“Then what do you want to do?You mentioned something crazy.”
She takes a breath, steadying herself.This is it.Whatever she came here to ask, this is the moment she reveals it.
“I want you to marry me,” she breathes out the words so softly I have trouble hearing them.
Her request hangs in the air between us.
On second thought, I must have misheard her.There’s no way Serena DiLorenzo just walked into my penthouse and proposed to me.
I murmur, “What did you just say?”
“Marry me.”She steps closer, and her warmth envelops me.As I scan her expression, I see clearly the desperation in her eyes.It’s the natural reaction of someone who’s trapped with no way out.Apparently, taking my silence for hesitation, she blurts out, “Not for real, though.Don’t worry.It wouldn’t be real in any way that matters emotionally.I’m proposing a strategic marriage.A fake marriage, if that makes it easier.But legal, binding, something my father can’t undo.”
My mind is racing, trying to process what she’s asking and find a reasonable way to convince her this is a terrible idea.
“Serena—“
“If I’m already married, the contract with Cesare is void,” she continues, her words coming faster now.“Engagement contracts can’t supersede an existing legal marriage.And if I’m married to a Boyle, my father strengthens our ties to another founding family.That is an even better alliance than the Dellamares could offer.”
“You want to marry me to escape an arranged marriage.”I keep my voice flat, carefully controlled.“That’s your plan?”
“Yes.”
“And what happens after?When your father realizes what you’ve done?”
“He’ll be angry,” she admits.“But he’s pragmatic.If I present it as a done deal, if we’re already married, he’ll have to accept it.Because if he doesn’t, it’ll be public humiliation for him, which would weaken his position in the Syndicate.”
I run a hand through my hair, trying to think past the immediate protective fury and actually analyze what she’s proposing.
Shaking my head, I state the obvious, “This is insane.”
“I know.”
“Your father could have me killed.”
“Not without starting a war with the Boyles.Jack and Dave would retaliate, and my father knows it.”
“Joe—“
“Joe will understand,” she cuts me off, with hope in her voice.
But I hear the uncertainty underneath.After all, she knows her brother as well, or better than I do.Joe isnotthe forgiving type.
When I raise a skeptical eyebrow at her comment, she shrugs and adds, “He’s your best friend.He knows you wouldn’t hurt me.”
Even though I understand and sympathize with her difficult situation, I have to bring her back to reality.Her plan will never work, and we will both end up regretting it.
“I’m not that sure I won’t hurt you.”The words come out harsher than I intend.“I’m not exactly stable right now, Serena.I’ve told you what happened in Russia.I’m broken.I can’t save the people who need saving.What makes you think I won’t destroy you too?”
It’s the truth, the ugly, brutal truth that’s been eating at me since Syria.Hell, way before that.It’s been killing me since that incident with the translator in Afghanistan, since every mission that went sideways and left bodies in its wake.
I’m damaged goods.I’m a liability.And Serena DiLorenzo deserves better than a broken Marine who can’t even trust himself.
But when I challenge her faith in me, she doesn’t flinch.She doesn’t back away.
Instead, she closes the distance between us, frames my face in her hands, looking up into my eyes with an intensity that warms my chest.Heat spreads through me as I hold her whiskey-colored stare.
“I know you won’t hurt me because you’re asking that question,” she says quietly.“Cesare doesn’t care if he destroys me.He plans to do just that.But you,” she continues, rubbing her thumbs over my cheekbones.I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment, basking in the sensation.When I meet her gaze again, she murmurs, “You, Shelby Boyle, care enough to worry about it.That’s all I need to know.”
