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Mybrothersarequietin my home office and even look surprised when I tell them I hadn’t heard from Isabella. More surprised that I hadn’t called her. That I hadn’t stormed the Brooklyn loft to kidnap her.
She is still mine.
But she had enough of me. I saw the disappointment in her eyes. That morning wasn’t the first time. Every time I reminded her that our marriage was a business arrangement, tears welled up in the corner of those beautiful brown eyes. She’d turn to wipe them away, thinking I didn’t notice. But I noticed everything. I just ignored it.
“When are we telling Ma and Da that Isabella moved out?” Riordan flips his phone in his hand, never dropping the thing.
“And Shea,” Balor adds.
“Not yet,” I mutter.
“Here.” Eoghan drops a set of papers onto my desk.
“An annulment?” I lower a dark eyebrow at my consigliere. “The marriagewasconsummated, Eoghan.”
“It will allow you to get married in a church with someone else.” His voice cuts through me, making this so fucking real.
I can’t even think about marrying someone else. I’m still working to get past this agony to start using my club again. “I’m not asking her for an annulment.” I’ve been hiding how empty my heart has been without Isabella. Every day, I struggle to breathe. Everything around me feels deflated without her around.
My brothers noticed, apparently.
“Kier, whatdowe tell people about why she’s living with a friend in Brooklyn?” Riordan asks.
I look around. “Last I checked, we’re a fucking criminal organization. I don’t oweanyonean explanation.” When no one brings that up again, I say, “Can we get back to business?”
Riordan faces me after getting a nod from Balor. “Kier, we didn’t find anything on Parisi regarding Stasia. We also see zero movement as far as weapons, bomb making, or training mercenaries to hit Koslov.”
“Nothing, really?”
“The Italians going to war with the Russians would have been nice.” Lachlan twirls his knife in the center of his scarred palm. “But they played us.”
“What do we do about the money we gave them? Isabella left on her own,” Eoghan persists.
“Odd that Gabe hasn’t called.” Rior strokes his chin. “Just to chew you out, at least.”
“At least.” God, this house sucks without Isabella here. Never mind the bedroom. Changing the subject, I say, “We still need to work on another angle to find Stasia, Balor. Koslov may hit us next. Especially if they, too, cleared Parisi.”
“Ewan’s got eyes and ears everywhere.” Balor rubs his temples, messing up his glasses. “It’s like she vanished into thin air.”
Or she’s six feet under.
If I find out anyone under my control had something to do with this…
“That’s our focus. Fuck Parisi. Rior, when are we meeting with Alexei?”
“Still waiting for a call back.” Riordan looks at Lachlan. “Maybe we just show up?”
“Just say when.” My psycho brother would love to stir some shit with the Russians, especially after two of them tried to hurt Isabella.
Fuck, now I’m really worried about her. Will Koslov try to take her? I trust Connor Quinlan and his team to protect her. Lachlan is working on a permanent guard for her. As long as she has my name, she’s my responsibility.
That horrible morning plays over in my head like a bad movie, again and again. Should I have just lied to her so she’d stay? Even if that wasn’t fair? She forced me to face what I thought my heart was capable of. She thought I was in love.
I wasn’t. Because… It didn’t feel the same as it did with Norah.
Thatwas pure love.
Sure, Riordan reminded me that I’m not the same man now.
