Page 29 of Fatal Love

“Fine. I’ll see you guys later. Rachel, Michael, welcome to the family. Baby brother, we’ll talk about this—” She waggled her finger at the three of us. “—later. Be safe.”

I watched as she walked to the elevator and climbed inside. Something told me she wasn’t someone to mess with, either. This entire family was powerful—not just the men.

“Take me home so I can get a shower and we can leave. Michael's coming with us, right?” My gaze flickered between them, but in my gut I knew the answer.

“No, I need to be here for Riley.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Antonio will go with you, and when this mess is over, we will have all the time together we need, okay?”

I hated everything about this. Running away from a problem wasn’t something I was used to, but I'd put everyone in danger with my impulsive decision to out Dmitri Ivanov.

Going to Italy was the only sensible option—even if it meant leaving Michael behind to deal with the shitstorm I had created.

Fifteen

Antonio

Her eyes never left the tiny square of plexiglass as the plane taxied down the runway and lifted into the air. Every part of her screamed with the tension riddled her body. I couldn’t blame her—her entire life imploded right before her eyes, literally and figuratively. Rachel was everything I should've avoided but couldn’t. And now, her life was in danger simply because of her affiliation with my family. That and the stupid decision to put a spotlight on Ivanov.

“Rachel?” I said her name, startling her from her frozen state. “Do you want to talk about it?"

“What’s there to talk about? I didn’t think about the fact that outing Dmitri Ivanov would have a price this steep.” She turned her head toward me and forced a smile. "I was shortsighted on what it could do for my career and Riley's case." She shrugged her shoulders. "“Another thing I didn’t count on was you and Michael.”

“What do you mean?” I shifted in the seat nervously, waiting for her explanation.

“I tried to bury my feelings for Michael by sleeping with someone I thought was just another guy.”

“If you had known who I was, would that have changed things?”

She appraised me for a moment, then sighed. “No, I don’t think it would have. And that’s the part I’m struggling with. I was supposed to be putting someone you care about behind bars. And that's simply because she fell in love with an Anastasi. Yet…” She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the seat as she spoke. “I did the same thing.”

“You’re falling in love with me isn't a bad thing is it?” I leaned forward and pressed my hand to her knee.

“No.” She jerked upright her eyes wide with shock. “I… shit.” Rachel shook her head. “What I meant was I’m tangled up with the Anastasi family, just like she is. It makes me a hypocrite.”

“Aren’t you trying to prove Riley’s innocence? That’s why you outed Ivanov, isn’t it? That must count for something. Deep down you know she’s not guilty and you don’t want to be the one to ruin a family.”

“You’re right. I hate everything about this case. Just because the FBI has a hard-on for Vincenzo doesn’t make this right. Part of me wishes they would just handle this case and leave me out of it. But I know if that was to happen, I wouldn’t find the truth.”

“And what do you think the truth is?”

She nibbled her bottom lip into her mouth. “Honestly?”

“Yes. Honestly.”

“I think the man Riley killed was there to kill Vincenzo, but it backfired. And…” Rachel took a deep breath and paused. Her eyes held uncertainty as she held my stare.

“And, what?”

“Vincenzo killed him, and Riley is covering for him. She knows if the Feds thought for a second, he was the one who took Donat's life, they'd lock him away never to see daylight again. Her love for him is too strong to take that risk. So instead, she took the fall.”

I tried to hide the shock of her accurate account of events. “And what would you do if you found that to be the case?”

Rachel reached out and laid her hand over mine. Her fingers traced the top of my knuckles as she spoke. “Not a damn thing. Dmitri Ivanov and his brother are the scum of the earth. Riley or Vincenzo did the world a service, ending that monster's life. I just wish it had been Dmitri Ivanov instead. And that’s part of the conundrum I am dealing with.” She laced her fingers with mine. “I'm the state’s prosecutor, and I'm on a plane with a man who is tied to the family we're investigating. After this is over, I’m not sure I can continue being that person anymore.”

“You could always work with Michael.”

“I don’t know if that would be a good idea, either.”

“Why not?”

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