I nod, my eyes still locked with hers. “I should really get Sasha and head back.” I look up at Nick and lean forward so I can kiss his cheek goodbye. “It was a wonderful Wonderland.”
As I approach Sasha so we can leave, I can almost feel the burn of Cora’s eyes on my back. Will I seek revenge? No. I know many would. Many would want to see her pay. And though she may be an awful terrible person to many, she isn’t to Nick. She loves him. She was there for him after his parents’ death. She’s all the family he has. No matter what I feel about this woman, I will never take her away from Nick. My vengeance is not stronger than my love for him.
I’m going to forgive Cora. Not to her face, however. I’ll never say the words. She doesn’t deserve that. In fact, her wondering if and when I’m going to tell Nick will torture her. The unknown of what my plan could be is a far worse punishment than me flat-out revealing what she did. Only I will know what I will and will not say to Nick. And deep down in my soul, I’m going to forgive and walk away. I need to do it for Nick.
Chapter Sixteen
Nick
“You’re just goingto let her go?” Harrison asks me. “That’s very unlike you.”
I don’t say anything as I watch both Lyriope and Sasha walk out the door of Wonderland.
“Make sure someone follows them and make sure they both get home safely,” I say as I head up the stairs to my office.
“Already done,” Harrison informs, not surprising me with his forward thinking. It’s why I pay the man as much as I do. He’s even one step ahead of me most times.
Harrison follows me upstairs, and when we enter the office, he sits across from me ready to talk business. It’s three a.m. and the man is ready to go. He’s always ready to go. I, on the other hand, am exhausted. My night with Lyriope was not just physical, but emotional. It took all my might not to hold her in my arms and declare her as mine, daring any man to try to pull her away from me. Tonight, I realized one big and scary thing…
I’d die for this woman. I’d risk everything I have for her.
“You achieved your goal,” Harrison says with a chuckle. “If word has already gotten to me that the two of you fucked in a room full of people, it most certainly has reached the Morellis and the Sidorovs.”
“Have you heard all the dirty details?”
“More than I care to know,” he says with a roll of his eyes.
My cock twitches at the memory as I simply smile. “Good. No one ever said I played fair.”
“Playing fair is definitely not a term to describe you,” Harrison agrees. “I’m happy I’m your friend and not your enemy. Your revenges are harsh.”
I smile again, picturing the faces of the men as they hear about my cock being buried inside Lyriope.
“How’s Lyriope going to react when she finds out this was your plan all along?”
“She was well aware of what the fallout of us having public sex would be. I made sure of it. She knew and it was her choice. We both went into this with eyes wide open.”
“This little puppet master act of yours takes balls,” Harrison says. “Both of those families have armies. Powerful ones.”
“I don’t need armies,” I state. “I’ll come out the victor in this war.”
“Yes, my friend, you most certainly will.” He takes a deep breath as he shakes his head. “The yacht’s ready like you asked,” Harrison says, placing his ankle on his knee and relaxing back in the chair. “It’s fully stocked and should last a few weeks. But I’m paying off a few officials of the coast guard to be able to fly more in for you without detection. I think we can keep your location and Lyriope’s a secret from all—with the coast guard’s help.” He shrugs. “I’m assured the places off the Galapagos are private and secluded. I doubt you’ll have any issues at all.”
“Cancel the plans,” I say, staring off into space as the thoughts of my night with Lyriope in Wonderland still lie heavy on my mind and body.
“What was that?” Harrison leans forward, his eyes narrow. “Tell me I didn’t just spend two fucking days organizing a ghost voyage where no one can ever find the vessel. Tell me I didn’t just spend a shit load of money to make this happen all for nothing.”
“I’m not going to run off with Lyriope. At least not right now. The timing is off, and well… she has to find out some things on her own. She’s on a journey that I can’t speed up.”
“And what if her journey involves her marrying another man?” Harrison challenges.
“There’s still a lot of time between now and her wedding vows,” I say. “This fucked-up situation with her father needs to see its way to completion. She has to do this on her own. I’m not going to be another man in her life who forces their will on her. She has to see what’s best for herself. She also has to see who Bryant Morelli is, what that family is, and how no matter how badly she wants to be a part of it, she isn’t.”
“There isn’t a lot of time,” Harrison corrects. “I’ve heard that Bryant would marry her off tomorrow if he could. The Sidorovs want a big show of the engagement, the wedding, and the merging of the families. Bryant wants it a hush and rush. I’ve been told that Bryant is losing patience and regretting even getting involved in all this. He thought that having the Sidorovs in his back pocket was a good thing. Now he’s starting to feel like he’s in the mud with the pigs.”
“How in the fuck is having the Sidorovs on your side a good thing?”
Harrison shrugs again. “Bryant is a man who works every angle. He has contingency plans for his contingency plans. I’ve always said from the beginning that he isn’t going to just sit back and watch his sons rule the business. I also feel he’s buying his time to decimate the Constantine family. Do the Sidorovs have the power to help him in all that? No.”