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I gasp, not because of what he says about his sister, but because of the thought that suddenly appears in my head about mine.
Oh Olivia …Dread coils around my heart and begins to squeeze.How did you get yourself involved in this?
“Imagine my surprise when I foundyouin that apartment.” He pushes off the stable wall and takes a step towards me, hay crunching beneath his feet. “The girl who allegedly grabbed my bag by accident, almost charmed her way into my bed, and then left without so much as a good-bye.”
“That’s why you took me with you …” I say slowly. “It wasn’t because you couldn’t get me out of your mind like you told me on the plane. It’s because you wantedanswersfrom me!”
Somehow, despite the fact that the two of us nearly died, despite the fact that Iknewhe was using me from the beginning, the realization that he was only ever interested in me because of hisowncuriositycuts me deeper than any words from Alla ever could.
He doesn’t care about me.
“No, Kitty Cat,” he corrects me. “I told you the truth. Icouldn’tget you out of my mind. As much as I wanted answers, I wanted so badly to return that morning to find you back in my bed.”
“This inheritance,” I start, almost afraid to hear his answer. “What is it? Because when I spoke with your grandmother, she didn’t make it seem like it’s money.”
Finally, he looks away, and I feel my heart slowly cracking in fear of what I might hear.
“It’s the family signet ring,” he answers. “Whoever holds that ring holds the fate of the bratva in their hands.”
“But, why does did she have it?”
He turns and looks at me sharply, and I know that I’ve just asked a question that I have no right to ask.
No,I think.I nearly died just now.The least he can do is answer my question.
And to my surprise, he starts talking again.
“When I was sixteen, I got into a fight with Augusto’s son, Domenico.” He looks away, his jaw working. “And when it was over, I broke both his legs. My father Yuri commended me for not backing down.”
I keep silent, watching as he rubs his face with his hand as an ocean of turmoil play out across his handsome features.
“But my grandmother didn’t share my father’s views,” he says. “She told me that I was reckless, that I was a fool, and more importantly, that I did something that no boss would ever forgive.”
He closes his eyes and sighs. When he opens them again, his ice-blue pupils are shimmering. He blinks rapidly as he takes a deep breath to calm himself.
“She was right,” he says. “Augusto’s retribution came quickly. And it was only by luck that Alla convinced my father to give the signet ring to her for safekeeping on the same night Augusto had him and my mother murdered. For fifteen years, she’s held onto it. Even though she allowed me to sit in the chair my father once sat, it’s her who still holds the bratva in her hands.”
My jaw drops, but Konstantin isn’t finished.
“For fifteen years,” he says. “She told me that the only way she’ll allow me to have that signet ring is if I present her a bride. Without it, I may wear the title of pakhan, but I can’t muster the full might of the bratva to save my sister.”
“So that’s why you needed to marry me,” I say quietly.
“Yes.” He steps even closer, and the smell of soap and aftershave mixes with the scent of hay and horses. “I should’ve told you the truth earlier.”
“I don’t know what I expected.” I close my eyes, scoffing softly. “Youtoldme that you were going to use me. And yet here I am, feeling sorry for myself when Iknewwhat I was getting myself into.” I open my eyes and glance up at him. “Since we’re both here to tell each other the truths, I might as well tell you mine.”
Alarm flits across his beautiful face, and his icy-blue eyes narrow ever so slightly. The beauty mark by his eye shifts. I expect him to say something. But he doesn’t.
He’s waiting for me.
“That apartment you found me in?” I start. “It belonged tomysister Olivia.”
Now, it’s Konstantin’s turn to drop his jaw. He steps closer to me, and his large hand takes hold of my arm even though he stays silent, urging me to say more.
“The reason I left that day in Italy was because I learned that my sister died a week ago.” I confess. “The police said it was a suicide by overdose. My parents believed that. But they didn’t bother to check, and askedmeto follow up instead.”
His brows furrow, and confusion fills his gorgeous eyes. “Why?”
