NICO

Geneva stumbled when I helped her out of the limo. She had to steady herself before she made it to the steps.


I kept hold of her, but once we got inside the foyer, she pulled it together and straightened up. She shot me one more glance and looked away. So much for that. It was sweet while it lasted, but now it was over.

She took a few steps toward the stairs, and I headed back outside to get her bags out of the trunk when she stopped. She stiffened when she heard voices coming from Levi's office.

She walked over to the door. I didn't need to go with her now that she was inside the house, but for some reason I couldn't explain, I followed her.


Levi and Charles stood inside talking across Levi's desk, and from the strain in both their voices, it didn't sound good.

Geneva strode in and looked back and forth between them. 'What's going on?"


'I'm sorry to have to tell you this, Princess," Levi replied, 'but Ryder is gone."

'Gone!" she gasped. 'What do you mean—gone?"

'He went home," Charles replied. 'He went back to his family."

'And he's withdrawn his proposal," Levi finished. 'He no longer wishes to be considered as a suitor for your hand."

'What?!" she shrieked. 'Why? Why didn't he at least wait to talk to me first?"

'That was his choice," Levi replied. 'He wanted to do it immediately so he wouldn't be able to back out on his decision."

'But why?" Her voice rose even higher. 'Why did he leave? What went wrong? Everything was fine last night."

'Maybe he never really wanted to marry you at all," Charles replied. 'Maybe he was just playing you… or maybe this was all some elaborate ploy by his family to fuck with us."

She rounded on him in fury. 'How dare you even suggest that? You son of a bitch!"

He waved her off. 'He's a Navaro. What do you expect?"

'He did not do it to play me! He was serious." She turned back to Levi. 'Call him. Get him back here."

'Give it up," Charles told her. 'It's over. He's gone, and he won't come back."

She exploded in rage and charged him. She landed several punches on his chest and face before I reached her.

'He was NOT playing me!" she roared. 'You liar! You did something to him, didn't you?Youdid this!"

She swung her fists faster, and I lunged. I caught her by the elbow before she could knock his daylights out.

'You bastard! What did you do to him? I'll kill you for this!"

I dragged her off him, but she still fought me to reach him. Her energy erupted in such a volcanic rage that she took all three of us by surprise.

Charles shrank from her, pressing his wrist to his eyebrow where she landed one of her punches. He backed away and gave me plenty of space to wrestle her out of the room.

I finally got my arms around her waist and eventually lifted her off the floor, but she kept screaming at him and thrashing to attack him. 'Let me go! You bastards! You did something to him! Let me go, Nico! I hate you, Charles!"

I hauled her into the foyer and onto the stairs before she finally gave it up and burst into tears. I didn't let go of her, though.

I carried her up to her room, and when I set her feet on the floor, she crumpled onto her bed. She buried her face in her hands sobbing her eyes out.

I dared to run my fingers through her hair and then stopped myself. She wasn't mine. Saying it while I fucked her was just a game. She would never be mine. She was crying over another man right now.

She flopped down on the bed, buried her face in the bedspread, and then twisted over on her back. Tears streaked sideways into her hair, and her eyes swam when she looked up at me. 'They did something to him. I know they did."

I couldn't bear to see her hurting like this, so I sat down next to her on the bed. I petted her wet cheeks and raked her hair back. 'You don't know that. You don't know what happened."

'He didn't do it to fuck with me." Her features twisted up in a fresh wave of anguish. 'He couldn't! Everything was great between us last night."

'I'll find out what's going on. Just stay here. Don't go downstairs… and don't go near Charles. I don't want to wind up in the hospital again."

I tried to make it a joke, but saying that only seemed to make her more miserable. Her eyes snapped over to me. 'Don't start hating me again, Nico, please! I can't stand it."

'I never hated you, Princess." Calling her that stabbed me in the heart. I shouldn't, but it seemed like the most appropriate thing to call her. 'I just wanted… I wanted something that can never be. You have three amazing guys all vying for your hand. You could never marry me. It's hopeless, and today didn't change that."

She burst into tears again. She covered her face with both hands and sobbed as though her heart would break. Her whole body spasmed and twisted in pain. I couldn't watch this.

I got up and let myself out of the room. I could still hear her sobbing all the way down the hall to the stairs.

I went back to Levi's office to find him and Charles in the same places as before. They talked fast in low whispers, but they stopped as soon as I walked in.

Levi straightened up and faced me. 'How did it go today?"

I shrugged. 'Pretty standard. Nothing worth reporting."

'That's good."

I saw him preparing to brush me off. I couldn't let that happen. 'What's the deal with Ryder? Why did he leave?"

Levi took a deep breath, glanced once at Charles, and launched into the whole sordid tale. 'His father and brothers planned to use this marriage to rob Geneva of her inheritance. They planned to steal all her assets and ruin her to get revenge on her father. They never intended to honor the union at all."

I stared at him with my jaw on the floor. 'Was that their plan all along? I can't believe Ryder was planning this last night—not after the way they were acting around each other."

'This was neverhisplan," Charles replied. 'His father sprang it on him right before they left him here. He had nothing to with it."

'Did he say that?" I asked. 'How do you know that wasn't part of the trick?"

Levi shook his head. 'He was the one who suggested leaving to keep her safe. He did it to protect Geneva from his father and brothers. He didn't trust himself not to accept if she decided to choose him as her husband."

'Jesus!" My hand flew to my head, and I strode over to the window.

'Which means you'll need to bolster security even more," Levi added. 'I don't see how we can bolster it more than we already have, but we have to find a way. At least we know the Navaros are planning something, and Ryder gave us details on a few of their upcoming hits."

'He's the best there is," Charles remarked. 'He should have been the one to marry her. Now, it's impossible."

'Do you need to go home too?" Levi asked him. 'Your father probably needs you considering what Ryder told you about the Navaros targeting the Terranovas."

Charles winced and ran his fingers through his hair. 'I've been thinking… I should leave. I should withdraw in your favor. It will be better for her if I leave the way clear for you."

I looked back and forth between these two men in stunned shock. Levi proposed to Geneva? This was the first I heard of it. I knew he was fucking her on the side, but this!

'I can't accept that," Levi replied. 'You're younger, and you two have a long history together. She loves you, and I'm so old I might not be able to give the family an heir at all. I should be the one to step aside for you."

'No, no," Charles began. 'She loves you a hell of lot more than me, and you'll be able to keep Don Alonzo's power in the family."

Levi chuckled. 'I tell you what. We'll both stick around and let her decide. It's just down to the two of us. That will make it easier for her." He extended his hand across the desk. 'What do you say?"

'All right." Charles stepped forward, and they shook hands. Then they went back to talking about security, the upcoming Navaro hits that Ryder tipped them off about, and how to consolidate the Levine and Terranova families after whichever of them ended up marrying Geneva.

I wobbled on my heels taking all this in. So Levi proposed to Geneva too. Jesus living Christ, this really drove the nail in my coffin.

I stumbled out of the office. I had to deal with all the security measures, and now we knew for certain the Navaros would be hitting our operations in Times Square.

I couldn't think about any of that right now, though. Charles Terranova proposing to Geneva was bad enough. He was young, good-looking, and Geneva already loved him.

Now I found out Levi Evangelista proposed to her too. I swallowed down rising despair. No way could I compete with Levi. I would never want to compete with him.

If I ever cared about Geneva at all, I should want her to marry the best man for her. Either of them would be better for her than I ever could be. I was nothing but a passing fling to her. I would never be anything else.

I halted in the driveway and looked around. The estate reminded me of an alien planet with a poisonous atmosphere that I couldn't breathe. I didn't belong here.

I should leave right now. I should walk away and take myself out of the picture. Every minute I spent here ripped my heart to pieces, and I just couldn't stand the pain anymore.