“Because I want to make sure his kids are protected.”
“They would have been,” she breathed. “As long as I kept my mouth shut and stayed away.”
I stopped the car at the crest of the hill and cut the engine. The sudden silence contrasted to the fear and agitation rolling from her.
I circled the car and opened her door, then offered her my hand. It was more of a practical move than a gallant one, but I couldn’t deny the satisfaction flickering in my chest when she slid her fingers onto my palm.
“They’re safe now,” I said, meeting her eyes. “And I can guarantee your safety too, if you’d only learn to trust me.”
“If you want me to trust you, then stop lying.”
“What did I lie about?” I asked coldly. I might have withheld the truth, but I ensured never to lie to her.
“Imports and exports?” She scoffed. “Clearly a lie.”
“I move products. I never said they were legal. And I do own Blackhawk Security, but I’m just a minority stakeholder these days.”
Wind moved through the palms, lifting strands of her hair. She tucked it behind her ear, her eyes never wavering, almost as if she were searching for hints of deceit.
“Sounds like you got off on a technicality,” she muttered.
I smiled. “Those are important in my world.”
“And the man in your basement?”
Dammit, even the woman’s moral compass was attractive.
“He hurt you, put his hands on your beautiful hair,” I finally said.
“There’ll always be assholes out there. You can’t kill them all.”
“If someone touches what’s mine… Someone who is under my protection… I can and will end their miserable existence.” Her lips parted, tempting me, but I refrained. This conversation was important, and once it was over, it would be on her to come to me. “He was bound to lose his fingers, but then I learned he’d hurt others. Much worse than what he’d done to you and I couldn’t let him live.”
“Dina did mention…”
That asshole in my basement represented my demons and the man who’d hurt the last woman I loved, and I would never repeat the samemistake by letting someone like him live. Even if Elena didn’t want to leave her husband, I should have killed that bastard for all the pain he’d caused her. She’d still be alive and happy today.
“Okay.” Her acceptance surprised me. “I can’t stay here while a dead body is in your dungeon.”
“He’s no longer there,” I said slowly.
Silence settled between us for a moment as the spoken words sank into a mutual understanding.
“So,” she said, “you bring all your karaoke disasters here?”
The jarring change of subject drew a chuckle from me.
“You’re my first,” I admitted. “Probably be the last too.”
We walked inside the villa, the cool air greeting us. The front door was left open and she paused in the foyer, then turned to face me.
“Don’t hide the truth from me again, Kian.” I leaned back against the column, letting the silence stretch until it started to hum. “No more half-truths if they relate to me.”
I nodded. “If they relate to you, I’ll share them.”
“And I’ll have a conversation with my cousin about that shit too.”
“You weren’t exactly honest with him either,” I pointed out, my voice firm but stripped of accusation.
