Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 24323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 122(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 122(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
But now...
"Yes," Keiran said rawly. "I love her."
He had always loved her.
And yet he had never tried to see it from her eyes.
Never tried to consider what she would be thinking, all those times he was gone, hunting for Onesimus' abductors.
His gaze turned to Giancarlo, terror gnawing at his heart. "What the fuck do I do now?"
"You grovel. But not now. I stayed behind because I've just received word. The Castellos are on the move."
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
"They want you to pay for the damage Marvin Quinn's fraud caused them."
"And if I don't?"
An alarm sounded off at that moment, its eerie timing almost suggesting it was the answer to his question.
"Is that what I think it is?" Giancarlo asked grimly.
"It's going to buy us some time. But not much."
The sound of an alarm cut them off, Keiran's security system alerting them to the possibility of an attack.
Fuck.
Neither of them bothered to speak, both of them springing into action as they walked back to the penthouse.
Onesimus was already in the living room, and although Cadence's pale cheeks were still streaked with tears, the expression on her face told Keiran that she had already been briefed about the situation.
"We need to keep you safe," he told her grimly. "Will you go to Giancarlo? They won't think to look for you there. I'll take care of business here."
"I don't want to leave—-"
"You'll only distract me." Keiran turned his back and faced Giancarlo right after, missing the way his abrupt tone and words caused a stricken look to cross his wife's face. Keiran pointed to the ten-foot-tall painting in the dining area. "That will take you to the building next door. Keep her safe."
He turned to his wife again, but this time she was clearly avoiding his gaze. "Cadence?"
"I s-should go. We don't want to distract you."
Fuck.
He realized too late that he had hurt her with his words.
Again.
He had hurt her without meaning to.
Hurt her even though she didn't deserve it—-
Again and again.
Cadence
PRESENT TIME
I've never been on a private jet before—not even with Keiran.
Fancy is the only word I can think of to describe its interior, but as much as I want to enjoy it...
"How are you doing?"
I can't.
Not when my whole world is falling apart.
And so all I can do is muster a weak smile for Giancarlo. "I'm coping."
"That's more than good, all things considered."
His gentle voice makes me want to cry, and I'm not even sure why that is.
My mind drifts back to the past, and I remember how Giancarlo and I made our escape from Keiran's penthouse apartment. And the entire time, all I could think about was...
Is this really happening?
Is it?
Really?
And to be honest, the question is still at the back of my mind, like some ingested poison that's about to take effect at any given moment.
"We're here."
I glance out of the window...but it's not Boston I see below.
St. Martha's Vineyard?
"Think of this as a proactive strategy," Giancarlo murmurs. "We cannot let your parents be used as leverage against your husband, sì?"
All I can do is nod...while the poison starts to spread.
Is this really happening?
Is it?
Really?
I thought we'd be waiting for days. But all it takes is twenty minutes for Giancarlo's men to extract my parents from their self-purchased (un)safe house with military precision.
The look on my father's face when he sees me seated inside Giancarlo's private jet is almost...comical. But I think I've lost my sense of humor, and so all I can do is stare.
"Cadence? What the hell—"
"Hello, Dad."
My mother comes in next, and she loses all color when she sees me. "C-Cadence?"
Am I being too sensitive here...or are my parents really not happy to see their one and only daughter?
"Apologies for cutting the family reunion short, but we need to take off immediately. So Mr. and Mrs. Quinn, if you will?"
Giancarlo's silken drawl has my parents hurriedly doing his bidding.
The seatbelt sign lights up. We take off. And all I can do is watch my parents look anywhere but me.
Because they know what they've done.
And just like always, they're unwilling to take the blame.
A few more minutes pass before the seatbelt sign goes off, and before I realize what I'm about to do—-
"How could you?"
I'm already crying the words out.
Because all I can suddenly hear in my mind is the alarms in Keiran's penthouse apartment going off.
"You used his name—-"
My dad bristles. "He's my son-in-law—-"
His gall nearly has me throwing up. "So now he's your son-in-law...just because it suits you? You painted a target on his back—-"
"Stop talking to your father like that," my mom says shrilly. "We had to do what we had to do! And that man is one of them—-"
"You should be the one to stop," I burst out. "Just stop talking about Keiran like he owes us something when he never did. I was the one who was lucky—-"