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I hate that. Especially if I'm not here to be a part of it. But I also know that what he is saying is true. It's quite possible that Kate's life is already too enmeshed with ours to fully separate from it. All I can hope is that if this plan works, she’ll effectively be cut off from me, one way or the other, and no one would care about her. She has no value to them.
"Are you really not going to be part of your child's life?" For once, Lucy’s tone isn't acerbic. It almost sounds as if she cares.
"I'm doing what's best for Kate and the baby."
"Yeah, man, but… that's fucked. I can't imagine going through life without knowing my kid," Donovan says.
“You don’t have a kid,” I quip.
“If… when…” He glances at Lucy. She keeps her face impassive. Mostly. I think I see a little glint in her eyes.
"What would you do to protect Lucy and any kids that you might have?" I ask him.
Donovan's expression turns fierce. “Any fucking thing I have to do."
I nod. "Well, that's what I'm doing."
The door bursts open, and Niko’s sister, Aria, pokes her head in. "I'm just here to tell you what a rotten brother you are and how much I hate you."
She pulls her head away and slams the door shut. We all look at Niko, who lets out a long sigh. "She's pissed at me."
"Gee, I wonder what gave that away," Donovan says with a chuckle. "She's acting like a petulant teenager."
Niko shakes his head like he’s ridding the problem of Aria from his mind. "She'll get over it."
I wonder what it's all about. Niko is my friend, so I feel compelled to ask him considering the big favor I had made him promise me. "Is there anything I can help with?"
He waves my offer away. "She just thinks she's in love. But she's too young for all that."
I arch a brow because in my mind, Kate and Aria are about the same age. In fact, Elena isn’t much older. Perhaps it's not her age that's a problem, but the fact that he’s protective of his sister. Or maybe he doesn't like her choice of potential mate. I frown because I have this sense that Aria has a crush on Luca Conte, Lucy's former stepson from when she was married to Giuseppe Conte.
"She got over Luca?" I ask.
Donovan and Lucy both give me slight head shakes, telling me not to go down that path. That tells me Aria is still in love with Luca, and now I'm wondering why that's a problem for Niko. Luca Conte's family is in alliance with Niko. So maybe the problem is that Luca is in Italy, and Niko doesn't want his sister so far away. But then again, that doesn't make sense because Niko had sent Aria to live in Europe.
I stare at Niko, but I can't bring my mind around to delve into whatever issue is going on with him.
"That's not a problem for us to think about right now," Niko says, standing. "Right now, we need to take Babichev down." He comes around his desk and puts his hand on my shoulder. "I don't like this plan of yours, but you're my brother, and I trust that you know what you're doing. You have the full help of the Leone family?—"
"And the Fiori-Ricci family," Lucy adds. Donovan nods in agreement.
There is some sense of relief because I trust these people with my life. I trust them with Kate and my child's lives. "I need to go."
"Not without saying goodbye to Kate,” Lucy reminds me.
I don't want to see Kate. Well, that's not true, I do want to see her. I want to see her and grab her and hold her for the rest of my life. But I have to walk away, and seeing her again will only make that harder. But Kate asked me to say goodbye, and it's one final thing I can give her.
"I'll do that now, and then I'm heading out."
Niko embraces me, a gesture he doesn't do very often. But the weight of the moment is heavy in the room, and I accept his embrace.
I exit Niko's office and start back toward the sunroom. Rosa steps out and says, "If you're looking for Miss Walsh, she is upstairs in her room. It's the guest room overlooking the garden."
For a moment, I think I won't go up, knowing that she's probably resting. But since I don't want her to go the rest of her life hating me for not saying goodbye, I turn and head up the stairs toward the guest room. When I reach it, I knock on the door and open it.
She's lying on the bed, but the minute I enter, she pops up and sits on the edge. "Hi."
My heart is breaking in a million pieces. I shut the door behind me, walking to the middle of the room. I shove my hands in my pockets to keep from reaching out for her. "Hi."
