Page 63 of The Burnt Heart

“That’s right, you were.” Adelaide blinked, deceptively casual. Like a circling shark. Quiet, elegant almost, until they tore your arm off. “I had an enlightening conversation with a friend of your family. Her name is Nicole. Does that ring a bell with you?”

Ray shook his head, clenching his jaw.

“She told me some mighty interesting things about how your family employed her. How she was supplied with your drug, Cupid. Still no recollection? You never came to me with any explanation about how the drug found its way out of your lab.”

Silence hung thick in the office. I kept my touch light on Adelaide, ignoring the churning anxiety ruling my stomach. It had no place right now.

“If you’re accusing me of something, come out and say it.” Ray pursed his lips and added. “I thought we were friends, Adelaide. This is feeling very much like an interrogation.”

Her shoulder blades bunched together, the movement rippling under my fingertips. But Adelaide’s face was stone.

“I thought we were friends, too. But there are no friends in this world, are there? Allies, enemies, and fools who think they can rise above it all. Do you think I’m a fool?”

Ray tossed his hands in the air, biting off a frustrated noise. Jesse leaned into him with his teeth bared in barely concealed violence. Only Adelaide’s restraint stopped him from tearing into Ray.

“Perhaps I’m the fool. Clearly you don’t know me at all. Now tell me what has you riled up. Speak plain and quick. Your husbands might be content to scamper at your heels, but I am an heir in my own right. My slice of this city might be small, but it’s mine, dammit. I don’t know anyone named Nicole, and I’m not plotting to hurt you. I thought wewere working together.”

Adelaide drummed her fingers on the sleek wood of her desk. My throat tightened at the bare skin of her ring finger. Our failure. It was the last thing I should be thinking about, but I’d wanted to marry Adelaide for years. Craved our ring on her finger. But we had to deal with Ray first.

“You rejected me when we were younger, publicly humiliated me rather than marry me. I always—”

Ray threw his head back and groaned, his fingers raked at the dark strands, agitated.

“How many times must I—” His complaint cut off by Adelaide’s stern hiss. She planted her pointer finger on the desk and jabbed at it.

“Shut the fuck up. I wasn’t done speaking. Didn’t your father teach you not to interrupt your betters?” she sneered, provoking him into a sullen sulk. “Because that’s what I am, as you so aptly reminded me. Your slice of Greenich is miniscule. But mine? It spans north to south, east to west. Except for your tiny pocket. Which you could have had, but you ruined it with your flapping lips. What did your father do after you refused to marry me years ago? Did he agree with you in private? Tell me what happened.”

Ray folded his arms, his cheeks thick red, almost plum with indignation.

“He beat the ever-living shit out of me. What else would he do?” His gaze flicked to the ceiling. “He never forgave me for messing up the arrangement he worked so hard for. Don’t you worry. I still have a scar on my shoulder from his displeasure.”

Adelaide hummed thoughtfully, her gaze never wavering from Ray. He squirmed.

“We aren’t kids playing at marriage anymore, Ray,” her tone was conciliatory, soft and almost apologetic. “I’m not that girl you called butterball, and I won’t be manipulated. So, I want you to go back to whatever hole you crawled out of and think about this offer. You become my man. You have my back.”

He didn’t respond, his arms falling slack at his sides, wary.

“I don’t want to hear from you again, unless it’s you swearing fealty to me.” Adelaide lifted her chin, glorious strength. My heart thumped double time with awe. Steel and fire. She was strength and fury. Ray launched to his feet, shaking his head.

“Fealty?” he clarified, stifling a noise of surprise. “I’m the Donato heir. Why in the world would I do that, Adelaide? You’re deranged to suggest this.”

She shrugged.

“Someone wants us married. Or me dead. Think about who that might be and choose a side. It’s me or it’s been nice knowing you, Ray. I’ll see you when the battle begins.”

“Battle begins?” Ray waved his hands in the air, the cords of his neck straining. “What has gotten into you? You’re talking like we’re enemies. I thought we were good. This isn’t medieval times where we charge across the battlefield at each other.” He cursed, looking at Adelaide like he didn’t recognize her.

“No, we slink through the shadows. But someone always ends up dead, don’t they? It won’t be me,” she promised, her hands grazing her stomach. I knew she was thinking of her mom.

I interrupted before their words cut too deep. Adelaide abhorred feeling bested, and the manipulation had been eating away at her. Not knowing if Ray was involved was messing with her head.

“Adelaide has spoken. You can go now.”

Ray hesitated, waiting to see if Adelaide would say anything more. But she stared him down, sharp and deadly like an arrow, until he turned on his heel and stormed out. Adelaide waited until she heard the ping of the elevator doors closing before she launched up, her chair teetering toward the wall. She yanked at my collar, looking furious. The tips of her nails bit into my skin, bittersweet kisses. My lashes fluttered to my cheek in involuntary pleasure. Her rage felt good against me.

“Ring tattoos?” her voice rose to a harsh whisper, mindful of the charade she’d put in place. “You’re out of your minds. I ought to put a bullet in your head because you’re clearly unhinged.”

My smile wobbled, threatening to widen in the face of her beautiful fire. My skin blistered, buckled and warped in deliciousagony. Her flared nostrils warned me off. But it was impossible. Her fury didn’t frighten me. It was mostly bluster, part of the mask she wore to the outside world. She shoved me away and dropped into her chair with a ragged sigh. My chest tingled where her touch had grazed. Words faltered on the tip of her tongue. Her throat moved like they were too tangled to push out.

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