Page 5 of The Burnt Heart

“I’m an idiot.” He tugged on his hair miserably. “Somehow I thought I could convey to her that this wasn’t what she thought, that if she waited a day, we would explain it all.”

Jesse made an angry noise.

“Of course, she doesn’t want to hear from us. We broke her damn heart. We need to focus on getting that money, otherwise none of this is going to work,” Jesse paced.

“It didn’t go how I thought it would,” Briar said, fidgeting with the key Adelaide had obviously left. My gut soured a bit more. She had meant it. She wasn’t coming back anytime soon. Little did she know this would all be over in a few more days and we could smooth over the unfortunate need for the dramatic, if fake, break-up. Those warning bells chimed again, and my stomach dropped.

We would fix this. All of it.

“Did you have to make it worse by lying about her weight?” Briar leaned against the desk, looking lost. Not for the first time, I wondered what Harold’s motive was. He insisted his investors were only interested in the appeal of three handsome, single men. It made the prospect of an elite gym more marketable. The way he spoke made my head spin, like he was hiding behind placating words. But Jesse had convinced us both that it was worth the chance. For once in our relationship, we could enjoy each other without worrying that we might get shoved into a white van and taken care of. If Harold pulled his money now, we’d lose everything. And he knew it, hence his pushing for this baffling ask. He didn’t have to know that we’d pick up with Adelaide as soon as the ink dried on his signature.

“Harold wanted it done by one. We were running out of time and Adelaide wasn’t going to give up easily.”

I had seen her clever mind whirring, snagging all the unsaid tells and piecing them together. We’d gotten good at hiding our bruises over the years, but we couldn’t hide our love. That was like trying to shield the sun. Briar chewed his lip harder, and Jesse cracked his knuckles.

“I don’t know about that. She barely said a word, didn’t even shed a tear.”

Unease made my knees tremble as I raked through the conversation, hoping to unearth some detail that proved him wrong. But he wasn’t. Adelaide had been scarily composed, but the pain was clear in her eyes. It had been deep and agonizing, especially when I’d taken the low blow of her looks. My heart squeezed in my chest at the wince she’d made when I’d said those damning words. They couldn’t be further from the truth. I had an aversion to touch, only tolerating it from the people I trusted. From the moment she’d careened into me, I’d known she was different. Her touch didn’t bring the sensations of bugs crawling over my skin. It was warm, soft, the closest thing to home I had ever known. I was an animal for Adelaide’s body. She was Venus, every inch of her screamed sensuality. I often felt the desire to get on my knees and worship her. When she ordered me to do just that, it was like slipping into ecstasy. I’d live on my knees when I spoke to her in a few days. This would be an uncomfortable blip that I could erase with my tongue and cock. There was no way she could doubt the voracity of my need for her when I begged her to pin me to the bed. Control my pleasure, her long blonde hair tickling over me. It had been way too long. I couldn’t remember the last time we’d been together, maybe a few weeks ago. The stress of everything had made days bleed into one. I shook my head, the rock in my stomach feeling heavy.

“Look, in a few days, we’ll shower her with gifts and make it up to her. She can kick me in the balls as hard as she likes, if that’s what it takes for her to forgive us.” I assured myself just as muchas them, needing the promise as much as they did, but my gut churned despite it. Jesse looked at his phone again and frowned.

“She’s not replying to any of my messages,” Jesse admitted, and I had to hold back a growl as he stared at his phone.

“Of course, she’s not. She wants nothing to do with us right now. In her eyes, we just dumped her to go see other people. She doesn’t know that we still love her dearly, but a dodgy bastard has our balls in a vice, and we need to play dirty to get ahead.” I tried, but the frown only deepened on his forehead.

“She’ll understand. We’re taking a leaf out of the Orazio playbook after all. One hand on the table and one on the gun,” Briar said with a tremulous smile, his attempt to joke falling flat in the oppressive silence of the apartment. My fingers twitched in my pocket, but I resisted the urge to text Adelaide. I was the last person she would want to hear from right now.

Everything would be fine. Everything would work out.

It had to be. I couldn’t even think of an alternative. Because it meant indulging the screaming horror that boiled in my stomach. That we had made the worst mistake of our lives, and it wouldn’t be an easy apology and instant forgiveness.

There was a reason Adelaide was the queen of the Greenich Bay underworld.

She forgot no transgression.

She hadn’t cried because she wasn’t mourning, she was plotting how to destroy us.

I would let her crush me beneath her boot, beg her for it even. But I wouldn’t let her go.

3

Adelaide

Iwas adjusting the strap of my high heels when I heard the bedroom door creak open.

“Oh,” Lara gusted a breath. “This was not what I expected to find in here.”

I looked up at her with a sardonic grin. A sleek column dress hugged her athletic build. Her dark hair gathered into a high ponytail that bounced as she looked me over with an approving nod.

I had thought she was a spy when I first met her. This tall, willowy brunette that kept turning up wherever I was. First in Pilates, then in my favorite cafe. It had been at the height of the crime sweeps through the city and I thought she was trying to get close to me. That she’d been trying to finagle a confession thatthe police had failed to do. Paranoia had driven me to confront her when we crossed paths at my local park.

She’d been unphased when I darted in front of her and demanded to know what she was doing there. Lara had looked me up and down, wrinkled her button nose and replied.

“Do I know you?”

My bestie had been in her own world so much that she hadn’t even remembered seeing me anywhere. She’d just moved to Greenich Bay. One extensive background check later and another conveniently timed run in and I gave in. The universe wanted us to be friends. I was so thankful to her after yesterday’s shitshow.

“And what did you expect, Lara?” I asked, knowing exactly what she thought she’d find. Me in the fetal position, face puffy while I mourned the loss of my relationship. I stood, my hands finding my hips as I dared her to speak. She laughed under her breath, the panels on her dress shining in the light. She was my date for the night’s event, my dearest friend and safe place after the boys had obliterated me.

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