Page 85 of Fierce Monarch

“Because Alec was set to take the city before Mario got to it, but he wasn’t as strong, and when the Marcosas came in, he knew it. He gave up quickly, so he got to live, but he was still sent to prison for murder.”

I wanted to explain more, but I couldn’t. Not yet. Mari was still too stiff in my arms and I wanted that softness back, so I kissed her cheek again and again until she seemed to lose some of the steel in her spine. “Do you still hate me?”

“No.” But she still wasn’t sure about us. I hated that I had no way of fixing it except having patience.

“That’s okay. I’ve got time.”

Her arms fell to her sides, and I took advantage, swooping in for a hug and a searing kiss. It wasn’t until she laid her hand on my cheek that I felt the chill of metal on my skin. Pulling back, I saw what I’d missed.

An engagement ring.

It was beautiful, exactly what I would’ve picked for Mari, but a deep part of me hated it too.

She was supposed to wear my ring.

One thing at a time, I reminded myself. If I could get her to stop hating me, to give us another chance, I’d happily play boyfriend for the rest of our lives.

She watched nervously as I gently rubbed the ring with my thumb and pressed a kiss to it. “I want this one day.”

Obviously, Mari hadn’t been expecting that. She jerked, ripping her hand away by accident. “Nate.”

I just smiled, diving for one last kiss. “I have to go, but if you need me, call and I’ll come. Okay?”

“Okay.”

I hoped I’d done what I set out to do, but I couldn’t stick around to find out. Dominic had finally lost his patience and had come looking for her. “Congratulations, Mari. Grey’s going to be a good husband.”

Then I slipped out the window and away from the love of my life.

If I wanted forever too, I had a war to stop and a psychopath to put down.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Mari

My head was still reeling from Nate’s confession and the unexpected orgasm he left me with when I finally slipped back into the kitchen.

Nate had infiltrated my home, my family, because he’d had no choice. Either he did it, or he condemned his mother to die. I wouldn’t wish that ultimatum on anyone, but could I forgive him, even if I would’ve made the same decision?

And that was only part of the problem. Even if I forgave him, could I ever forget? Could that trust we’d built be mended, or had we lost everything we needed to repair? If anyone but Nate had betrayed me, I’d have killed them on the spot, but I didn’t. Nate was different. He’d always been different, but that didn’t mean I knew what to do.

Slinking into the room, I wrapped my arms around Greyson while Dominic was grabbing a shower. Dipping, my fiancé kissed the top of my head. “You smell like sex, reina.”

Oh fuck. I’d run to the bathroom to clean up a little since I couldn’t exactly walk in with come dripping down my leg, but I hadn’t wanted a full-blown shower. I needed Nate’s scent on my skin for a little longer.

Note to self, stay away from Dominic.

When I stiffened, Grey kissed me again and pulled me tighter against him. “I take it we have a visitor?”

There was no anger in his voice, and I didn’t realize I’d been nervous about his reaction until then. With a happy sigh, I melted against him, grateful once again that Grey was there for me through everything. “He’s gone.”

“For now.”

Not knowing how to answer that, I took the mature route and ignored it. Dominic came back, making it much easier than I expected. “I thought we could watch a movie tonight.”

It’d been so long since we’d all just relaxed together, and I missed it. Despite the chaos looming, I wanted to enjoy my partners. The situation with Nate taught me there was no guarantee that tomorrow came with all of us alive.

We needed to celebrate every minute we had together.

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