Page 16

A stone lands in my belly and sinks slowly as I stare at him silently, loathing taking up space inside me. No. I already know where this is going, and I’m not playing along. “No,” I reply as it all starts to make sense. This is about money. It’s always about money. A deal. Another way to grow Paul Knight’s empire. I want no part of this. I’m not averse to making money. We—Dex, Zach, and I, and the others, Rio, Matteo, and Enzo—all like making money. It’s what we know, what we’ve been taught. “Whatever you're thinking, forget it. “
“She’s young and beautiful—”
“Stop.” For one, I'm not in the market, two, I'm not interested, three, he keeps sayingyoungbut I'm thirty-three. “No. I saidno.” I growl. My pulse thrums in my ears. This is what he wants me to do. “I’m not interested.”
“Think about it. Brooke needs a mother.” His words hit me like a sledgehammer, knocking the breath from my lungs.
“A mother, not a mail-order bride, or whatever the hell this is.”
“Think of it more like an arranged marriage. She’s beautiful, smart and business- minded. She studied in college here, and now works in her father’s business. You would have a lot in common. Our businesses could thrive. And … more importantly for you, Brooke would have a mother. How long are you going to stay—"
“You think someone that young is ready to become a mother to my daughter?” I glare at him, rage boiling under my skin. “As if you give a damn about Brooke.”
“We could form an alliance. The Knights and the Oliveiras.”
I’m intrigued at why he wants to make this match. “Why not just a straight up hostile takeover?” We've done many of those before. The Knights often favor that approach.
“It wouldn’t work as well, not in this situation. We don’t know the market, or the country. We’re foreigners in that world. It's far better to have those people in place there while we take care of things here. But the profits, the profits we could share equally.”
“Profits?” I scoff. “What about people? And feelings? Don't they matter? And what exactly do you mean bythose people?”
Dex hinted to me that the old man was up to something, but I never believed him. Turns out he was right.
“It would be an easier way to get the same result.”
“Easier, how?”
“Marry her. Keep it simple. You get a mother for Brooke and a wife for—”
“Keep it simple?” I bellow. “For fuck’s sake.” I slap a hand at the back of my neck.
“Brooke needs a mother,” the old man says casually.
“As if you care what my daughter needs,” I hiss.
His eyes flash, but his voice stays calm, controlled. “How dare you say that?”
“How old is she?” I challenge. It should be an easy question, given her recent birthday.
“Twenty-three, or twenty-four, something around that age—”
“Brooke,” I bite out. “How old isshe?”
Discomfort crawls in his eyes. “Six? Seven?”
My stomach turns. “She just turned five.” My words are ice. I stand up to leave, needing to get the hell away from this man. ?If I continue to do what he wants, I’ll end up no better than he is. A ruthless, philandering, monster who is hell bent on growing his billions with no thought for people. Our family is broken. I can’t end up like him, but at this rate, I’m on track to do just that. Brooke deserves so much more. I head toward the door.
“I’m not done with you, boy,” he snaps, but I hear desperation, not strength, in his voice.
“I’m done,” I growl. “You wanted to know about Monaco. Now you know.”
“I’m not done with you!” he shouts as I open the door.
“There’s nothing more to say. Don't talk to me about anyalliances.I'm not interested. I'm very much in love with Alicia.” It sounds odd even saying it.
“Love? Don’t confuse sex with love,” he screams after me.
“Like you did?” I throw back as I storm out of the door.