Page 109 of No Greater Oblivion

“Don’t,” she warns gently and steps aside to allow me passage.

“I don’t need a gun.”

“Maybe. But my telling you no is more than enough.”

Rian carries himself well and by the end of the investors’ meeting, he’s successfully plunged the knife into Li’s back, securing control of the company with a unanimous vote. None of this would’ve been possible without the proof Special Agent Morales was able to procure and I suppose we have Dahlia to thank for that. The worst yet best undercover spy we’ve ever encountered.

For my part, now that Li’s been voted out and Rian will be taking control, I still intend on selling my shares to Sasha Antonov. Despite their estranged relationship, there’s no malice behind my desire to sell to Antonov, on the contrary. Sasha and Rian need to work through their issues not just for their mother’s sake but for their own. They’re still brothers.

Diego is an extended part of me. Without my brother, I’m off balance and directionless, stumbling through life with a missing limb. Our parents raised us to love and rely on each other. I can’t imagine what it’d be like to treat the closest person to me like an enemy.

At the end of the meeting, Rian takes time with each investor, shaking their hand and thanking them for their time, while Damiano walks them out and swears them to secrecy. From the looks of it, the investors were equally as appalled with Li’s actions as we were and the danger of an FBI investigation was enough to get them to flip, quickly and without resistance. I’d arrived in New York with the intention of getting Dahlia back but instead found myself enthralled in a far more serious problem. What Li had planned could’ve been catastrophic. Not as world-ending as Dahlia thought but the second the FBI finds its way through the cracks of an operation, they are near impossible to get out. They spread like mold in the walls, causing the house to deteriorate from the inside out and by the time you realize it’s there it is almost always too late.

I have no intention of staying here longer than needed so I abandon my half-finished drink and make for the exit. Hopefully I make it to Dahlia before Rian does. I’ll need to pick a fight with her over something ridiculous so she gets upset and goes home early; anything to get her far away from here. Aside from not trusting the crowd that frequents The Empress, Rian reminded me of something very important tonight.

I’m not the only one Dahlia cares about. And though it kills me to admit it, I need to change my approach otherwise I’ll lose her for good. Last night may have confirmed my suspicions—she’s still in love with me and never stopped—but it also taught me she has more self-control than I thought she did. In a moment of weakness, she still managed to keep me on the other side of her wall for protection.

On the way out I feel the presence of someone behind me. Rian steps out of the room almost immediately after, abandoning the last few investors in the room to Damiano’s care.

“You’re doing this because of Dahlia.”

“I do everything for her; you’ll have to be a little more specific.”

“Do you still plan on selling your shares to Antonov?”

“I intend on encouraging a bit of brotherly love between you.”

“Why not sell them to me instead?”

He has a good point. Then again.

“I think it’s best we keep things between us as limited as possible,” I reply diplomatically. “We can’t help the business ties that already exist between our families; we shouldn’t complicate things further by throwing money into the mix. Those shares are worth a fortune and I doubt you’ll give me an offer to compete with Antonov’s.”

Rian stops and so do I.

“She warned me you’d be like this. Possessive, dominant, controlling⁠—”

“She told you what I’m like in bed?” I tsk and shake my head. “If you needed a bit of help, you could’ve just asked.”

I watch his restraint deteriorate in real time. His shoulders tense and his lips thin to a fine line. Through gritted teeth he replies, “Don’t test what’s left of my patience, Narvaez. Avoid a problem and sell your shares to me instead.”

A thought occurs to me. “What are they worth to you?”

His eyes narrow slightly.

“Are they worth as much as she is?”

Rian takes a menacing step forward but stops the second a door opens and closes at the end of the hall.

“Hey,” Dahlia says. “How did it go?”

Rian ignores her. “Forcing your way back into her life wasn’t enough so now you’re trying to buy her back, too?”

“I don’t need to buy what’s already mine.”

“Dahlia’s a person, not a possession to be owned and bartered away. She has the freedom to choose who she wants to be with.”

“And you think she’ll choose you?”