Page 26 of The Forbidden Husband

When I noticed him taking me in, another bunch of shivers erupted. His eyes lingered on a few notable parts that the bathing suit and coverup showed. It wasn’t the kind of garment Iwould have chosen for myself, especially not with the amount of skin it revealed, but it certainly seemed to catch his attention.

Good. I needed positive attention if I ever wanted to learn anything about Enzo Rissi.

“It’s beautiful here,” I remarked, looking over the water where the sun shined in the ripples. “I’ve never been to this beach.”

He nodded and gestured to a dining chair that seemed to balance precariously on the sand. I took my seat, and he immediately followed.

His movements were just as stiff as usual, and I wondered if he tried to use his clothes as a ruse. Or maybe he didn’t know how to loosen up around me yet. Then again, I wasn’t sure I had ever seen the man relaxed in all the years he had pranced through the media.

“You’ve lived in New York your whole life and never came here?”

“Too close to Russian territory,” I replied with a shrug.

He nodded and reached for the biscuits in the center of the table.

“Is this adate?” I asked teasingly. It sounded like I was trying too hard, but I put on my best smile and leaned forward. “I didn’t take you as the kind of man who would wine and dine his wife.”

He slid a manilla envelope forward. “Jaimie gave me some information that I figured you would be interested in seeing.”

Every muscle in my body went stiff.

“Jaimie… told you?” I asked hesitantly.

“Jaimie is working for me right now, so yes, she informed me of your request.”

I knew how this looked. It had to look bad. He already didn’t trust me, and to learn that I was trying to contact my sister, a known traitor… how long had he known? I wondered if Jaimie went straight to him after I asked her to check on Noemi. Was that why he hadn’t spoken to me over the last week?

“It’s not what you think.”

“How do you know what I think?”

“I’m not colluding with the Russians,” I told him. His expression gave away nothing as a sharp breeze sent the corner of the tablecloth whipping in the wind. “I haven’t even paid her to go. I didn’t think she was already on the job.”

“She’s been paid.”

She’s been paid?

“By… you?”

He nodded and pushed the manilla folder even closer. My fingers trembled as they hovered over the heavy paper, full to the brim of information. If there was something incriminating here, it would ruin my chances of being successful. Enzo would never trust me. Not if he suspected I was working with Noemi.

I peeled open the unsealed envelope and knew that Enzo had already sifted through it by his scrutinizing expression.

As I began removing the documents, I found photographs of Noemi, some at Anton Petrov’s side and others in the company of unrecognizable men and women. She didn’t look sad. In fact, her eyes shone with carefree happiness.

I couldn’t remember the last time I had seen that in her eyes.

I was much more accustomed to anger and insolence shining in her expression. This… this was so much more than I could have hoped for.

I felt a tear rolling down my cheek. “She looks happy.”

“Keep going,” Enzo demanded.

I did. I went through more photographs—dozens more. Then, I found a single piece of paper at the back of the stack. I recognized her handwriting immediately. A sticky note rested on the top page in an unknown handwriting. Jaimie’s, I assume.

I contacted the subject and told her Aria wanted to ensure she was safe. She was alone, and she wrote a note on the spot. The subject was informed of Aria’s safety and given my contact information to follow up if necessary.

I peeled back the sticky note and began reading words that had come straight from my sister. She insisted she was safe. She was happy, and she was being treated well by Anton. She said she couldn’t discuss politics without meeting me in person, unable to risk information falling into someone else’s hands. But she said every effort was made to ensure Livia, Evelina, and I were safe.

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