Page 55 of His Deadly Lies

My stomach drops. Shit. Everyone knows? And here I am struggling to keep up.

Always a step behind.

I throw a pillow at him, but Carter is already backing out the door and shutting it softly behind him.

He stayed with me the entire night only to drop a bomb on me now. Drugged, and everyone knows. I don’t even get a chance to compose myself and come up with a story to lessen their worry.

Weak.

They’ll definitely consider me weak for letting something like this happen to me. A smarter woman would have recognized the new face at Meridian for what it was: a threat.

I somehow manage to drag my ass into the shower, curling up on the white tile floor with the hot water pounding over my shoulders. My dark hair forms a barrier between me and everything else, the water strong and boiling hot but not loud enough to drown out my thoughts. At least it washes the tears away.

By the time I’m out of the shower and dressed, I’m presentable and clear-headed. Not like it makes a difference. My outside is polished within an inch of my life, but inside, I’m a mess. I feel like shit on so many levels I’ve lost count, but I’m not close to breaking down as I stride through the door to my father’s office.

Put together, but my head throbbing, and my mouth still dry.

“Will someone please get me a cup of coffee, or will I have to resort to begging?” I begin.

As suspected, there is Ricardo, already watching me, and I wonder what level of monster hides behind his charm. Is it the same as mine or something different? I’m too damn tired to be wary or considering any future moves in this game we all play.

Ricardo pushes up from the chair at the left of my father’s desk, his mouth turned down with a hint of disapproval.

What the hell is his problem? So soon after arrival too?

My gaze flicks to Carter. There’s no way the dude told Ricardo everything that happened last night, right?

“Of course, sweetheart.” Edward offers a tense facsimile of a grin before he snaps his fingers, and one of the guards lurches out the door to grab me a cup from the kitchen.

Everyone waits to speak until I have my favorite mug in hand, painted a garish green and yellow with the words “Hang in there!” scrawled on the side. The first sip burns the roof of my mouth, and I couldn’t care less.

No sugar and no cream. At this point, I’ll take black.

“I’m sending some of our men to increase the security around you, Mia,” Ricardo says. The first to speak. “It sounds like you’ll have your hands full with whatever shipment issues you’ve been having. Leave the rest to us while you figure it out. A larger detail will make sure you have the necessary time at your disposal to batten down the hatches, so to speak.”

Now I do glare at Carter the way I’ve been itching to. He’s not smiling, but there is something about his posture that screams amusement. The rat bastard. “There isn’t anything going on that I can’t handle, including hiring extra men for my own security detail,” I reply.

I glance at Papa, but in this case, once he’s handed me off to my next assignment—aka my fiancé—he seems content to sit and be more useless than tits on a bull. He’s seconds away from holding his hands up in a gesture of surrender. I bury my anger in another sip of coffee, black as the devil’s own heart.

“You’re my fiancee and poised to become an integral part of the Vittorio family,” Ricardo reminds me. “You are our responsibility now as much as you are to your own family. I wouldn’t dream of taking the reins from you when it comes to your business with these shipments, but I must insist on the extra men, my dear.”

I’m not in my right mind. That’s the excuse I’ll use later for crossing the room and patting the young heir on the arm patronizingly. “Ricardo, darling, we have much to discuss on how our relationship is going to work. At the moment, I suggest you swallow your precious male ego and understand this: I’ve been doing this just as long as you have. I do not need you.” I pause for a beat. “You need me. More specifically, my family’s name and our connections. So let’s just cut the bullshit, and maybe we can learn to grow on each other.”

Carter snorts, covering the sound with a coughing fit, and Ricardo and I turn in tandem to gawk at him.

“Mia, my angel,” Edward says, his tone only slightly wheezy from holding back laughter. Or rage. It’s hard to tell with him sometimes. “The engagement isn’t final, and our families won’t be united until you’re actually married. Try to keep your…stronger…opinions to yourself until then. If you please.”

I’ll pay for it later. For snapping, for my lack of control.

There is so much more to say, and none of it good. None of the words will get me where I need to go or fight against the dull throb in my head. The best I can hope for is a little caffeine high to see through to the end of this already fucked day.

The phone I shoved in my pocket starts to vibrate. Ignoring the others, I pull it out and answer.

“What?” I say the word sweetly and earn an eye roll from Ricardo.

“Cops are heading to you within the next twenty-four hours. Your reporter is missing, and her roommate told us that the last place she knew the girl was going was to your house. For an interview,” Uncle Paolo starts.

“What do you mean?” My grip on the cell goes white-knuckled. “How do you know?”

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