluctant. Have I really walked away from Frances and several other opportunities to prove my worth only to wind up in the same position?
I don’t want to be that man anymore, but breaking my old habits is hard. Harder still when Daniel knows how to push my buttons, and Isabella is sound asleep upstairs.
But her voice is in my head, steering me in the right direction, and I can still smell her perfume on my skin. I have to do better. I need to.
With a great deal of reluctance, I unclench my hands and blow out a breath. “You can’t keep showing up like this and acting like you know better. Even if it feels like you do. We can’t have a fucking deal if you keep hovering and snooping.”
“What if I take a step back and observe?”
I dig my nails into my palms. “I’m listening.”
“I’ll attend meetings, go on stakeouts, whatever you want me to do in order to earn your trust,” Daniel continues between sips of his drink. His shoulders are growing more and more relaxed, and he’s losing some of the edge in his voice. “We’re on the same side here, Carter. I don’t want to go around in circles, either. It doesn’t benefit either of us.”
I pour myself some more whiskey, my mind racing the entire time.
On the one hand, trusting Daniel is the solution to my problems and the Hail Mary I’ve been waiting for. Yet the memory of Rich Donahue weaseling his way in and making similar promises is still fresh in my mind. As is the thought of what he and Lilian almost did to Isabella, to keep us apart and ensure my enemies had power.
I need to know Daniel has enough Blackthorne in him not to turn. Otherwise, we’re well and truly screwed.
“I need more,” I tell Daniel, pausing to give him a long look. “I’m not going to put all my eggs in one basket just because you’re telling me to. I need fucking more.”
Something to prove his allegiance has more to do with loyalty and less to do with power. Because if I leave the Blackthornes in the wrong hands, it won’t just be my family’s heads on pikes. It’ll be mine, Isabella’s, and our daughter’s too.
Fuck.
When did everything get so complicated? How were any of the previous Blackthorne heads able to walk away so easily? And why were they able to place their trust in others where I can’t?
Even if Rich hadn’t turned out to be a spineless bastard, I still would’ve been reluctant. The Blackthorne empire and the purpose and drive it’s given me is all I’ve ever known.
All I’ve ever wanted to know until I learned Isabella was pregnant.
“Pick someone else,” Daniel suggests, pausing to tip back the rest of his drink. “Look into me and do whatever tests you want but have someone else in mind to hand over the reins to.”
I raise an eyebrow. “What makes you think I want someone else?”
Daniel sets his glass down and straightens his back. “Because you and I both know that you need to walk away if you have a chance in hell of having a family. And with the way you’ve been behaving the past few weeks, a meeting is going to be called soon.”
I grip the edges of the counter and counter backward from ten. “Are you telling me my own family is going to vote me out?”
Daniel grimaces. “That’s what I’ve been hearing. I don’t know how true any of this is, and obviously, you’re free to look into it yourself, but I just thought you should know.”
I frown and push back against the anger, quickly rising through me. “Why? Why are you trying to help?”
“Because if it were me, I would want to know. Because if I had put in this much work to build the Blackthorne empire, I would hope that someone had enough decency and enough balls to tell me the truth to my face.”
I snort. “Are you telling me that you’re that kind of man?”
“Don’t take my word for it.” Daniel picks up his glass and tilts it in my direction. “Pick someone as a backup. Anyone you trust.”
I release the counter and stand up straighter. “How about I make you another fucking deal? Don’t tell me how to run this family, and I won’t beat you so badly you won’t be able to walk straight for a week.”
Because I’m itching to wipe the smug smirk off of his face.
