Page 152 of Hidden Empire

Thinly veiled threats are a mafia man’s bread and butter.

“Being held is comforting for Jade,” Ivan replies blandly, unaffected by Dante’s insinuation. “She lays her head on your sons as well, if you’ve noticed.”

“Yes,” he agrees. “Her brothers.”

“Is that what you need from me? A familial title? Well, you’re in luck, considering I’ll be her brother as soon as mine returns. Technically, I already am on paper.”

I can practically hear my father grinding his teeth. “You’ve more than crossed the line of brotherly interactions with her, and you know it.”

“But you can’t conceptualize relationships that aren’t familial or sexual,” Ivan argues. “That’s on you, not on me. I can hold Jade twenty-four hours a day and never want to have sex with her if that’s what you’re trying to figure out. She’s Dmitri’s, I wouldn’t cross that line even if I wanted to.”

Missing the point entirely, my father growls. “So you’re brother’s in your way, is that it?”

“Jesus Christ,” Ivan grinds out. “No, Dmitri isn’t in my way. I’d die, kill, do fucking anything for Jade, and it isn’t because I’m in love with her. I’m beginning to think this whole family is touch-starved if it’s genuinely this difficult for you all to understand affection outside of sex.”

Harsh but not entirely inaccurate.

“I don’t believe you.”

Ivan huffs through a laugh. “Yeah, I’ve got that, thanks.”

“I don’t believe you,” Dante repeats. “Because anyone who recognizes how perfect my daughter is, who doesn’t want her for himself, is a liar. Or?—”

Holding back a gasp, I understand what he’s put together.

“Oh,” my dad says simply.

Ivan stiffens, and I almost end this rouse by waking up just to comfort and assure him. Dante would never out him, not even to Uncle Cesar or any of my brothers. He’s protective of me, but he’s not a monster. And with Nico, he has experience in this area.

“Alright,” he says, tone lighter and happier. “Good.”

“Good?” Ivan repeats, dumbfounded.

“Good,” Dad affirms. It's like a puzzle has fallen into place for him, and he couldn’t be more pleased with the result.

Ivan being gay isn’t exactly why we’re not sexually intimate. There’s a wealth of reasons, one of which being that his brother and I are it. We’re made for each other, and we’re hardly looking to open our relationship to another. But I do understand why this helps my dad understand us better. I can’t say that if Ivan were interested in women things wouldn’t be different because I don’t know that.

Dmitri would likely say the same thing. My connection to his brother is undeniable, but there’s no point in exploring what-ifs. I’d never want Ivan to change. I adore him and love him exactly the way he is. I’ll never have a closer friend, and I’d never dream of that changing. We’re perfect just like this.

Warily, Ivan asks, “No more interrogations then?”

I can hear what sounds like the start of a reply when Dante is interrupted.

“We’ve got an update from Empire.” It’s Apollo, and there’s an edge to his typically controlled tone.

Dad hears it, too, immediately going on alert. “What is it?”

“Nico and Armani are missing.”

My heart squeezes painfully behind my ribs. W-what?

A deafening silence roars around us for a split second until our father replies. “Missing?”

“My contacts have confirmed it, yes. Armani hasn’t been to a single one of his seminars and Nico hasn’t been seen at all since we left. What do you want to do?”

Mind whirling, I open my eyes just in time to see Ivan let out a sigh and pinch the bridge of his nose. “You don’t have to do anything.”

“Why the fuck would you say that?” Dad snaps, easily going from worried to pissed off.

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