He pocketed his phone. “Ulrich took the pictures.”
Our private investigator.
“Why was he following me?” I asked.
“Nevada Hildebrand contacted Mom a week ago and said she thought something was going on between you and your teacher.”
“Of course, she did, that selfish, jealous, filthy fucking whore.”
“Jesus, Tinsley.” He stared at me like he didn’t recognize his own sister. “What’s happening to you?”
“Let me get this straight. Mother believed Nevada’s allegations and sent Ulrich to Maine to investigate? I assume there are more photos where that came from?”
“Yes and yes.”
“Who’s seen them?”
“Mom and me. And Ulrich.”
“Not Keaton or Winny?”
“No. She wants to keep this as quiet as possible.”
No scandals.
Perry was her favorite child, her charming, agreeable boy. He was only twenty-one, but she trusted him to deal with the press and smooth over any bad publicity. So it was no surprise she’d sent him to retrieve me and stop me from making a scene while Ronan did the dirty work.
The henchman stood near the front door, tracking our conversation. Dark hair, dark whiskers, blue eyes, muscles in all the right places—Ronan might’ve been handsome if he weren’t so goddamn scary.
“Have you seen the photos?” I asked him.
“No.”
“But you’re prepared to kill a priest because my mother ordered it?”
His glare probably sent a lot of necks shriveling into shoulders. But he wouldn’t get any hunching or cowering from me. I had a lot of practice dealing with growly, glare-y men.
“Wait outside.” I motioned at the door.
At Perry’s nod, Ronan left, taking all the murderous air with him.
If I were facing my mother right now, I would concoct some sort of haphazard plan to save Magnus’s life. But this was Perry. He was nurturing and protective and usually laid-back. The best approach with my brother was the truth.
“I love him.”
His eyes bulged. “The priest?”
“Yes. I love Magnus.”
“Oh, Tins. You think you do but—”
“Don’t you dare Oh, Tins me.” Frustration steamed from my pores. “I’m not a child, and I’m not a fucking moron. I’m smart, Perry. Smart enough to know who I fucking love.”
“Okay.” He held his hands up, trying to placate me. “Calm down.”
“I can’t. You know why? Because if anything happens to him, it will destroy me. Do you understand? I will not survive it.”
“Why? Why him?”
“He sees me and understands me. He accepts me and defends me.”
I paced through the room as the words rushed out. I told him how awful I was when I first came to Sion Academy, how I plotted to get expelled and put Magnus through months of hell. I told him how Magnus helped me with the opossums and cleaned up my blood at the Winter Formal. I explained how he kept his hands to himself for months and fought the pull we both felt down to our souls.
“He would jump in front of a bullet for me.” My insides quivered with fear. “And I would do the same for him.”
“Fucking hell.” He raked his hands through his hair. “We don’t have a lot of options here. We can’t lose this Kensington deal. The Morellis are closing in, taking over everything around us. We need assets, resources. We need the Kensington holdings.”
“If that’s what this is about, why do you need to eliminate Magnus?”
“If he talks, if the Kensingtons find out you’re mixed up with your teacher—”
“Magnus won’t talk. He has his own career to protect.”
“Does he love you?”
My heart stuttered. “I don’t know.”
“If he loves you, he’ll screw up this deal. I’m sorry, Tins. We have to take him out.”
I had one shot at this, one chance, one time to turn up, do what was right, own it, and protect the man I loved.
“Take me to the school. I’ll fix this without bloodshed.” My stomach sank to my feet. “Then I’ll marry Tucker Kensington.”
CHAPTER 35
TINSLEY
Perry agreed to do things my way.
On three conditions.
One, I would return to Bishop’s Landing with him today and finish high school at home with a private tutor.
Two, my only priority going forward would be the long-term success of the Kensington-Constantine merger. As the wife of Tucker Kensington and heiress to the Constantine dynasty, I would be the mediator between the ruling families.
Three, I would never speak about my relationship with Magnus Falke. Under no circumstances could there be a scandal. It was a secret I would take to my grave, and I would never see or talk to him again.
These were the sacrifices required of me. No question, this would be too much for me to bear. But the alternative was worse.
I would endure just about anything to keep Magnus breathing and unharmed.
But all this hinged on him letting me go. It had to be a clean break. No contact between us ever again. And he couldn’t tell a soul about us.
He’d already decided we wouldn’t have sex or any sort of romantic involvement from here on out. Our goodbye was coming in just five short months anyway. We both knew what would become of me after graduation.