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“Our feelings haven’t changed,” I informed her. “Unconventional yet permanent. Isn’t that how you described us?”
“You two are fucking idiots.”
“You’ll forever be it for us. We will wait.”
“Xander, do you even listen to what’s coming from your mouth? I’m married—end of story. There is no happy ending. And if Andraius has his way, it will never change. To gain my freedom, one of us will have to die.”
Neither Theo nor I uttered a word in response. We only stared at her. The weight of the statement filled the room.
“You can’t be serious,” she whispered, then shook her head no. “No, don’t do this for me. I don’t need you to save me.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Mrs. Angelos.” I leaned back in my seat. “I suggest you work with us on your daily and weekly schedules and let us see if we can come to some compromise so we don’t invade your space too much.”
Nerine’s attention shifted to Theo.
They stared at each other, and then she nodded as if they’d decided to call a truce. Which I knew was bullshit since one or the other would say something extra annoying. But I guessed I’d deal with it when it came.
When the fuck had I become the peacemaker? I was the one who got in people’s faces and caused scenes. Shit. When it came to Theo and Nerine, though, I was always the peacekeeper. Fucking Switzerland.
I needed a drink to handle this changing personality with Theo’s and Nerine’s shit.
“Let me update you with today’s plans, and then we can go from there.”
Seven
Nerine
“Hello, Mrs. Angelos. Welcome back to the Drakos estate.” Stevie, Nyx Drakos’s head of security, greeted me as I stepped out of my car.
“Hi, Stevie. It’s good to see you again.”
Her stern face softened, turning her into the runway model she’d been in her youth, and a slight twinkle lit her dark eyes. “I hope you’re ready for the beginning of your training in plants.”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I answered, releasing a deep breath.
I gestured with my chin to the bag on the floorboard, and immediately, she reached inside and handed it to a man waiting behind her. I noticed Theo’s scowl—he hadn’t seen anything in my hands when I’d slid into the car at home.
Yeah, I had a feeling he’d ask me about it on the way back.
She’d barely glanced at Xander and Theo. Still, I knew she’d taken in everything about them, from Theo’s irritation toward me to how Xander scrutinized everything around him.
But the three of them hadn’t counted on the fact that I caught the glances that passed between them. They knew each other, maybe not as friends, but they weren’t enemies on a deeper level than security for two syndicate heads.
Cara, remember you play multiple games at the same time. You can’t focus only on one thing. It isn’t fair, but you are a woman, and they will treat you differently. You have to be better than all of them.
Were they working with Stevie on this long-term plan of theirs?
They could go right ahead.
I’d work mine, and they could carry on with theirs.
We’d see who got to the finish line first.
“I’ll take you to the solarium. We’ve prepared it for your lessons.”
Stevie led us through the opulent front entryway. Any trace of last night’s event no longer existed. Though the way they’d created the living garden indoor atmosphere was beautiful, I preferred how it looked now. This classic, clean with hints of a modern aesthetic, called to me. They’d brought the house up in time with technology and art but kept the original prewar New England style, structure, and coloring.
A warm, comforting sensation washed over me as we weaved through the house. This place wrapped a person in a feeling of love and contentment.
