Page 52 of Deceptive Desires

I nod indiscernibly at him in a silent thanks. I’d have hated to shoot them on my way out and escape with Cecilia thrown over my shoulder. I don’t want her to see that side of me.

The conversation carries on, but they’re all off kilter.

Cecilia’s oblivious to it, my sweet, naïve girl. And that’s all that matters.

***

“Brothers, we need to discuss some business matters in the office,” Dom demands, staring into my soul. “Now.”

“We can talk tomorrow at the office,” I lie smoothly, knowing there’s no damn office. “Mom and Dad want to meet Cecilia properly.”

“It’s okay, héroe. I can talk to your parents and Margot while you talk to your brothers,” Cecilia offers generously, completely misunderstanding the situation.

It’s a bad idea for a number of reasons.

The first being, I don’t want to discuss my relationship with my brothers. I know there’s no business we need to discuss. They want to know what’s going on. Who she is. Why I’m lying to her. And I don’t want to delve into it with them.

The second being, I don’t want Cecilia around any members of my family unmonitored. Not because I don’t trust her, but because I don’t know what they’ll tell her. And God forbid one of them exposes my lies.

But Matthias grips my arm as he rounds the table in warning. They’re not letting this go. I don’t have an option.

I give Cecilia a quick kiss on the cheek and whisper, “I’ll be back in a bit, sunshine. I love you.” With that I turn and leave.

We enter the office, and I freeze.

What the fuck did I just do?

I just told Cecilia I love her.

For the first time.

As I’m being led out of the room by my furious brothers.

Fuck.

Chapter 33

Cecilia

I’m being led to the sitting room by Roman’s parents and Margot, but I can’t focus on anything they say.

‘I love you.’

Roman’s words echo in my mind.

I’m elated that he said them, that he told me he loved me, but as he’s leaving the room, with his family around, not giving me the chance to reply, caught me off guard.

Nevertheless, he said it. And I know he meant it.

We’ll discuss it later, and I’ll tell him I feel the same way.

“Cecilia, what is it you do?” Mrs. Montclair interrupts my realization once we sit on the couch and chairs.

“I’m a PT tech for a physical therapy clinic in the city. It’s a nice job. I get to help people heal, and that’s really fulfilling,” I say with a smile. Even though my job is hopefully temporary, I do enjoy helping the patients. “I also teach yoga after work some days.”

“That all sounds amazing. You seem like a selfless woman,” she replies with a smile of her own, and it warms my heart.

“You really do… So, how did you end up with Roman?” Margot asks with what can only be described as a dumbfounded expression on her face.