Chapter 10 #2
“What should I say, then?”
I grab both of our empty plates and stand up to take them to the garbage.
“That someone is targeting you, and might target them, so they should keep an eye out,” I reply.
“That’s incredibly fucking vague, Dante. I think they should know who,” Ethan says, his voice laced with frustration.
“I don’t know them. I don’t know if they can be trusted,” I say as I throw the plates away and toss the forks in the sink.
“You don’t know me ,” he huffs. “Other than what you found out by stalking me.”
I turn to him, my chest tight. “I wanna know you, Ethan. This is a complicated situation. Anyone who knows about this is in danger. Anyone who doesn’t know is also in danger. They could be in more or less based on what they know; I can’t know for sure.”
Ethan stands up as well and steps closer to me. “Fine. I’ll figure it out later, but Nathan texted me asking why I wasn’t at my morning class today. I’m not sure what to tell him.”
I sigh and run my fingers through my hair. “I can’t keep you here forever, but I need to keep an eye on you. You can go to the rest of your classes today, but there are gonna be guards tailing you.”
“Guards?” he asks.
“Bodyguards. They usually tail me during jobs, and when things are sketchy. I’ll have a couple assigned to you,” I explain. “They won’t bother you or get in your way unless someone poses a danger to you.”
“You can’t just…come with me?” he asks.
I shake my head. “No. I gotta talk to my family about what happened, and there’s a ritual tomorrow that we’re preparing for.”
He stares at me. “Ritual?” he asks. “Like…witches?”
I chuckle. “Not quite. It’s a ritual of loyalty. Anyone who joins the family, on their own or through marriage, has to pledge a blood oath.”
His eyes go wide. “Holy shit, that’s…wow. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.”
My eyes stay locked on his, seeing the confusion and fear there, but also curiosity.
“Why don’t you come with me tomorrow?” I suggest.
“To the ritual?”
I nod. “Yeah. We wanna know each other, right? I want you to see firsthand what my family is like. What you have in store.”
He nearly chokes. “What I have in store?”
I step closer to him and hold his chin between my fingers. “If you plan on staying mine.”
“Right now, I can’t imagine anything else,” he whispers.
It’s still uncertain, and even I don’t know where this is going, but I still can’t help but kiss him.
I capture his mouth firmly, and he kisses me back slow and deep. His mouth tastes like heaven, a place I’ll never know except through him.
I talk with my father and he agrees to allow guards to tail Ethan. He seems irritated by my choice in lovers, but doesn’t disagree that the problem needs to be handled.
However, he insists that we deal with the Greivans after Tessa and Yvette’s ritual.
Needless to say, it’s difficult to focus on class when I don’t know what they’re planning next. Ethan seems distracted, too, but goes to his classes for the rest of that day and the next as usual. I pick him up and drop him off at his apartment, since his car was totaled.
I haven’t asked what he’s decided to tell Nathan and Lena, and a part of me doesn’t want to know. We haven’t touched each other since before he left the safe house.
I’m starting to wonder if he’s having regrets.
Regardless, once it’s dark, I pick him up to bring him to the family mansion. I know that tonight could make or break us. He could run scared, and I won’t be able to blame gay denial for why we aren’t together this time.
“Does your family know I’ll be there?” Ethan asks from the passenger seat.
“They know. Not everyone agrees, but it’s not up to them.” I tap my fingers on the steering wheel.
“What should I expect?”
I feel his eyes on me from the side.
“No ritual is exactly the same. They choose where they cut themselves, and when the ritual happens,” I explain.
“When?” he asks.
“Some people, couples specifically, choose to do it earlier in their relationship. Tessa and Yvette wanted to do it closer to the wedding.”
“Tessa and Yvette…they’re getting married, then. When?”
“In a month. Contessa is my cousin. Yvette is from a family that, until recently, was one of our rivals. Their marriage will seal the merging of and alliance between our families.”
“That’s intense. I can only imagine how much pressure that must be for them.”
I turn into the long driveway of the Romano estate. “It’s how things are done in our family. They happen to actually love each other, but my father would push for it either way.”
Ethan is quiet as I pull up and park. His eyes go wide as he looks out of the window and up at the building. It’s not so large as to draw the attention that a celebrity’s mansion might, but it’s significantly lavish and traditional.
I unbuckle, but he doesn’t.
“Are you sure I should be here?”
“I want you here,” I say. “You need to see this. You need to understand what my life is like.”
He nods slowly, and finally unbuckles his seatbelt.
We get out of the car, and I lead him up the stairs to the large door bordered by tall windows made of frosted glass.
There are a dozen or so other cars in the driveway, and as I unlock and open the door, I hear low classical music flowing down the hall along with the sound of voices, muffled and serious.
“Is there anything else I should know?” Ethan asks as I lead him down the hallway after we take our coats off.
“Stay quiet during the ritual,” I tell him. “Interruption is a major offense.”
Ethan looks away from me nervously, but continues to follow me up the spiral staircase and into a large room.
I feel eyes on us—my family’s, both blood and hire—but I couldn’t give any less of a shit. My main focus is Ethan.
“I see you’ve brought a guest, Dante,” Aunt Tania comments as she steps over to us. She has an air of confidence about her, which doesn’t surprise me.
“Yes. This is Ethan,” I say. “Ethan, this is my aunt, Tania. Contessa is her daughter.”
Ethan wipes his hands on his jeans and then reaches out to shake her hand. Tania looks surprised, but reaches out to shake.
“Well, he certainly has more manners than you,” she chuckles. “Pleasure to meet you, Ethan, especially on a night like tonight. Everyone should behold such a glorious occasion.”
Ethan offers her a strained smile and lets go of her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, too. I’m happy to be here.”
“Let me find your father, Dante. I’m sure he wants to meet the young man,” Tania insists.
“You don’t need to do that,” I reply. The longer I can hold off on the two of them meeting, the better. The last thing I need is my father making a judgment about Ethan when we’ve just gotten here.
Tania waves a hand. “Of course I do. I’ll be back.”
I look at him as she leaves, and he gives me a curious look.
“She’s excited for tonight,” he says.
“Yvette and Tessa’s union was her idea. She’s thrilled that they actually love each other, but if tonight could be all about her, she’d be even happier,” I explain quietly.
Ethan hums in response and shoves his hands into his pockets. He’s tense.
My eyes fall from his face to his shoulders, down his arms…
“You know, I could ease some of that tension later,” I whisper, stepping closer so only he can hear me.
He blinks at me, and then his face flushes as he processes my words. “Yeah?” his voice is quiet.
“Mhmm. The ritual always turns me on. It’s so intense, so raw. Everyone gets a little hot under the collar,” I tell him, and slowly slide my hand to his lower back.
Ethan blushes deeper, but he moves away from my hand, his eyes scanning the room nervously.
“No one here is judging you. Not for that, anyway,” I insist. “And no one’s going to out you.”
He nods and moves closer again. “What would you do to help me?”
I smirk. “Well, first—” I’m cut off by my father speaking. He’s standing in the center of the room, surrounded by several dozen people, all cloaked in the dim lighting.
“The ritual of loyalty has been a part of our history since the very beginning. Every single person who joins this family must pledge themselves not just to us, but to the Romano family crest.” He waves his hand around, and then pulls out a necklace.
The amulet is a silver and purple crest depicting a hand wrapped around a thorny rose, dripping blood.
Aunt Tania must not have gotten to him in time.
She’s standing near him on the other side of the circle.
I slowly rub my hand up and down Ethan’s back as we watch.
“Today, Contessa Romano and Yvette Marcus pledge their marriage in loyalty and blood to the family, bringing together two strong families after two decades of rivalry.”
After my father is done speaking, two people carry out a wooden bench with a leather cushion on top. I can’t see them from where we’re standing, but I know that the legs of the bench are engraved with the crest.
The room is silent except for the classical music and footsteps as Tessa and Yvette walk to the bench from opposite sides.
They’re each dressed in white—Contessa in a white slip and Yvette in white silk pants and a shirt. They’re barefoot, with their hair and skin in its natural state.
It’s hard not to watch Ethan instead of the women. I want to see his reaction to know if he can handle this. As much as I want him, if he can’t handle my family, it’s probably better to know now than later.
I shake the thought of him not being able to away, and bring my attention back to the center of the room.
Tessa and Yvette each kneel on the bench to face each other. My father holds the amulet between them as he hands Tessa the ceremonial dagger.
The tension in the room is thick as Tessa takes the dagger and cuts herself just below her collarbone.
Pain knits her brows, but I can tell she’s trying hard not to show it.
Then she unbuttons Yvette’s shirt enough to expose the same area of her chest and cuts her the same way. Her hand hesitates, but she does it.
Yvette’s face doesn’t change. She only looks into Tessa’s eyes with fierce intensity and affection.