Page 110 of Beauty and the Daddy
He just doesn't know it yet.
Now we just need to catch the rat in a trap he won't see coming.
Conor backs out of the office like he's stumbled into a sex tape filming, which, fair.
I'm still sitting casually on Luca's desk, looking thoroughly debauched.
"So," I smooth down my clothes for the sake of dignity, "your brother's a psychopath."
Luca's eyes are steel now. "I'm going to take him down tonight."
"Whoa, slow down, Rambo." I slide off the desk. "You can't just go guns blazing. He'll see you coming from a mile away."
"I don't care if he sees me." Luca's voice is murder. "He tried to poison me and sent men into my home. My daughter was here."
I step closer, placing my hand on his chest. "Exactly why we need to be smarter than him. You go at him directly, he'll have a contingency plan. He might have allies we don't know about."
"What do you suggest?"
"We force him into the open where everyone can see his true colors. And I'm going to be the bait."
Luca's expression transforms from fury to something far more dangerous—the kind of protective rage that starts wars. "Over my dead body."
"Listen to me before you go all alpha caveman." I step closer, hands on his chest. "Declan's already marked me as your weakness. He's tried to use me against you before. So let's give him exactly what he wants—the chance to take me down."
He told those men to grab me, remember? I'm the leverage he wants."
His jaw tightens. That muscle ticks, and I can practically hear the mutiny in his head: No. "He's already tried you once, during a council meeting. I think that was enough."
"You're not getting it, are you?" I say. "He'll try again. If I cause a public scene, he'll pounce. He'll be dying to discredit me. The faster he moves, the sloppier he gets."
"Belle." He shakes his head.
"I'm not made of glass, and I'm not a trophy you keep on a shelf." I lean forward. "You want him? Let me help you take him."
"Oh, I don't know," he looks like he's in agony. "To use you as bait… that's low."
"Luca, I'm already involved. I'm pregnant with your child, for God's sake." The words hang between us—the first time I've acknowledged it directly since he found the test. "Let me help end this and protect our family."
He turns, eyes softening just a fraction.
"I'll cause a scene. Something public that he can't resist using against you." I'm on a roll now. "We'll stage a fight. Make it look like I'm leaving you. He'll come after me—either to hurt me or to use me against you. And that's when we'll have him."
"You want to pretend to leave me." His voice is flat. "In public."
"At that dinner you're hosting tomorrow. All the family will be there, right?" I raise an eyebrow. "Big audience. Maximum drama."
Luca shakes his head, but I can see him considering it. "It's too dangerous."
"Not if we plan it right." I take his face in my hands. "Let me help. Please."
A long beat where he stares into my eyes, then he exhales. "If we do this, you don't move alone. I own every angle. You follow my voice, even if you hate me for it."
I press my forehead to his and smile. "Deal."
"Fine. We draw him to a place he thinks is safe for him and exposed for you. He'll feel clever. He'll feel in control." He looksat me like I'm the only thing that ever mattered. "And he'll be wrong."
Holy shit.It's happening, all right and Belle, it's too late to back out now.
