Page 78 of Thorns of Love

We were at the mahogany front door and she pushed it open with both hands.

“We don’t knock or ring a doorbell?” I muttered my question under my breath.

She barely moved her lips. “He said to come in. Trust me.”

I trusted her. I didn’t trust Marchetti.

We wandered into a gorgeously designed foyer. The crystal chandelier glittered. The marble floors had angel designs on them. The beige walls had valuable art dating back centuries on them.

Jesus Christ!

You’d never have to move past the foyer to rob this man and he didn’t even have guards. There was something fundamentally wrong with Marchetti. I was certain.

She started for the staircase and I stiffened. “Please tell me he didn’t instruct you to go to his bedroom.”

She let out a soft groan and I watched in fascination as the back of her neck turned red. Good God, I didn’t think I wanted to know what she and Marchetti got into. I might kill him myself. Yeah, he was hot as sin and had some serious hot daddy vibes, but Isla was too fucking young for him.

Goddamn it! I should have loaded bullets in my gun for him.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

We made our way up the stairs, our heels clicking softly against the off-white marble floors. Our breathing mixed with the echo of our heels, projecting through the house.

We were both nervous. Perspiration ran down my back and my hand trembled, holding the gun pressed against my sister-in-law’s back. I tried to apply the breathing technique Sasha taught me to keep me calm. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.

It was fucking nonsense.

It only fed my adrenaline. My ears buzzed. My stress kicked up a notch. This couldn’t be good for my babies.

“Just a bit more, babies,” I murmured softly. “Then it’ll be all over.”

“Are you talking to the twins?” Isla asked incredulously.

“Yeah.”

“Now?” she hissed under her breath. “You couldn’t have done that before we left the hotel?”

“I wasn’t that nervous then.” Deep breaths. Deep breaths. “I want them to know they’re safe.”

“Enrico won’t hurt them,” she assured softly, just as we reached the top of the first floor. “Or you. If he tries, I’ll kill him.”

I rolled my eyes. “Isla, you’re scaring me.”

She shot me a dark look. “I’m not that innocent,” she remarked.

I knew it. It slipped in the moments she didn’t keep her guard up. Except I didn’t think she liked whatever plagued her. This secret that sat heavy in her heart.

“None of us are,” I told her softly. “All of us make mistakes and fuck up. But we move on, make the best of it, and make peace with our mistakes. It’s the reason I’m doing this.”

She gave me a pensive look, both of our steps faltering. I wanted to tell her so much more, but the moment wasn’t right. I needed to assure her that whatever it was she was harboring, I could help her. Her brother could help her. She’d be family, no matter what.

But I never had the chance.

“I must say, I didn’t expect two of you here.” A deep voice startled us and had us jumping out of our skin. My heart raced into overdrive and I tried to control my breathing.

Steeling my spine and evening my breaths, I shoved the barrel of the gun into Isla’s back. Not hard, but enough that she’d feel it pressed on her back. On cue, she stumbled forward, as if I pushed her with all my strength.

“Ouch,” she whimpered and I had to bite the inside of my cheek.