: Chapter 25

“You need to stop bending over counters like that, princess.” West smacks my ass on his way past me.

I straighten up and fix him with the fiercest glare I can muster while trying not to laugh. “I’m cleaning. Kind of hard to reach the middle of the island if I don’t lean over.”

He winks, his gray eyes twinkling with amusement. “I need to get some work done before bed. You two behave yourselves.” He gives me a soft kiss on the lips and leaves Xander and me alone to finish cleaning up after dinner.

My cell vibrates with an incoming call, and I glance at the screen, expecting it to be Jen calling for our usual evening chat. My heart stutters to a stop. Pressing the side button to decline the call, I dart a glance at Xander. Luckily, he’s facing the other way, so he didn’t notice my reaction. He turns around, a dish towel casually slung over his shoulder and a dirty dinner plate in his hand. “You not answering that?”

I look down at the counter, unable to lie while looking him in the eyes. “It was just someone from work about swapping a shift. I’ll call back later.”

He nods and goes back to loading the dishwasher.

I wait until after dinner and head to my bedroom to return the call from earlier. Wiping my sweaty palms on my legs, I wait for him to answer.

It takes him way too long to pick up, and I’m starting to panic when I hear his voice. Relief floods my body and weakens my knees. I sink onto the bed, breathing his name like a prayer to the heavens. “Nico.”

“Hey, Lily Pad.” His familiar voice washes over me and tears prick at my eyes.

“Is everything okay? Are you …?” My heart thumps violently.

“I’m fine. Everything’s okay.”

Taking a deep breath, I will my body to calm down. “Then why are you calling me on this number? You know you could get us both killed.”

“I’m in New York.”

Air whooshes out of my lungs, and I lie back on the bed before I fall down. What the hell is he doing in New York? My mind races with possibilities, none of them pleasant.

“Lil?”

I remember to breathe and take a gulp of oxygen. “I’m here.”

“I want to see you.” I imagine the scowl darkening his handsome features, marring the face I know as well as I know my own.

“No. It’s too dangerous.”

“Please. I miss you. It’s fucking hell without you.”

A single hot tear tracks its way down my cheek, my heart aching at the sadness in his voice. “I miss you too.”

“So, can I see you?”

“What if someone sees us together?”

“Nobody will. I have a suite at Excelsior. Room 925. Meet me there tomorrow.”

“I’m not sure I can get away.” I sniff back the tears threatening to escape. “I have work, and …” I stop short of telling him about West, Zeke, and Xander.

“Please. I’m only here for two days. I can’t come to New York and not see you, Lil.”

I close my eyes and will my heart to stop racing. It’s way too dangerous, but how do I refuse him? Especially after everything he’s done for me.

“Okay. I could probably get away from work for an hour around two. Does that work for you?”

“I’ll make sure it does. But I gotta run. Bye, Lil. Love you.”

“Love you too,” I whisper, but he’s already gone.

Julian Barnes, the editor of Genevieve magazine, calls my name as I walk past his office. “You got a minute?”

Nervous excitement skitters up my spine. I spin on my heel and head inside, closing the door behind me. He’s leafing through a stack of papers, and as I step closer, I realize it’s the research for my article. My breath catches in my throat. My future at this magazine is literally in his hands. I mean, I know I’m sleeping with the new owners, but that is not how I want to make a name for myself as a journalist.

“This is good,” he finally says, and I practically fall into the chair opposite his desk. “Real good stuff. You’ve been thorough.”

“I triple-checked all my facts. I just have a few more interviews to do, and then I think I’ll have it all wrapped up.”

“I’m thinking of putting it in the August issue. That work for you?”

That means my article will be out in July and will be published in the most purchased issue of the entire year. Hell yeah it works for me. Shifting in my seat, I fight to keep myself from jumping up, throwing my arms around his neck, and planting a noisy kiss right on his lips. “Sure.”

“Keep up the good work, Lily.”

I beam with pride. Julian is my hero. Youngest ever editor in chief of a major magazine, he started his career with hard-hitting but accessible pieces, and his work is incredible. He’s also super fair and supportive of all his staff. And although I’m not on the staff yet, just a freelancer, he’s been really supportive of me too.

His eyes narrow on my face, and I suddenly feel uncomfortable. “You know there’s a rumor you’re dating West Archer?”

I squirm in my chair. “Is that a problem? I mean I don’t discuss work with him, and I would never—”

“It’s not a problem for me.” He shrugs. “I don’t care who you date. Plus, I’m well aware that you could’ve asked your new boyfriend to make me put you in the magazine, but you didn’t. I respect that.”

He respects me. I smile so widely my cheeks hurt. “I’d never ask for a favor like that. I want my writing to speak for itself.”

“And it does. I just want you to know what people are saying before you head back into that viper’s nest out there. And if you do start working here permanently, you’ll need a thick skin if you’re dating the boss.”

The prospect of working at this magazine fills me with excitement. “I wouldn’t be dating the boss though, would I? More like my boss’s boss’s boss?”

He laughs loudly. “Remember that humor when I’m making you stick to insane deadlines.”

“It would be an honor to stick your insane deadlines, Julian. I really appreciate the opportunity you’re giving me.”

“You have talent, Lily. The honor will be all mine. Now get the hell out of here.” He nods toward the door.

I scurry out of his office, unable to keep the mile-wide smile from my face, but it falters when I run into Handsy Andy, Genevieve’s PR man, in the hallway.

His upper lip curls into a sneer. “Hey, Lily.”

“Hey,” I reply breezily as I press the call button for the elevator.

Standing too close for comfort, he leans down, and a shudder runs down my spine. “You know, we never did get that drink you promised me.”

I take a deep breath and remind myself that there are plenty of people milling around. I’m perfectly safe. “I never promised you a drink, Andy.” I told him I’d think about it when he had me cornered at an office party last Christmas.

Fury radiates from him. “You too good for me now that you’re fucking West Archer?”

“Fuck you.” I step into the elevator that arrived right on time and leave Andy seething. Just before the doors close all the way, I flip him the bird and promptly forget all about him.

I’m going to be in the August edition of Genevieve magazine, I have three insanely hot boyfriends that I get to go home to tonight, and most exciting of all, I’m about to see Nico.

My knees tremble when I step inside the lobby of Excelsior, and I pull my beanie hat down further and glance around. The lobby is empty except for an elderly couple drinking coffee and a young woman feeding a baby.

Pressing a hand on my stomach to quell my nerves, I raise my hand to knock on the door of room 925. Nico would never betray me, but what if he found out about us?

Willing him to hurry up and open the goddamn door, I glance down the corridor. Finally the door opens, and his familiar face creases with a huge smile. Pulling me into the room, he wraps me in a giant bear hug, nearly squeezing the life from me in the process, but I hug him back just as fiercely. All the memories we’ve shared flood to the surface, and I cling to him, tears streaming down my face. I convinced myself I could hold it together, but it’s been over two years since we last saw each other, and seeing him now only makes his absence in my life all that much more acute.

“Hey, Lily Pad,” he says, his tone gentle as he brushes the moisture from my cheeks with his thumbs. “Don’t cry.”

“I-I miss you so much.”

“I know.” He hugs me again, this time even tighter. “I miss you too. It’s fucking awful back home without you.”

“I’m s-so s-sorry I left you.”

He pulls back and looks down at me, his dark brown eyes full of sorrow. “Don’t be sorry, Lily Pad. I’m glad you got out. I’m glad …” His Adam’s apple bobs harshly.

I wipe my cheeks and focus on the fact that he’s here right now. “Why are you even in New York?”

“Pop has asked me to oversee some business. I’ll be here once a month, which means I get to see you.”

“You will?” Equal parts of joy and anxiety wrestle in my stomach, and I swallow down a wave of nausea. “Do you think he knows?”

“He has no idea, I swear. If he did, he’d have a fucking army scouring this country looking for you.”

He’s got a point. “I wish I was strong like you.”

“Hey,” he admonishes me. “It’s different for me, and we both know it. That was no life for you. What he was expecting you to do.” His hands clench into fists. “I would never have fucking allowed it, sis. Never.”

My lips curve, not quite a smile but an acknowledgment.

He looks me over from head-to-toe one last time, like he’s assuring himself that I really am here, then holds up one finger and goes into the kitchen. When he comes back, he’s holding two mugs of coffee. He gestures toward the comfy sofas and we both take a seat. “So tell me all about your life here in New York.”

“It’s good. Great, actually. I’m still a messenger, but I’m working on a story for a magazine. They’re publishing it next month.”

“They are?” His face lights up with pride.

“Yeah.” I look down and pluck a stray piece of lint from the sofa cushion. “It’s something I’m really proud of. I’ll let you know when it’s out so you can read it.”

“I’m so fucking proud of you. You were always destined to be amazing.”

“Was not,” I say with a blush. He’s the amazing one. I’m just a coward who ran away from all my problems.

“Anything else going on with you? You meet a guy yet?”

Oh god. “Kind of.” I take a small sip of my coffee. “It’s still early.” I hate not telling him the whole truth, but how do I tell my twin brother that I’m dating three men at the same time? And that one of them is a guy our father once tried to kill.

I hate keeping all these secrets, but it’s the way I’ve lived my entire life. Always protecting somebody’s secret, and now I keep my own. Not only for me, but for Nico. If our father ever found out about what he did for me, he’d surely kill him.

“Is it serious?”

I press my lips together. “It might be.”

“Well, if you ever want to get married, have babies, anything like that, those papers you have will stand up to the highest level of scrutiny. I promise you that.”

“I know.” I nudge his arm with my elbow. “They got me through four years of college, so I figure they can get me a marriage license, should I ever need one.” He grins at me, and my face burns with embarrassment. “Not that I’m even thinking about that,” I insist. It isn’t like I can marry all three of them, even if I wanted to. Pretty sure that’s illegal in all fifty states. “I only say that because you brought it up.”

One corner of his mouth curves and he snorts. “Things must be a lot more serious than you let on.”

“Stop!” I sink back against the plush cushions and stare out the window, thinking about the guys and how I’ll have to make up a story about what I did this afternoon. It breaks my heart that when they ask me how my day was, I won’t be able to tell them about the best part of it—seeing my brother for the first time in two years. I can’t even tell them I have a brother. Swallowing down a lump of complex emotion, I redirect my attention to Nico. “Anyway, enough about my love life. How’s yours?”

He sighs heavily. “Complicated.”

“Can’t you get out too?”

He shakes his head. “Both of us disappearing would look way too suspicious, you know that. He’d come after you too.”

“I’d take that risk if it meant you could get out. We could go somewhere together.” A pang of guilt blindsides me as soon as the suggestion leaves my mouth. Although I’ve only known them for a few months, I can’t imagine leaving the guys. However, my heart breaks knowing that my wonderful brother can’t be with the person he loves just because he happens to love another man.

“One day Pop won’t be in charge anymore, and then maybe Dean and I can …” He shrugs.

“You think he’ll wait for you?”

“He’s not exactly waiting. He’s my second-in-command.” He twists his wedding band around his finger, seemingly without thought. “I spend more time with him than I do my wife.”

“How is Belinda?”

“She’s happy with the way things are. For now, anyway. I try to knock her up once a month, and she spends a small fortune on handbags and personal trainers in an attempt to make up for the fact that we can barely stand each other.”

“I hate that he forced you to marry her.”

“Belinda and I knew what we were signing up for. We’re both fine. We’ll figure it out in our own way. As soon as we have a kid, we can divorce and she can go live her life however the hell she wants to.”

“What if she has a girl?”

He drops a soft kiss on my forehead. “By the time she’s grown, things will be different.”

We chat a little more about trivial things and the series we’re both currently binging on Netflix before he tells me he has to leave for his meeting. “Stay as long as you want. Nobody except Dean uses this suite.”

“Where is Dean?”

“He’ll be at the meeting.”

“Give him my love, won’t you?”

He winks at me. “Yeah.”

I study my brother in his perfectly tailored suit. He’s always immaculately turned out, exactly like I was expected to be. His thick black hair is cut short, and I’ve never seen him with even the slightest bit of stubble. He looks way too young to live the life that he leads. He might only be twenty-four, but he’s wise beyond his years. “You two make a very handsome couple.”

He laughs out loud at that.

“I hope I get to come to your wedding one day.”

He inhales a deep breath. “Me too, sis.”

I find West in the kitchen making dinner. “Sorry I’m late. It was my turn to cook tonight. You need me to do anything?” Now I feel even more guilty that my extended lunch to see Nico made me late with my deliveries.

“Nah, I’ve got it. I was home early, and I enjoy cooking.” He glances up from the raw chicken he’s cutting. “But come here.”

“Where?” I say, feigning ignorance.

He licks his lips. “Right here, princess.”

I step closer and grip the back of his neck, barely brushing his lips with mine. “Here?”

He growls. “Unless you want chicken guts in your hair, give me your fucking lips.”

Smiling against his mouth, I curl my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck. “These lips right here?”

He sucks air through his teeth. “I’d much rather kiss your other lips, princess, but I’m making dinner here.”

I snort a laugh. “That’s not what I meant.”

He tugs my bottom lip between his teeth for a brief moment, then slips his tongue into my mouth. My body sags against him, and I whimper. I’m such a slut for this man’s kisses. For anything from any of them. I have no idea why the universe chose me to be the luckiest girl on this planet, I’m just glad that she did.

He breaks the kiss, leaving me wanting more. Using lips and teeth, he works his way up my jaw to my ear. “I’ll definitely be kissing those other lips later.”

“I sure hope so,” I say, wrapping both arms around his neck. God, I love him. I love all three of them. I wish that I could tell him who I really am. But what if he blames me for my father’s mistakes? What if he only sees me as Carmine Constantine’s daughter and he doesn’t remember the little girl who begged her father to spare his life?

“Something wrong, princess?” The concern in his voice makes my breath catch in my throat.

“Everything’s good.” It’s just a small lie, right? It doesn’t hurt anyone, and it protects the people I love most in the world. Nobody can ever know what Nico did for me, and nobody can find out that Liliana Constantine is still alive. West, Xander, and Zeke can never know why I left, because if they were to ever start a war with my family, I fear there would only be one winner. My father.