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“Yes, fuck, I’m sure. Do you want to see my financial records?” Carmen asked. “Because I’ll give them all to you. I’ll give them all to your baby daddy if it’s the only way you can trust me.”
Okay, that solved one problem, I guessed. It was probably time for me to step out of the cracks now and to reveal myself, though I didn’t love that they would know that I’d been spying.
Their exchange echoed off the walls, reverberating like a church bell tolling for judgment. It was time to step out from the shadows. Pushing off the wall, I cleared my throat before entering the room.
Carmen whirled around, her eyes narrowing at my sudden appearance. “What are you doing here?” she hissed, her annoyance as clear as day.
“Overheard a bit,” I admitted, keeping my voice level despite the storm brewing inside me. “It’s clear there’s a lot going on.”
Adriana looked between us, her expression a mix of relief and concern. “Tristan...”
“Look,” I started, locking eyes with Carmen, “I don’t want bad blood between us.” The words felt like gravel in my mouth, rough and hard to swallow. But they needed to be said.
“That’s why you’re spying on me?” Carmen asked. “I think my sister might be dick drunk, but I see right through you, Callahan.”
With that, she got off the bed where they were both sitting and I watched her storm out.
“I guess she’s not the one doing the embezzling.”
Adriana nodded, her eyes wide.
“I thought you’d be relieved.”
“I’m not,” she said. “This means that the problem is much worse than we first thought.”
Chapter Fourteen: Adriana
It had been weeks.
We were ready.
The grand chandeliers of the five-star hotel in Boston cast a glamorous glow over the sea of masked faces as Tristan and I stepped into the masquerade ball. We were met with a low murmur of intrigue and the faintest hint of recognition; not because of our masks, but because of the undeniable curve of my bump beneath the luxurious fabric of my gown. I felt every eye on us, some familiar, others strangers hidden behind ornate disguises. This was where every power player in our shadowy world came to play their games.
This was the place to be.
Tristan and I had announced our engagement and now Orsini and Callahan associates hung out as if that was a thing we had always done.
“Stay close,” Tristan murmured, his hand finding the small of my back, a gesture that was both protective and possessive. He guided me through the throng of guests, his broad shoulders parting the crowd like he was born to rule this place. But I knew better. The tension in his jaw betrayed his social anxiety, the weight of being surrounded by so many eyes.
There was a metal detector outside the venue, so I didn’t think anything bad would really happen.
And as the night went on, my anxiety eased a little–I knew these people, most of them were old friends.
I caught up with them as they toasted to my engagement and it was…nice. Almost normal. Almost like this was the kind of party everyone had.
As the night pressed on, I found myself momentarily alone when Tristan was pulled aside by an associate. That’s when he approached—a man masked in black with only his eyes visible. They held mine with an intensity that was almost magnetic. I definitely knew him from somewhere, but I had absolutely no idea where.
Then again, I supposed that was the entire point of wearing a mask.
“Care to dance?” he asked, extending a hand with a confidence that seemed familiar. I couldn’t hear him that well and I’d danced with plenty of people, so I nodded and took his hand.
“Sure,” I said without hesitation, assuming he was one of Tristan’s men. After all, who else would dare ask?
Tristan liked showing me off–that was new, something I’d found out about only that night–and as long as I was fully in view of him, he didn’t care who I danced with.
The song was slow, but not slow enough to be intimate. His hold on me was firm, commanding, yet not unkind. It wasn’t until he leaned in, the scent of his cologne enveloping me, that a cold dread seeped into my veins. It was him—Nick Rossi, the ghost from my past, the man who once upon a nightmare had kidnapped me.
Fuck.
