Page 140 of Empire of Seduction

“I’m sorry,” I croaked, shutting my phone off.

“You’resorry?” Mikey’s voice practically squeaked in disbelief. “I’m the reason Vito is here. If anyone is to blame, it’s me.”

“Yeah, but I’m the reason he stayed. If I hadn’t antagonized him, fought with him, slept with him, then he would’ve left immediately after signing the contracts. None of this would’ve happened.” A tear escaped one eye and trickled into my hairline.

Mikey bumped my foot with his knee. “Maybe we should stop blaming ourselves. I’m not mad at you. Are you mad at me anymore?”

“No. But I hate myself. Don’t get me wrong, I still hate Vito. But I also hate myself.”

“You shouldn’t. What the Red Raiders did isn’t our fault. That’s squarely on Vito.”

I knew this was true, but it didn’t make me feel any less shitty. Rolling over to face him, I asked, “Why didn’t you tell me, Mike?”

My brother winced and stared down at his shoes. “I’ve never seen a dead body before, not like that. Mom was . . . peaceful. This guy? It was something straight out of a horror movie. I freaked out. Almost hyperventilated. Vito kept me calm and ordered me not to tell anyone, not even you.”

“Did you know what they were planning in retaliation? Against Jimmy and the other bikers?”

“No. I doubt they talked about it in front of me, but if they did, I was too freaked out to register it. Listen, don’t feel bad for Jimmy. That guy fell in with some bad people. He was no angel.”

“Well, neither is Vito.” And I’d fallen in with him, hard.

“No, he’s not.” He crooked his knee and propped his leg on my bed, settling more comfortably. “All I keep thinking about is what would’ve happened if you and Vito were in the cottage the other night. Someone tried to kill him—and you might’ve died because of it.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat. This had definitely crossed my mind. “But I didn’t.”

“I know, but I can’t lose you, Mags. You’re all I have left.”

Reaching out, I squeezed his arm. “You won’t. Nothing is going to happen to me. Vito and I are done.”

“Good.”

I peered up at him, surprised. “I thought you liked him.”

“I do, just not for you. Anyone close to him is in danger at all times. I don’t want that for you. For us.”

The silence stretched. Softly, I said, “He broke my heart.”

“I figured, based on what I overheard when the two of you were fighting. I’m sorry, Mags, but it’s for the best. And now he’s going back to Toronto so we can focus on things here, like rebuilding the vineyard and the cottage.”

“He’s leaving?”

Mikey’s dark eyebrows rose dramatically. “You didn’t know?”

No, I didn’t. I’d told him to lose my number, though, so why was my stomach sinking? Why was I reeling at the idea of never seeing him again? It was for the best, even if my heart didn’t quite believe it yet. That stupid bitch was holding out for a miracle, but my head knew better.

Whatever Mikey saw in my face caused him to blurt, “There was a death in the family. A funeral, he said.”

“Oh.”

“He said he’ll be back.”

“I don’t care,” I said with utter conviction. “We have bigger things to worry about. Like, how are we going to fix this?”

“That’s why we need to talk to Carlo. He has experience with vineyard fires.”

“He does?”

“Out in California a few years ago.”

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