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And how pathetic am I for knowing that I’ll be disappointed if he does?
17
KONSTANTIN
“You’re bleeding.”Sima passes me a tissue when I close the door behind me.
He’d missed the entire conversation I had with Emily, and he’s discreet enough to not say a single damn word about what he just saw.
I dab the tissue on my cheek, surprised to see the white paper come away with red smudges. “She got me better than I thought.”
“Shallow cut for a knife.”
“It was a key.” At Sima’s lifted brows, I crumple the tissue in my fist. “I found her in that apartment.”
Sima nods. “Well, that answersthatquestion.”
“She was also on the Amalfi Coast when we were there.”
I never mentioned my evening with Emily to Sima. There had been no reason to do so before. But after this?
I keep glancing at the door between us and Emily, almost as if I’m expecting her to appear. If she tries to eavesdrop, it won’t work. The engines are too loud.
“Kostya, what are you going to do with her?”
“I told her that I’m going to marry her.”
He freezes on the spot, his mouth dropping wide. “Did she give you a concussion alongside that cut?”
She’s done plenty of things to my head, but not that.
“This is the cleanest way to handle the problem at hand,” I explain. “Without access to the family inheritance?—”
“You mean the signet ring?”
“Yes,” I say. “Without that in my hand, both myself and the bratva will still be slave to Alla’s wishes. You know as well as I do that there’s a possibility that sheinsistsI swallow my pride and allow Domenico to marry Alisa for the sake of peace.” I shake my head angrily. “As if the Ferrata didn’t just try to fucking kill me.”
“And this is what you’ve decided to make your plan on? A desperate gamble to fool your grandmother?” Sima asks incredulously. “Even for you, Kostya. That’s?—”
“Bold?”
“Not the word I would’ve used.”
“The marriage won’t be real.” I shake my head. “I’ve explained this to Emily that we just need to make itlookreal. At least, real enough to convince Alla to hand me that damn ring.”
“Do you really believe it could work?” he snorts. “Old as she is, Alla Antonovna is still razor sharp. And there’s just too many things that can go wrong in the meantime.”
“There’s no other choice,” I insist. “I won’t risk letting Domenico hold onto my sister.”
“And what about you?”
I wrinkle my nose. “What about me?”
“Don’t pretend that I didn’t see what the two of you were doing before I interrupted.” Sima tracks his eyes back to the closed door. “If this marriage is as fake as you say it is, how can you make sure that you won’tactuallyfall in love with her?”
“I’d never.” My laughter has a hollow edge. “She’s just a means to an end. You know I’m incapable of love.”
“That’s not what I saw earlier.”
