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“I hear every word you’re saying. I don’t want you to regret your decisions later.” I scraped a hand down my face, knowing agreeing to her decision was the only way to reach any middle ground. “Negotiate with me, Angel.”
“Here is my compromise. Promise to let me go, and in return, in the unlikely event someone unseats Andraius in my name”—she smirked as if that statement sounded farfetched—“the two of you hold the family for the Angelos women. That is, until someone finds us if they can. Isn’t there a saying,no body, no death?”
I glanced at Theo, and he’d also caught the “that is, until someone finds us” part.
“Are you planning to disappear?”
She lifted a brow and gave a noncommittal shrug. “As of now, it’s only a dream. A fantasy about freedom, a life away from the one I know.”
“How long have you had your plan in the works?” Theo studied her as he would an opponent for tells, readying for a lie.
“For four years, eleven months, and eighteen days.”
Since the day of the coup.
“Why are you telling us all of this?”
“Theo, because the idiot part of me believes the two of you still love me. Now I’m trusting you to follow my wishes. You broke my faith in you once, and I’ll never forgive you if you do it again.”
“Do you still love us?” Theo asked.
Was he even aware of the unguarded hope he’d revealed in his question?
“I’m not sure what I feel. I don’t hate you. I won’t lie and say I’m not attracted to the two of you. But love.” She released a deep breath, glancing down at her lap momentarily. “I feel something. It’s more wrapped in memories and thoughts. A bit of sadness, longing, all the things I want to keep locked away.”
I took in her features as she lost herself in her thoughts. We’d fucked up so badly with her. We’d been kids ourselves, following the orders of my father, who wanted only to protect us. Now, I wasn’t sure if it had been the right call.
She wanted to leave with her sisters and mother, believing there wouldn’t be an all-out hunt for the missing wife and daughters of a slain and beloved boss. Not to mention, hiding five women with features like theirs was virtually impossible. Outside of the fact they looked like replicas of their mother, the Angelos daughters had inherited Theios Peter’s midnight black hair and sapphire blue eyes.
“Okay, Angel.” A slight curve to Theo’s lips said he’d used the name to needle Nerine. “Let’s say we agree to let you go. Will you play nice in the meantime?”
“Will you do the same?”
The undercurrent of what she asked had the room going quiet again. The sexual energy the three of us shared never seemed to wane. It remained a constant pulsing beat, sometimes drumming harder and at others, slow and steady.
“Let’s agree not to push each other’s buttons. We can’t afford to fall into those patterns.”
Nerine nodded and then focused on me. “And you? I can’t have you doing that thing you do.”
“What thing?”
She released a frustrated breath and said, “You are my security only, my bodyguard. You aren’t my confidant, my counselor. I won’t turn to you for comfort. So you have to stop waiting for me to come to you. It isn’t going to happen.”
Her observation hit me like a ton of bricks. She’d felt the weight of my longing, the need to take her pain and hold her as I’d done in the past.
“I can’t change how I feel, even for you. But I hear what you’re saying. I know there are lines we can’t cross.”
“Okay,” she whispered, her fingertips drifting over the marks on her neck again, and the rage I felt toward Andraius grew by leaps and bounds.
Instead of letting my mind linger on my hatred for that shit, I asked, “Do we have a deal?”
“On a few conditions.”
I leaned forward, resting my arms on my knees. “And they are?”
“Number one. I want access to all information about Angelos operations.”
I cocked my head to the side. “You said you didn’t want to take the seat.”
