Page 39 of Their Deviant Love
“No. And we’re not going to. This stays between us until we know more. I don’t know who the fuck this guy is, Aurora. I do know there is a reason my father has hidden him away. We just need to find it.”
There were adoption papers in that box. Adoption papers for a child, born two years before Connor, with the names of his parents listed on top.
Would they really have adopted out their own kid?
Sure, they’re fucking twisted people, but they seemed to have genuinely wanted Connor. Or at least they wanted an heir. If Connor isn’t their firstborn, someone else could come and take over. It could free him.
Chapter Eighteen
Ican still taste her. The sweet, tangy flavor that is Aurora lingers on my tongue. Myfavoriteflavor. If I could bottle it up and use it as gravy, I would. I asked her to look into finding out information about this child my parents gave up for adoption. I have doubts that my mother knew about it.
I know her name is on that birth certificate, but it doesn’t make sense. My parents were married. They wouldn’t have justgiven up their heir. Not because they wanted a child to raise and love. They just needed someone to take over the business. That’s what I was. An asset.
Did my mother love me? In her own way, she did. Although now I’m sure she’s out there somewhere, plotting my demise. I took her crown, and for that, she will never forgive me.
If I had known how everything would unfold after spending that one night with Aurora, back at my cousin’s party before I knew who she was, would I still have done it? Or would I have walked out of the room and never looked back?
The answer is simple. I wouldn’t have changed a thing. I’ve never felt more alive than when I’m with her, never been able to be more myself.
Guilt slides up my chest at the thought. Kenny. The only regret Idohave from all of this is him. I’ve learned to push those feelings down, though. My blame has shifted from Aurora to myself. If I had been at that party when I said I would, she never would have taken that fucking drink. She wouldn’t have been in that bedroom, and Kenny wouldn’t have found her.
Because I was late, I lost my cousin. My best friend. And I lost weeks with Aurora trying to push her away. I’m surprised the Albanians still want to do this deal, considering what my family did to two of their own… after I blamed them for Kenny’s death.
Do they know my family was behind it?
I need to get this shit sorted and get back to New York. Get Aurora back to her parents. I can’t leave. Not until I erase the threats, and the best place to do that from is here. I have a lot more resources in Dublin. Which means it’s where we are the safest.
I tried to leave Patty at the house with Aurora again today. She wasn’t having it, though. When she told me that she would be more at ease knowing he was with me, that it would help heranxiety, I didn’t have a choice but to bring him. There’s also the fact that Levi is hanging around.
Do I trust that fucker? More than others. She’s family to him, and that means a lot to the Valentinos.
“You good?” Patty asks. We’re currently walking through Trinity College campus, heading for their science department.
“I’ll be a hell of a lot fucking better once I destroy this place.” The desire to burn the entire lab and everyone in it to the ground is strong. First, I need that fucking vial. I need these assholes to believe I’m going ahead with the deal, because that’s what everyone back in New York has to believe.
Until I know my next move.
There are still two of my father’s men who are working to overthrow me. The thing is, there is only one way for them to do that. The same way I overthrew my dad. They have to kill me, tear my heart from my chest, and display it. I’m not about to let that happen, because what they’d do to Aurora if they ever got me would be far worse.
“You think it even works? I mean, seems pretty farfetched,” Patty says.
“It works. My da wouldn’t sell it if it didn’t.” He wouldn’t risk his reputation by selling a product that didn’t deliver on what it promised. When we get to the building, I turn around and face the ten men I brought with us. “No one touches anything, says anything, until I give the go ahead.”
“Sure thing, boss,” one of them replies with a nod.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to correct him, tell him my name is fuckingConnor, notboss. I hate the term. I hate the job. I hate the fucking organization. Some things are better left unsaid, though. This organization is these guys’ lives. They live and breathe for it. I have no intention of taking that away from them. They need it. I just don’t want to be the one running the fucking show.
I turn back and tap the staff card Patty acquired against the panel. It grants us entry to the building without breaking shit or calling any more attention to our group than we already have.
Patty leads the way into the lab, and as soon as we enter, all eyes land on us. Faces pale and everything goes silent. You could hear a pin drop.
I smirk. Of all the things I hate about this job, this reaction isn’t one of them. “You have something for me?”
“Ah, Mr. O’Malley, we weren’t expecting you,” a skinny guy in glasses says.
“Is that a problem?” I glare at him.
“N-no, sir… I, ah… I have what you need,” he stammers out. “It’s in the safe.”
