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Now that I’m back to shoveling food in my mouth, he resumes eating his own meal. After he swallows, he nods. “We decided we don’t need to hit all five—we just need the majority of three to ensure we have what we need to take him down. Once we get three families to side with us, we’ll be able to finish him off.”
I pause in bringing my fork to my mouth. “Side with you? You’re going to try to negotiate with these people? I’m not sure if you know this, but they are all liars and criminals. They will say one thing and do another.”
His tone is icy when he says, “Princess, I’m a liar and a criminal. I’ve dealt with my kind before, and I know how to ensure they won’t double-cross us once the plan is in motion.”
It’s a warning and a reminder in case I ever forget what kind of man he is. I straighten my shoulders, put my fork on the table, and shove my chair back. “I’m not hungry anymore. I think I’ll go up to bed.”
I only make it to the door before he stops me by grabbing me around the hips and carrying me back to the table, settling me on his lap. “Tell me what’s wrong,” he orders.
Tears are building, and I’m not even sure why. “You’re keeping the details from me, and then you say that you’re a criminal and a liar like you need to remind me constantly that you aren’t a perfect man. You don’t think I know that?”
He tugs me into his embrace, and while I resist, he wins. He always wins. I let my arms hang by my side as he hugs me tight to his chest. “I wasn’t trying to deliberately keep anything from you. We are targeting the Marino family first. Based on the information you gave us and Soo’s spy network, we’ve discovered they are the most unstable.”
I nod against his chest, happy at least the tears didn’t win and embarrass me further. “When is it all happening?”
“Tonight,” he says.
I jerk from his grasp to look up at him. “Tonight? What? When?”
“We set a meeting with both the Marino boys and the DEA agent who helps their father run guns through trade shows. If we can come to an arrangement, we can set it up so that they walk away with their family’s power, and we walk away with an alliance.”
I’m still not understanding how they could have put this entire plan into motion already. We were just talking about him and Soo checking on my information this morning. Why the urgency? I don’t have the courage to ask or pry further, though.
“Eat. You look a little pale, and I know you didn’t eat much at lunch today. Don’t make me force you.”
I glare at him. “How do you know what I did or didn’t eat at lunch? If Sarah is reporting on my eating habits, she and I are about to have an uncomfortable conversation for both of us.”
“No, but watch your tone before I decide you need another lesson in respect. We may be married now, but that doesn’t mean you can let that bratty mouth run free.”
He deposits me in front of my plate again. “I’ve just been stressed out about you plotting and planning, and me not knowing what the hell is happening. I don’t enjoy being out of the loop about things. It makes me feel like a prisoner all over again, especially since you haven’t taken me anywhere in a while or let me out of the house.”
“I’m only trying to keep you safe. You don’t need to know every detail.”
I take a huge bite of my roll and chew, so I have time to think of a tactful response to that. Will I be safe after he brings down the five families? Or after my father is dead? Or maybe at some other random point in the future that he hasn’t disclosed for me? I don’t doubt he cares for me in his own way, but I also fear being locked up in his house until I die because he doesn’t want anything to happen to me.
“I appreciate you wanting me to be safe, but I’m not fragile, and I’m not going to break. I also doubt there are snipers on the lawn or anything, so maybe let up so I can at least go outside the house?”
He chews his own food and stares me down. “No. Not until the threat has passed.”
His tone is hard and leaves no room for argument. After that, we finish our meal relatively quickly and in silence. We’ve only been married for around a month, and I already feel like our meals are those of an old married couple who have been together all of their lives.
