Page 45 of Scandalous Kingpin

IVY

“He makes you cry, say the word,” Aemon warned in a hushed tone before slipping into the back seat of the town car they arrived in.

“We’ll kill him,” Bren added, and I laughed. If they’d made this offer a few hours ago, fresh off yet another rejection (this time at the altar, in front of my friends and family), I might’ve taken them up on it. But I could already feel myself softening to him, and my resolve weakened each time I rubbed the ring on my finger or felt my dress sway around me. I reminded myself that the man I married had many layers.

“We’ll bury him six feet under, princess,” Caelan chimed in, his eyes shining darkly. Then he hugged me and slipped a piece of paper into my palm. “The information you asked for.”

I stiffened, my eyes widening. “Already?”

After Christian shared some of his story with me, I did a bit of sleuthing and ran into a name. Father Gabriel Metto. A little more and I discovered he was the principal of the school the DiLustro brothers attended. Knowing the kind of sickness thatlived inside Father Gabriel, it wasn’t hard to draw conclusions. If I was wrong, Christian could correct me.

“I have contacts in the Vatican.” He winked. “I took the liberty of booking you and my shiny new brother-in-law a private flight and hotel suite in Rome.”

Game. Set. Match.

The priest who dared hurt my husband would never see us coming.

I took my brother’s hand and squeezed it gratefully. “Thank you so much.”

“Of course. Anything for my baby sister.” He kissed one cheek, then the other. “And if you need anything else, you’ll call. Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

He climbed into the back seat and I watched my brothers—our last guests—drive away, leaving me alone with my new husband.

I let my gaze roam, but Christian was nowhere to be found. With everyone gone, the church and its gardens felt deserted, despite that only minutes ago it brimmed with energy. The chirping birds outside and hum of the organs inside swirled as I made my way toward the rectory.

The doors of the cathedral creaked as I opened them and stepped inside the cool, dark space.

They closed behind me with a loud thud, making me jump and whirl around. All the candles had been extinguished, leaving it almost pitch black, the faded daylight barely making its way through the windows.

My skin tingled with anticipation.

“Christian?” My voice bounced off the centuries-old stone, the stillness somewhat eerie. “Hello?”

Did he disappear again?

I heard some shuffling behind me and whirled around, my anxiety climbing tenfold.

I scanned the darkness, trying to distinguish shapes, but there was nothing.

My heels clicked as I walked deeper into the church until I reached the altar. A distant howl that could have been the result of my wild imagination sent my pulse into overdrive. My breaths became ragged as I backed against a pew, my thigh jamming against an iron coat hook, but I didn’t even register the pain.

My mouth went dry as I whipped around and around, my head spinning.

“Christian, I swear to God?—”

His hand reached over my shoulder and covered my mouth as he pulled me back against his muscled body.

“There she is,” he rasped into my ear. “Don’t scream.”

“What are you doing?” I asked in a muffled voice.

“I’ve been fantasizing about tasting you again for far too long.”

I gasped against his palm, darting my tongue out and licking his hand. A rumble vibrated in his throat and he pushed his free hand through my scalp, sending tingles of pain shooting through me.

“Someone will see us.”