I shrug. You’d think those words would shock the shit out of me, just like they do him. “Sure. Better than perfect, actually. Marriage gives me complete access – I get in, gain her trust, and boom. We get what we need.”
Kingston studies me. “You're taking this well. Maybe a little too well.”
“Listen, it’s not ideal. I’m not a fucking idiot. But we need our stolen intel back, and we need to keep tabs on Declan. I don’t trust anyone who makes threats against us, no matter how desperate they are. We need to know exactly what he’s got and right now, the only way in is through her.”
“What happens when we have what we need?”
The question hangs in the air. My mind trips back to Tierney and the way she fought me in the alley like her life depended on it. And in a few days, she'll be walking down an aisle toward me, probably furious and definitely plotting my murder.
After the ceremony, she'll be mine to protect. Mine to betray.
I let out a snort. Jesus. Blake reallyhas some pair of balls. As if Tierney is some prize he's gifting me instead of a lethal weapon with a streak of sadism and a penchant for violence.
Fuck her if she thinks I’m gonna drop to my knees when she shows up. But there's something coiled tight in my chest that feels less like victory and more like anticipation before a fight you're not sure you're gonna win.
I lift an eyebrow at him. “What aren't you telling me?”
Kingston's smile widens and he leans across the desk. “Close the door.”
Once we're alone and away from prying ears, Kingston goes into predator mode.
“The alliance is real. The marriage is real. But there's another layer to this, and you need to understand it before she walks through your door.”
“Listening.”
“Declan Blake is desperate, not stupid. The intel Tierney stole from us? He's only handing over part of it. I guarantee he's keeping something in reserve as insurance against us turning on him.”
“Smart move. You’d do the same thing.”
"Yeah, well, it’s not smart enough. Because we're going to find out exactly what he's hiding.” Kingston opens one of the desk drawers and pulls out a thick folder. "This is everything we’ve pulled together about Tierney Blake. Her training, her operations, her psychology. You need to study it.”
I take the folder, and flip it open. Her face stares up at me from a surveillance photo.
Focus, asshole.
“Your job isn't just to marry her,” Kingston says. “It's to turn her.”
My brows furrow. “Turn her?”
“Make her trust you. Make her fall for you. Get close enough that she tells you things she wouldn't tell anyone else.” He pauses, letting that sink in. “Pillow talk, Bronx. It's the oldest intelligence technique in the book, and your extracurriculars make you naturally equipped for it.”
I flip through pages of the file. "So, you want me to seduce my own wife for information and turn her against her own blood.”
"I want you to do whatever it takes to protect this family. You said you would. Remember?" His voice drops, but his voice is wrapped in steel. "Tierney is dangerous. She's skilled, she's loyal to Declan, and she has access to information that could destroy us. If you can make her loyal to you, I mean really loyal, she might choose us over him when the lines are drawn."
“What if she doesn’t?”
“Then we find another way. But that’s when things get messy. And vicious.” Kingston’s eyes root me to the spot. “But I'd rather handle this as a family matter now that she's going to be one of us. This way is cleaner.”
I toss the folder onto the desk. “What happens to her when we get what we need?”
He shrugs. “That depends on her. If she proves that she’s loyal to this family…and to you…it’ll guarantee her our protection. But if we find that she’s working against us...well, family members who betray us usually disappear permanently. Marriage certificate or not."
“What does that even mean? I ask. “You'd kill my wife?”
"I'd eliminate a threat to this family, regardless of what ring she's wearing." His eyes are arctic as they always are when he’s discussing known threatsto the family. “Don't get attached, Bronx. This is still a mission. She'll be family in name only until we decide otherwise. The second you forget she’s Declan Blake’s daughter, you endanger all of us.”
I hold his stare. “I know what this is.”
