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“Lately, I’ve been having a bit of a hard time with my eyesight.”
I snort. “You serious?”
“‘Course I’m fucking serious,” Antony glowers. “Galen thinks I might’ve knocked something loose in the ring. Anyway, I’m wearing contacts and they help, but it’s getting worse and it’s possible I won’t be able to do a lot of the stuff I’m used to. So if you see me fucking up, now you know why. It’s why I couldn’t shoot Mackenzie at the ranch.”
I remember Noah mentioning something about that. At the time, I’d been too busy not dying to give it much thought, but it was odd. In Germany, Antony had been swerving all over the road. I put it down to him being a boy on the autobahn, but when I think about it, he’d had Tiberius drive him everywhere since we got back.
I feel a pang of sadness that he hadn’t been able to tell me. Having the guys around had put a wall between us. I pat Antony’s leg. “Thanks for telling me. I guess we haven’t really had much time to hang out since all of this went down. I know things have turned out different than we planned.”
“Don’t worry about me, cousin,” Antony squeezes my shoulder. “I have a feeling everything will work out in the end.”
“That’s the spirit.” I grin at him. “Now, get your blind ass in gear and secure me a meeting with Constantine Dio. He and I have some things to discuss.”
Claudia
Tiberius drops me and the guys at Constantine’s fight club. I don’t worry about a disguise – Claudia August visiting a fellow Imperator is nothing out of the ordinary. The maître d' of the Korean restaurant doesn’t bat an eyelid as we walk in. “Your table is waiting, Ms. August,” he says as he leads us upstairs.
There’s a Krav Maga class going on in the main dojo. Constantine leads the demonstration. He drops his opponent, then extends a hand to help him to his feet. He’s drenched in sweat when he comes out to meet us. “You won’t be offended if I don’t offer to shake your hand.”
“Not in the slightest. We need to talk. Somewhere private.” I glare at his students, who are staring at us from inside the dojo. “I can’t have anyone overhear.”
Constantine leads me to a small room divided by Japanese screens. He slides the screens back against the wall to show me no one is hiding in the space. “The walls are soundproofed,” he says. “I assure you, we are secure. But don’t take my word for it. Station one of your men in the hallway, and have them check every corner.”
Eli moves into the hallway, and Noah walks around the perimeter of the room. He nods to me, and I beckon Gabriel to come forward. He carries a large box, which he hands to me. I step forward and drop the box at Constantine’s feet.
“Nero left this on my doorstep yesterday.”
Constantine kicks the lid aside, frowning as he reveals the glittering beads of my wedding dress. There’s no mirth in his eyes as he says, “Thank you for this, but it’s not really my color.”
I roll my eyes. “I didn’t know I was talking to a comedian. Nero’s message is perfectly clear. This may be a marriage between the three of us – an outward show of unity. But Nero intends to form an alliance between Lucian and August.” I kick the tulle. “If I wear this dress, it says to our people, ‘I am the wife of Nero Lucian.’ I can’t come back from that statement, and neither can you.”
Constantine frowns at the dress. He’s difficult to read, but I think he’s come to the same conclusion. “You’ve made yourself more popular in such a short time than either of us anticipated. That stunt with the brazen bull has taken you from a vassal bride to a real Imperator.”
The implication hangs in the air between us. We don’t need to speak it to know it’s true. Nero wishes to shift his alliance from Constantine to me. Instead of the two of them pushing me out and dividing my empire, it will be Nero and I eroding the Dio family.
But while I’m Nero’s wife, I will always be under his thumb. And once Nero has brought Constantine to heel, the August empire will be next.
“Why are you showing me this?” Constantine frowns at the dress. He knows as well as I do that it’s in my best interests to accept Nero’s offer. He’s by far the most powerful of the three of us, and if our standoff becomes an all-out gang war, Nero can call on more soldiers.
“I have a proposal.” I fold my arms. “The two of us need to make our alliance official. Individually, we’re no match for Nero, but together, we’re stronger. Nero knows this, which is precisely why he’s trying to divide us. So, here’s my proposal. If you support my opposition of this double-marriage, I’ll marry you.”
Constantine lifts his eyebrow.
Beside me, Noah doesn’t say a word. This isn’t like last time. I talked to the guys about this. We all agreed this was the best course of action.
“In name only. Don’t get any ideas.” I wiggle my finger at him. “And I’m not touching your gross old-man dick, got it? You’ll get the protection of the August name, but not my cunt or my womb.”
“I stand by what I said earlier,” he says. “I don’t touch women unless they’re begging for it.”
“Good. That’s how you stay out of the bull’s belly.”
He smiles at that. “You do realize that by challenging Nero, we might be heralding the end of the Triumvirate?”
I nod. “Maybe it’s time for it to die. Maybe this empire isn’t big enough for all three of us, and I’d rather rule with you at my side than Nero.”
He laughs. “Such youthful arrogance.”
I shrug. “I prefer ambition. My father trained me well, and Brutus’ betrayal has only fueled me.”
