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Even if it means losing Saoirse?
I push that thought away, the possibility that I might never take her to bed, never slide my cock into her, never be the first man to teach her all the ways that pleasure can be had. Worse yet, that my brother might still be the one to do it, after throwing her away with both hands.
Don’t think about it. She’s just a woman. One you’d tire of quickly enough, once you’d enjoyed her fully. Are those few nights of pleasure, of taking her virginity at last, worth losing everything you valued back in London?
I came here to secure my brother’s life. If I can do that without taking the seat, if I can see him safe and then go back to London, that’s the path I should take. It’s what Iwant.
Isn’t it?
“Viktor.” I turn my attention to the tall Russian man to my right. “I met a man yesterday who claimed he was under your protection. Maximilian Agosti.”
Viktor frowns. “Yes, that’s correct. Max has my protection, and that of my Bratva. Why? Has he done something to offend you?”
“Not exactly. Is it true he was also once a priest?”
I was once a man of the cloth. Infer what you like from that.
Viktor nods, a look of confusion still muddling his features. “That’s also true. He was defrocked. The reason is not mine to tell—”
“I don’t care about the reason,” I say shortly. “He performed Liam and Anastasia’s marriage.”
“I wasn’t aware of that,” Viktor says hesitantly. “I’m sure he only meant it as a gesture of friendship—Max has suffered, I think, without being able to extend the helping hand to others that he used to as a priest. He saw Liam and Anastasia struggling, each in their own way, and sought to ease it—”
“I don’t give a shit about that. He can be friends with whoever he pleases, as long as it doesn’t split your loyalty, or interfere with our plans. But the fact that he married them changes things.”
Viktor frowns. “How so?”
“It’s not a valid marriage.”
“I’m sure he’s legally ordained, if he—”
“The Kings don’t give two shites if the marriage is legal in the State of Massachusetts,” I snap. “They care if it was done by a priest, correctly, in the eyes of the Catholic Church, being good Irishmen that they are. And if Max is no longer in good standing as a priest, then as far as the Kings are concerned, that marriage is not a valid one. Nor is their child legitimate.”
I glance over at Luca. “Your wife is her best friend, as you’ve noted before. Has she made any mention of Liam and Anastasia having the marriage blessed by anactualpriest?”
Luca pales slightly, and I take a threatening step towards him. “Out with it, man,” I demand sharply. “This is your moment to prove that you mean this alliance. If you know something about this, then tell me, or go back to Liam. I’ll have no half-loyalties here.”
Luca grits his teeth. “Sofia mentioned that they were planning to go to New York after the baby was born. Something about having Father Donahue both christen their baby and bless their marriage. I didn’t think anything of it—I thought that they just wanted it done as a sentimental thing, out of a connection to Father Donahue. Not that theyneededit done for any reason—”
“You didn’t think of Maximilian not being able to perform a valid marriage?”
“The mafia doesn’t hold so tightly to tradition as apparently your Kings do,” Luca snaps. “No one would have blinked if Sofia and I were married by a justice of the peace or Father Donahue, so long as it was legal. That’s what mattered, the fucking piece of paper, not some religious ceremony. The priest was just for tradition, and because Father Donahue has a long history of loyalty to the Italian mafia in New York.”
“Well, you’re bloody heathens.” I take a step back. “Personally, I don’t give a shite either. But the Kingswill. Which means—”
“Liam could still marry Saoirse,” Viktor interjects. “And you could go back to London. The table might go for it,” he adds thoughtfully. “They’ve already considered letting Liam keep his seat if he disinherits his child. Their displeasure with him is twofold—his insult to Saoirse, and the fact that they won’t stand for a half-Russian heir. If he set Saoirse aside, the child would be a bastard anyway, and Saoirse would be his wife and the mother of his future heirs. It would solve both problems, and put him back where he started.”
“He’s not going to go for it,” Luca says sharply. “You’ve already seen what he’s endured to keep Ana. And Saoirse—”
“Saoirse will do as she’s told,” I snap. “Her first and foremost concern is her duty to her family. If she’s told that the best thing for them is that she marry Liam, go to his bed and sire his heirs, that’s what she will do.”
Something in my stomach twists at that, a cold sick nausea deep in my gut at the idea of my brother touching her.He doesn’t deserve her,I think angrily, feeling faintly violent just at the idea of him being the one to take her to bed after all, to get the pleasure of taking her virginity.Would she respond to him the way she responded to me? Would she be wet from just a touch, mewling and whimpering to be allowed to come?The thought, the images that conjures, has my cock thickening despite myself, and I grit my teeth as I force them away.
I can’t think of Saoirse as more than a pawn in all of this. If I outsmart her father, checkmate my way out of the position he’s put me in, then I can go back to my old life, and fuck as many women as need be to get Saoirse out of my system.
“It doesn’t matter,” Luca insists. “Liam will never agree—”
“You’re right that it doesn’t matter,” Viktor interrupts. “And you’re right that Liam will probably not agree. He’s endured plenty to keep Ana, as you said, he won’t let this stand in his way. But it’s worth bringing to the table anyway. On the off-chance that Liam agrees to set Ana aside and marry Saoirse, then he keeps his seat, you can make provisions to provide for Ana on your wife’s behalf, and Connor can return to London as he’d prefer. But if Liam refuses, as we expect he will, or if he hurries to have the marriage blessed to make it valid in the eyes of the Kings, thus doubling down on his refusal to honor his original betrothal, then there will be no question among the Kings—any of them—that he’s not fit to rule. They’ll drop all consideration of letting him hold his seat if he disinherits his child, and oust him immediately.” Viktor pauses. “This may put your brother’s life in more danger, Connor. If he doubles down on his marriage to Ana, as we expect, it will anger the Kings more than ever. All of us here have agreed not to harm him, but the Kings are not under your power yet. They may take matters into their own hands.”
