Page 57 of Sovereign Oaths

“That’s so exciting! Where are you going to live? Does Alessio know?”

“I’ve been looking but haven’t found anything I want to commit to yet. I’ll probably stay here for a while, at least until I figure out where I want to be. As long as that’s okay with you,” she added quickly.“I don’t want to crowd you two.”

“Me? Shouldn’t you be checking with your brother?”

“No, he’ll go with whatever you say.”

She gave me far too much credit. “He might let me pick where we go to dinner most nights, but I’m pretty sure he has the final decision on who lives in his house.”

“Nah, you say you want me here, and it’s done.”

I smirked. “Fine. I guess I wouldn’t mind having you stay here.”

“I don’t want to get in the way of anything.” She giggled. “We can come up with a signal or code word you could text, and I’ll know to stay in my room. With headphones on.”

“Stop.” I pushed her arm. “We can be respectful of you too. Plus, it’s not like I live here. I still have my own apartment.”

“That you’re rarely at.”

“When Alessio isn’t around, I stay there,” I shot back.

“Well, now you won’t have to. I’ll be here, and you’ll have to keep me company when he’s gone.”

Huh. That was a good point. He wouldn’t want either of us staying alone if we could be together, which could cause complications down the road. Telling either of them that I needed space or privacy probably wouldn’t go over well. I’d offend Alessio and hurt her feelings.

Maybe this was a bad idea. I could suggest a few apartment buildings to Ama, but she’d think I wanted her gone, which I did. Just not for the reasons she’d think.

I needed to get to the guys if something came up. Sure, they could handle ninety-nine percent of things on their own, but that didn’t mean I wanted to live with Alessio.

“I’m not sure I’m ready for that level quite yet.”

“Of sleeping over with me?” she teased.

“When it’s just you, sure, but Alessio and I still have some work to do between us. Moving in together is too much too soon.”

She put her hand over her heart. “As sad as that makes me, I appreciate you making him work for you. Most women would take advantage of everything he has and can offer. One of my favorite things about you is that you don’t care about that. You hold him to a higher standard. Just because he has money doesn’t mean you’ll put up with his shit.”

I smiled. “Exactly. He can’t just have everything he wants.”

“I knew I loved you.” She patted my leg. “Now we have to hurry and get ready for tonight.”

It was only a little after four, but knowing her, she had grand plans of doing my hair and makeup and treating me like a life-sized doll.

CHAPTER 14

Emilia

I was right.

She blow-dried, curled, and styled my hair until she declared it perfect. Long, dark waves cascaded over my shoulders and down my back. The short, corseted dress she bought for me was a vibrant fuchsia I never would have picked for myself but ended up looking great against my skin.

If I was myself, I’d never have stepped outside. It was too bright. Too dramatic. Too eye-catching. I spent my whole life doing everything I could to blend in and look just good enough to belong, but not good enough to draw too much attention.

This dress plus the five-inch matching stilettos wouldn’t allow that.

I had all eyes on me from the moment we stepped inside the club, which were considerably fewer than I expected, much to my relief. Derek stood against the wall near the entrance.

“Only people I personally invited,” Alessio whispered in my ear as I took in the dim room with the nearly empty dance floor taking up most of the space.

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