Page 49 of If Tomorrow Never Comes

I pull out her chair and wait for her to sit, before sliding it back in and taking a seat across from her. Eloise and Robert bring out the first course salads, placing them down on each of our gold charger plates.

“Would you like some wine, Ms. Marrone?” Eloise holds up a bottle of red and white in each hand.

“I would love a glass of red. And please, call me Madison.” Eloise smiles in return, busying herself with opening the wine and transferring it to the decanter. She pours Madison a glass of cabernet sauvignon then fills my glass as well. This wine is my favorite. I get it directly from a small family owned vineyard in Bordeaux, France.

“Can I get anyone anything else before the next course is served?” Robert inquires.

“We seem to have everything. Thank you, Robert,” I say before taking a sip of my wine.

Madison watches me with peaked interest over the rim of her glass. Taking a sip she smiles then takes another one.

“Are you a big wine drinker?” she asks, nodding her head to my glass.

“My cousin is a bit of a wine fanatic, if you will,” Antonio lifts his beer bottle, pointing the neck at me. He’s never been one to drink out of a chilled glass, and I don’t blame him. Beer just tastes better in a bottle.

“Is he?” Madison smiles wide before taking another sip of her own.

“I don’t swish and swirl or gargle—God, that’s fucking awful.However, I do enjoy good wines from a number of different regions.”

Madison bites her lip and covers a hand over her mouth at the mention of gargling. “I’d like to see that one day,” she laughs, borderline snorts. Her eyes twinkle with a challenge.

I shrug, “I will if you will. Maybe our next trip should be to Italy or maybe France. I didn’t know you enjoyed wine as well.”

Those perfectly arched brows come together at the suggestion. “How would you? I was held prisoner for three weeks,” she sneers. Checking her tone, she takes another sip from her glass. “I love wine just as much as I do coffee.” Her fork shakes as she stabs at the halved cherry tomatoes.

When she finally manages to skewer one, she moves on to add a bunch of arugula and a bit of burrata. She ceremoniously shoves the salad into her mouth, wipes at the corners of it with the cloth napkin, then abruptly stands.

“Excuse me, I left my phone in the room and need to grab it in case myboyfriendcalls.”

I lean back in my chair, silently sipping my wine as I wait for her to return.

“Dude, she’s pissed,” my cousin laughs, stating the fucking obvious.

“No shit,Sherlock.”

At least she said boyfriend and notfiancé. Maybe my speech earlier gave her something to think about. After a few minutes have passed, I drain my wine and follow my little butterfly. The door is open when I reach her room, and I find her sitting on the edge of her bed.Which is one room over from mine, I might add. She’s staring at the phone in her hand while gnawing on her lip.

I take a seat next to her and pat her leg. “What you heard earlier was part of a conversation I was having with my sister. I had no idea Antonio was going to show up here. He’s been trying to call me since we left Miami. Something must have been wrong with my service because the missed calls only registered when we arrived on the ship. He even reached out to Selena this morning.”

“What’s the urgency?” She looks up and her eyes are wide, searching mine.

I let out a sigh. “Uncle Geraldo decided he wanted to have a little… fun with you…” I trail off, disgusted by the words coming out of my mouth. “My cousin caught wind of that, the night of the ambush, and told Geraldo that I requested his assistance. Antonio took the first flight here and has been staying at a hotel near the port. Apparently, Geraldo and all his men agreed a little vacation was in order while the island gets restored. They should be arriving in a few days.” Collecting her shaking hands in mine, I give them a firm squeeze.

“No,” she says in disbelief. “We had a plan.”

“He won’t fucking touch you. No one will. You gonowherewithout me or Antonio. Do you understand me? This just means we get to end them sooner than we had thought. Then you’ll be on your merry way back to your man.” An ache in my chest forms at the thought of not seeing her every day. I shake that feeling off so as to not worry her by my change in demeanor. “The good news is my uncle gets seasick easily, so they will be staying at a hotel on the island. I’m sure he will be here for the occasional dinner or business meeting. Selena and Killian are coming as well with some backup and will be staying on his yacht. It’s actually already here. I’ll show you how close it’s docked when we go back upstairs.”

I wrap an arm around her shoulder and pull her into me, tucking her head under my chin. Her body tenses from the contact before relaxing into me.

“It’s going to be okay,Mariposita. He is just doing this to see if I’m bluffing. I have to show him myEl Rompe Huesosside and ease his suspicions. When he drops his guard, I’ll alert Killian to make our move. In the meantime, try to enjoy yourself. We’ll start your training tomorrow—if you’re still interested.”

Madison barely touched her dinner.She kept fidgeting with her phone, indecision and unease haunting her perfect features. I know she wants to tell Liam, but doing so will only make matters worse. There’s nothing he can do from Ireland, so I understand why she hasn’t reached out to him yet.

Antonio excuses himself to his room after dinner, leaving Madison and I sitting at the candlelit table. This moment could have been romantic if there weren’t so many issues plaguing it. Leaning back in her chair, she drains the remainder of her wine, then stands. “I think I’ll try and get some rest before more death and chaos unfold.”

The secondI reach my room, I lock the door, leaning my shoulder against it for support. I tilt my head and press it against the smooth wood, releasing a frustrated sigh.

I don’t want Diego here to witness my meltdown.

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