Does he know about Isla and me? So what if he does? We’re two consenting adults. The wedding and the honeymoon are over, so no chance of spoiling either one.
“Now that Luna is back, we don’t need a cat sitter,” Priest points out. “It’s not fair to keep her locked up in the safe house. She has a life to get back to.”
“No,” I bite out.
I know our parting is inevitable, but I’m not ready to let her go yet. And besides, what does she have to go back to? That asshole who cheated on her? I’ll hunt him down and kill him first.
Priest narrows his eyes on me. “Why not?”
I blurt the first reason I can think of. “It’s not safe.”
“We’re going to smooth things over with Sidorov,” he points out. “Besides, Sidorov isn’t actively coming after us right now because we have the upper hand and his sister.”
“When did you have in mind?” I hedge, shifting in my chair.
“This morning.”
I shake my head. “Not going to work. I can’t get her to the airport for a flight and then make it back to the meeting with Sidorov in time.”
Priest raises a brow. “Who said anything about you taking her anywhere? I’ll have Rocco drive her. We’ll give her two bodyguards. It’s a short drive to the airport from the safe house, and once she gets into the airport, she’s off-limits. Not even Sidorov would be brainless enough to attack an innocent woman in an international airport with cameras, cops, and security everywhere.”
Fuck. He’s right. My taking Isla makes no sense. Rocco and some guards would get her to the airport safely in about twenty minutes, depending on traffic. She’d have a flight out of this chaotic hellhole, and I’d never see her again. It would be for the best. I already knew our time together had an expiration date.She may be Luna’s best friend, but Isla wasn’t born into the Mafia. She belongs in a classroom or behind a keyboard or a book, not at my side. Even if that’s where I want her to be more than I’ve allowed myself to admit.
I clench my jaw. “So your plan is to send Rocco and a couple of guys to take her to the airport?”
I’m struggling to control myself, and I know it’s not working. I fucking hate this idea. I want more time with her. Ineedmore time with her. Another night. I haven’t had my fill of her yet.
“Seems like the most efficient way to get her out of here with the least amount of danger to her,” he says with a shrug. “She didn’t sign up for this the way we did. I feel like shit about everything that’s happened to her while she was cat-sitting Cid. She didn’t deserve to get dragged into our shit, and I swore it wouldn’t happen, but it still did.”
Guilt spikes through me. “I’ll take the blame for that one. I was supposed to keep her safe.”
“You did your best. We all did. This never should have happened, but we couldn’t have known there would be a sudden change in Pakhan that would shake everything up, including our alliance. And the rest…I should have been more alert to the fact that we’d have some bitter stragglers still loyal to Amedeo the Animal. I’ll own that.”
“It’s my job to keep an eye and ear out. I missed it.” If I had realized Joey Bones was double-crossing us, I’d have played a very different fucking hand.
“Like I said, you did your best. And I appreciate the way you looked out for Isla in all this bullshit. I know Luna does too.”
I stare hard at my brother, wondering if he’s fucking with me or if he’s being genuine. I know Lucky is onto me. He could have said something to Priest. Or Priest could sense it. He’s observant, and he’s always been good at reading people. Especially when they’re trying to hide something. It makes him adamn good don, but it isn’t nearly as helpful when I’m trying to keep a secret from his ass.
“No problem,” I mutter and then take another sip of the bitter brew in my cup.
“It’s settled, then,” Priest says. “I’ll call Rocco and make the arrangements. With any luck, she can score a last-minute flight out of here, and she’ll be at thirty-thousand feet by the time we have our sit-down with Sidorov.”
My heart starts pounding in my chest. I’m losing her.
I’m losing her, and I love her.
I didn’t want to admit it to myself before, but it hits me now, like a blow that leaves me winded. Isla isn’t just a hookup. She’s not a one-night stand I couldn’t quit. She’s fuckingitfor me. I understand it with the perfect, shocking clarity of a lightning strike. It’s sudden, unexpected, and scary as fuck.
But because I love her, I have to go along with Priest’s plan. I want her to get the hell out of here. To be safe. To go back to her classroom in Iowa without the fear of Bratva soldiers breaking into her apartment or following her to a coffeehouse. I can’t be selfish and keep her here with me, no matter how much I want to do that. It wouldn’t be fair to her. In the end, she’d just come to resent me, if she didn’t take a bullet for me first.
“You’re right,” I concede. “It’s the best thing for her, getting the fuck out of Dodge.”
“Good,” Priest says with finality. “Let’s finish up here. I’ll call Rocco to pick us up, and I can give him the details then. You want to let Lucky know? Roc can be there by nine.”
“Yeah.” My voice is hoarse as I pull out a burner and send off a short text to Lucky.
Get Isla’s bags packed. Tell her to be ready. Rocco will be there at 9.
