Page 164 of Stolen Hearts

“Youson of a bitch,” Castle hisses venomously at his friend. “You fuckingcoward!”

Jeremy looks genuinely sorry as he shakes his head and shoves his fingers through his dark hair.

“I hate that it came to this, brother—”

“You don’t get to call me that anymore,” Castle spits back.

Jeremy sighs, looking down. “It’s really not personal, for what that’s worth. Like I said, this is just business.”

“Is that what you do for work, now?” Castle snarls. “Tie up old friends and their fucking wives?!”

Jeremy’s jaw tightens. “I’msorry, man,” he murmurs. “I really am. And if there had been any other way—”

“It was you, wasn’t it?” Castle hisses, his eyes lasered on Jeremy’s wounded arm. “The gunman who ran when I winged him. That’s not a car crash injury, is it?” He snarls as his eyes go savage. “That’s a bullet wound to the shoulder. And nice miraculous fucking recovery. I notice you’ve lost the cane.”

Jeremy looks away.

“Was that to throw me off?” Castle snaps. “Get me off the scent of you being on the rooftop, trying to fucking murder--”

“I wasn’t trying to hit you, Castle.” Jeremy’s mouth thins. “Either of you. If I was, I wouldn’t have missed.”

“Ididn’t miss.”

Jeremy frowns and glances at his wounded arm. “No, you didn’t.” He smirks. “And here I thought kingpins had guys paid to do the shooting backfor them.”

Castle’s mouth purses. “That’s what this is really about, isn’t it?”

Jeremy frowns.

“You know who you are, don’t you Jer,” Castle mutters. “You know who your father was. You thoughtthiswas the only way to get what you think is rightfully yours.”

Confusion clouds the other man’s face.

“I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, Castle,” Jeremy grunts. “Beyond being a bum who knocked up my bio mom and probably peaced out right after, I have no fucking idea who my father was.”

Castle stares right at Jeremy. “Jer, you’re…” He shakes his head tiredly. “You’re Declan Kildare’s son with Luca Carveli’s niece Silvia.”

Holy. Fucking.What?

I stare at Castle, my face paling. When his eyes meet mine, he just nods quietly.

“It’s not me,” he whispers to me, his face ashen as he shakes his head. “He’sDeclan’s heir.”

The boathouse is silent for a second. Then Jeremy barks a cold laugh.

“Jesus Christ, man,” he chuckles darkly. “Did you rehearse that? ‘Cause that was a solid sell, Castle—”

“I’m not selling youshit, you fucker,” Castle spits back. “It’s the God’s honest truth.”

Jeremy rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I wish, brother. Trust me, I wish. Good one.”

Castle looks confused as he stares at the other man.

“Then what is this?” he hisses. “What the fuck are you into, DiMarco?”

Jeremy just shakes his head and looks away.

“I’m in deep, Castle. With the kind of people you don’t even want to be inshallowwith. I’ve got walls closing in on me that you can’t even imagine—”

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