Page 54 of Forever Fake

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” He pulls out his phone. “Let’s see what Lexa has to say.”

A moment later, a knock sounds on our door and I let Lexa inside. She’s so shy and demure, she reminds of my cousin Elena—Ravenna’s twin sister—who lives in Italy. Except Elena wasn’t always so closed off, something happened to her, and I don’t know what. Maybe that’s why I feel so strongly about protecting Blake’s step-sister, who I hardly know at all.

Blake motions to Lexa. “My fiancée’s concerned about your wellbeing and threatening to abscond with you, if her worries aren’t laid to rest. Believe me, you wouldn’t be the first thingshe’s stolen, so why don’t you tell her your thoughts on your upcoming wedding.”

Lexa turns wide eyes on me, hesitating before she speaks. “I need to do this, to marry Franklin. You don’t understand, but this wedding is my way out. I’ll finally be free of my mother.”

“Can’t Blake free you from your mother?” I ask, confused and desperate to understand. “What do you need? Money? A safe place to stay? I—we can help you.”

She shakes her head. “No. I have to do this on my own. I can’t get anyone else involved, especially family.”

I glance at Blake, silently pleading for his help.

He shrugs. “I’ve already tried to offer her a way out. She won’t take it.” His gaze bores into her, and she swallows hard. I think she’s hiding something, but what can it be? What is she not telling us?

“I don’t understand. Why don’t you just—you know—kill her?” I sound callous, but come on, the woman’s ruining everybody’s lives. Besides, I grew up in a mafia family, the idea of eliminating someone who’s problematic isn’t that big of a deal.

Lexa answers. “Because she has dirt on Blake.”

“How do you know about that?” he demands.

“She bragged about it, of course. Liam and I both know she’s blackmailing you.”

I stare at both of them, stunned. What’s with all the blackmail? Yve’s blackmailing Blake, who is in turn blackmailing me. This is ridiculous, but I guess it’s the only language we all know how to speak. Threats, lies, and twisted agreements—without those we’d never achieve what we’re after.

Now, so much makes sense to me. Blake’s hands are tied when it comes to Yve.

“What is she blackmailing him with?” I ask Lexa.

“Apparently she had him followed and caught him murdering someone on film. This was years ago, but she still brags about it, and how he’ll never find the evidence.” Lexa taps her bottom lip. “What is it she says… Oh yeah, how he’ll never find it because it’s too obvious.”

Blake’s gaze snaps to her. “She does? What does that mean?”

“It’s probably embedded beneath her skin, who knows? You know what she’s like, what lengths she’ll go through.”

“I do,” Blake admits.

My mind races with the possibilities. Where would Yve hide that kind of evidence?

Blake’s voice breaks through my thoughts. “Even if she has a copy on her, or someplace obvious, it won’t be the only one. Damn it.” He rakes his fingers through his hair.

Lexa shoots him a sympathetic smile. “I didn’t think to mention it before because it’s really not helpful information. It’s been years, Blake, you’re never going to find the recordings. We all just have to keep playing her games.”

He heaves a sigh, the lines between his brows deepen.

“Well, since Yve’s bent on making your lives hell,” I murmur, “what do you say about having a bachelorette party tonight?”

Lexa’s expression lights up for the first time. “Really?”

“Really.” When life gets shitty, there’s one thing that can make everything better for a while. A damn good party.

CHAPTER 24

Blake

Acouple hours after dinner concludes, Gin, Lexa, and Sam are dancing on top of a table to a Taylor Swift song, while Liam showers them in champagne. They started this party off with tequila shots and Ginevra telling Yve toshut upwhen she protested and tried to get Lexa away. The stunned look on Yve’s face will live on in my memory forever.

The girls closed ranks around Lexa, and once Yve realized she was outnumbered, she took Franklin and skulked off into the shadows. Her hooks are obviously firmly planted into him. They’ve been carrying on like lovers this entire trip, right under Lexa’s nose. So why the fuck does my step-sister want to go through with this wedding? There’s something she’s not telling me. She’s hiding something, and I want to know what it is.

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