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“Not a bad idea,” Theo said. “But you aren’t getting mine.”
I smirked. “I would never.”
Theo wiped his plate clean, and Scarlett carried it to the sink. When her back was turned, he addressed me. “We need to talk.”
“I knew this conversation was coming.” I raised my voice and looked at Scarlett. “We’ll be back, baby.”
“Alright.” She tipped the pan and placed all the leftovers in the glass container to save for later.
Theo and I walked into the parlor, where the fire was cold and the coffee table was empty. He dropped down into his usual chair and cut straight to the chase. “What’s the plan?”
“About what?”
He cocked his head slightly. “Dante plans to kill us, and we have no retaliation?”
I knew Theo was a no-nonsense, no-second chances kind of guy, so this wouldn’t go down easy. “I spoke to Dante. He said he called off the partnership. He also informed the Colombians there would be no deal.”
“And you believe him?” he asked with a sneer.
“Absolutely.”
Theo rubbed his palms together in his annoyance. “What’s going on with him and Scarlett?”
“He apologized, but she wants him out of her life.”
“Smart girl.”
“I think that might feel right in the moment, but a few years down the line, she’ll feel differently. Our children won’t have a single grandparent. Her anger will soften into longing and regret. I don’t want that for her.”
“After all the shit he did?” he asked incredulously.
“I know he’s an asshole, but I know he loves her.”
Theo shook his head in disappointment. “I couldn’t agree less, but this is your life, not mine.”
“I just want the best for Scarlett.”
“If you say so…” He sat back in the chair and rested his ankle on the opposite knee. “We should remove Dante from the business. He’ll probably throw a fit, so we’ll just remind him it’s a better alternative than being hung in his closet.”
I almost couldn’t bring myself to do it, to face Theo’s disappointment after all the help he’d given me. “We both know I only took the business from him to get Scarlett back. Now that I have her, I’m not that interested in it anymore.”
He took in that information with a hard stare, his arms on the armrests. “If your heart’s not in it, don’t worry about it. I suspected this might happen now that you’ve settled down. Pretty soon, she’s going to leg-lock you to get that baby.”
“Leg-lock?”
“It’s when a woman locks her ankles together so you can’t pull out.”
“And has that happened to you?” I asked with interest.
He gave a shrug but never answered.
“I’ve decided to do more than just step aside from the business. I’ve decided to give it back to him.”
Theo cocked his head, a flash of rage in his eyes. “You did what now?”
“It’s important to him, and it means nothing to me.”
“And what about me? What about all the work I’ve put into this?”
