Page 70 of Unforgiving Queen
I assumed she meant Amon, not Dante.
“It was unexpected,” I murmured, signing. “Seeing him.” She nodded in understanding. “Is that how you feel every time you see Dante?”
Something flickered in her eyes and I dreaded telling her what Papà had done or what I had agreed to. At least for the time being.
“I’m over him.” She wasn’t. I knew it because the pain I felt was staring back at me. “What did Papà have to say to those assholes?”
My heart drummed painfully against my rib cage, knowing my next words would hurt her. I’d give anything to bear her pain. It was unfair that the two of us had to suffer through this stupid ordeal constructed by a man who was supposed to protect us.
“He arranged a marriage.” Her eyes widened and her whole body stilled. She knew who my intended was even before I added, “To Dante.” I watched as a range of emotions flashed across her expression. Hurt. Disappointment. Anger. Back to pain. “I don’t want to do it,” I whispered. “I’ll find a way out of it, I promise.”
Tears glimmered in her eyes, clawing at my chest and making it bleed all over again.
I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her tightly. Her body trembled, and I squeezed her tighter.
“I’ll fix this somehow,” I whispered, although she couldn’t hear me. Maybe I was making a vow to the universe. It wasn’t fair that we were just pawns to these men. It was like a game of yo-yo when it came to two Leone brothers. They wanted us; they didn’t want us.
Well, we no longer wanted them.
Phoenix took a step back and I signed, “I promise it will be okay. I’ll think of something.”
She pushed a strand of hair out of her face with a trembling hand.
“It doesn’t matter. Even if you do find a way out of it, he still won’t wantme.”
“Phoenix…” My hands moved hesitantly. I didn’t know how to warn her about Dante. She had to stay away from him. She was in love with her half-sibling and didn’t even know it. “I think it’s best you keep your distance from Dante Leone.” I realized it sounded harsh, almost as if I was claiming him for myself, so I quickly added, “Our last resort will be to run away. Together.”
“Because you don’t want him?”
“Because marrying him would destroy us both,” I signed. For different reasons, but destroy us nonetheless.
Without another word, she turned around and left.
I stared after her for what seemed like forever when the buzz of my phone startled me.
I reached for it. It was Phoenix.
I slid the message open, my own hands shaking.
I love you, sister.
The phone buzzed again and another message came in.
Strong people break too. Stop trying to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders.
And then my heart broke for an entirely different reason.
I made my way out of the venue, my eyes still burning with unshed tears. For Phoenix. For this fucked-up life. For Papà. Every goddamned thing that I couldn’t fix.
Outside, the cool October air soothed my heated skin. The sounds of the city were strangely calming as I made my way to the club where the girls waited for me. Turning a corner at the end of the street, I collided with something solid and warm.
A breath whooshed out of me and I stumbled back a step.
Green apples and citrus.I didn’t even have to look up to know who stood before me, but when I did, the bustling Paris street melted away.
We stared at each other as a thick, almost suffocating tension surrounded us.
“Lost, Amon?”
