Page 34 of Crowned By the Mafia Billionaires

I stare at her, wondering what I should say. “I care about them a lot.”

She sips at her tea. “Both of them?”

I tense. “Does that bother you?”

Eleanor doesn’t even hesitate. “No. Not at all.”

That surprises me. I honestly expected this to freak her out. “Really?”

She nods. “Really.”

I should stop now, but I can’t. Before I can think about it, I blurt out to clarify, “You’re okay with your son sharing a woman with his best friend?”

She raises an eyebrow. “Bennett and Knox have been inseparable since they were boys. I stopped trying to understand those two a long time ago.”

I laugh.

She smiles. “But I know my son, and I know Knox. They love you. I can tell by the way they look at you.”

I am about to argue, but she continues. “Do you know that in all his years, Bennett has never defied his father… until yesterday.”

She blows on her tea some more. “Robert was uh, surprised, when Bennett told him he was going to marry you.”

I shake my head. “I can only imagine how well that went over.”

Eleanor doesn’t try to sugarcoat it. “Robert was, uh, concerned when he heard that a Sterling would be joining our family, but he’s come to terms with it.”

I shake my head. “The last thing I want to do is come between Bennett and his family.”

She waves her hand in front of her. “You won’t. Plus, you will be part of the family now.”

I lift my chin. “I didn’t give him an answer.”

Her eyebrows lift. “Oh. I just assumed.”

I can’t help but smile. “You assumed that Bennett would make his demands and I would just say yes?” I shake my head. “I don’t do well with being ordered around.”

She stares at me and then smiles widely. “I see why Bennett and Knox have fallen for you.” She tilts her head to look at me. “I think you will be good for them.”

With that, we sit in silence and enjoy our tea the best we can. Hours pass, and I’m back to asking Robert if he’s heard anything. When my phone does finally ring, I almost drop it as I push buttons to answer it. “Hello? Bennett? Knox? Is that you?”

Bennett’s face fills the screen. He’s in his SUV, and Knox is sitting beside him.

My whole body relaxes just seeing them. I let out a relieved breath. “You’re okay.”

“We’re okay,” Bennett says.

“Did you find Grant?” I ask.

Bennett’s expression changes, and the phone moves to my brother, who is sitting in the back seat.

“Grant,” I say softly. He looks awful. His beard is longer and unkempt. His eyes are red, and he looks as if he’s lost twenty pounds since I saw him last. I say his name again, and he looks like he can barely hold his head up.

His voice is just a whisper. “Audrey.”

I put my hand to my chest. “Oh my God.”

He starts to cry. “I’m so sorry.”