Page 14 of The Devious Husband

“Still,” Luca says. “It’s clear they like each other, and there’s plenty of time for them to get to know each other on a different level once they’re married. A merger between both companies would fulfill Grandma’s criteria. I think she’ll go for it.”

“I quite like Graham,” Lex says. “It’d be nice to have him as a brother-in-law.” He knocks his shoulder against mine then. “We’ll have an extra poker player, Xave. Wouldn’t that be nice?”

“There’s no space,” I say dumbly. “This table was designed for the six of us.”

Lex smiles and nods excitedly. “Oh, you think I should already start designing a new table? That’s a great idea. Best to be proactive about that kind of thing.”

“Stop it,” Dion tells Lex, lightly punching his shoulder.

I look at my best friend in surprise, but he merely shakes his head and starts to deal the cards. I never told him how I feel about his sister, and considering the way Sierra and I have treated each other over the years, he’d probably never expect it.

I’m not even sure why we became such bitter rivals, but I’m certain the root cause of it was something I did unknowingly. In part, I think I kept our rivalry going because I knew she wouldn’t really let me into her life any other way, and it provided a much needed escape for me.

Besides, for as long as I’ve known her, she’s been waiting for the spouse her grandmother will eventually choose for her, and she hasn’t been interested in anyone else. So I waited, and I did everything I could to make sure her grandmother would consider me, but maybe I’ve gone too far, maybe that rivalry I enjoyed so much wasn’t enjoyable for Sierra. Maybe she truly does hate me, and my carefully orchestrated actions will push her right into another man’s arms.

“You okay?” Dion asks. “We’ve played three rounds and you haven’t said a single word other than call or fold.”

“Yeah, what’s going on with you, Xavier?” Ares asks, putting his cards down. He looks at me the way he sometimes looks at his younger brothers, like he knows exactly what’s going on but is waiting for me to tell him.

I stare at my cards and place them down, showcasing my Royal Flush. I don’t even bother collecting my winnings, though. No, there’s something far more important I want.

“I’m ready to collect all the favors you’ve all come to owe me throughout the years,” I say. “Every single one of them, at once.”

Ares crosses his arms and leans back, a knowing look in his eyes. “And what, pray tell, is it you want?”

I take a deep breath, knowing full well there’s every chance I won’t walk out of this room in one piece if I say what I need to, but I risk it anyway. “I would like to marry your sister, and I will need all of your support to make it happen.”

I expected backlash, maybe a broken nose, but instead, I’m met with five smiles. “About damn time,” Zane says, grinning as he and his brothers reach for their wallets, taking out wads of cash, and I raise a brow in surprise when it ends up mostly in Dion and Ares’s hands.

“We’d all been wondering how long it’d take you to collect your favors,” Luca explains, shrugging. “Ares bet it’d be this month, and that you’d use them to win Sierra’s hand in marriage. I lost because I thought you’d have done it a month ago, but thankfully I did get your rationale right.”

“You knew,” I murmur, my shoulders sagging in relief.

Lex chuckles, and Luca shakes his head. “Xavier, we’ve known for far longer than you could possibly know,” Zane tells me. “Why did you think we kept inviting you to our poker nights?”

Lex refills my whiskey glass and throws me an amused look. “That seat at the table has always been yours, Xavier. It always will be, provided you can win over both our grandmother and sister.”

“And that, my dear future brothers-in-law, is where you come in.”

Fourteen

Xavier

“I should’ve brought the Lex-board,” Lexington says nervously.

“Shut the fuck up about that damn board,” Zane snaps, sounding equally on edge as the six of us stare up at Anne Windsor’s home.

“Sierra is at the office and stuck in a meeting, so we have at least a solid hour. Even in the unlikely event that she caught wind of you being on the Windsor Estate, she wouldn’t be able to get here anytime soon,” Ares says, his tone reassuring.

Luca nods. “Our grandmother is… tough. Stepping into her home is different to sneaking into ours for poker night, and honestly, I’m not sure we can keep this from Sierra. If this gets back to her, it could backfire majorly.”

“Regardless,” Dion says. “We’ve got your back. I’m not gonna lie, not even the five of us combined can control the outcome of what’s about to happen, but we’ll do what we can. Though she’d never admit it, Sierra stopped being herself when you two stopped sabotaging each other. She smiled less and began to read more, like she needed an escape more than she used to. You bring out something in her that no one else can, Xavier.”

Lex places his hand on my shoulder. “None of us were sure about you until you two stopped fighting and Sierra lost her spark. Ultimately, Sierra’s happiness is what we care about most, and we’re willing to entrust you with it.”

“You know I’ll do everything in my power to make her happy, don’t you?”

Dion claps my back and smiles menacingly. “If, for even one single second, I doubt that you are, we’ll have words.”

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