Page 51 of Point of No Return

“If you ever step foot in Viserion without invitation again, you’ll wish you were buried with her.”

One of the men claps my back before extending a hand toward me with a smile. “It’s been too long, Skar. We shouldn’t go years without a visit.”

“I’ll let your assistant know to schedule something sooner then,” I shake his hand, followed by the two other Teams brothers. Cameron and Percy.

I ignore my father completely as they sit. And then my gaze meets Charlotte’s, and I can’t help but admire the blue satin of the dress she’s wearing.

Not only does it cling to her, teasing at the soft curves of her body, but the blue is the perfect match to my tie. I half-wonder if she wore it on purpose as I lift my knuckles to her chin, tilting her head toward mine.

“Hey, Charlie,” I murmur as I press a kiss to her lips.

She doesn’t squirm, doesn’t pull away. Her green eyes merely flicker as she murmurs back, quiet enough for only me to hear. “Benenati.”

I pull the chair beside mine out for her as everyone finds their places and looks over the menu. After placing our orders and the usual polite conversation starts up, I fold my hands in front of me, drawing the attention back.

“Should we get started?”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Charlotte

Skar has been home for breakfast every morning since dinner on Tuesday night. Quite frankly, it’s unnerving.

What angle is he playing? Is he trying to get closer so he can easily pinpoint a weakness, should he need to?

Because I know better than to give anything away. If he thinks he’ll get the upper hand by spending time with me, he couldn’t be more wrong.

I will not break.

Without looking up from the quiche being served for breakfast, I say: “Pictures last longer.”

He’s been staring for the better part of the morning, casually glancing up between sips of his coffee while shuffling the paperwork in front of him.

Financing, contracting, and whatnot.

I feel his gaze like a caress, even now.

His eyes lift, and I feel them flicker over me. “Original,” he muses, and I make a point of dissecting my food before taking a bite. “Did you get that comeback from grade school?”

Someone’s talkative this morning.

I take a bite, chewing slowly before smiling. “You wouldn’t remember anything about that in your old age, would you? You Benenati boys have a tendency to lose your marbles rather quickly.”

His mouth twitches. “Your sarcasm just gets better and better. Are you taking lessons while I’m gone?”

“Born this way actually. Some of us don’t have money to throw at things that just come more naturally.”

“Good thing you married rich then,” he scoffs, and I nearly stand at the retort.

“Will both of you shut up??” Aleks gripes from the adjacent side of the table. He’s currently nursing what seems to be a hangover from hell with copious amounts of caffeine. “There’s entirely too many words for this early in the morning.”

The coffee is ineffective, I might add, as his head still hangs between his hands, blonde hair up at all angles.

“Rough night?” I smirk at him, but he just groans into his arm. Standing to grab the steaming pot of coffee from its burner, I make it a point to bump against Skar as I pass. I take Aleks’ mug, filling it to the brim. “Out with Liv or something?”

He frowns, shaking his head in confusion. “Are you kidding? She shot me down weeks ago.”

Which I know from the few times Liv and I have met up since then. But I can’t exactly reveal that without outing that Liv already told me.

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