Page 64 of Broken Surrender
“It’s just to check out the property, right?” she asked. She would be staying longer than that while I took care of Vaughn, but I kept those details to myself. “I can throw it together in a minute.”
“Then go.”
“Not until we talk about this.” I closed my eyes, rubbing my forehead. When would she give up? “She was good for you. And you were good for her.”
I forced a chuckle, gazing at the Dalton House. What Corinne said may have been true to some extent, but that didn’t mean that we workedwelltogether. And after I had one of my contractors forge a new will for her husband, one that left hereverything,wasn’t that enough to make sure she was okay?
“She’s better off with someone else,” I said. “Someone who hasn’t used her.”
“Okay, sure,” Corinne sighed. “Let her go off with some random dude who hasn’t used her. Who has no interest in her, really. One who she doesn’t like either. But hey, at least the dude won’t use her.Thatwill make her happy. And while we’re at it, let’s make sure that every time he touches her, she thinks of you. And when two people get together, they do touch each other, you know.” She crossed her arms, lifting her chin. “You know that it’s going to be the same for you, right? It’ll hurt you to watch her slip away. You’ll pretend like you’re fine, but you won’t be. Admit it.”
My insides twisted, my shoulders and arms tensing. I snapped around, facing her.
“What’s your problem?” I yelled. “Let it go.”
“Sure. I’ll let it go,” she said slyly. “When you admit that you love her.”
I curled my fists, hating myself for letting the emotion get the best of me. “I know what I want.”
“Do you, though?” Corinne furrowed her brows. “You didn’t see what was happening with Kate. But now, you see what’s happening with Lena and you’re not doing anything about it. Yes, you both screwed up. But everyone screws up. What makes love different is that you get to try and fix it. To be betterforlove.” She raised her hands like she was screaming at the heavens for my stupidity. “Get yourself together. You need each other.”
I didn’t understand where her sudden knowledge of love had come from, but despite how badly I wanted to ignore everything she had said, she actually made sense. When I had first laid eyes on Lena, I had never thought that there would be a future for us. I was captivated by the glimmer of rage in her eyes, but that didn’t mean anything to me. Everyone was angry; I knew that. And I could never get attached. Each person weighed you down, making it harder to breathe, and I needed to make sure I did right by CorinnebeforeI did anything for anyone else.
But with Lena? When I actually considered everything we had been through, I was stronger with her. We worked as a team. It was the complete opposite of everything I wanted, and somehow it made sense.
I wanted Lena in my life. And yeah, she was good for me. I could admit that.
But that changed nothing. Corinne’s safety was my priority. And if that meant taking her to an island while I got rid of Vaughn, then I had to do it.
“I’ve got to make this right before I do anything with her,” I said.
Corinne pinched the bridge of her nose. “You’re too stubborn for your own good,” she muttered.
I scowled. “I’m trying to protect you.”
“Then protect Lena too. At the same time. You can do it. You have enough—” she pointed around at the security surrounding us, “—whoever these dudes are. You can spare a few for her.”
“She didn’t want me to follow her.”
“And what are you going to do if something happens to her, and you weren’t there to save her?”
I closed my eyes, then opened them slowly. Corinne grinned at me, knowing that she had finally convinced me.
All right. Once I dropped Corinne off at the private beach, I would figure it out.
“Fine,” I said. “I’ll chase after her.Afteryou pack up your bag.”
“Yes!” she jumped up, then ran to her room. My phone vibrated. A GPS coordinate blinked on the screen. My biceps twitched.
Lena had pressed the panic button.
With adrenaline tensing my muscles, I checked the GPS coordinates. She was on her way to Shin & Co Inc headquarters.
I went to the basement. Corinne lifted her duffel bag. “Hey!”
I closed the door and locked it. “Change of plans.”
“What the hell, Des?”
