Page 174 of Syndicate of Sin Bundle

“Where is the art gallery?” I asked.

“Near the coffee shop.”

“What time?”

“Nine.” She paused, then sucked in her bottom lip. “If you want them, you can take them. I don’t really wanna go by myself. I don’t really have any friends around the city yet, so …” She shrugged and awkwardly peered down at her feet. “I don’t mind.”

While I really wanted to go—because art—I needed to take care of Bethany. I really fucking needed to do it. Somehow, someway. I didn’t know what was gonna happen. I didn’t know how long it was going to take. But it needed to be done.

I couldn’t be distracted.

But maybe … if I went with Poppy, I could attempt to figure her out a bit more. Figure out what her intentions were with Sage. See if she really liked Sage the way I did, if she wanted to take Sage from me.

I chewed on the inside of my cheek, pulled out my phone from my pocket, and spotted one message from Bethany. Because I could be a rude bitch sometimes—I saw that now and was working on it—I glanced at the phone before responding to Poppy.

Bethany: I can’t make it tonight, sorry. I’m at the doctor.

I sighed.

“You could come with me if you don’t want to go alone either,” she suggested.

The offer was tempting, and I was almost going to accept. But I had already broken Sage’s trust more than once. If she found me going out with one of her friends, just so I could try to figure out her intentions, I didn’t know if she would ever be able to trust me again.

So, I shook my head. “No, thank you. I’ll let Sage know you were looking for her.”

59

laila

Once Poppy left, I paced around the penthouse. I debated on what to do. I could go after Bethany and just get it done now. Or I could wait. But waiting meant that I would be longer without my husband and Sage, longer without a family.

My mind was racing a million miles a minute. If I went out and found Bethany at the doctor’s office, I would have to do it in public or spend the day with her and bring her back here. Or maybe I could have somebody else do it for me. Will that even count? Will Constantino accept that?

So, I texted Bethany.

Me: Where are you? Which doctor?

Bethany: Plastic surgeon. I need to fix my nose, thanks to your husband.

My stomach twisted and turned. I cursed to myself and slipped my phone into my back pocket. I didn’t fucking want to do this. I really wish that I didn’t have to. I loathed myself more and more with every moment that passed.

But I had to do something. I couldn’t just sit here and wait. Who knew when she’d be able to come over? I just … I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it in public. Hell, I wouldn’t be able to do it in any place other than this house.

What if somebody caught me? What if the FBI watched me kill her? They would send me straight to jail. Straight to fucking prison. And then all my hopes and dreams of having a family would be erased for good. I wouldn’t get a chance at having a baby.

Me: Wanna meet me at the club later on?

I chewed on my nail and paced around the apartment, waiting for her response. I didn’t know what she would say. But if I were her, I wouldn’t want to go anywhere near the club now. Hell, I wouldn’t even wanna be my friend.

Bethany: I don’t know. We’ll have to see how long this takes.

Stomach twisting into knots, I took a big, deep breath and grabbed my purse. I didn’t know where I was going, but I couldn’t stay cooped up in here any longer. This house reminded me of him. Everything reminded me of him. Of what I was about to lose.

I closed up and walked to the elevator, barely looking at any of the guards. I felt so ashamed that I wasn’t with Constantino, that Constantino hadn’t shown back up. I felt like my husband was leaving me for good. His guards probably thought that he was cheating on me anyway.

They didn’t know the real story, and that was because of me. Because I couldn’t admit to wanting to be with another girl. Because I was nervous, afraid. What will they think of me? What will anyone think of me?

This was all my fault. I stepped into the elevator and balled my hands. This was all my fucking fault. Bethany was going to die because of me, because I couldn’t tell her that I liked Sage. That Sage was in our relationship because I wanted her to be in our relationship.

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