Page 42 of The Art of Ruin

A quiet snort escapes before I can stop it.

Nico looks smug immediately.

I regret giving him that satisfaction.

“Isabella threatening mutiny?” I ask.

“She sent me a picture of Letty eating ice cream for dinner at Matteo’s yesterday.”

“That sounds accurate.”

“She captioned it: your brothers are feral.”

“She’s not wrong.”

Nico stands, collecting the files into neat stacks. Unlike Matteo, he somehow managed to spend ten hours in meetings without looking remotely disheveled.

“Casey settling in okay?”

The question lands oddly.

Not because of what he asks.

Because I answer too quickly in my own head before speaking at all.

Fine.

Professional.

Quiet.

Too quiet.

“She’s good with Letty,” I say finally.

Nico’s expression doesn’t change, but something knowing flickers briefly in his eyes. “That’s not what I asked.”

I lean back slightly in the chair, loosening my tie for the first time all day. “She’s professional.”

“Hmm.”

“She keeps her distance.”

“Hmm.”

“She leaves the room the second she’s no longer needed.”

That gets his full attention. I realize the mistake half a second too late.

Nico leans back against the edge of the table slowly, arms folded across his chest. “And that bothers you?”

“No.”

Immediate.

Too immediate.

Nico’s mouth twitches. “You answered too fast.”