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“Well, there’s the new mayor. Killian Hughes. I haven’t seen enough about him to know what his plan is, but Carter is going to go head to head with him through the streets rather than the election.”
She seems to follow so far. “Okay, I can see that happening. But it’s nothing he hasn’t handled before.”
“True, but that doesn’t make it right.”
She pauses over the stove, the food bubbling before her. “And what is your definition ofright? The Blackthorne family has never been a clean penny. We’ve had our bad side for generations. Carter was just the first one to pull us all together to profit from it collectively.”
“I’m not saying I would be upset if he got a parking ticket or something, but they interrogated him for two weeks, Anita. What if he never came back from that?” I hang my head lower than before. “What if everything catches up to us, and we fall?”
She comes closer to the kitchen island, her light brown eyes sinking deep into my soul. “If there’s one thing we don’t do in this family, it’s give up on one another. We don’t run from trouble. We handle it. Carter is the best at that, dear. You have nothing to worry about.”
I can only nod, making sure to never mention this out loud again.
The only person really concerned here, apparently, is me.
***
I turn over in bed, feeling the spot beside me is still empty. My eyelids are weary and tired, but they crease open enough to see a dim light in the corner of the bedroom. Sitting up, I cling to the blanket that still offers me a hint of warmth.
Carter is clicking around his laptop on the desk; his back is turned toward me while the screen nearly lights up the room. I almost ask him to come over to the bed, but I can see he’s far too invested in his work right now. I lie back down, watch him work, and wait for him to join me.
When he finally closes his laptop, he stands and turns, his eyes catching mine.
For a second, he doesn’t move.
He doesn’t say anything either, tucking his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. I sit up straighter, admiring the swell of his erection that pushes against the fabric of his pants. He must see me focusing on it as well, the sight of his arousal only growing while I chew on my bottom lip.
“Why are you up?” he asks, catching me off guard.
I swallow, turning the question around on him. “Why are you up?”
He shrugs. “Just checking on a few things. I have to be at the old office in an hour. I figured I’d brush up on a few details before heading in.”
I nod along to his explanation. “Okay. Can I come with you?”
“No,” he replies, almost a little too fast. “I have a special job for you tomorrow.”
My senses perk. “Really? Does it have to do with the new office design?”
“No, I bought a house.”
I try not to sound as shocked as I feel. “Really? When?”
“A few hours ago. I wired the money to the owners and bought them out of their house. They were selling, no realtors, and it’s over now. We have somewhere to move to, somewhere new. The place has been vacant a while, and I’ve already emailed the movers to bring our things there.”
It’s been his goal to have a fresh start since everything happened with the Laceys and Frances. As much as I would have preferred to be in that decision making, it’s obvious that Carter is on a rampage right now for control. He can’t grapple it from Nicolas or anyone else whispering behind his back, and he just lost the election.
He needs to feel in power again, or he will crumble. I’m okay with that, too. I just want us to be together, maybe somewhere simple and cozy, but I’m fine with whatever he chooses. He is finally letting me work on a project that actually has to do with my passion for architecture.
“Okay, so where are we moving?”
He points out the tower window to the street below. “Next door.”
My heart leaps out of my chest. “Really? You bought the house beside Anita’s?”
He nods. “Yes, I did. She mentioned that it was vacant and that the owners didn’t trust the banks. I bought it as-is, so it might have some issues. But it’s something near family, so I figured it would be worth a shot. How does that sound to you, dove?”
For once, being deep in the veins of the Blackthorne family actually sounds good. “I can’t wait.”
