AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Soon to be eighteen.”
“Then she’s old enough. Don’t act as if this girl is any more pure or precious than my own little sister, who’s only two years older.”
“Can we not hold off a year?”
Oh, she was very precious indeed if Nelu was already asking for mercy. I took my time, slowly unbuttoning my jacket, spreading it out, and easing myself back into my seat. Eyeing him dubiously as I rapped my fingers on the tabletop, I said grandiosely, “Fine, but it’s going to cost you. You want to hold it off a year; we’ll hold it off a year. If it’s one year you want, then we’ll have a discount for a year.”
“And who will marry Cat?”
My brows gathered. “Who the hell is Cat?”
“Catalina. In the family, we call her Cat. She’s a real beauty and a sweet, gentle soul. I’m unenthused by the idea of her marrying so young, but I suppose we owe you…”
“I’m leaning toward Luca, but I’m undecided as of yet. Quite honestly, Nelu, I was unsure whether we would continue down this path, but Nicu here kept reminding me of my father’s wishes. Money alone would never be reason enough to pawn off my blood in the midst of a scandal that would bring shame to my sister and our name. You should thank him for having me stay the course under such trying circumstances.”
Lie number three. Nicu had done nothing of the sort, but if he was the one who would marry Cat should Luca prove to be difficult, I had to start making him look good.
Nelu gave a chin lift to Nicu as acknowledgment for his role.
“I’m thinking something in the range of a 30 percent discount,” I suggested.
“Have you lost your mind? I might as well take my chances with the Taliban, if that’s the case,” he countered, referring the fact that if he didn’t use my routes out of Afghanistan, he’d be forced to transport his product through Taliban territory.
Ah, now came the haggling. Nelu was back on solid ground. We went back and forth until we settled on a fair price and shook hands over it. Cristo gave me a glare, leaving my hand hanging for a long moment before Nelu nudged him in the back, finally prompting him to shove his hand into mine. Swear to God, seeing Cristo get protective over his little sister was the first good thing I’d ever seen him do. She must be quite something. Hell, maybe Luca would like her, after all. One would never know it, but he was sensitive underneath his rough outer crust. I assumed he didn’t care who he married, but perhaps he was holding out for love. A ridiculous notion in our world, but wasn’t it that very notion that was driving me?
Crunching the broken glass strewn on the floor, I made my way out of the office, Nicu and Tatum at my heels. We weaved through a narrow path between crowded tables and went out the door.
Once in the car, Nicu congratulated me, “Bravo, you did the right thing, brother.”
Did I? Or did I not have much of a choice if I wanted to keep Nina? I wasn’t proud that I was forcing my sibling into a marriage with the Popescu clan. “Right. Wrong. Such words are meaningless. The only thing that matters are results and I always get the result I want.”
“We got away by the skin of our teeth,” Nicu remarked. “How did you know about Una?”
“I know everything. That’s why I’m the Lupul. You already know I had someone on her tail from the moment I found out about them. Nelu may be crafty, but his son’s an idiot. It was only a matter of time before something came to the surface.”
“Would you have brought it up if you wanted the marriage to go forward?” he asked, curiosity lining his face.
“I would’ve certainly allowed Una to go ahead with the abortion if that’s what she wanted. I’m not one to get in the way of a woman and a plan, but would I have told Tasa? Certainly not. Would it have changed my idea about Cristo? Honestly, no. Tasa forced my hand by running away. I didn’t realize how much she was suffering over this marriage, but I had a chance for a do-over and I took it.”
“What about Luca? You’re basically doing the same thing to him,” noted Nicu with a wry smile on his face. He wasn’t one to hold back from busting balls, so he’d enjoy Luca’s discomfort.
“That’s different, and you know it,” I replied succinctly.
Luca was a man. He couldn’t afford to have such sensibilities. Whether misogynistic or not, women were allowed a bit more flexibility in that area. This world of ours was archaic as hell when it came to many things, including gender roles. We arranged marriages in the twenty-first century, for fuck’s sake. Tasa got out of that marriage because of a combination of the leniency given to women, and the fact that I cared for her and that she’d run away.
“Yes, but Luca’s a stubborn bastard.”
“And he can continue to be a stubborn bastard. Just one that’s married to Nelu’s daughter,” I stated with finality, turning my gaze out of the car window and effectively ending our discussion. Although I spoke with conviction, I had no real idea of whether or not Luca would do what he was told, and that thought scared the hell out of me.
