She catches me looking and holds my gaze longer than I want her to. I look away before the slow smile she gives me reaches her eyes.
“She’s been waiting for you to get here,” Ronan says, low, beside me.
“Is that right.”
He nods, takes a long pull of his drink. “You know, I respect what I’ve seen this past year, Vin.”
“Not sure what you’re talking about.”
“You were unexpectedly… single.”
“I’m always single.”
Ronan gives a throaty laugh and shakes his head. “I wasn’t sure what to expect from you. My father is sure that you’re going to break the contract, keep philandering. I have to stop him from putting safeguards in place to protect the alliance, if you know what I mean.
I know what he means. His father is a mean bastard and loves to fuck with people. It’s why he and Aurelio worked so well together. And he doesn’t like me as much as I don’t like him. “Your father’s a douche.”
Declan guffaws. “That’s true. And he was wrong about you, wasn’t he.” Declan tips his glass at me slightly. “No women. No one on the side.”
Ronan chimes in, “Not that my people could find, anyway. And believe me, my people looked.”
My jaw tightens, but I keep my expression neutral. “Your people have too much time on their hands.”
“My people protect my sister. It’s their job.”
“Ronan.” I try to keep the threat out of my voice because we’ve been friends for a long time but I don’t fucking like people in my business.
“I’m serious.” He turns to face me. “The waiting period’s almost done. My father’s been patient. I’ve been patient, too, but theports are locked until the marriage is consummated. That’s the deal. That’s always been the deal.”
Declan grabs the bottle from Luca and spills some into his glass and then fills Luca’s. Luca doesn’t drink it. “You know that, Vinny. He knows that, Ronan.”
“I know it,” I confirm.
“And you’ll honor your commitments.”
It isn’t a question, but I answer it anyway. “I always fucking do, Ronan.”
He nods slowly. “Good. Then I want to ask you something and I want you to answer me honestly, because we’re brothers, you and I. Before any contract, before any ports or alliances—we’re brothers.”
“Ask.”
“Is there a woman? Because for a minute there last year it looked like you and the Italian woman, the one with the big—”
He mimes a big round ass and I cut him off. “There’s no woman,” I say.
The fire pops in the hearth, and the conversations around me go from a low buzz to a roar.
Ronan watches me like we’re playing poker, like he’s looking for a tell. I’ve been hiding my tells since I was 12 years old. He won’t find one.
“All right,” he says finally, easy again. He hooks his arm around my neck and steers me away from Declan and Luca. “All right.Then there’s something I want to suggest. The wedding date is set, and Ashlyn has planned it down to the minute. She’s ready, Vin. And I thought, given that you’ve been with no one this past year, that maybe—” He stops, then starts again. “If you wanted to be with her now, I would consider it a consummation of the marriage, and maybe we can get these port deals going sooner than later.”
I stare at him. “You want me to fuck your sister.”
He doesn’t flinch. “I want you to begin your life with her so that we can begin our partnership. There’s a difference.”
“Is there?”
“She’s a virgin, Vin.” He says it quietly, like I’m supposed to care about that shit. “She’s been saving herself. More accurately, we’ve been saving her for you. The point is, she’s yours and has been for 12 years, technically, even if neither of you knew it. Make her yours now, we count the alliance as official, and my father releases the ports within the week.”
