Page 48 of Triplets for the Mafia Prince

I swallow. “And me?” Surely, his father treated his wives better than that.

“You, he’d save for his friends… well, not anymore. Not after I’ve tainted you.”

“Tainted?” Suddenly, I feel small, like nothing.

“That’s how he’d see it.”

I want to be sick. I rise and go to the sink. I shake as I try to fill a glass with water.

A moment later, Nic is behind me. “Hey.” He pushes my hair aside from where it’s fallen on my face. “You’re not tainted. I didn’t mean that. It’s howhe’dsee it.”

For some reason, that doesn’t make me feel much better.

“I’m sorry… fuck.” He lets out a frustrated growl. “My father is a soulless man. He’s the tainted one. Sick. Not you, Bella. You’re beautiful. I won’t let his darkness touch you.”

I sip the water, wanting to lean into him, but I can’t. “When you kill your father, are you going to replace him?”

“Yes. If I’m not killed.”

I move away from him, repulsed. “So you’ll sell women and children? Me? Your niece?”

His expression turns dark. “What the fuck?” He almost looks offended.

“You just said you’d take over the business?—”

“Not that part. Fucking hell. You think that?” Now I’m sure I see pain in his eyes. “I’m not innocent, but there are lines I won't cross."

How do we get in these situations? One minute, there’s an electric, erotic snap, crackle, pop between us and the next, it’s a dark tension pushing us apart.

“I’m no monster. Fraud, money laundering, protection rackets, those are crimes against the system. But trafficking people? That's evil. Pure evil." He’s looking at me like he can’t believe I’d think he’d do something so heinous. "I don't care how much money it brings in. I don't care who I piss off. I won't be part of that. Ever."

The conviction in his words, the fire in his eyes, makes me believe him. I should be running from all of this, from him, from this world. Instead, I find myself nodding, accepting his words. He’s a criminal, but he’s not completely without a conscience.

“I’m glad.”

He eyes narrow, studying me as if he’s trying to decide whether I’m telling him the truth. He opens his mouth, and I get the sense he’s going to plead his case some more, maybe be angry at me for considering he’d engage in such activity. But then he runs his hands through his hair. “I guess I can see why you’d question me, maybe worry I’d do it to you.”

I shake my head. “I didn’t think you’d do it to me.” Which is odd if I truly questioned whether or not he’d take over his father’s trafficking business.

Again, he studies me.

“I trust you.”

He sucks in a breath like he’s surprised by my statement. “You don’t have much choice.”

“I do have a choice. You could tie me up or otherwise physically control me, but I’m in charge of whom I trust.”

He nods. “Thank you.”

For a moment, we stand staring at each other. Until it gets a bit awkward. "So, what's the actual plan? We can't stay in this cabin forever,” I say.

He leans against the counter. "That I’m still working on. Getting access to my father isn’t going to be easy. He'll have contingencies, loyal soldiers watching his back." Nic rubs his temple. "And he's already shown he's willing to sacrifice his own son. There's no telling what else he might do."

"What about your friend Max? Can he help?"

"I’m counting on it, but mostly, I need him to focus on protecting Gia and the kids. If my father suspects he's helping us…" Nic's jaw clenches. "I won't put them at risk."

I wrap my arms around myself. "So, we're on our own?"

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