Page 34 of Stolen Temptation (Irish Kings #3)

“I didn’t. Finn did.” Rory’s gaze falls to his lap.

“It was a crazy time for the family, and I was working around the clock. I didn’t have much time to spend with her, and she took advantage of that by snooping through all my papers and my laptop.

From there, she grew bolder. Finn caught her in Shane’s office, rifling through files in the cabinet she pried open.

We were all supposed to be away from the estate that night, but he forgot a contract he needed and returned home to grab it. ”

Ouch. “He must have been so pissed. I bet he felt terrible breaking the news.”

His laugh is bitter. “He did, and I made it worse because I refused to believe him at first. Not until I reviewed the video footage and saw for myself.” He shakes his head in disgust. “Some IT guy I was. I trusted her so much that I didn’t even try to hide the screen whenever I’d type in my password. ”

Sadness seizes me. “You loved her. Of course you’d never believe that she would betray you like that. Who was she working for?”

“A less powerful rival from New Jersey that had aspirations of taking our spot.”

I’m almost afraid to ask the next question, but I can’t stop myself. “What…happened to her?”

Rory’s expression darkens. “Do you really need to ask? There’s no room for traitors in our family.”

I gulp. Why do I feel like he aimed that last comment at me? “Did you try to save her?” I whisper.

His jaw clenches, and an alarming blankness descends over his eyes.

“Who do you think had to take care of the problem, Kiara? I brought her into our family, our estate, despite numerous warnings from my friends, Finn in particular. So it was my responsibility to step up when she was outed. After we extracted as much information as we could, Finn took pity on me and offered to end it, but I refused.” Rory dispenses the words slowly as if dragging the story from a rusty, locked vault in his mind.

“Sometimes, I still hear her pleas in my nightmares.”

His voice trails off like he’s haunted.

Of course he is. He had to kill his girlfriend, the woman he loved, because she was a spy.

A shudder racks my body. Part of me wants to wrap my arms around him and soothe his pain. The other part wants to retreat to a safe distance away.

“I was such a dumbass back then.” Rory drops his head back once more, his eyes fixed on the high ceiling above us.

“If I hadn’t been… If I’d just listened to someone instead of proceeding blindly ahead, maybe I could have saved her.

But I was young and foolish, certain I was right and everyone else was wrong. ”

My heart aches for him, and the part of me yearning to offer comfort seizes the reins.

“Rory, you can’t blame yourself. Like you said, you were young, and you loved her.

And as awful as the outcome was, she must have understood the risks going into it.

Even people with no interaction with families like yours know that you don’t screw over the mafia without dire consequences. ”

“Maybe, but that doesn’t change the outcome. I put my family at risk and cost a woman her life. I’m lucky she hadn’t found enough yet to completely fuck us over. If it wasn’t for Finn, who knows what would have happened?”

And I bet Finn never forgot either.

His gaze falls on me. “Whatever you do, don’t lie to me, Kiara.”

I nod and blink away the sting of tears. That was Rory’s serious relationship? I can’t imagine what going through something like that does to a person.

Uneasiness prickles my neck. Only a fool would miss the parallels between that situation and mine. Of course, I know I’m not a spy, but no one else does. What if Rory refuses to believe me? Or Finn?

What happens when he discovers the secret I’m still hiding?

As much as I want to be honest with him, there’s no way I can tell him now. The second he learns I’m a De Luca, I’ll be following in Alayna’s footsteps.

A fraught and vulnerable silence unfurls between us. After a while, Rory tilts his head toward me. His walls drop, and his expression remains unguarded.

“If I say I’ll keep you safe, would you believe me?” The look he’s giving me suggests that my answer matters to him.

“Yes.” My whisper brings tears to my eyes.

And it’s true. I really do believe him.

The realization sandbags me. Despite the fact that this man kidnapped me, I actually trust him.

Rory leans over until our foreheads touch. “Come here.”

My body obeys him without a single thought. I scoot closer, and Rory maneuvers us until we’re reclining on the couch, with me tucked against his chest.

His heart thumps beneath my ear. The rhythmic sound is so peaceful and soothing that I could fall asleep right here, even in the arms of this very dangerous man.

I close my eyes, allowing myself to rest in the tenderness of this small moment, awed by the fact that this could have easily never happened. If things with Shane had gone differently, I might be tied up and locked in a van this very moment, being carted back to Leo…

I shudder just imagining that scenario.

“What is it?” Rory’s voice is warm near my forehead.

I shake my head against his chest. “What’s going to happen to me?”

I feel Rory’s exhale vibrate through me. “I don’t know what they’re going to decide to do with you, but I do know this. I’ll be fucking damned before I allow them to ship you back to those monsters.”

The grim resolve in his voice lets me know he means those words. And my heart melts a little more when he doesn’t even pressure me for information or to talk to Shane.

Relief and gratitude spring up inside me like wildflowers popping out between cracks in the concrete. Everything still seems a little hopeless, but Rory’s vow to protect me not only from my family, but from his too… I don’t know what to say.

“What about you?” I murmur into his shoulder. “Wouldn’t there be fallout for you?”

“Probably.” He kisses my forehead, dismissing the possibility of trouble. Which is absurd.

I know mafia family trouble.

Mafia family trouble is bad trouble . Life and death trouble.

How can he promise to protect me when we both know doing so means potentially putting his safety on the line? I don’t know how to process that question or the possible answer. And can I allow him to do that? When all I need to do to reduce his risk is reveal my true identity to Shane?

The tension in Rory’s body radiates into my own. I’m scared, but being this close to him somehow calms me. His demeanor, the strength of his body and will…who knew I could be comforted by these things?

Despite the charged situation we’re in, Rory and I keep talking.

The energy between us is different. While it’s not the intense sexual energy of this afternoon, the intimacy is still there. It’s real.

I tell him about how when I was little, my mother would spread paper all over the ground near her easel and let me go to town.

Half the time, I ended up wearing more paint than the paper, but she’d just laugh and tell me that art was messy work.

I tell him my father was barely in the picture, which was for the best.

Rory folds his arm around my shoulders, turning our bodies toward each other a little more. “My dad died when I was a teenager, and my mom basically…never recovered.”

“What do you mean?” I tilt my head back and find myself staring at Rory’s chin.

“I think I’ve mentioned my mom’s Alzheimer’s before.

We learned about her diagnosis a few years ago…

” Rory squeezes me a little tighter. “It came on so fast, none of us saw it coming. And then last year, she got out of the house on her own one day. She was found wandering the streets alone and confused after almost getting hit by a car.”

I squeeze Rory back, empathy pinching my insides. Thinking about his mom spurs me into thinking about mine. “I’m so sorry that happened.”

“Me too…” He sighs again. “After that, I knew it was time to take her to a full-time care facility for her safety. But I had a really difficult time with that.”

I just nod.

What else is there for me to do? I can’t even imagine the amount of pain Rory’s been in all these years.

“Before her mind deteriorated, we used to be really close.” His mouth turns down. “Now, she doesn’t even recognize me anymore. Seems like forever ago when she used to take me to art galleries around the city. I never told you, but that’s when I first saw a Libertas.”

When I glance back up, his eyes are there, waiting for mine.

“Really?” I can’t stop myself.

He presses a small kiss to my lips. “Really.”

“It must’ve been one of my mom’s…” I try to imagine this man and his mother admiring my mom’s work. It’s like catching a glimpse of a beautiful parallel universe.

“My dad dropped a couple tens of thousands over the years to get a few for my mom before he passed away.” Rory’s smiling.

“I remember how he always hung them on the wall himself while my mom sat with me at the kitchen table and told me the stories each of the Libertas paintings took inspiration from.”

“Which ones did you have?” Eager to form the connection, I flip through my mental catalogue of Mom’s paintings.

“ The Looking Glass , Deep Forest , and Swan Lake .”

Affection bursts like fireworks inside me.

Honestly, I’m deeply touched by this entire discussion. I can’t even speak.

I sense Rory’s deep grief for his parents, but I can also sense the beautiful warmth the three of them shared so long ago.

But then a thought hits me.

With a start, I realize that in choosing to protect me, Rory might lose another family. Can I really stand to let that happen after learning how he’s already suffered?

Rory must feel my sudden distress because his fingertips appear at my chin, tilting my face back up to his.His warm gaze searches mine. “What is it?”

“I can’t let you do this.” My eyes well up.

Rory’s expression crinkles in confusion. Gently, he pulls us both up into a sitting position on the couch. “What are you talking about?”

“If the Kings decide to send me back to Leo, that’s what you’ve got to do.”

Anger sharpens his features. “ No . I refuse.”

“I’m serious, Rory.”

He seems to grow a few sizes as he tenses, his jaw tight and shoulders taut. “So am I.”

“Please.” I swallow down the knot in my throat. “I won’t let you give up your family to protect me.”

“It’s not right, Kiara.” Rory’s face becomes stormy again.

His hands grip my shoulders, commanding my focus.

“It’s not right for you to be traded around like a baseball card, like you don’t have any right to make choices for yourself.

It’s wrong for the De Lucas to treat you that way, and it’s wrong for the Kings to do the same. I won’t let it happen.”

Hearing those words creates an intimacy I didn’t believe was possible.

Sitting close, something sweet and delicate blooms between us. Something I want to protect, the same way he wants to protect me.

But would he feel this way if he knew who I really was?

Rory takes both of my hands in his. “I promise that I’m going to do everything in my power to keep you safe.”

His eyes…that expression on his face.

My heart can’t take it.

I think I might be falling for this man.

The man who literally plucked me out of my life and plopped me right down in his.

The man who protected me in a dangerous situation.

The man who trusts me.

Shit. I can’t keep this from him any longer. I need to tell him the truth.

I squeeze my eyes shut, inhale a deep breath, and open them again. “Rory, there’s something you should know?—”

We’re interrupted by the sound of the giant library doors opening.

The fit blond I kicked in the face pokes his head inside. He looks excited.

Rory rises from his chair. “Darren? What’s going on?”

“Sorry to break this up, but I need to borrow Rory for a little bit. It shouldn’t take too long. Hopefully.”

Rory shoots me a scattered glance. “Why don’t you wait for me in here? I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

To my utter shock, he presses a quick kiss to the top of my head before following Darren out.

I exhale and drag my hand down my face. Saved by the bell. But my stay of execution is only delayed. When Rory returns, the first thing I need to do is tell him the other reason my mom and I lived at the De Luca estate.

I glance at all the books. In the meantime, at least I’m in the perfect spot for a distraction.