Page 43 of Knot your Princess
“You’re in love with her, aren’t you?”
Quinn’s simple question makes my blood run cold. I turn back, but I see he isn’t talking to me. He’s talking to Nico. I should leave them alone and get in the van, but that isn’t happening. I’m immobile as I wait for the answer and the outcome.
“What does it matter?” Nico asks steadily.
“If I know you’re in love with her, I know you’ll do everything along with lay down your own life to save her.”
“I’d do it anyway. It’s my job.”
“Nah,” Quinn says with a sniff, looking sideways for a moment. “It’s not the same.”
The tension rackets up a notch. No one dares move or even breathe.
“Yes,” Nico says eventually. “I’m in love with her. But I know my place.”
He brushes past me and climbs in the van, not giving Quinn a chance to reply. I hastily follow, not eager to be on the receiving end of whatever is going through Quinn’s mind right now. He will be furious, I’ve no doubt. Nico is a dead man walking.
“Where to?” Luca asks, breaking the uneasy silence.
Nico pulls out his phone and texts it to Luca. “There.”
He nods and pulls away.
“You’re in so much shit,” I comment, just to say something in the awkward silence.
He shrugs. “Living without her is worse than death, so if he kills me, it will be a welcome relief.”
“Jesus,” Atlas remarks. “Dramatic, much? Must be that Latin blood making you all theatrical and shit.”
Nico's furious gaze bores into Atlas’s head, but he takes it on the chin.
“You know there’s another one of you, right?” Nico comments casually, but it’s so well placed to aim right for the balls, it knocks us both off our game.
“What?” I spit out. “Are you being a complete dick?” I just can’t even. Not today.
Nico shakes his head smugly now that he’s drawn the attention away from his impending death by angry, protective Daddy.
I turn to Atlas. “Did you fucking know?”
He shakes his head. “No. A third? For fuck’s sake.”
“How do you know?” I accuse Nico. “And why did no one tell me? I had a right to know I had family, real fucking family out there.” It’s fired up my demons, and they aren’t happy. I could have escaped my shit life if I’d known. Maybe one of my brother’s adoptive parents could’ve taken me in.
Nico sighs. “I have only recently discovered this. Quinn doesn’t know. His name is Trent Cavendish. He works for a government agency taking down…certain people.” His gaze becomes evasive, which piques my curiosity.
“Cavendish,” I murmur. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out he’s led a charmed life. It looks like he got the golden ticket out of that ditch we were left in.
“Why are you telling me now?” I ask, leaving Atlas out of this.
“Because we are going to his house in the country. It’s where Enzo has Sophia.”
“They’re working together?” My anger boils up. It’s bad enough that I find out there is a third, wealthy brother, but to find out he is also a douche that abducts women is just the icing on the rage cake. I’m gunning for a takedown, and he is now at the top of my list. Blood or not, he isn’t family.
“Seems so.” Nico appears perturbed by this fact, so it’s not something he was aware of, which is good, or I’d beat Quinn to the killing.
“Here’s the plan,” I bark out, my business head firmly on my shoulders now. “Nico, you are injured, there’s no getting away from that fact, so you will be responsible for making sure Sophia gets out of the house and into the van quickly and unharmed. Atlas, if you’re actually in this to help, then you need to tell me now.”
“Helping,” he says with a sigh. “What else am I going to do?”
