“Why, then?”
“Tiernan.”
“What does he have to do with it?”
“He cheats, threatens the dealer before every game she takes.”
“But…how?”
“Easily. Who gets to play last in blackjack?”
“The dealer.”
Achilles spread his arms as if to sayVoilà.
Huh. “Why does he do that?”
“Says he can’t take seeing Lila sad or disappointed, even for one second.”
“Lila is a good sportswoman. I’m sure she’s no more than a little bummed when she loses.”
“Tier, he baby-proofed the housebeforeGennaro was born because she kept bumping into the corner of the coffee table and he couldn’t see her with a blemish on her skin.”
Good point. My brother was irrational when it came to his wife.
“Lila and Sof invited me to the mountains.” Why did my mouth feel so dry when I said this? I didn’t like that. If he had truly changed, I wouldn’t have to fear his reaction. Damn him and his toxic, controlling personality.
His spine stiffened, but he kept his expression schooled. “Did they, now?”
“Yeah.”
“They’ll go with their security detail.”
Fat chance that Tiernan and Luca would let their wives take a piss without a small army monitoring their well-being. “Probably,” I offered noncommittally.
“What did you tell her?”
This was the big test. I licked my lips. “I told her I’ll go.”
A brief silence. A chill ran down my spine. A reminder I had been his prisoner before and possibly still was.
“Good,” he said finally.
Achilles stopped in front of one of the doors in the hallway, leading to the dining room. “Stay here for a second. I need to see if our infantry room is stocked in case of an emergency.” He kissed my cheek.
I leaned against the wall, checking my nails. A couple rounded the corner from the other side of the hallway, and I instinctively flung my gaze to look at them.
My heart dipped low in my stomach.
It was Jeremie and Sofia.
They didn’t see me. I was standing in the darkened corner of the hallway. But I could see them. Both dressed in elegant black attire, walking side by side. She looked so tiny in comparison to the Russian. He was holding Ciro, confidently, calmly, like he claimed ownership of the child.
Ciro’s strawberry lips pouted in deep concentration as he tried to tug Jeremie’s nose off his face with pudgy fingers. Jeremie did not seem to care.
Their eyes met, and there was so much tension, heat, and desire inside, I knew the next thing they were about to do would change everything forever. They stopped at the end of the hallway, thinking they were alone. But they weren’t. I was here, and soon enough, Achilles was going to join me.
Guess Sofia was catching on to the fact Jeremie didn’t have social anxiety. He just had Sofia anxiety.
